Advice on the purchase of 87 300TD - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

JeremyPDX · #1 04-01-2007, 02:28 PM

First off - I have spent HOURS this past week on this forum educating myself and what a great resource! This place will come in handy on my "in the process" restoration of my 64 220Sb!
On another note, I am looking at a 87 300td and I wanted to take a quick poll and find out if: A) I'm crazy! B)I'm nuts or C)???

Found this car with just shy of 100K miles on the odometer, runs smooth with no smoke, great interior, tires, paint, etc. Supposedly, the current owner is the 3rd owner and bought it for his wife not long ago and she doesn't like its lack of blistering performance. Besides the "good" that I just listed the car has a few "bads": NO service history, sunroof problems, rear left window doesn't work, drives outside mirror is non-adjustable, a few rust bubbles on the rearmost vertical side window trim, A/C works but blows kinda cool, trip-meter is not working, the OAT display is blacked out, and the car feels painfully sluggish and doesn't overheat!
Before I went to look at the car, I studied up on the W124 buying guide and used its info to look over the car. I started the car cold and it fired right up and instantly set down to a smooth and quiet idle with no smoke. The car doesn't seem to want to move until the acc pedal is nearly 50% depressed - probably ALDA issues I assume. Once going it shifts hard from 1-2 and then holds 3k+ rpms before hitting 3rd and then is eventually smooth into 4th. The hard shift from 1-2 may have been because I was flooring it during the whole test drive?!

The car doesn't seem to have any leaks and the underside appears dry and rust free. With the lack of service records and my knowledge of cars, it appears that the engine is bone stock. Stock head, radiator, fan clutch, waterpump, injectors, etc. so my conclusion is that in the near future, things may begin to line up for replacement and repair. I work on my own cars and drive a diesel 1997 Passat and so I cannot forsee ever having to pay someone else for reapirs so I only need to worry about the cost of parts. The repairs don't intimidate me but his asking price does.... $13,500!

So, one of my first questions: With a lack of records and a broken trip meter, how reliable is the odo's mileage of 99K? BTW - I did witness the odo working while on the short test drive. Secondly - Is there a consensus on when low mileage overrides a lack of service records and would therefore justify the high price? I have looked around at a lot of these for sale on-line and the only one that comes close to this price is a nice example at a dealership in the Seattle area for around $16K but they have reciepts that total over $33k in repairs!

Should I offer the guy $7-8K, and make the case that without service records and the current issues on the car, necessary repairs will/could be in the $1000's? Should I keep looking - this is the car that my wife and I want for our lifestyle and big dog! OR what would a best case scenario car with low miles really be worth....?

BTW - this guy is a one-man dealer that specializes in vintage US and Euro cars so that also may account for a bit of the high price.

I really look forward to hearing back from you all and thanks in advance for your input.

P.S. I know that there may be a desire to send me running as a unsuspecting NOOB who doesn't know what he is getting himself into, but please refrain from that assumption. I am aware of the potential $$'s and ups/downs of owning one of these cars and I am willing to spend some $$ if needed if the right example comes along. Thanks again - Jeremy

mespe · #2 04-01-2007, 02:35 PM

13.5 K is just waaaay too much.

babymog · #3 04-01-2007, 04:19 PM

I've been looking at/for an '87 TD also, seems that mileage is a big factor in price, as is documentation and condition.

If I were looking at a car that was priced that high, and justified by the mileage on the car, I'd want documentation to prove the mileage is legitimate.

It takes about 10minutes if you're slow to swap the speedometer in a 124. It might be original mileage, might not, ... documentation or no premium price is my opinion.

muleears · #4 04-01-2007, 04:46 PM

I just spent $13.5 on my latest 124. $13.5 hundred that is

I think he is asking way too much. If he could verify the mileage I would say $5-6K tops. Considering the work it needs.

Bio300TDTdriver · #5 04-01-2007, 04:46 PM

Is that the one on Portland Craigslist? For that money you should get all service records. The steering wheel should have little or no wear. They start to smooth out with more miles. The seats should be in pretty good shape too. I have more money than that in mine, but I have the #22 head.

Chris

POS · #6 04-01-2007, 04:49 PM

With under 100k miles, it should not have many "visual" issues, it should look and drive like it's near new. If not, then it's had a hard life with the 99k or it's not a honest 99k. My guess is that this guy bought this car off ebay or the like, found out he was scammed or found out it had major issues, and now is trying to get out of his headache.

Want to pay $13,500 for a headache? I don't. Have every nut and bolt inspected - I bet the car isn't what he says it is.

barry123400 · #7 04-01-2007, 05:03 PM

Mercedes issues a basic oil change booklet with each car sale. The dealer stamps it off or whoever does the oil change does. They also date it with the milage the oil was changed at. This booklet is good up to about 120 thousand or so.
Needless to say if it is not in the dash forget the ideal of authentic milage. These cars can still look pretty good with 250k or more on them. If you desire a good example why not connect with the mercedes benz owners club. Also the price should be lower than what this guy is quoting. Who really wants to buy a car from a used car salesman anyways?

Marcb · #8 04-01-2007, 05:40 PM

I have to agree with everyone... waayyy to much without records to prove the mileage and history. I'd pass... is this the light ivory TD?

babymog · #9 04-01-2007, 06:00 PM

Another comment, which doesn't really go the way of this forum but here goes:

I had a '91 TE 4matic, excellent car. Sold it in '95 or '96 with around 120k miles, drove like new. I wouldn't get the 4matic again as that was the expensive and difficult to find parts for version, thus the reason I sold it as it was getting older, but I'd have no problem with a gas/TE.

Don't get me wrong, I MUCH prefer the diesel over the gas. The problem is that the diesel is an '87 only item and really limits choices. Going to the gas gives you the option of getting a newer car with much improved interior amenities, my '91 for example had heated leather orthopedic seats, wood all around, leather 3rd seat, cargo net/cargo cover, 10-speaker stereo w/ subwoofers and CD, items that you'll not find or find very rare on an already hard to find car (the diesel version).

If you're looking for a driver and aren't completely married to the diesel, you can get a really nice '95 wagon for less money and it'll make 200,000miles without a hiccup.

Just a thought, sorry diesel purists.

JeremyPDX · #10 04-01-2007, 08:28 PM

Thanks to all for the input and advice. I will ask the seller about the service book stamps and see what that produces. The car does drive well and feel tight but so does my 1964 220s with 318,000 miles (and a bunch of work)!

POS - you hit it right on the head with your assumption of the ebay scenario. He did in fact get the car off of ebay a while back so there may be a "headache" or two involved! To the sellers credit, his daily driver is another 1987 300TD but from talking to him, I get the feeling that he doesn't do his own work on his car.

I will continue to ponder this and investigate and see how things play out. I will keep you posted.

Thanks again - Jeremy

justinperkins · #11 04-01-2007, 08:46 PM

For that much money, it should be perfect. I bought mine for $3,200 and it sounds like it was in better condition than the one you're describing. Things like the window not working, or the temp. display blacked out aren't a big deal, but the A/C should work great and the 0-60 should be 11 seconds or so. Being a little slow off the line is a common problem, but once you hit 2300 RPMs you should really feel the power of that big turbo'd engine.

Even for $7k, I'd pass with as many problems as you mentioned. They aren't made out of gold