Does is ever stop...the repairs? Whys? - Page 3 - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

lsmalley · #31 03-20-2011, 02:51 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by tbomachines

Just wondering reading over some of these posts...do you guys really spend every weekend working on the car? No car I've ever owned, even the POSes have required that much maintenance! Personally I think thats nuts for anything but a project car (read: antique/classic in restoration).

a car that is 20+ years old will have some problems that need to be addressed. Its a staggered effect, say each part was designed to last 20 years.....well guess what: you'll have pretty much everything happening around the same time. I love my car and don't mind the work so much......sometimes it gets me, but I've had this car for along time and since I joined the forum, I have gotten so much experience with working on my car

Will_w202 · #32 03-20-2011, 09:59 AM

I'm retiring my 93 400E to life under a car cover behind the shed until I can part it out, or sell it whole. Lots of refreshed body and interior parts for the 86-89 models if you'd like to upgrade - body cladding, bumpers, near-perfect leather interior, 94/95 headlights, etc.

My decision came down to this: including purchase price, with repairs over 2.5 years, I've got about $8k in this car. It needs a trans, it needs shocks, it needs control arms, and even after that, one of the doors is rusting and the car needs a paint job. At that point, I'd be in it for about $15k, and we can all look at history and realize Benz sedans are just not good investments over time. Even a 6.9 Hammer from the 70s is only worth about $12k in good condition. A good 40yo SL Pagoda, all original? About 3-4 times that, and even more if it's mint.

I'm keeping the AMG wheels off my 400, with nice Michelins, and putting them on a 2-owner 92 500SL, with all major issues addressed, full records, original paint, hardtop, rebuilt trans....100k miles......etc. I'm getting a near-showroom SL, fully depreciated, for about what I'd pay to get the 400E back to where it should be.

Based on the 400e and the SL, and this being my 5th Benz (123, 124, 202, 203, now 129) I can tell you that the number of owners, the mechanic used, the strict adherence to service guidelines and PROMPT addressing of repairs over the car's life makes the difference between a $1k/year bill and a lifetime of constant headaches.

My advice is to sell your car and find a better example for $3k.

lee polowczuk · #33 03-20-2011, 01:42 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Will_w202

I'm retiring my 93 400E to life under a car cover behind the shed until I can part it out, or sell it whole. Lots of refreshed body and interior parts for the 86-89 models if you'd like to upgrade - body cladding, bumpers, near-perfect leather interior, 94/95 headlights, etc.

My decision came down to this: including purchase price, with repairs over 2.5 years, I've got about $8k in this car. It needs a trans, it needs shocks, it needs control arms, and even after that, one of the doors is rusting and the car needs a paint job. At that point, I'd be in it for about $15k, and we can all look at history and realize Benz sedans are just not good investments over time. Even a 6.9 Hammer from the 70s is only worth about $12k in good condition. A good 40yo SL Pagoda, all original? About 3-4 times that, and even more if it's mint.

I'm keeping the AMG wheels off my 400, with nice Michelins, and putting them on a 2-owner 92 500SL, with all major issues addressed, full records, original paint, hardtop, rebuilt trans....100k miles......etc. I'm getting a near-showroom SL, fully depreciated, for about what I'd pay to get the 400E back to where it should be.

Based on the 400e and the SL, and this being my 5th Benz (123, 124, 202, 203, now 129) I can tell you that the number of owners, the mechanic used, the strict adherence to service guidelines and PROMPT addressing of repairs over the car's life makes the difference between a $1k/year bill and a lifetime of constant headaches.

My advice is to sell your car and find a better example for $3k.

agreed

sptt · #34 03-20-2011, 07:54 PM

lsmalley...I agree with you. I have learned to fix things on a car I never thought I'd even attempt with the help of this forum. And...I was thinking the same thing...the parts that I have replaced are ORIGINAL parts that lasted 19-20 years!!! I'm just the one who is putting on the parts for the next 20! Lol! Almost remanufacturing the darn thing. I must admit...I do feel a great sense of accimplishment when I repair it and don't pay a small fortune in parts and labor

sptt · #35 03-20-2011, 07:57 PM

JohnM....I fixed the rattle in the back of my car today. It ended up being the driver side "anti-rattle" spring on the caliper assembly. It had lost the tension so I removed it, rebent it, replaced it...rattle gone!!! I also adjusted my parking brake on both sides as well. That is when I realized the rattle did not go away and used a rubber mallet to figure it out.

Part I rebent:

http://www.*********.com/catalog/199...le_spring.html

RANDY P · #36 03-21-2011, 02:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Army

Compared with depreciation I'm still of the opinion that it is better to repair an older vehicle rather than buying a new one - my economic reasoning however doesn't include my own time at a reasonable rate of pay - I consider it to be more of a hobby.

Which is why I guess most DIYers on this forum own multiple vehicles - it is all about redundancy when one horse gets tired you use another one out of the stable...

Nailed it. Everyone wonders why I have multiple cars- so I can afford NOT to have huge car payments.

(Actually I lie- car payments never stopped me from buying more cars. I just thought the reasoning made sense)

rjp

ps2cho · #37 03-21-2011, 03:37 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by RANDY P

Nailed it. Everyone wonders why I have multiple cars- so I can afford NOT to have huge car payments.

(Actually I lie- car payments never stopped me from buying more cars. I just thought the reasoning made sense)

rjp

It also allows you to work on the other car at your own time and leisure -- saving you money instead of rushing and/or taking it to a shop and paying them to figure it out.

I don't think I'd ever go back to owning a single car now that I have two....well, while owning older cars anyway.

Randy · #38 03-21-2011, 09:06 AM

Well, really it's a point-of-view thing to me. Cars have three values: utility-going where you want to go; the cool/sexy/look at what I have/emotional satisfaction thingy; and what it will sell for. if you want to drive a quality car and don't mind repairs and maintenance, you can drive it for a lot less money if you will get an older one and keep it repaired. As long as you can get parts and it is not rusted out or wrecked, it will provide good service if it is kept repaired and the maintenance is performed. There are too many Ford Model Ts and countless other antique cars running today, to allow refutation of this argument. Any car can be repaired and kept running. If you get caught up in the "it's not worth fixing" thinking, where, for example, a transmission repair would cost a lot compared to what the car would sell for, you have to decide either to repair it, in which case it will go (utility value) the same as it always did, or retire it because you had rather have something else than spend money on it.Cars like Mercedes have more "sexy/lookee" emotional value than some others, not to mention quality of driving experience, so people are more willing to spend money keeping them running and maintained. A Kia, on the other hand, is very disposable: when it gets old and takes significant money to repair, most people would rather have something else, or a new one. Ofteh cars like this are allowed to die because the maintenance and repair stops when the "I want/like it" goes away.
Really, lots of repairs on an older car are one-time repairs of significant cost, then you won't do them for a long time if ever. They can be aggravating, though. It helps to have more than one vehicle so you have more time for planning and paying for larger repairs.
Just some thoughts which might help you.

Will_w202 · #39 03-21-2011, 07:26 PM

Bottom line is, a car is transportation. If it isn't transporting, or if it is transporting but only while you grit your teeth til you get home, or if it isn't very enjoyable transport anymore, why bother?

Case in point - 93 400E, awesome car, but clearly not ANYWHERE near where my 97 C230 Starmark car was when I sold it at 170k (the 400 has 182). The old C, in retrospect, was the best Benz I ever owned - and it was tight and made me smile to drive. If I dumped 6k, or 6 months of elbow grease with my wrenching buddy into the 400, plus 3k in parts, it still would look like a dog, with cracking paint, and I'm still not confident at that point that it's totally reliable in any circumstance.

Maybe more important is the fact that, without 10k in parts and labor to get the previous owners' "average," "non-enthusiast" maintenance caught up to where my old C was, the car will still not drive like one that has been maintained ON TIME, from DAY ONE.

The point of driving a Benz is because, in above-average condition, they will bring a smile to my face every time I drive them. The "new to me" SL is that car, and an exmaple of a car that has had EVERYTHING done on time for 19 years. The 400e really just looks and drives like a POS, except for the racehorse motor, so what joy is there in dumping money into something that isn't doing what it was designed to do, when in the case of the OP, a VERY nice 92ish 300E can be had for 3 grand.

lsmalley · #40 03-21-2011, 07:49 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Will_w202

Bottom line is, a car is transportation. If it isn't transporting, or if it is transporting but only while you grit your teeth til you get home, or if it isn't very enjoyable transport anymore, why bother?

