Going to the Sheriff's auction tomorrow. They have a 98 SLK230. I am guessing 75-80k miles. Odds are 50/50 they have the keys and will start it, no test drive. Clean carfax showing regular service at MB dealers through 2005.
Any obvious things I can look for?
What would you bid?
TIA

If it runs..$8K?

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$8K-to $8500 @ the most.

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My feeling, is that it should only be aproached as a 100% gamble, especially on a vehicle like this under these circumstances.

Any vehicle that ended up in this kind of an auction would hardly be likely to have a good provenance of care.

In San Francisco, I've been to auctions like that several times, and once even bought a car there. You don't even know if they will run; honking the horn and turning on the lights give an idea if there is any juice in the battery.

Those cars were seized and towed for having unpaid parking tickets, being involved in hit and run accidents or other crimes, abandoned on the streets,
or otherwise given up on, or taken by the SFPD for whatever reason.

The SFPD auctions had an on-site person who would cut you an ignition key for $35.00 Don't know if he was set up to do that with Mercedes keys, which are harder to duplicate, and the dealerr will only usually do it with proof of ownership being shown.

www.autoreturn.com

In short, I can't think of a WORSE place to get a Mercedes Benz from. You have a very high probability that the car won't run, and if it did, will have a mountain of problems, the cost of fixing will easily wipe out any savings you might have.

It's a good place to look for a $500 beater car that might need some work.
I paid $325 for an old Chevy Cavalier wagon, but it needed, tires, brakes, a tuneup, muffler, battery, keys, and other things, but I put a few hundred into it and it lasted me for a couple of years, and I gave it to a friend when I was done.

Enough of the negatives. Here's a positive thought, that I bet you never thought of as a place to look for a good car at an auction. These are usually kept pretty secret, and for good reason.

Any city with a large airport nearby, will have long term airport parking.

About every 3-4 months, the lot will be swept for cars with unpaid parking fees, and after notice given, the cars will be auctioned off.

Every one of them ran when they were parked at the airport, and most of them belonged to people who could afford to fly far away. So there is a good chance they were reasonably well kept up, also.

There could be 1,000 reasons the cars went unclaimed. A city worker at SFO who knew about these said they even pick up a Rolls Royce or a Mercedes every once in a while!

Sometimes, those cars are dumped by people who had to leave the USA really quick.

It takes persistance to find out even the existence and whereabouts of these auctions, and get admission into it. It is a bonanza for the city workers and insiders, who naturally are not forthcoming about these.

I have personally seen the storage lot for these cars at SFO, but it's unmarked, and no casual motorist driving by would recognize it for what it is.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

Thanks for the input. I'm not going to bid too much but I'm not going to let them give it away for nothing either.

Dang. Sorry about the big pic, it's a link.

SOLD!!! But not to me. Sold for $6100 + ~$300 in storage fees. Looked a little rough. The paint seemed to chipping pretty bad off the interior trim.
Thanks for the info.