bing330i

I found a 2003 C320 wagon with only 28 miles on it. Hard to believe. But per the dealer :

"they were scheduled to be put in our service loaner fleet but never needed to be there because we had a sufficient number of service loaners already. Hope that makes better sense.

Anyway, you are absolutely right, it definately is strange for a dealer to have a brand new car this long, but to get the proper manpower and time to present a car that virtually doesn't exist in our computers, is quite a task. So that does equate to huge savings for our clients."

I am a bit concerned filters and gaskets may dry out since it is almost 3 years since its production date in Oct 2002. Any thoughts on this? Any other risk factors with this long idle?

The car has no CARFAX as it is never titled.

It will be certified pre owned.

Added options are C2, Auto transmission, CD changer and heated front seats with original MSRP of $41k.

Checked Kelley Bluebook, trade in value at $25800 and private party value at $29100.

What would you suggest I should negotiate the car for? Thanks a lot.

victor20170

That is very strange indeed. Which dealer is it? ASC or HBL. Negotiate the final price more if you can, or wait until the 06 models with new engines come out... this will definitely lower the prices drastically, specially if it is a 03 model.

FrankW

interesting...good deal if it's true.

tyro

In May, 2004, my dealer had a new 2003 C320 Sport Sedan when I was looking for the 2005 C230. They wouldn't come down sufficiently in price to justify buying an "older" model.

FrankW

dealership prefers to sell the new cars rather than the used cars. why? because they make more money selling you the new car between the invoice and the sticker price like 4-5k. with the used car, they can only get maybe a grand or two or not even any money from how much they paid for the car when they got it from customer trade-in because of the market value changes everyday.

05Css

Personally if I was you I wouldnt buy that car. Good deal or not. The reason is like you stated the gaskets and seals become dry. In turn you will experience leaks and other issues. You are better off getting a used car with low miles and good history than a new car thats been out for 2-3 years under the sun, no service, non of the parts lubricated nor used.

Tishers

I wonder what shape the leather is in.

Was this car sitting in the back lot of a dealer for 2-3 years?

Tishers

Another effect that I had seen. When a piece of machinery sits outside for a long time dinural temperature/humidity cycling will bring damp air into interior spaces. The mositure then condenses out at night, at day, it gets warm again, the air expands, at night it cools off and sucks more damp air inside.

If this automobile was left outside for a long time I would not be surprised to find rust or corrosion on interior components (exhaust, intake manifold, electronics).

Another thing that can happen with time, shafts and rods will develop a very slight dip to them. On a bigger scale this is why very large generators, motors and turbines are always rotating very slowly, even when they are not running. It is also why shafts in storage, if they are stored horizontally, are rotated every few weeks or months (and marked with a grease pencil so you know where it was). Sure it may be a few nm of deflection but would you want to buy a car with something like that going on?

bing330i

Thanks Tishers + 05Css.

The dealers' response in this regard was: QUOTE: "Our
dealership has for certain done two things for this vehicle. Whatever cars
that sit for an extended period of time, we do make it a point to run
the motor on the vehicle periodically to ensure all the fluids do go
through the system to keep everything from drying out. The second thing we
have done for the vehicle is put it through our vigorous pre-owned
certification process so everything has been checked out as well."

From the car's VMI, on 6/17/05 work done: winshield wiper blade, radio/heat(?) unit entry elected, flexible SVC(?) system (FSS) Serv, Battery electrical fault

Buellwinkle

My dealer had a brand new 2003 a year ago and I thought that was strange. If you want a C320 wagon, that was the last year so personally I would get it. Also, find out when the time starts for the 4 years free maintenance and warranty as that can be 2-3 gone which may not matter if you drive a lot and will put the 50K miles on in a year or two. As for price, a new C240 wagon can be had for about $32K with good negotiating but personally, I would take the 2003 C320 any day. I would pay $29K if it was the right color, put the SS 17" wheels, drop it an inch and tint windows good and dark.

As for gaskets drying out and stuff, if anything is wrong, you'll find out before the warranty is up.

bing330i

Hi Buellwinkle, Laguna Niguel - used to live there till I moved to DC last year!
The car will come with Certified Pre-Owned Warranty: 5 years /100k miles from original in service date March 1st, 2004 (03/01/2004) and the Production Date was October 30th, 2002 (10/30/2002). Though warranty somewhat would provide peace of mind, frequent disruption of car enjoyment would be very annoying, especially I intend to keep the car for awhile. Thanks.

mick1

that's amazing. when i picked up my car, it had 18 miles on the speedometer and we're talking about a 2003 car with only 28 miles.

mleskovar

If I were looking for a wagon I would go for it in a flash. Buellwinkle is right....get an understanding of the warranty start period, maybe even negotiate for an extension to be thrown in. Any seals/gaskets/things that have "dried out" will come to light quickly. I doubt anything is wrong with it because of it sitting. Look at the paint closely for weather damage (use a magnifier, not just your eye).