Case in point - 93 400E, awesome car, but clearly not ANYWHERE near where my 97 C230 Starmark car was when I sold it at 170k (the 400 has 182). The old C, in retrospect, was the best Benz I ever owned - and it was tight and made me smile to drive. If I dumped 6k, or 6 months of elbow grease with my wrenching buddy into the 400, plus 3k in parts, it still would look like a dog, with cracking paint, and I'm still not confident at that point that it's totally reliable in any circumstance.

Maybe more important is the fact that, without 10k in parts and labor to get the previous owners' "average," "non-enthusiast" maintenance caught up to where my old C was, the car will still not drive like one that has been maintained ON TIME, from DAY ONE.

The point of driving a Benz is because, in above-average condition, they will bring a smile to my face every time I drive them. The "new to me" SL is that car, and an exmaple of a car that has had EVERYTHING done on time for 19 years. The 400e really just looks and drives like a POS, except for the racehorse motor, so what joy is there in dumping money into something that isn't doing what it was designed to do, when in the case of the OP, a VERY nice 92ish 300E can be had for 3 grand.

Maybe if the 400E was treated like the C230, instead of a red-head step child, then you would've been a lot happier with it. $400 would get you a decent paint job at Maaco <~~~ thats right, Maaco. Had mine done 2 years ago and it still looks brand new.

Will_w202 · #41 03-21-2011, 08:09 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lsmalley

Maybe if the 400E was treated like the C230, instead of a red-head step child, then you would've been a lot happier with it. $400 would get you a decent paint job at Maaco <~~~ thats right, Maaco. Had mine done 2 years ago and it still looks brand new.

I couldn't live with myself if I put a maaco paint job on a Benz. That's my limit. Call me nuts. I'd take a few bucks and find one in better shape with factory original paint - oh wait, I just did!

My plan was to "restore" the 400e someday (maybe I will), and match the factory paint and paint process as closely as possible. Looks like about a 3k job to get it factory-original.

One more thing for the OP: does it ever end? No, but a Benz that has lived a proper life should cost you no more than maybe 1k a year, at shop prices. Less for DIY.

lsmalley · #42 03-21-2011, 08:29 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Will_w202

I couldn't live with myself if I put a maaco paint job on a Benz. That's my limit. Call me nuts. I'd take a few bucks and find one in better shape with factory original paint - oh wait, I just did!

My plan was to "restore" the 400e someday (maybe I will), and match the factory paint and paint process as closely as possible. Looks like about a 3k job to get it factory-original.

One more thing for the OP: does it ever end? No, but a Benz that has lived a proper life should cost you no more than maybe 1k a year, at shop prices. Less for DIY.

I thought you got rid of the 400E.....in that case, its definately doable. I was under the impression that you put some work into it and were still displeased with it because the paint was peeling and it still didn't feel right....etc, etc. Good luck to you restoring the 400E! As for the paint job by Maaco, I think that did a great job for under $900 plus a 4 year warranty. I had the whole acid rain hood, roof, and trunk thing going on

greenacres2 · #43 03-21-2011, 08:32 PM

It ends...but much later than most vehicles. Pretty fair number of folks still use 1985-1995 MB's as daily drivers--and they are still fine vehicles due to the "never-ending" repairs. In the same time frame, we had the Chrysler K-cars, early Taurus, Olds Cutlass Ciera, Dodge Dynasty, early Honda Civics, etc. Monthly maintenance ended on almost all of those years ago. And the few that are left on the road quit making anyone smile a long time ago.

Your mileage, of course, may vary. And...no disrespect intended for those on this forum that still get a grin out of their AMC Pacer.

Will_w202 · #44 03-21-2011, 08:34 PM

Quote:

Originally Posted by lsmalley

I thought you got rid of the 400E.....in that case, its definately doable. I was under the impression that you put some work into it and were still displeased with it because the paint was peeling and it still didn't feel right....etc, etc. Good luck to you restoring the 400E! As for the paint job by Maaco, I think that did a great job for under $900 plus a 4 year warranty. I had the whole acid rain hood, roof, and trunk thing going on

I've seen some jobs that look good from them for about a year, but yours is holding up better than what i've seen and heard from others. Which "level" did you go with?

lsmalley · #45 03-21-2011, 08:42 PM

Thanks. I went with the one not that expensive....I guess one step below the last one that was their top job. It was just a little under $900 and has lasted 2 years thus far....especially in the 120º heat during the summer. If I would've had my GD transmission rebuilt I would've went all out assuming that my car would last another 270k miles