Decision Time: To paint or not to paint?
 

The 300d has been my trusty companion for 6 months now. To say I'm attached to it would be a gross understatement. My former daily driver, the X5, only moves when the weather sucks. On a whim today, I took a 200 mile round trip to survey tornado ravaged Greensburg, Kansas, giving me time to contemplate my 300d's future.

I got quotes from 3 local body shops today for an entire respray of the car, all ranging from 2.5-4 grand; that includes me removing the trim. No rust, just severe fading/oxidation and a crappy quarter panel replacement that cracked the paint at the weld point.

I managed to get some respectable shine out of her with mother's clay bar, but the Liberty Bell crack means all or nothing. If I leave this developing decay neglected, it will slowly destroy her. Nor can I spot fix the affected area without making the rest of the car look terrible.

My initial $2,000 purchase required an additional $1,000 in motor mounts, vacuum, front end, and AC work (all at the same time). She is now as close to perfect mechanically as a 23 year old, unrestored car can get. Additionally, *knock on wood* since the initial repairs she has behaved almost perfectly.

Here's the clincher. I have the opportunity to sell the car for my total investment to a high schooler needing a first car. Basically, its a death sentence to my new friend.

Do I spend $3,000 and make my car close to perfect, or sell the thing off and find a very nice original example for $6,000? I have a good feeling this is an excellent car, (perfect interior/meticulous records for 20 yrs) and if I take the plunge I will probably never sell it. On the other hand, you can't beat an all original survivor, but I risk trading a great car for a lemon. Also, my current 300d after a quality repaint and detail will probably look better than 95% of all the W123s out there.

Can you tell I'm going around in circles?


Decisions, decisions.

Keep it as is for another 6 months then re-evaluate the situation. In the mean time look for a new Mercedes. See what pans out. If after 6 months you don't find what your looking for repaint and you'll have no disappointment. You'll still be able to sell the 300d for what you've got into it. Hows the condition of the seals around the windows? Any leaks?

I think if your sold on Mercedes get another before you sell this one.

Bobo

Front and back window seals are both new, no leaks.

6 months and my 3 grand offer will go away; his 16th birthday is rapidly approaching and his dad will not leave me alone.

Remove the trim yourself and go to maaco. I have an sdl in now, base clear and some minor bodywork for under 1400. It takes less than 4 hrs to strip the car of trim, door handles lights etc.

The quotes include removing the trim myself. The nearest maaco is in Topeka, about 1.5 hours away. I also want this done right. Maaco presents an opportunity for mistakes to be made, especially with my liberty bell crack.

I'm gonna give you what I would do. Your milage may vary.

I'd spend the money and paint her and keep her forever.
No high schoolers first car for my baby. . .
Good luck on your decision.

The way I see it, you're going to be spending money either way, either to fix a car you already know and love and sounds like it has a lot going for it, or on a gamble that may be pretty on the outside but mechanically it could be a ticking time bomb. You know and love this car so just spend the little more to make it perfect and keep it till the wheels fall off.

Post an ad on craigslist for a body shop worker and see if you can get all the bodywork done on the side and possibly the paint as well. The workers don't make much and would love to work on the side for cash. I just had $1200 worth of work done for $400 by doing that and it turned out perfect.

Huck

Oh, what a great idea!
I may do that for the ding on my quarter.

just posted the ad.

http://wichita.craigslist.org/trd/578848761.html

Good luck.
Keep us posted!

Buy a 1980 and you'll have a royal flush!:D

$500 may be kind of low. The prep work is at least half the cost of a good paint job. Why don't you get your self some sanding blocks and prep it yourself? I was quoted $1000for paint from a reputable paint shop that often does work on Mercedes, if I brought the car in ready for paint.

Do you feel that the 3K is worth parting with the 300d??? Only you can answer that question.

How much is your time worth? How much is the piece of mind worth (you've got a benz that is up to your acceptable mechanical standards)?

How hard is it going to be to find a replacement?

Both of ones I've purchased I've traveled over 800 miles. (CA to FL, and WV to FL). Both purchased on eBay by the way.

Mercedes are going for a premium.

Good luck with your CL add. Guess your gona keep and paint it.

