Newbie buying advice on a 300CE

[Merc_Man]

Hi all !!

I'm off to see a mint 300CE tomorrow night. It's a 92J with 60k on the clock and full MBSH.

Is there anything I should know or look out for on this car ?
Its the first Mercedes I'll own, and although I know that all Merc's are bomb proof, I felt sure that a 12 car must have some problems !!

Are there any major service costs to consider around the 60k area ?

What should I look for in the history to make sure it has been kept up to date ?

Any help would be greatly appreciated - Neil

 

[TonyCoolDaddy]

verify the mileage, as it must have sitting around and only doing 10K every 3 years, so ask yourself this. If the car you drive today has an engine full of oil that went in 2001, would it be destroying the engine!

July 1992 for cats in UK, if it has CATS check warm and cold for rattling V expensive. I have had cats quiet when cold and noisey when warma nd vice versa, if the engine is warm when you get there be suspicious.

Other than than Usual E problems, Coolant leaks, Electrical Gremlins (Avoid the car like the plague)
Transmission Leaks, Having said all that I saw a Met Blue 280CE K plate 75K miles in a showroom recently for £4000.00, if I did not have a big dog and 2 brats, I would have it on my drive today.

Good luck - I hope its a peach

 

[Merc_Man]

Thanks for your reply Tony. I've racked my brain and summoned all my limited knowledge of cars, but I'm lost on CATS ?

Is that a ref to cataltic converter ? The only Mercedes I've been to see was 190 2.6 auto, the bloke said it was a Cosworth but it didn't have the right (dog-leg ?) gearbox so I walked away. That was 2 years ago and I havent been to see one since. I'm very new to Mercs so could you explain in simpleton terms for me please ?

 

[DavidBlake]

HI

I bought a similar car 3 years ago, but with 100K miles. Your right, Mercs of this vintage are as well engineered as you can get, unlike the current cars.
On mine the front springs were sagged, giving a very low ride height, this is common on the W124's, I decided to rebuild the whole suspension to sportline spec although it was only the front springs that were essential.
I had to replace the radiator 2 years ago when a leak developed in the core. The rubber gasket between the cylinder head and front engine cover was losing a little oil, which I replaced.
Besides that it has just been routine servicing and I love the car. I am doing about 15K a year.

Check the rear windows work, the motors can burn out due to sticky switches caused by lack of use.

Can't think of anything else specific to this model. Good luck.

 

[Merc_Man]

Thanks for the positive reply David. I'll have made up my mind whether or not to buy it by 6.00 pm tonight, cause thats when I'm vieing it and I have a tendancy to fall in or out of love with a car almost instantly.

One thing that concerns me about it most, is the price - £3500. This seems quite cheap, and even though its a friend of a friend I'm a bit unsure of its validity. Can anyone give a rough price range on this model, as I'm quite sure Parker's guide was not intended for a car of this caliber.

And a last question. If I do buy the car tonight, I'm fairly sure it has the orange lenses on the front indicators. I'd like to update its appearence and get white ones fitted as I've seen many SLK models with these and really like them. Are they available ?

 

[Spike]

£3500 sounds about par depending on the condition and which refinements is has. check www.autotrader.co.uk to get an idea how nmuch they go for as there a few out there for sale at the moment so dont rush into anything.

The clear lights can be bout from your stealership or from Eurocarparts for much less, as can the later tail lights. To go the whole hog and go for the later model you need to change the boot filler panel and the bonnet and grill.

The W124 coupe's are great cars, the only problem I've ever had with mine is the head gasket, which following lots of research seems quite common every 130k miles or so. When id does go, expect lots of swearing and skinned knuckles or an £800 bill for the work.

I believe there have been quite a few similar posts on buying advice for the W124 series recently so your best bet is to use the search facility and look up whats been said before.

 

[DavidBlake]

Hello again,
It may be too late but I will say anyway that £3500 is cheap if the car looks/sounds/feels good and you can verify that mileage and service history.
Cheaper 300CE's have usualy been destroyed with pathetic bodykits etc.
If your car is genuine you are very lucky at £3500, mine would cost you more.

Beware the substitute indicator lenses, they do not always quite fit correctly and fall out, the dimensions of the plastic clip which holds them in has to be spot on. Also the later cars have a different headlight lens, you would need to check the white indicators match up to it as they clip on in two places to the headlight lens.

 

[TonyCoolDaddy]

MERC-Man, did you buy it then? if so tell us allbout it

 

[Spike]

Hello again,
It may be too late but I will say anyway that £3500 is cheap if the car looks/sounds/feels good and you can verify that mileage and service history.
Cheaper 300CE's have usualy been destroyed with pathetic bodykits etc.
If your car is genuine you are very lucky at £3500, mine would cost you more.

Beware the substitute indicator lenses, they do not always quite fit correctly and fall out, the dimensions of the plastic clip which holds them in has to be spot on. Also the later cars have a different headlight lens, you would need to check the white indicators match up to it as they clip on in two places to the headlight lens.

My 230CE was a one owner 90k miles with full history for 2k

The clear indicators are identical and both sorts do fall out if not fitted correctly. (safest way is to cable tie them in place on the inside so even if the clip fails they dont go anywhere)

 

[DavidBlake]

Spike

Yes the clear and coloured indicators are identical, but the genuine and substitute parts are not.

 

[Loz]

these are the ones for GSF at 9.95 a pop!

I like em, and thanks to spike I may well be enjoying a tidy rear soon too, if you'll pardon the pun

:roll: