1988 300te questions

[brick8]

I currently drive a volvo wagon, but find it to be kind of boring, so I have been out looking for something else. My first choice is a diesel but there seems to be a buying frenzy for diesels right now. I came across an ad for a 1988 300te with 160,000 miles for under $2,000 (my price range). What are your thoughts on these vehicles? The EPA mpg seems low (17-20) especially since it uses premium. Are these more fun to drive than a volvo? Are they trouble-prone?

[lee polowczuk]

I don't know if I would do that if it was my primary transportation or if you are not big into DIY.

If there are no service records, just forget it.

It would be better if things like a head gasket, transmission and possibly a/c evaporator were taken care of.

Also valve stem seals.

I would have 1500 in my back pocket as a safe reserve for first 12-18 month repairs.

I paid 4000 dollars (a premium it would seem) for a 1989 300e with 147k miles.

but it came with recent receipts for a complete a/c rebuild. Also it had had a tranny rebuild and a head gasket/valve stem seal repair in the previous year.
So, I guess I paid the premium up front for the piece of mind down the road.

If the suspensions are tight, they are blast to drive

[KermitF]

Brick8,

I love my '90 300e ... but as Lee said, you have to be into DIY to stay afloat financially and you really do need to see complete maintenance history to make sure it has been kept up. Pre-purchase inspection by mechanic familiar w/ Mercedes will give you an idea as to what repairs/maintenenace are on the horizon.

[alexnatt]

I have owned an 88TE for 18 months now. My wife has put 25,000 miles on the car and it is a dream to drive. However, I concur with the previous posts. I paid about 3k for the car (with 209,000 miles) and have spent probably another 5k to get it as close to pristine as possible (timing chain, head gasket, new accumulators, etc.). I dont regret a penny of it. It is no sports wagen, however. Fairly slow off the line but when it gets up and running the highway acceleration is impressive. We get about 20 mpg on the highway and run premium.