Check Out This Immaculate W116 On Ebay!
 

A beautifully written and engaging ad for what appears to be a really nice car will bring all the money for this excellent diesel. Good provenance, cars like this from the rust belt are pretty hard to find

Holy f-in' beautiful...

What's the funny little seal below the drivers' window? An emblem of some kind... but what?

It's a monogram of the owner's initials, big last initial in the center (just like the bath towels). Hopefully it was painted on by the pinstriper, not a sticker.

I wish I had the cash, It's beautiful. That car is in my area. They even use the same Mercedes Dealer I use when I need to. I think those pics are in the parking lot at the King of Prussia Mall.

Car is in beautiful shape. Wish I could find a 123 coupe, in that kind of shape, to use for the body on my latest project. I've located one of the very few original 123, AMG, Euro 5 speed V-8 coupes out there, but the guy wants stupid money, and is half way across the globe. I have just about all of the parts I need, and parts cars as well, to make my own clone, for a lot less hassle. I just can't find a 123 coupe with a nice enough, or close to perfect body on it to host the project. Anyone knows of a 123 coupe, with nice rust free body out there, just let me know.

looks good enough to eat! Somebody is going to get a real cherry ride.

"300SD was the first car to ever be fitted with a turbo charger."

Not quite. 1962 Olds Starfire (215 V8), Corvair Monza, 1973 BMW 2002, 1976 Porsche 911, 1978 Buick Regal... :)

Damn! - And I had to be born Handsome instead of rich!!!! :cool:

Care to guess how much will this go for?

Probably someplace in the $10-15K range. It would be higher with less miles and the same condition.

Those interiors on the 116's certainly make the 123 and 126 interiors look like a playskool POS dont they :D

He does tone down the fluff a bit, but make no mistake: It is still there. ;)
That is a beautiful W116, but can you really compare it to a Gullwing??!! :rolleyes:
I just love the W116!! That car just needs steelies and hubbies to be near perfect!

Unbelievable! Every W116 I've ever seen has a deflated rear seat, cracked wood, and copious rust, even here in sunny CA! It seems to have been kept indoors and never driven in the winter. It has all the makings of a classic, but alas! Normally only coupes get the classic status.

All in all, a very remarkable car. I would be afraid to drive it, lest I add wear and tear. At least it shows the miracles regular cleaning and maintenance can create. $10-15K would be about right for this car. Considering a new Camry is $20K +, not a bad deal for someone looking for a real collector's car.

What's it worth? Well, there is another W116, also a 1979 300SD in medium red with saddle leather interior not too far from me in comparable condition only it has fewer miles (about 100K). It is owned by the original owner's widow. All original and flawless interior and original exterior with minimal issues. Oh yeah, and it has a sunroof too!

I went to see and drove it back in May and she said she wanted $15K for it. I offered $7,500 and told her I felt $15K was, with all due respect, wildly optimistic. I figured she'd counter and we'd settle at $10K which I could probably live with. She never blinked and we were at a standoff and she said she was going to hold out for her $15K. I waited a couple of months and called to see if she ever sold it and if she'd reconsider my offer...the answer to both questions was no. I guess if she wasn't so stubborn I'd come up some but there's no way I would pay $15K for it so I never saw a reason to. I'll just wait it out, if she finds someone to pay her price, great for her...but if not I would probably pay $10K for it. They are nice cars...personally I would prefer a color like medium red or midnight blue to those light colors which were so common in their day.

If I won the lottery or inherited some cash I'd pay her price, but I know it would be a long time before I'd ever be able to get $15K for it myself...just as she has tried for at least 5 months now without success.

Nice looking car which I am sure will bring good money.

I think it also depends on the area, a friend of mine recently sold a 84 300D (about 130K miles, but not nearly as nice as this SD) for $12K in less than a week. He listed it for $12.5K and accepted $12. Around here, $10K for this SD would be a steal, $15 would probably be fair.

I personally have another opinion of that car:
It is almost to good to be true. I am very wary about the build up of undercoating. It is suspect. That thick layer of plastic may actually hide deep panel rust.
Only a careful inspection under the carpet would reveal that rust (and that is what he does not show).

