So Im looking at a car which is in Florida and I read the carfax showing it was in Bellingham most of its life, then went to Georgia and then Florida as a rental..97K miles..

BUT NO!Somehow had the wrong carfax and I see now its entirely been located in Florida since new in 04. No issues shown other than minor stuff, power steering reservoir and similar replaced..Alternator..Regular dealer service.

Question? Im having it looked over and just where should one expect to find corrosion and look? We wont be able to remove splash pans below but can flashlight up under the gas tank and wheel wells..Open the spare tire compartment and around the engine firewall and..The exhaust will be visible but being stainless should be okay..while other areas maybe not..Front wheelwells around the shock attach points I believe are vulnerable.

I also live in a coastal area and would plan a long term corrosion control practice but just want to avoid a nightmare with long distance purchase. Such lower prices on the East Coast! But long distance buying is pretty spooky!

Thanks in advance!

If youse were to tell what portion of the Sunshine State the Intended was in
Someone here could more easily direct you to a Known Good Shop.

BUT , Since Google is always my friend:

https://www.google.com/search?q=Known+problems+with+2004+W211&oq=Known+problems+with+2004+W211&aqs=chrome..69i57.14727j0j7&sourceid=chrome&ie=UTF-8

For instance:
If I were in upper middle Florida I'd take it to SteveBFL in Gainsville for a Pre-purchase inspection.

__________________
'84 300SD sold
124.128

So far I am finding the door bottoms..behind the license plate..paint is totally bright and the headlights are clear so I assume its been garage stored and not sun-baked so fingers crossed! The car is in Broward County near Ft Lauderdale.

Im sending a casual inspection over, just a local handyman fellow to do a cell phone view for me.

Yes, I could arrange an indy to pick the car up or go to the dealer and have a look. Id prefer private party sale but these cars are mostly trade-ins for new purchase cars and they get wholesaled out to used car lots. There are not that many on the market and I insist on 2WD so this makes the market even narrower since most are 4matics. This one too is indoor storage. Always dealer maintained.

Thanks again.