Considering buying a 1990 300E. Need help!

[Dustin.]

I am considering purchasing a 1990 300E, however I don't really know much about these cars.

It has 95K on the odometer and generally seems to be well maintained. Asking price is $2700 obo. Is that a fair price?

Everything is working aside from the original stereo.

How reliable are these models? Engine or transmission reliability?

Any issues I should look for when I go check it out?

What kind of maintenance issues would I be looking at should I buy this car?

Here are a couple of photos from the ad:





Thanks for the help!

[deanyel]

Can't be a 1990 model - wrong upholstery and body cladding - better have a look at the title.

[Dustin.]

Thanks for the heads up. I'll check the title when I go look at the car.

Would the interior and body trim be indicative of a car older than 1990, or newer?

[tbomachines]

Originally Posted by deanyel

Can't be a 1990 model - wrong upholstery and body cladding - better have a look at the title.

Looks like my 300E from the pictures aside from the tex seats. Can you be more specific? Engines are very reliable, ask the owner if it burns any oil - the valve seals have a tendency to start wearing out and can burn oil between changes. You'll want to look for normal maintenance like filter changes, spark plugs, stuff like that. The transmission should last between 150-200k at least, if it shifts into gear quickly it should be generally ok, look also for a trans fluid flush and filter change (factor that into price if it hasn't been done). Make sure there are no squeaks in the suspension etc, normal stuff like that. I paid more than that for my 300E, and absolutely love it. One thing to watch out for is the odometer though - its a 20 year old car and the odometer gears have a tendency to strip, so on a test drive make sure that it records accurate mileage (speaking from experience here).

[Ferdman]

Dustin, the car looks clean and would appear that it was maintained properly. However, it's best to have a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) done by a MB-trained tech who knows that vintage MB automobile and its quirks. The tech should be able to spot any pending major repairs so you can either adjust the purchase price, or walk away. Keep in mind there is nothing more expensive than buying a cheap MB automobile that has been neglected and costs thousands of dollars to make it right.

[anziani]

I had two signs made up, one for me and the other for my mechanic.

"WARNING, THERE IS NOTHING MORE EXPENSIVE THAN A CHEAP MERCEDES"

Having said that my '87 300E (bought by my mechanic) has 220K and is running like a dream. Valve stem seals replaced at 150K, transmission resealed at about the same time. Other than that just normal maintenance.

Unfortunately my '93 300CE was the subject of the signs. It was POORLY maintained (but the price was right!)
Anziani
'93 300CE 196K
'95 E420 125K

[lkchris]

Most of these cars are ready for major work on transmission and HVAC system. They probably also need new fuel injectors and possibly head gasket replacement.

Evidence of work recently done is pretty important in determining price to pay.

[long-gone]

95K is right about the time that an M103 engine is showing signs of head gasket failure. These engines are notorious for head gasket failure about every 100K.
About a $1000-1700 job by a good M Benz indie. A very do-able job for a competent DIYer for about $550 (including parts and machine shop work on the head).

The bad head gasket will show signs of oil in the coolant tank. It would have oil or brown sludge floating on top or sticking to the plastic tank walls. Other signs would be oil leaking at the passenger side back of the head, though it may be hard to distinguish from a valve cover leak. If it's not too bad the car can still be driven until it becomes bad.
These are such solid dependable cars though, that most owners will hang onto them and only think about selling them when faced with this expense, and consequently, most of the ones you look at for sale will have signs of a bad head gasket. I love my 91 300E, 230K and still running great (2 head gaskets so far, one done at the dealer by the first owner, the other done myself). It's not that big of a deal on such an otherwise solid car and you might note that improvements in some head gasket brands have led to greater longevity in that respect. Oh, if it needs the head gasket be sure to replace the valve guides and valve seals while the head is at the machine shop (inexpensive insurance for future milage), as well as the water pump (easy to do while the head is off, a real ***** otherwise).

Other than that, the A/C is probably going to need to be converted to R134.

They're prone to an oil leak at the passenger side of the upper timing cover (usually easily seen just under and in front of the first exhaust manifold).

They're also prone to leak oil at the oil sender switch (drivers side of the oil pan above the drain plug), easy fix at oil change time.

Make sure the tranny shifts solidly and check that the fluid is clean, bright red and doesn't smell burnt.

It may idle a bit rough and/or have an intermittent hesitation off the line. A rough idle could be motor mounts or it may be related to any hesitation. Usually something simple like a vacuum leak, sensor, fuel delivery part, etc. These (nuisance) issues can drive a mechanic nuts, but their varied causes and repairs are well documented and discussed on this and other MB forums.

Check the exhaust is in good shape, exhaust parts can be expensive, though prices on the net are way down from years ago.

If original, the radio, (head unit actually, the tuner is behind the rear seat) can be exchanged for a refurbished unit from a place called Becker Auto Sound (I think) in north New Jersey for $150 plus shipping. They'll even fit it with a MP3 player jack for an extra $50. The head unit is simple to remove.

I'm sure there's stuff I'm neglecting to mention, but these are some things to investigate for starters.
These are fantastic cars if they were well maintained, and there is a ton of repair info here and on other sites to fix it right (yourself or to find a shop), find resources and keep it running for years. I just sank some money into mine to maintain the brake system, drive train, etc because I couldn't buy a better car for the money it cost me to do it. I even bought my daughter an '89 190E (very similar car with the same drive train) because I wanted her to have a safe, reliable, easy to fix car.

good luck

[KJZ78701]

What a great post.

Can you go into more detail on the R134 conversion. I thought they had R12 replacements? ?Freeze 12?

Also, more detail on the better head gaskets please.

[deanyel]

Originally Posted by Dustin.

Thanks for the heads up. I'll check the title when I go look at the car.

Would the interior and body trim be indicative of a car older than 1990, or newer?

The body cladding is 86 to 89 - MB Tex was standard and leather optional. 1990 got new body cladding, the 300E had leather standard, the 260E had tex. But no one would change the body cladding - it has to be a 86 to 89 300E or 260E.

[long-gone]

That's kind of a generalization, when the R12 system on a 20 year old car goes south, most people opt to update/convert it to an R134 system rather try to maintain the old. There are lots of great threads on this forum regarding what needs to be done for a conversion and whether one would want undertake it themselves or have it done.
Lot's of threads about the pros and cons of keeping the old system intact and using alternative refrigerants. There's too many details to cover it here and I don't feel qualified to elaborate anyway.

Same with the head gasket, while I feel qualified to discuss that, I already have in previous threads as well as many others here. Best to just search for them.

Do a Forum Search on "head gasket" (M103,W124), select "search only titles"

Similarly, search: "Air Condition"

[long-gone]

Here's a couple threads regarding m103 head gasket modifications. There's tons of threads here regarding M103 head gasket jobs in general.

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=258037&highlight=head+gasket

http://www.peachparts.com/shopforum/showthread.php?t=288624&highlight=head+gasket

[Cal Learner]

Originally Posted by deanyel

The body cladding is 86 to 89 - MB Tex was standard and leather optional. 1990 got new body cladding, the 300E had leather standard, the 260E had tex. But no one would change the body cladding - it has to be a 86 to 89 300E or 260E.

Right. Unless it's been modified in some way, it's an '89 model. You can tell that from the ashtray cover door. It's the spring-loaded type rather than the pull-down type used through MY 1988. The other way to tell the '89 is that the radio antenna, when fully extended, angles to the rear about 10 degrees; earlier models had a vertical antenna. To the OP, check the 10th digit of the VIN. I'm betting it's a 'K' for MY 1989.

[lee polowczuk]

in reality....what really matters is---- ice cold air....and a smooth shifting tranny.... especially in reverse.

if either of those are in question....just walk away....

you can do the other "necessary" stuff for about 4-500 dollars in parts

[tbomachines]

Originally Posted by deanyel

The body cladding is 86 to 89 - MB Tex was standard and leather optional. 1990 got new body cladding, the 300E had leather standard, the 260E had tex. But no one would change the body cladding - it has to be a 86 to 89 300E or 260E.

Good eyes - I didn't even see the body molding.

As far as the other posts, I'm not sure a headgasket should be considered as a 100k event. I haven't heard them being that much of a nuisance if driven correctly (like not overheated) but each car obviously is different. The M104 of later w124 chassis has more of a reputation for blowing the HG than the M103. I would also disagree on the R134 conversion. R12 is getting more difficult to find, but if you can get a competent shop to recharge R12, or if you want to tackle it yourself an EPA certification is about $20 and consists of an open book "exam". The reason I advise not to go into an R134 conversion is because a lot of folks report (including me) that R134 conversions simply are not as effective as the R12 or systems designed for R134 in the first place--not to mention the labor and time expenses of changing out all the seals. Of course the buyer can consider this based on preference, but I would personally not consider the lack of R134a to prevent a sale or that big of a deal in general. The rest of that post is spot on, especially with the transmission health, good advice!