Better the devil you know?

Rocatin

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I joined up over the weekend as part of my research into what next to do about cars. I have a 2015 W212 that I leased privately, initially for two years and then extended for a year. My first Mercedes. I started with the short lease as I thought I'd want to get into a W213. Turns out that I prefer the 212.

The lease is up at the end of this month. My car has been great. It's a well specified AMG Line that runs great on the SE suspension. My only gripe has been the nasty corrosion in the centre of all of the alloys, which Mercedes refused to fix under warranty due to my having kerbed the wheels a little. Very frustrating, but I've got over it.

This is running longer than intended...

A change of circumstances means that I now only do 4 or 5k miles a year. So a new car is pointless when mine has only 20k and is running beautifully. My choices are:

- try my luck at buying this car at auction
- pick up a very decent W124 Coupe and a low mileage W202 to do the hard graft

Ideally I want my current car plus the W124, but that might be a little greedy.

That's my story, if you made it this far.
 
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LostKiwi

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Can you ask MB how much to buy it? Mind you they'll see £££ signs and ask retail..
 

V6Matty

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Welcome, you could give it a shot with sending into auction but if it were me I'd push the dealer to try buying it outright never know unless you ask.
 
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Rocatin

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Sadly I'm not allowed to buy it direct from the leasing company - Arval. They speak of potential tax implications for them. I had specifically picked Arval because they used to let you purchase at the end of the lease, but the policy has changed. It was never a contractual entitlement. Accounting for leases is a minefield so I have some sympathy with them. However, they will tell me the reserve price.
 

LostKiwi

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In that case also get them to tell you when and where the auction is.
 
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Rocatin

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They have promised to do that. I'll also ask the guy that collects it where he's taking it. Just to be sure.
 

John Laidlaw

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Pre register with the auction house too, I did with Manheim (who auctioned my previous 212 for Arval) and British car auctions. You get the detailed listings (including reg numbers) and dates of auctions as well as condition ratings. Really very good.
 
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Rocatin

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Some progress with my plans. I've put down a deposit to secure a 1991 W124 300CE. Planning to complete the deal by the middle of May.
 

Rory

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Sadly I'm not allowed to buy it direct from the leasing company - Arval. They speak of potential tax implications for them.

Can someone else buy it? VW are the same - you can't buy your own lease car but your wife / relative etc can buy it. But every time I've seen prices they've been bonkers high.
 

John Laidlaw

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Can someone else buy it? VW are the same - you can't buy your own lease car but your wife / relative etc can buy it. But every time I've seen prices they've been bonkers high.
They can Rory (or at least that was the rule)
 
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Rocatin

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Arval said no. Not my wife, not a dealer, not anybody. But I'm looking forward to the w124 enough to not get bothered about this. It's not as if w212's in decent condition are hard to find.
 
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Rocatin

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A progress report...

I am on my way to Yorkshire to (hopefully) buy my 1991 300CE coupe. This will be my first proper 'old car' purchase and I am wondering if I am doing the right thing. All this is not helped by my youngest son struggling to understand why I want a 27-year old vehicle. I suspect that is more about no longer being chauffeured around in newish Jags, BMWs and Mercs. But I figure that it's a safe start and the downside is relatively limited.

Regarding my W212, it was collected by BCA eight days ago. Still no sign of it on the auction rosta. I've rung BCA a couple of times and they only owned up to having it on Thursday last week. I'm keeping my eye out for it on the site, but absence is not making the heart grow fonder.

Meantime, I have been pootling around in a 1999 Golf 1.6SE auto. I think that this will have helped my son to see the positives in the 124.
 
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Rocatin

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I picked up my 300CE today as planned. Bad points are the very slight milkiness in a corner of the rear screen, a few minor stone chips and a little wear on the piping on the driver's side of the armrest. Good bits are that it's awesome. Drove it for 280 miles today and it was faultless.
 

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Rocatin

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Just to finish my story: BCA never did put my w212 into the auction. They "sold it to someone else". Whilst I thought I was on the fence about whether to buy it, I find myself unexpectedly disappointed. I kind of wish that I hadn't taken such good care of it now!
 
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