Hello Douglas:
I definitely agree with manny & mpoli - asking price is way too high for a car like that with NO records.
If you're really interested, you might also want to consider spending about $100.00 and have what's called a "pre-purchase inspection" done. An MB indy or dealership can perform this for you, and they will let you know all of the potential problem spots they find. This will give you a very good idea as to how much repairs may cost, and it may also give you some leverage in negotiating the price.
Let me say that I purchased my '00 C230k with 47k, and have had virtually no problems at all. The key to keeping these beauties running like a top is maintenance. If you decide to purchase, I would have all the fluids changed, have the transmission serviced (the general consensus on this form is that the 722.6 transmission is not "filled for life"), and go from there. Most likely, suspension issues should be a few years down the road.
Another possibility to find out a little more about the car is to ask a Mercedes dealership to do a Master Vehicle Inquiry on the VIN. Some dealerships will do this, print out the report and give it to you, no problem. Others will not be so nice about it.
Let me say that the C-class MB's are very well-built. I absolutely love my C230k. With the M104, yours is even more refined than my 4 cylinder M111 (some refer to it as a lawnmower ... what do they know!!!
) If you do a search on the C280, you'll find that many users have posted many positive comments.
Best of luck to you, and let us know if you go ahead with the purchase!
Take care,
Michael