Hey guys, so let me ask you

I was always told to check the oil cap on used cars went wanting to buy if its milky or not to confirm head gasket issues....now I never heard of them on a C43 but after a 20 min drive we opened the cap and its all milky...not just the cap but if u look inside where you fill the oil its alot of that stuff there too. Keep in mind the car for the last 4 months has been going in and out of the shop when the place closes so could this be general moisture buildup or is this thing ****ed- walk away?

It has been in an accident aswell for sure...even though the car fax didnt state it...the paint tone was different on 2 doors and especially since in between the seats I have found smashed glass pieces....the only reason im thinking of this car is because its $7000 (CDN) with $174,000 kms + 3 owners. I already have a pristine W202 C230 Kompressor 1999 and always wanted to add a C43 to my "stable" - the dealership will change new rotors that it needs (AMG). I found nothing really wrong of course will have it mechanically inspected.

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

To answer your question, nah...I don't think you should walk away. You should R-U-N!!!!!!!!!

F* that thing, it's toast man. It's been wrecked, it has a bajillion miles, and it needs a head gasket right off the bat. Why even consider that thing? It will cost you more than you're saving.

It has 108,000 miles = 174,000 kms

Im gonna run it by a mechanic just in case cause this isnt gonna be my only car at disposal....only cause its going for cheap Id have it moreso a "project" 202 but then again I have to look into this head gasket if thats an issue.....I cant find anywhere head gaskets going on a 43. Its mostlikely condensation in the engine im told so far... but keep the suggestions coming please guys

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

Whenever I sell a car I make sure to clean or replace the oil cap so buyers won't think there is something wrong if they see condensation. As long as the engine doesn't have a miss or a rough idle and there is no water on the dipstick or oil in the coolant, I wouldn't worry about it. Thats a good price on a rare car.

I found no milky residue on the dipstick....only on the oil cap and looking inside to the engine (where u put the cap) some milky stuff around that area. The engine did not shake and it fired right up.

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

Take a look at the coolant as well...see if it looks funky too.

That milky residue on the oil cap is a classic symptom of a blown head gasket/cracked head/block. Sorry dude. That engine won't last long with water in the sump. If it doesn't overheat itself to death, it will spin a bearing, or develop a knock/throw a rod.

It's probably still in the early stages if you didn't see any milky residue on the dipstick.

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Current cars:
2000 ML55 AMG, 174k miles
2003 C240 T-Modell, 202k miles
1995 S320, 207k Miles

That milky residue is relatively common on the M112/M113 series V-6's and V-8's. Had the car sat for a long period before you drove it? It is definitely more common on cars that don't get driven far enough on a regular basis to warm them up fully.

Head gaskets aren't much of an issue on those engines. You can always ask your mechanic to pressure test the cooling system to check for a head gasket leak.

I personally don't like cars that have been in accidents, but if you go in with full knowledge of what your are getting, that's cool too.

My E430 had that condensation as well. A new thermostat helped maintain a higher engine temp, and oil changes and longer drive times have stopped it form recurring. Another thing that will help is to ake sure the vent holes on the valve covers aren't clogged - these are actually tiny holes inside the seemingly bigger connections where the vent hoses connect. Toothpick or peice of wire can reach in and poke through.

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Prost!

I know how to convert KM to M, and that's still a crapload of miles. As a comparison, I've got a 1998 SL500 with 56k on it, and a 2001 SL600 with 28k on it. You can find nice low mileage examples all over, why buy one with 110k already on it?

That looks like a lot of water in the oil to be caused by condensation, you can see where the oil/water mixture has actually been frothed by the internals. I'd be worried. How does the coolant tank look? Any oil film?

And lastly, as you noted, it's been wrecked. Why buy a wrecked car? You're making an expensive bet on trusting that all the work was performed properly, and that the frame is aligned right, and that there won't be any leaks with the replacement glass, etc., etc. I've rarely seen a wrecked car turn out anywhere close to as good as new. A lot of them leak, make funky noises, and don't handle right. I just don't get the logic, why deal with that?