Bobo

If you keep this one you know what you have, if you sell and buy another for $6k you might just get a pretty face that needs a lot of hidden work. KEEP IT AND PAINT IT

How would getting paint done on the side work? Sheet metal work I could see but doesn't a good-quality paint job more or less require a closed garage and expensive equipment?

If resonse to your ad is not promising I would check to see if any good local shop has an employee that does the occasional car or more at home. Discrete inquiries might locate such an individual. If you are a good auto body type you will have the equipment as working at home without it is almost pointless.

Pondering this issue with my 126. Chassis is solid but rust under the right tail light, about 6 inches of the left side trunk channel and under the back window. Rear glass is delaminating on both bottom corners anyway so it needs to be replaced if I do repair the rust. My local glass guy says he can't find a rear glass other than from Benz at over $800 (I think he's jerking me around). We have an outside bodyshop that we use. A real German guy (Jurgen). He quoted me roughly $6500 to re-do the whole car. He will take it to bare metal and repair the rust.It has been painted once before badly. The roof is peeling apart. Talking to my co-workers, they tell me Jurgen will have the car looking like it did in 1983 but it will cost and take 4-6 weeks in all likelyhood.

OR: Use the putty made by POR-15 - I can grind the 6 inches out of the trunk channel and form they putty (hardens like steel and can be drilled/tapped), grind the tail lamp surround and do the same, have a body shop do the cut/weld in the window channel and a Maco paint job.....

$500 cash to a body shop worker who makes $12-15/hr is good money. He has no overhead and it's cash in his pocket. With an airgun and a compressor in a garage he can even prime and sand it. That is roughly 40 man hours. It won't take that long to prep the car. I have a guy in SC that will prep the car including fixing a few dents and paint the car with dupont paint using base and clear for $600. It's $100 more for wet sand and buff. I've seen some of the best paint jobs done with a dirt floor. It's all in prep and the sprayer(painter).

Huck

I wouldn't waste your time with Craigslist you want good body work not crack heads looking to make a few bucks. I have never found a normal person on that site.

The quotes you got are for decent repaints, thats what they cost. You can go cheaper but as you do the quality will decline.

I was at the same crossroads with my SDL last year. Spend $5k to do the body or sell it for that, and spend $10k on a better example. Bruce can probably find me a crazy mint low mileage 1991 560SEL for that. I would love an AMG Hammer but one of those would be closer to $20k. I decided to keep my car because the SDL, other than paint is in better mechanical shape then 99.9999% of them that still exist. I am never going to find another where someone has replaced the shear number of parts that I have. Also at this point in my life I don't really want another project car, after I paint the SDL it will be done, I'll just have to keep it up. Any other car is going to require some sorting.

Don't be in a rush to sell it, forget about this $3k offer. If you want to sell your car you can probably get $3k for it anytime. But once its sold, its sold and you may regret it. Finding a clean older MB isn't easy these days, so don't be so quick to part with yours.

So true. :D We got our 300D from some weird guy that lives in the pine forests of Eastern Michigan (in the Thumb). Weird transaction....but we drove away with a mechanically awesome (and cosmetically pretty good) 300D for $1500. It has essentially no rust. We were amazed. Its currently my dad's daily driver and has needed nothing other than oil changes, some vacuum line repairs, and a new starter and glow system....soon it will need some steering work, but thats no big deal. We've had it over 14 months.

Anyways, KEEP THE CAR AND PAINT IT. Selling it is a bad idea, when you have a mechanical gem, keep it.

Though I gotta say if anyone can do it Tyler can :cool:

Actually he has....:D:D

Only you can decide.
I spent $5K on my 240D 77, it had lots of rust, holes in the floor, both windshields had to be taken out and re-installed, rust at the door bottoms, leaking battery had eaten metal on its way down including the jack support and more.
The car had to be either fixed or go to junkyard, since I had installed a brand new motor in this car I decided to fix the car, before going ahead I had it checked for structural integrity, it was ok.
A decent paint job is going to cost a lot and if you also have rust you are in for a big one.