The underbelly of the vehicle looks also pretty oily for such a claimed cherry.

I would pay 15k for a 6.9 but not for a 116.120. This car should not fetch more than 10k. Sadly W116 are not yet classics in the sense they commend crazy premia (even 6.9's) in America.

Now, this car delivered and registered in Germany or Holland will fetch easily 15000 euros.

I paid last year 1000 buck for a similarly looking vehicle which only downfall was to have 100000milles more on the clock and Non-working clim. that ACC is not worth 14 grands!!!

I hope you aren't referring to the Mafia Mobile. :cool: If so I'll have to call your bluff on that one!;) I like it, but those cars are in different leagues.....

I was thinking the same thing.

Good luck finding a good 6.9 for $15K. ;)

Since when is $15K a premium, it's hard to find a decent ricer in that price range. I think the price of "average condition" 116s is still being held down by all the junkyard specials that are still alive. In a few years they will all die off and the prices will be more reasonable.

Yep if you want the ultimate classic diesel soon to skyrocket in value, then late 1980 116 300SD is tough to beat. With longer legs it surprisingly outhandles 123's. Easy to see how 116's became hollywood stuntman's favorite car for the era. Y'all seen em trashed on James Bond movies and whatnot. Best was Dogs of War, troops seized one and got bombed in car chase at Lebanon.

I think only several thousand 116/SD's been built, dunno how many made it into USA during 1979/80. The later 1980 models are better than '79s on account of superior steel after German steel-workers strike was settled. From 1974-79 all MB's used crummier Russian or Italian steel for sheet metal parts only, hence massive rust issues for this era.

Try and find one if ye can. I'm still pinchin myself to see if I wasnt dreamin when stealing one w/sunroof (notso common option for 300SD) on Craigs with a mere 262k miles and immac rust free body last month. http://reno.craigslist.org/car/411991801.html Dont bother callin the seller, car's now my daily driver. And I will gladly pour thousands into it, knowin not a nickle will be lost. Already done new tires, bilsteins next week.

I recall the entire production run of W116 turbodiesels was allocated to the USA.

Jim

DieselDog That was one heck of a score!

Bert - NH

low oil pressure at that temperature though.

be very wary of cars with undercoating. it's real common in europe. it takes quite some time for rust to 'bubble up' when undercoated. and then you are pretty much ****ed.
I'll never use it on a car I love. I would use POR15.

I don't trust that car. gut feeling.

I'm guessing 12k. don't know about the Carnegie hall sound, never been in there.

Nice car, bet it goes for around $10k.

I doubt it will be that collectable. The 6.9 is the collectable W116. It would just be a nice summer driver.

I am actually refering to the brother of the mafia mobile. I bought it in flower mound a few month ago and unloaded it shortly after. Big profit. Nice tan interior, everything work except AC. Was offered 3000 bucks for it (so i guess that the real price?! but still far from 15k).

to Craig:

Hope Alabassi answers this but you see a bunch of rough 6.9 around here some available running for 1500-4500 bucks. Guess the oil barons in Texas like to drive the same ride than JR in the "Dallas" Show.

Hello there,

This is my family's car, and I had just posted it in the classified section when I noticed this thread. I will try to answer any and all questions about the vehicle. My uncle purchased it new in January of 1980 at R&S Imports. There is no rust. Around here undercoating is a yearly process if you want a car to last, even if it is garage kept (like this one). Therefore over time it builds up. But it is all for the better. I had the car put up on a lift for that specific reason, to showcase the solidity.

Still drives excellent. Handles better than the 123's. I had one of those too way back when. Perhaps I got a little carried away with the Carnegie Hall and Gullwing references...but this is the first diesel to be fitted with a turbo charger and the interior acoustics are pretty damn good. I have all the service records for the car. Also pin stripe and monogram is paint, not a stick on deal. The car was never smoked in.

A lot of people are amazed by this car. But, I tell them, it was simply maintained and well cared for. If you just keep them in the garage and treat them with respect they will return the favor. I could drive this car forever if I wanted to, but I want to get an SL roadster and perhaps make that the "new" family gem.

