I'm still on my honeymoon with the 1984 300SD and another car pops up that blows my mind. Them moment I saw it online, I knew it had to be mine.

A single owner 2005 CDI traded in at the St. Louis Mercedes dealer with just shy of 200k. Custom ordered for European delivery. Designo Expresso Edition with panorama roof, navigation, Keyless Go, Xenons. After taking delivery, the previous owner spent another $3000 adding an integrated phone and Satellite radio. Every record since day one showing perfect maintenance.

The Mercedes dealer chose to retail it despite the mileage. New Michelin Pilot sports, front and back pads and rotors, serpentine belt, injector seals were all done. It had been a long time since I dickered with a franchise dealer. Normally I would never bother, but I wouldn't be surprised if this is the only Designo Expresso CDI in the USA, along with the other great options.

400 miles home without a hitch. With my new job I'm putting 2,500 miles a month on the road. I plan on keeping my Prius and splitting up my time on the road between it and the new CDI. Interestingly, at 80 MPH (my normal highway speed), they get the exact same MPG (39MPG). Prius gas mileage really goes off a cliff the faster you go. CDI not as much.

As far as records go, it shows mostly how reliable these cars are. Never towed in. Other than normal maintenance, some fuel leaks, quite a few suspension parts replaced, and tons of repair attempts on the troublesome keyless go system, the only surprise repair was an EGR & Turbo replacement at 60k. This stemmed from a sluggish engine problem that the techs had a difficult time diagnosing. Thankfully the original owner purchased an extended warranty covering the car to 100k. Nice to see records of injector seals, lower ball joints, glow plugs, transmission service at 100k, and battery control module replacement. Other than the normal service campaigns, nothing has been done to the SBC system.

It's also fun to see the order process with the build sheet and original brochures as well as his notes on the Black Forest Rally package in the European delivery brochure. It must have been a blast. Still has the grill badge too.

The only thing that doesn't work is the Keyless go system. (Surprise). It detects the key so I can lock and unlock the car with the doors using the system, but will not start the car as it should.

A big, BIG thanks to Chris James for posting this gem on his facebook page. I wouldn't have found it without him.

Attached Thumbnails

         

__________________
1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

So glad you were able to snap up this super nice Euro Delivery designo E320 CDI, that I happened to come across! I just love the designo Expresso Edition color scheme!
I hope it provides many more miles & years of service for you!

It's cool to see all of the documentation from the original owner as well, a rare find for sure! You'll have to take me for a spin sometime!

Good looking vehicle with super options. Like the clam shell center arm rest.

My 2005 CDI also had history showing glow plugs (and gp controller) and battery control module. Must have been common on early 2005s.

The keyless go system (mine does not have) seems to be very prone to failure. Maybe this was early in that system's introduction?

A great example that shows these can go many miles!

Can you give us a range of cost?

__________________
-- Chris

'95 E300, 216k miles, Silver Surfer
'05 E320 CDI, 138k miles
'07 S550 4matic, 69k miles

Gone but not forgotten:

'76 300D, 350k miles?, SOLD in 1995
'75 240D, 300k miles, SOLD in 1991

Excellent acquisition. Everyone's getting CDI's thes days!!

Given the stats (age/high-miles) of the car, it could have been a very attractive budget buy to have made too. I toldja to buy one for your road work.

$8000... Not a steal, but it's not like another designo is going to pop up again.

__________________
1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

Awesome deal. I wish I had a job i could drive mine 2500 miles a month. What's your job? I'm going to look for one.

__________________
What Would Rudolph Do?
1975 300D, 1975 240D, 1985 300SD, 1997 300D, 2005 E320 , 2006 Toyota Prius

Sounds fair, esp. if there's tons of parts replaced on it.

Did you employ a dealer to dealer buy, to get that price?

Being self-employed in territorial road work will do it for you.

No... Dealers License is gone. I went in as a civilian. They were asking $9875.

__________________
1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

The interior color is BEAUTIFUL. Nice one.

__________________
"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

Less 20% - my kind of buy.

Yeah...I'm starting to feel left out!

__________________
14 E250 Bluetec "Sinclair", Palladium Silver on Black, 153k miles
06 E320 CDI "Rutherford", Black on Tan, 171k mi, Stage 1 tune, tuned TCU
91 300D "Otis", Smoke Silver, 142k mi, wastegate conversion

19 Honda CR-V EX 61k mi
Fourteen other MB's owned and sold
1961 Very Tolerant Wife

I feel like I overpaid for mine now.

Mine has 40k more miles than yours and you could sell those AMGs for $1000 in one second. You did fine.

5th cdi purchase for me. All 4 of the others went to forum members.

__________________
1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!