Vahe

I have to say, I'm faced with a lot of your same issues. I'm VERY attached to my girl and will probably keep her forever, but I'm faced with a hood that's oxidized with almost no clear coat left and cracking paint. Clay bars can only work so well when the paint's dead. However, I'm also dealing with a rusting quarter panel. (Be thankful that's not on your list, it's breaking my heart).
But after three years and we're almost to 300k, let me just say, it's better to know what you're getting into. You know the problems you have with this car and it's history, be careful when you go the other way and buy another car. You're guaranteed to be buying into another set of problems which may or may not be worse than the ones you already have. It's a gamble. Best of luck to you, I feel for your dilemma.

What d'ye mean by "death sentence to friend?" Guess yer talkin about the vehicle, sure am glad the old fogey selling *first* MB i ever bought at age 17 wasnt squeemish about me trashing the car. Saved 2 yr Summer earnings to afford it. Yep, the ultimate party mobile (nicknamed the "merciless benz") served me well into college driven cross country fully loaded to Fla spring break Mardi Gras etc. And have driven nothin but Vintage MB's ever since.

Only if the kid's buyin the car with his own money and thus can fully appreciate it, then let him have it says me.

This kid does not care for the car one bit. He likes Mustangs, or something like that. Its the dad that wants the car for him.

I got a phone call from a friend of mine who owns his own shop; he told me it would be $3250.00, and he would pull all the windows and seals; a great deal!!! If he didn't pull the windows, and masked off those areas, I'm looking at $2,500. Considering the value of the car, I'm leaning towards the latter. I don't see a 750.00 dollars worth of benefit. Opinions?

Keep in mind my car will lead a garaged, pampered life for the remainder of her days. So the paint will not be subject to extreme wear.

really if the kid doesnt car i wouldnt sell it i was 24 when i got my first car and it was and is still a 300d. make him wait till he can understand what hos father was going to get him

If you just tape around the seals it won't look as good up close, a sharp eye will be able to see the masking marks.

Whether thats worth $750 depends on how picky you are.

By the way Zeke, the AC did actually only needed a charge.:D:D:D wooohooo!!!!!! I bet that's a first on ebay.

Yeah, they're out there. I refuse to look at any, its just like going to the pet store; you'll always want to bring one home.

On my SL show pony... yes. As for the 300d... I'm not sure. I am very picky, but I would feel a lot better with an extra $750 in my pocket, just in case something arises in my fleet. Some 15" Ronal R7 wheels may be coming my way soon, as well.

I also just bought a brand new home, and need to irrigate and landscape this spring. So I can't go overboard. On the other hand... if I am keeping it forever, I will probably regret not doing it completely right the first time.

The car has to look pretty if its going to meet Zeke next month. :D

So how bad is my paint job going to be if I just "take it to Maaco" and get their best paint job (which includes clearcoat)? I assume the paint itself is pretty good but I mean the details. Also, where does a standard paint job end--will the door openings and door frames be painted? The underside of the hood?

It will probably be a good 10-15 foot job. Good enough for a solid daily driver.

That's quite a deal.

About six months ago I finished some bodywork on my 91 300D and decided that I would re-paint it. My son-in-law is an experienced professional auto painter and donated paint booth time and labor, my only expenses were going to be the price of the materials (Dupont base and clear-coat).

The wholesale cost for the paint was just a shade over $700.

I thought is was a bait and switch ad on craigslist. I called the guy and talked to him for about an hour. He painted my friends VW and it came out nice. It is better than any Maaco paint job. It was taped around the windshield seals but my friend removed all the trim. It came out really nice. I am very picky and could live with it. I would not be happy with it on my Porsche but on an older Benz I would have no problem. If I find a 300CD with bad paint he will be the one to do it.

Huck

I assume you're changing the color? Not a good idea, unless your doing a full frame off resto. If you take care of it it will look good for a few years, Maaco even says that.

Ad responses?
 

Got any responses yet? If you get a bite from the DFW, Texas area let me know.

nada... except about 3 emails and a phone call trying to get me to use a employment agency or website to find someone.:mad:

I just moved into a new place, and changing my cable service has also invited 8 phone calls from the cable company trying to get me to buy more service. If they didn't have a monopoly in Wichita, I'd switch.:mad::mad::mad:

Yes, I don't particularly like my color (yellow). I didn't worry about it too much because of the rust on the rear fenders and I know it's hard to match paint.

