BVC500

Fellow C43 enthusiasts,

I think we'd all agree that KBB values aren't in line what the market is currently valuing excellent to very good condition C43s.

I love my car - I've had a W202 C class since 1999 (first a C280 w/ 255k miles that was mint until someone t-boned me and now my brother's C43). I would be perfectly happy keeping it, but thinking it may be time to upgrade to a more modern car after 17 years of the W202. I'm thinking new C or GLC with 4matic. I think I have a realistic value in my head, but I wanted to get your input.

My brother purchased it from HBL Tysons in 2006 with 33k miles on it. We have all records and receipts since then. After I got t-boned in my old C280, I purchased the car from him and he got a Cayman. We're Mercedes enthusiasts and take care of our cars with OEM parts and a perfectionist engineer father who has had Mercedes since the early 1970's.

My 1999 C43 currently has 122,700 miles. Here are the details:

-Waxed and polished yearly using Meguiar's and Menzerna
-Oil changed every 3-4k miles with synthetic
-All the big typical issues have been fixed in the last couple of years. New OEM headliner, air conditioning compressor and mass air flow sensor.
- Refinished wheels (due to typical clear peeling)
-Akebono brake pads
- No accidents or dents. Original paint except roof, which was repainted in May due to a couple small rust spots around the sunroof seal. Those areas were taken back to bare metal and treated before repainting and a new seal isntalled. Front bumper has your typical road rash.
-New OEM seat bladders
-New headlight and side skirt rubbers
-New OEM windshield (due to a road chip that spread into a crack)
-New fleece-lined custom car cover
-Input for iPhone to the radio discreetly installed by Becker Auto Sound
-New driver's seat cover. The old one was worn and I sourced an excellent condition one on eBay.
- The only thing that needs addressing and only because it bugs me is the white on the steering wheel is a little worn in a small area. It's hard to notice in the photos, but I have the old seat cover to send out for a color match.

Thanks for your input!
Bernard

Sulaco

Ugh. That is one clean C43. I am so jealous.

ONE BILLION DOLLARS.

BVC500

Haha. Well, rest assured, if I do sell it, my asking will be a lot more reasonable than $1 billion.

eFifty5AMG

How did you score that driver's seat cover?! Most people aren't willing to give up just the cover.

BVC500

It was actually a passenger seat cover, which is interchangeable. I bought it from an MB parts guy on eBay (mb-vintage-world), who I think sources his parts from wrecked cars. He has a few other bits left, like front headrests, and was very good to deal with. It wasn't cheap - $800.

So what do you think is a fair price for the car?

mickey13

nice ride. you can definitely get top dollar from the RIGHT buyer. finding the right buyer may not be so easy and top dollar may not be what you think it is.

beautiful car, why not keep it and buy a newer used AMG. some of these AMGs can be had for nothing. SLK55 can be had cheaply, is pretty modern and very very fun to drive. for a little bit more you can get a w204 c63 which is pretty modern and under $30k.

BVC500

Totally agree with you that I have to find the right buyer. My question is what is the right price? There was a C43 on eBay for a while that looked to be in good shape, had xenons and lower miles and it sat for a long time at $12,900.

KBB would value this car at $4k maybe, but I don't think that's reflective of market demand for an excellent condition C43. What is the market for this car? $8k? $10K? Something else?

djayanthan

worth 10k at most

mickey13

too bad about the headlights, would really be the cherry on top. a mb dealer salesman once explained used mb sales to me when i was trying to trade in a used 2011 c300, he was actually explaining to me why he couldnt give me what i wanted on the trade. and his explanation really made a lot of sense, which was that mb is everyone's dream car and that when someone wants to buy a used mb, their dream is to have it fully loaded.

i wouldnt be surprised if you got more than $10k with the lights but i know they can be expensive to add.

PJmak

I wouldnt sell that thing just yet. A pair of oem xenons can be bought ised for as low as $500 if you are latient

BVC500

I don't have any plans to put xenons in it. Sure, stock xenons would have been great, but I changed the bulbs to a brighter, white-blue color and it looks good.

Also, I don't think it'll increase the value of the car dramatically and the next owner can do that if he/she wants.

siideways

Man, if your car were black and had the "must-have" headlight wipers, I'd offer you up to $7K cash right now!


It's so disappointing (and almost maddening) that sooooo many of the C43s for sale out there are so beat up, abused, and molested. UGH! Why don't people take care of their cars?!?! These things used to be $55K cars brand new!!

C280 Sport

To be honest not much. Even if it is a C43. Fact is no W202 is worth much of anything. My advice is keep it as a extra car. Chances are it is worth more to you then it is someone else(Dealer or Craigslist buyer) and get your GLC or C Class.

PJmak

From here they will only go up.

The fact that most c43s out there are trashed and high mileage, that makes your tham much more valuable.

I guarantee these cars will slowly but surely keepgoing up

eFifty5AMG

Fwiw, I purchased a black/black C43 a couple years back. It had 70k miles on & it & xenons. The body & paint were all good except for some spider cracking on the rear bumper in one spot. I paid $7000, but think I got a decent deal. IMO something like that would be worth around $8000-$8500 TOPS. Now my white one with 115k miles on it & an R title costed me $5500. Way cleaner car all around & the paint is pretty damn nice for its age.

PJmak

People are already pricing low mileage c36 and 43s for 10k or more. If that was my care theres no way in hell id takeless than 10k.

eFifty5AMG

Hell, shoot for 10k. This car is super clean & unmolested. I'd be ecstatic for you & the 202 AMG market.

DRBC43AMG

In Switzerland the major internet site selling cars has only 4 C43's for sale at the moment. The cheapest is priced at CHF8'900 and the most expensive is going for CHF12'900. CHF and $ are close to parity so that says it all and they are rather expensive to buy second hand and over priced as usual.

IMO I think we should keep our 43's running and maintained properly, drive them and just wait to see how prices go later down the road. They are becoming rare birds...

PJmak

If I was making more money Id buy your car for 10k and garage it.

Right now I have three 202s one of which is a parts car and wer looking into getting a c55(w203).

Maybe down the road when I free up some space and money id buy a clean w202 amg again hopefully before the prices start going up.

Look up early 90s e class coupes especially convertibles. They are selling for over 10k all day