Hi everyone,

I am considering buying my very first Benz, a 1999 E320 with 133,500 on the odo. I have taken a look at the car and taken it around the private seller's appt. (he has no plates yet, since he bought it from another guy just to sell it), and it looks extremely good inside and out, everything seems to work and I did not notice anything wrong with it at all. He wants $7,000 for it. My main concern is that with the high mileage, something might go wrong in the future which would be costly to fix. For you veteran Benz owners, do you know if the mileage on this vehicle is considered exceptionally high, and if I am likely to run into reliability issues just due to the age of the vehicle? Is the price fair?

Thanks!

Its not that many miles.

I would be put off by not being able to drive it on the highway.

Also as a first time buyer I would strongly recommend getting it checked out by a qualified benz experienced mechanic.

Tom W

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[SIGPIC] Diesel loving autocrossing grandpa Architect. 08 Dodge 3/4 ton with Cummins & six speed; I have had about 35 benzes. I have a 39 Studebaker Coupe Express pickup in which I have had installed a 617 turbo and a five speed manual.[SIGPIC]

..I also have a 427 Cobra replica with an aluminum chassis.

I'm more worried by the price (too low) than the mileage (average). Sounds fishy that a speculator would buy and resell at such a low price.

Get it checked out by a professional.

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Steve Brotherton
Continental Imports
Gainesville FL
Bosch Master, ASE Master, L1
33 years MB technician

History is more important than mileage. Things to be aware of: Salvage title, major crash repair, flood damage. Based on the price I would guess he got it from an auction. That is not necessarily bad but not necessarily good. Auction cars come from anywhere and everywhere. It could have been in some flood area a week ago. Get a professional inspection as was said. Otherwise walk away. Get a car with records from a local owner.

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

What others have said....

Get it checked out! Well worth the money, if it even costs you anything (Salim's in Colo Springs will do it for free--glad I did it, found out mine has a head gasket leak... I still bought it [an 88 300E] but it helped in my pricing).

Good luck to you, sounds like a nice car, but you should take it out and run it about 70-90 on the interstate. Mine freaking GLIDES out on the freeway, feels awesome! You'll want to see how it handles/rides at highway speeds, and also get on the brakes and see if the rotors are okay (if you get 'shimmy' when braking, I think that's an indication of worn rotors).

Are there service records with the Benz? Aware of any repairs in the last few years?

Take care, -Eric

Seems cheap, have a PPI done.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

What part of the country are you in? Katrina cars are still out there, keep that in mind. Flood cars are an electrical nightmare waiting to happen.

If the car seems too cheap, there's a reason. Its probably a reason that would stand out more if you could get it out on a more extended test drive.

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Jonathan

2011 Mazda2
2000 E320 4Matic Wagon
1994 C280 (retired)