Al Bundy

Went for a visit to a MB dealer last night to look into trading my C32 for a GLK 350, and of course the trade-in value discussion didn't go well.

I've got a black '02 C32 with 44,000 miles on it. It has a small crack in the front bumper and rust on the bottom of the driver's side door. It has also been in a wreck but the repairs were done by a quality shop. New tires, everything else works and it runs great.

My question is, what's a ballpark trade in value for this? Edmunds, KBB and NADA claim it's around $12,000 in Fair condition. The dealer quoted less than $7,000.

I realize that it's all part of the used car game, but $7K is pretty insulting.

What do you guys think? Is 10-11K a reasonable amount for me to ask for?

chris.bachman

How extensive was the damage from the wreck?

How much rust are we talking about?

If you want the most money for the car it'll have to be a private party sale which you could then put down on the car from the dealership. My vote is to find someone to buy it.

Al Bundy

The damage from the wreck was about $12,000. Pretty much everything in front of the front wheels. No engine or suspension replacements though. Bumper crack is from a second event that happened a week after I got it back from the first wreck. Some drunk redneck in a huge truck backed into it.

The rust is a problem. There's about a 1" rust line along the bottom of the driver's side door. It exploded about a month ago, prior to that it looked fine. Watch out for that, it's ugly.

I'd sell it private party if I had time, but I may not have a choice. If I did I'd probably list it around $14,500. There are a few others for sale in the Chicago area going for $15-19K. It's got a transferrable warranty until late September too. I've replaced the IC pump, the SAN modules in the sunroof console, heated seats, etc. Basically every TSB that I've had a problem with.

Is that a fair price for a private party sale given the condition?

It's a shame. I still love the car but at this point I think it's time for it to go.

chris.bachman

I bought my immaculate condition '04 C32 with 42,000 miles on it and a spotless carfax from a dealer about 2 months ago and it was only 19k. You might have trouble getting anything over 14,000 for it but the market in your area could be better than mine. Try looking into CarMax or another large volume dealer, you'd be surprised what they'll offer you and it's free to get looked at.

King320

I dont know about the Carmax idea. They generally lowball you pretty badly. I would go private sale, whats the rush in trading the car in?

Al Bundy

Thanks for the tip, I'll definitely check Carmax out. Never even thought of that.

The MB dealer I went to last night was ridiculously small, so I should probably check MB Chicago instead. Seriously, it looked like a 1970's Buick dealership inside.

Al Bundy

The rush was that I found a great deal on a GLK ($10K less than new) and I'm pretty nervous about the rust issue on mine.

That and it's been 4 years and it's just plain time. You know how the 'new car bug' goes.

jimmyp

The rust is probley from your repair work, I just tradded in a 02 c32 with 51,000 on it and got 10,500 towards my GL350. My car was in ex shape I think I could of got more but they only sell for around 12-13k in good shape.

Zeebrock

Try MB of WestMount, they gave my top$ for my trade (Subaru LegacyGT) and a good price on the 05 C55 I bought. They also did an Inspection and from that they did the front brakes and an A service. The car was detailed and looked almost new. I had the best car buying experience I have ever had.

aho

I took my 03 C32 with 60k miles to carmax a few months back and they said theyd give me 10k for it. Dont expect to much from them. I say just sell it yourself, youll get more money that way. Good luck with your new purchase!!