Thanks everyone !
your replies have been very helpful. And I agree with the fact that ownership of the older SEL's could be cheaper only if one ends up working on it themself. But to my surprise, some service dealerships aren't even accepting cars for service that are more than 10 years old. Mercedes Benz of Morristown NJ declined a couple of customers based upon the fact that they had an 86 model benz. They were referrred to private shops. Is that a common practice else where in other states as well ? while some of us can figure out faulty plugs and perhaps a couple of DIY's here and there, certainly there are jobs best left for the professionals. at that time if the dealers are refusing to service, perhaps an 89SEL, I see that as a potential problem to own an older car. Refusing to service a car older than 10 years seems to be the dealer's choice. Do they have that choice given that they're representing Mercedes ??
thanks for all the responses once again !