Hi,

I am about to pick up my first ever MB next week. After losing an ebay auction, I found a woman in CT that purchased her car from a Mercedes Dealer/mechanic and he has done the following work on the car for her:

2005

A/C compressor
New Radio/CD and speakers
new back seat net (the "fish net" that carries "stuff" attached to the front seats)
New R/R window reg w/motor - not the window the motor that works it
brake rotors
rear brake pads
parking brake shoes and cable
shifter brushings
cylinder head - 2K for part only
prechambers
gasket set
head bolts
Thermastat to pass CT emissions test
front brake rotors
front brake pads

2004

2 steel lines
steel fuel line
new bolt in motor
serp belt
belly pan
belt shock
Left front blinker
shut off valve and seal
new starter
paint front and rear bumper

Recently, the car got scratched by someone backing up in a parking lot. The rest of the car looks to be in mint condition (the current owner is a high end realtor and has used this car to drive her clients to houses.) I am buying the car for $5000 and paying $1500 for repairs.

I was wondering
a) what people would suggest for the first things to do when I get this car home to maine
b) can I run b20 without modification in this car? what about b100?
c) did I get a good deal?

Thanks!

-paul

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I'd fix that dent, but other then that it looks good.

__________________
1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

Have a full tune up done-
flush all fluids- brake/coolant/power steering/etc
replace all filters- oil/air/fuel
Change Oil
Valve adjustment
Check compression, pressure test cooling system for any leaks, inspect for oil leaks, and any other fluid leaks.
Check brakes

If the car is in relatively good sound mechanical condition, you may have yourself a deal on this car. but its hard to tell by just looking.

Cosmetically the car looks good. Looks like the door handles have been painted to match or are severly faded- cant tell from the pics. the paint looks healthy.

Being a little on the OCD side, after having the car up to spec mechanically- I'd fix the dent, replace the missing and faded lower door strips, bring the door handles back to black, upgrade to european headlights, black out the grille insert, throw on a set of 16" MB 8-hole replicas, and polish and wax the paint back to that gorgeous gloss that lies within the paint finish. But thats just me.



Welcome to the forums!

__________________
Nate

1995 E420
1992 BMW 525i
1984 300D Turbo sold
1993 Volvo 244 sold
1995 Volvo 944T R.I.P!


"The details are not details. They make the product."
-Charles Eames

www.cbs.nu

That particular service doesn't apply to an '87 (OM603 engine).

Is there a price for the belly pan?

Sixto

Make sure the vacuum pump is the newer style without the crimped on cover. With all the work done it is hard to imagine that it is the old style, but better safe than sorry. An old style vacuum pump can take out your engine when it fails.

Replace your antenna mast. The antenna should retract fully. I would replace the two-piece gaskets at the antenna opening when you do so. If the antenna is not kept clean or gets bent a bit in a car wash, etc it won't retract the last little bit.

I agree that a full fluids and filters change is a good idea. Don't forget the power steering fluid/filter. Use mercedes or zerex G-05 coolant only, put Mobil 1 Turbo Diesel Truck 5W-40 in for best performance. Replace transmission fluid and filter as well. Mobil 1 is a good choice here as well.

I wouldn't bother checking your compression. If it starts and runs fine then what is the point? I would check your chain stretch though as that is something that can affect how well the car performs.

You can run any blend of biodiesel w/o worry. Make sure you have a few spare fuel filters, both the primary inline filter and the secondary bolt-on, as B50 or B100 will clean your tank and fuel system very well and may loosen up some deposits which may in turn gum up your fuel system and restrict fuel flow. A decrease in power is the first usual sign. Also keep an eye on the rubber injector fuel return lines as they are the most likely to break down with biodiesel. These are easy to replace with viton. You will want to keep an eye on the other rubber fuel lines and tank filler neck. Depending on if they are original or not they may start to break down. Fairly easy to replace though so not to worry.

You didn't mention the mileage, but $6500 is a pretty decent deal if the car is in good shape.

Congrats on the new 300TDT. It looks to be the same color as mine, but without the third row seat. I wish my paint job were in as good shape as on your 300TDT.

I would also check out the auto-level system to verify it works properly. Unless it has been serviced recently in may not function. Usually the leveling valve gets stuck, and the boots on the dampers rot out. Sometimes the gas accumulators fail making the vehicle ride hard. Make sure there are no leaks in the system. I would suggest flushing the the system since it most likley needs it. Be sure to use the proper hydraulic fluid.

Check the suspension bushings in the front and rear. Ususally one (out of five) of the links in back fails before the other links. I can't remember the name of that link though. Check the front ball joints. They usually start to squeak when they fail.

A newer style leather wrapped steering wheel would be a good upgrade.

-Steve

__________________
1987 300TDT smoke silver w/ burgundy leather interior
2000 VW Passat wagon indigo blue w/ beige leather interior
1985 Mustang SVO
1970 Chevrolet K10 fleetside, shortbed

A compression check is good additional way of determining the true condition of the engine, and how it has been cared for.... It may start, but that doesnt mean that the compression isnt close to heading south. Why pour more money into a car if its compression has digressed to a level that may be undesireable for a car meant to be kept for a long time. By tuning the car, flushing and replacing fluids and filters, etc the car will be ready to sell to another buyer, and if the compression is decent then there wont be ANY question... its a keeper!

__________________
Nate

1995 E420
1992 BMW 525i
1984 300D Turbo sold
1993 Volvo 244 sold
1995 Volvo 944T R.I.P!


"The details are not details. They make the product."
-Charles Eames

www.cbs.nu

Many drivers in CT regularly or at times drive to MA in the winter, where the roads are heavily salted, so I would check carefully for rust. I would change my engine and transmission fluids to synthetic, but that's me - others would think differently.

I generally agree if you are deciding whether to flip or keep, and I misread slightly in that I thought he already bought the car and was just picking it up.

Thanks for all the helpful suggestions. It's a little strange buying a car without a test drive. However, one can typically tell whether someone is straighwforward or not on the phone.

I do believe that the car has the third row seat. The wagon has 223,000 miles.

I will check all of the records when I get the car and go ahead and change filters and fluids and check the vacuum pump as was suggested.

Will I be able to tell if the suspension leveling system is working in an obvious way? Also, what's the best repair manual to get for this car?


-paul

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