As for what the car will sell for, 15K would be awesome! I am going to accept any bid over 10K. I inherited this vehicle a few years ago.

If you sell it I have another one you can sell for that amount. I'll split it with you. :rolleyes:

I'd be happy to get $3K. Look at the profit some one could make!:D

I can relate to that! I've have an 83 300D (same color, w/ palomino) that has been similarly cared for and and when I've shown the car, the lookers are completely blown away when they see the mileage clocking in at 240K.

It's amazing what a car can look like when it's been owned by caring, respectful owners that are obsessive about mainentance and repair. Mechanically having been (over) maintained, the car still drives like new, and doesn't leak any obvious oil.

Unfortunately, the 300D is redundant in my fleet of 11 cars. Since I only use it sparingly, economy isn't the big issue, so I'm choosing to keep my equally nice 90 560SEL. What can I say, I'm a sucker for black.....

Jim

Whiskeydan,

There's quite a bit of difference between a $3k MB and a similar one selling for $10k!:)

Offhand, looking at the receipts on my 83 300D, I'd say about $15K...:eek:

Jim

I couldn't resist this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&viewitem=&item=320165931507

I spoke with the seller on the phone the other day. It was his dad's car and garaged since new. Full service records and books with it and everything but the tach supposedly works. Even has the sunroof! His dad was also super diligent about maintenance and while maybe not quite as mint as the one posted here it looks pretty darn nice. I even spied a MBCA sticker in the back...another good sign of a fanatical owner. I'll fly out and look at it in the coming days...if it passes muster I will have a nice day's drive back to NH with it passing by NJ on my way and visiting family there.

I did ask about the wheel well covers...they apparently do not cover rust but were put on back in the early days of the car's life to "enhance" it's appearance. I could live without them but if it looks as good in person as it does in the photos I will be satisfied with that car for $5K.

Any board members in the Pittsburgh area want to shoot over and have a look at it for me? I think the seller is OK but I'd like to have another set of eyes look it over...ones more critical than the owner's son, if you know what I mean.

That looks like a great deal, let us know how it looks in person.

I'm sure you're right. Mine has never had to have all that expensive undercoating applied. It just a an original paint, no rust Texas car with all the books and records for the 120K miles showing. :rolleyes:

Actually Dan's car is another one of these gems that probably sitted somewhere forgotten. Dirty yes, part car apperance yes, but once you start buffing them the W116 is one of those car that are very easy to make look good. Both Dan's car and my mafia-mobil are part cars that could look close to this one with a weekend of cleaning (on the mafia mobil I had to work a little on the front seats and still need to replace the windshield).

They dont leak, no rust Texas or Florida cars, garaged the first 25 years of their life. Their only problem is that damn AC and the shoking mileage (where do they find 30year old cars with 125000 miles on the clock???).

There was another cherry of these in Dallas last week on Craigslist. It went for 5400 bucks 165000 miles, Silver blue/blue mbtex. And 5th gear motosprot in Lewisville sold a black/palomino with 135000 for 7000 2 months ago. Both were in the same league that the white car we are discussing.

Of course you may argue that the market in the north east is different and that fleabay price are inflated. But unless shill bidding I really doubt this baby can beat 8 grands and may not even hold that level upon carefully in-situ inspection.

just what i was thinking....

and wow that is a great looking car

Today, I put a deposit on a 79 300sd w/ 81,000 miles in Fla. Seller is a mechanic and the 2nd owner. Everything works, even the AC (he replaced the temp mixing valve last year) and even has a sunroof. Silver with black interior. Got it for $3,500. Can't wait to pick it up. I'm leaving NH in 3 weeks to spend the winter in AZ. Will pick it up on my way and bring it to AZ where it will stay.

Any members around Ft. Meyers, FLA that'd like to go see it and maybe send some pictures? Sure would appreciate it.

From that info it sounds like you got a deal! Not going to drive it in NH winters? Start a thread with pics when you get it. How much time will you be spending in YUMA shopping for the rest of us? ;)

Here's some prelim pics. I'll keep you posted and will start another thread shortly to document the sale.