I was thinking about a sort of tan, which would have a similar "hue" (if that's the right word) to the yellow--perhaps not too far off from the palomino interior. That way it doesn't jump out at you if you see some yellow on the door frame that it's a different color than the tan exterior.

Great news!!!
 

Paint day is on March 10!!! With a twist

I'm going with the body shop that quoted me $2500 for the whole job, minus the windows. Not only am I confident the work will be done right, but the owner is a friend of the family. Now the twist.

I got a response from my CL add, a qualified guy who worked in body shops for 20 years, then went solo doing mobile PDR. When I called Scott at the body shop informing him I may have someone else do the prep work, he told me not to bother; his shop is going to do the job and only charge the cost of materials!!! I was shocked, to say the least. This guy is a friend, but not that good of a friend. Then I remembered I told my father about the situation.

I phoned my Dad to see if he knew anything about this. A long story followed.

A few years back Dad was selling his 03 Escalade and Scott, a struggling car dealer at the time, had a buyer lined up for him. The new owner was not picking up the vehicle for a few weeks so, in the interim, Scott volunteered to keep the Cadi at his garage. Somehow in the three week period, Scott not only managed to put 5,000 on the truck, but left it outside of a shady bar overnight, where it got vandalized and broken in to. Well over $3,000 of damage was done, not to mention the mileage, and Dad footed the bill to sell the car in time.

I never knew this story until now; needless to say this guy owes dad a lot of money (which he doesn’t have) or a lot of favors. I do have to write my dad a check for $1,000 after, but I’m still saving over a grand for an excellent paint job. I’m a bit worried about my car now, but doubt he’ll want to take a work in progress 300d barhopping to Oklahoma.

Here are a few before pictures. I refinished some bundts I had lying around, which go on tomorrow.

Looks great from 15 feet. That's my new house, by the way. Just moved in 3 weeks ago.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01417.jpg
but look closer. random dings, scratches, chips, and oxidation throughout the car.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01420.jpg

The roof. Your try looking better after spending 20 years unprotected under the Texas Sun.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01422.jpg
and the liberty bell crack; the main factor forcing the repaint. Its not as bad as it looks. Its Probably why I got the car so cheap:D

http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01421.jpg

Finally the Bundts I refinshed myself. 3 coats of paint, 3 coats of clear. I'm know I should have gotten the powdercoated or annodized, but I'm happy with the results. Two of them have brake dust covers on them, whoohoo!
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01423.jpg

That's a good story. I hope he doesn't go out to a bar on Sunday, March 9th.

Dropped the car off today. I will take pictures later in the week after the car gets prepped. I should get it back Friday or Monday... WISH ME LUCK!:D

Stopped by the shop this afternoon... WOW!!! All the trim and bits are off and 3 body workers were sanding on her at the same time. She looked alot like a Volvo!:D

The problem area proves to be the trunk seal area; the rubber seal itself came out in pieces. Underneath, rust was starting to form. The PO appeared to have fixed a bad trunk seal with some kind of glue, blocking the water flow. I'm so glad this was caught early.

The car will be fully prepped tomorrow; I will be sure to take some pictures and post them on this thread when I visit. Paint day is Thursday.:D

Some pictures of the car around 1:00 today. A final round of full body sandind and cleaning followed later in the afternoon. The green primer freaked me out a bit. I thought primer was usually grey, oh well. The Bundts I refinished are on the car, too.

I know the door handles are still on, and most of the window trim, but I do think it will come out looking fantastic. I'm not planning to have a concours show car, so I'm not concerned.
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01435.jpg
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01437.jpg
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01434.jpg
http://i251.photobucket.com/albums/g...0/DSC01436.jpg

You should pull the door handles, they are really easy.

Looking good!

Why is there a power cord going under your rear window?

So they could get underneath the trim, they put a power cord underneath it, raising it off the surface of the body. Odd technique, if you ask me.

They should pull the rear window, there is probably more rust under it.

That is a good technique if the seal and sill are still in good shape. It looks like they will be pulling your seal anyway, that is the only way to put the chrome window trim back around the rear window.