I dunno, I would just save up and get a *real* one, not a busted up wrecked one with 110k miles, glass in the seats, etc.. This is a nice one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1999-Mercedes-Benz-C-Class-C43-BLK-RARE-4YR-WARRANTY_W0QQitemZ120416231941QQcmdZViewItemQQptZUS_Cars_Trucks?hash=item1c095de205&_trksid=p4506.c0.m245&_trkparms=72%3A317|65%3A12|39%3A1|240%3A1318

Remember: "Nothing's more expensive than a cheap car". That really holds true most of the time. There's a big chance that you'll wind up putting more money into this car than you're going to save on the purchase price, and when you're done you'll still have a wrecked car.

Obviously, you're going to do what you're going to do anyway, but IMO I would steer clear and keep looking for one with no issues.

108,000 miles on a 10 year old car is low miles these days, and those miles on a Mercedes are nothing.

First off he said it was in an accident which doesn't necessarily mean it was "wrecked". Cars get into fender benders and minor collisions all the time and its hard to find any car more than 3 or 4 years old that hasn't had at least a fender, bumper or hood repaired or replaced. Why buy a wrecked car? Well, your Ebay listing is the best argument for that, since it is more than double the price of the "wrecked" car.

I get the point of buying the "real" one....for the past 2 years ive been looking for a pristine C43.....I have better luck finding a pristine C220 than a C43...they are all butchered up for some reason! The ones that arent are ridiculously priced, I can justify spending close to 20 grand on a W202 AMG or not....so this is why I am ballparking with this one as really in person its pretty good.

I will have a mechanical inspection done this week.

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

I just posted a link to a perfect one for $13k, and they're all over autotrader as well, so evidently they're not that hard to find with low miles and in good condition. Based on what I've seen, you should be able to snag a nice one for <$15k.

I think you should pass on this one with multiple issues, and keep looking.

When you're only talking a $7k car, "double the price" isn't such a big deal, especially compared to the potential hidden repair costs involved in buying a beat-up example vs. a prime example of the same car. Realistically, you could probably get that eBay one with a decent offer, maybe $12k.

So if this $7k one you're looking at is anywhere near as beat up as it sounds, then you could easily burn through the $5k difference between that and a nice example in no time. And then you still own a wrecked car that will never be worth any money down the road because of the accident history. It's just a lose-lose.

And the difference between 'wrecked' and 'involved in an accident' is purely semantic. To any person considering buying that car from you down the road, it's been wrecked. 9 out of 10 people won't even consider buying it from you at any price, because as soon as they realize it's been wrecked, they'll run the other direction. And it sounds like nobody will have any trouble figuring out it's been wrecked, if they didn't blend and match the paint properly. It will be next to impossible to get rid of it in any reasonable amount of time, if you ever want/need to sell it. It'll take forever to move. And in addition, it is bound to have issues that a good example won't have.

I'm telling you man, you're setting yourself up for a headache. If the accident was bad enough that you're still digging broken glass out of the creases in the seats however many years later, and the repair work was shoddy enough that you've got different color paint on different doors, then why buy it? Those are huge red-flags.

And before you start thinking "well if anything breaks, I'll just do the work myself to save $$$", let me stop you there, because it's not the labor by itself that kills you with MB's. The parts are also insanely expensive in their own right, compared to other brands, and this will be even worse on an AMG model.

If this was the best example in the world, the guy wouldn't be selling it, and certainly not at a 50%+ discount to every other example of this model. Someone who knows more than you do about this thing wants to get rid of it so bad they're taking a 50% discount to fair value. What does that tell you? There's a reason people don't buy wrecked cars...

Its funny because I found the different paint tones on the one door however the carfax showed 100% perfect.....the gunk on the oil cap was moisture - engine runs very well and the tranny shifts perfect aswell has had frequent oil changes and service done at the dealer.


As for the ones on ebay, being in Canada im out of luck because they wont allow this car into the country from the US....I know someone that tried and got stuck at the border.

Still stumped

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

I drove an old Corolla about 15K miles with water in the oil. Trust me, it will eventually go.

Run away.

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1981 300TD
2005 C55
2004 E500
1999 ML430
1992 400E
1998 C43
2001 SL500
1988 300SEL
1986 190E 16V
1991 190E 2.6