i'm looking at buying a 92 400e with 93000 miles,seller is firm at $15,500 i took it to the mb mechanic to check,he thought it was an outstandig car with all records,my question to him and you folks is am i going to have high amount of repairs at this and further milage? his response was you are not going to be nickle and dimed till about 200,000 miles,he said change oil every 3000 miles and front brake pads! any comments would be very helpful!thanks in advance!

------------------

You've done the necessary and now you must roll the dice or stand pat. No one can anticipate when that A/C, belt tentioner, transmission or other pay check eater will occur.

Its been checked out, I presume the price is OK what are you waiting for; if you want a guarantee those cars are running over $50k.

The question faced by so many; whether to drive a real car with risk or drive a POS with a warrantee. Go for it! Whats life without risk, such a car for so little money.

(BTW I checked the NADA older cars guide and they show $17k as average retail which no private seller ever gets - so he is right at the top of price - which is fine for a well maintained car)

As always, Steve is passing out great advice. This is a great car. Even if you end up having catastrophic a/c problems, generally you will have a great car that's a blast to drive.

The odds of having all the potential problems that Steve outlined are not high. There's a very good chance that you won't experience any of those problems. Just change oil hot every 3.000 miles and when some little problem crops up, fix it before the car runs down.

Good luck and enjoy,

------------------
Larry Bible
'84 Euro 240D, 523K miles
'88 300E 5 Speed
'81 300D Daughter's Car
Over 800,000 miles in
Mercedes automobiles

As is becoming painfully consistent, Steve's right (all compliments intended, Steve). Great car, great deal. Just do it!!

------------------
Best regards, Michael
'92 500E
'88 300TE

I hate to be the turd in the basket, but realistically, you need to expect higher-than-average maintenance and repair costs.

It will cost at least $100-150 per month to keep that car on the road over a 5 year period. This will come both from regular service, expected replacements (brakes etc), and some "oops" items probably in the climate control, electrical, or suspension areas. You need to be prepared for some four digit invoices.

This is a sophisticated automobile and parts are expensive.

Be realistic, but don't let this deter you: it's a great ride.



------------------
Chuck Taylor
Falls Church VA
'86 300E 5 speed
'95 C220 (wife's car)
'98 Porsche Boxster
Past: '79 280E, '82 300D (18 yrs), '77 240D,
4 250C's

I agee w/ ctaylor738. My last "major" service in December, 1999 cost me around $1000US. It woulda cost me more, but I opted not to take the courtesy car they offered me, but instead took a 1 hour bus trip home (wut fun). The dealership gave me a discount because of that. Nevertheless, 400E/E420 is a GREAT ride...and I guess it is only fait to pay the "cost" to maintain such a GREAT ride. Good luck w/ your buy!

------------------
http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/...ures/duck4.gif 1995 Mercedes-Benz E420 (W124 - Black Pearl/Black) http://www.people.cornell.edu/pages/...ures/duck4.gif

Its too bad you don't have a friend thats a mechanic. I agree with the previous posts...expect to pay for repairs....and be blessed if you don't! I think 100.00 a month/1200.00 yr for repair items is really an underestimate.
Fuel pump, AC, water pump, any engine things...your call. My experience is expect to pay. My car had huge bills between 75-150k,.... but I really love my MBZ :)

I just took the "leap" two months ago. '92 400e Artic White w/ 76K miles. The car checked out above average. I ran it through a major service "just to be sure". Brakes cost me a bit...had to replace rotors front/back etc...
In the records of the car, the only BIG expense I saw was AC/climate work...blower motor, evaporator and the like...$2K or so.
I am not an expert but here are a few things I have been told to watch:
1 - Power Steering Pump Leaks
2 - Brakes Brakes Brakes...the car loves them
3 - Aux Fans and coolant system
Take care of the coolant system...these babies get hot very quickly if any part of the system is malfunctioning.

Other than that.."perfection!" Just get her serviced regularly, keep fresh oil in her and you should be OK. The car is a blast to drive. It's a lot of fun surprising youngsters in their daddy's acura, lexus, etc...they just think it's their grandma's Benz :-)

Couldn't agree with JC300e more. What a great car! You're gonna love it. The power steering pump problem was fixed on my '93 as part of the purchase. No more problems so far. I have 52k on mine and expect this car to be with me for the next 20 - 30 years. It is great for trips and inspite of the v-8 gets very acceptable gas mileage (21-22 city/25-26 hwy). I wouldn't trade it for anything(not even for the '93 300ce cabriolet with 12k that I will hopefully be purchasing this afternoon). I just don't think you can go wrong with the 400e. But don't forget the previous posted suggestions: oil,brakes,coolant. :)

------------------
Robert
93 400E