99CEEFOURTHREE

Hello all,Just purchased a 99 c43 silver,two-tone and both option pkgs w/41k original owner.Paid $ 17,500 for it.Pristine and all maint records.I live in N.J. and will be flying to N.C.on nov 20 to drive it back.Needlesss to say very excited.My first benz after driving my cousins E430 was impressed.He suggested the c43 as he knows i have owned a mustang g.t. and cobra in the past and love the muscle car feel.Will i be happy with the performance? Everything I hear sounds positive.

TuneTime

i love mine... its funny, being in a shop filled with all the big body AMG cars.. the C43 has a certain way about it... It has AMG history and herritage... It has Low production numbers... It has performance and has alot of the features of the newer cars..... And also, the odds of seeing another one driving around is quite rare!

Jons95c36amg

I wouldve found a low mileage 01-02 Clk55 for that price. Unless you like 4 doors.

Koru_Kinshi

44K? That's really low on miles. Sounds like a cherry find.

99CEEFOURTHREE

41K NOT 44K !

Koru_Kinshi

Hey, don't blame me. Blame the keypad.

silence

don't listen to any of the people who would rather have whatever other AMG model they happen to own-

RBYCC

And your point is

The CLK55 is of a lesser build quality then the W202 C43.
The C43 is more of a "landmark" AMG vehicle as it was the first V8 in the small chassis.

Future value of C43 will increase, CLK55 decrease.....

99CEEFOURTHREE

In reply to should have bought a 01-02 CLK55,I dislike the body style of that vehicle.Yes I also could have bought a E55 or C32 but I really always liked the C43.This is my first mercedes and think that I made an excellent choice with this particular car.I do have other vehicle that I own but this car really is what I wanted

silence

yeah- newer, faster, more expensive doesn't always mean better

JYOO

I eventually went from a c43 to a clk430, there are definetly many aspects of the c43 that I miss. Good choice, just dont do too many burnouts=bye bye brake booster.

SeeKlasse

the C43 is truly a masterpeice in many ways, and to find one in such good condition with low miles just makes it all that much better. good luck to you and enjoy your amg!

Jons95c36amg

As you know I also have a W202 C36 so I do like the style. But the Clk55 is a coupe which is sporty. Even though the C43 is a V8 with 302hp its dissappointing. From experience the C43 is only a hair quicker then my C36. The 55 AMG motor is a completely different beast! I think the 01-02 Clk55s are more rare then the C43s.

ProjectC55

But i'm not sure about the depreciation and build quality comment. They seem to me to be pretty much alike but the AMG C43 did set the mark..
If the W202 C55 ever sold in the US there would be no W210 E55 and perhaps no CLK55,which for the CLK55 thank God was not the case.

The CLK body is now going into extinction as an E-class coupe
but MB will ALWAYS have the C-Class .

ProjectC55

To me the C36 is even more dissappointing as the E36 M3 kills it in all performance categories. Not so vs the C43!

Jons95c36amg

The C43 has the same chassis as the C36. The difference is the C43 has a little more power,bigger brakes(same as the W208 Clk55),handling I'm not sure.

ohlord

6grand over market price,I would not let this be the example of how the c43 will increase in value compared to the newer models
A quick search around the country shows 5 all priced under $11.000 the lowest with 80k miles.The least cost at $7800. For the extra 5g 55NA swap this one makes sense.
Not knowing market prices is the single biggest factor in the quick drop of these models.Price them right,buy them right.Value is retained.

$8900
1999 air seats ,hids,custom 17's
This one tempts me

1998 C43 $7000 obo

PJmak

dont look at the market

you cant judge the car by that

Ive seen so many good deals on these cars but all on east coast

so cheap with rly low miles but guess what

rust my friend

if u find one under 80k for under 10k here on wc, consider your self rly lucky

RBYCC

Not knocking the CLK 55, just that it's not as collectable as the C43.
Performance isn't the only factor in buying and holding a low mileage example of a low production volume vehicle.

A CLK55 is faster then a 6.0L AMG 124 Hammer...but I know which I would prefer owning and be willing to pay a premium for...

The CLK fell short as a coupe because it wasn't pillarless....
Mercedes corrected this design deficiency in the next generation.

The C208 syle was not a high point in Merc design and failed to follow the head turning design of the C124.

Mercedes Enthusiast Magazine just did an article on the C208 with primary emphasis on its affordability.

ohlord

is east coast,one of the 7k cars is Ca. and the one in Portland I have seen.Not a touch of rust and every bit as clean as the pic shows.Values are not in the 17's even low miles examples.
A museum piece ,yes,but a 41k car is not a garage queen,will never be one,and the value or price will keep slipping.

RBYCC

I disagree with you on the value slipping on a pristine, low mileage C43 with documented service history.

Collectable vehicles do not begin to achieve appreciating value in the first ten years +/- .
The C43 is still a "new" car, but one with low production numbers.
Key to making money on collectable vehicles is to have foresight and buy at a bottom.
"Buy low, sell high" is how you make money in any investable asset !

Case in point... would you have thought a 1971 280SL W113 that was worth less then $10K in 1981 would now be valued at $50K-70K for a 2+ condition vehicle ?
Look at the 300SL market...when they were ten years old they were at $4K.
Current market forty years later they are at 70 to 100 times the ten year price.

I purchased a 1966 Aston Martin DB6 Vantage ( DB6/2447/R ) early in 1983 for $12K. Invested about $25K over a sixteen year period. Sold it in 1997 for $95K. Enjoyed it, showed and raced it, but kept it as pristine as possible.

I do however regret selling a 1964 lightweight Dodge max performance hemi, one of fifty made, in 1975 for $3500...no market then for race cars...now it would fetch close to 150K-$200K at auction.

I remember a story the late Bob Grossman told me.
Grossman owned and drove more then one 1962 Ferrari GTO under Luigi Chinetti and NART.
He sold his GTO's for $6500 ten years later...they then reached a value of over $7M in the late eighties.

Low production Mercs such as C36 and C43 AMG's, C124's and A124's are going to be more then double their current low value within the next ten years.

Only to look at Europe, U.K. and Japan for values on these models which have already increased !

silence

If I ever sell mine for a decent amount i'll be happy, i guess (but i don't expect mine to be worth a ton either). But the real beauty is in having the car!

ohlord

is none of the cars you mentioned,as a benchmark,an engineering break through or a turning point in the history of the make.41K and a driver will never be a 1or 2+ car.The few in garages that have under 5k might,but those are in private collection already.The 300SL was an immediate collector and several went into private collection the day they arrived at the dealer.I know of two in the Seattle market.If buy low and sell high is the word of the day.The C43 is likely the wrong model and paying a $6000 premium for a moderately low mile example is a zero sum proposition.
In 2005 when I sold my 57 Belair convertible that I had bought in 67 for $600 in mint condition,That was buy low sell high.
I could be wrong.Let's see how low the market goes and if in 10 years there are buyers that dreamed of always having a C43 will pony up the cash.

SeeKlasse

and pony up they will!! but not very much cash im afraid (to agree with ohlord, that is)

ProjectC55

The C43 is superior to the C36 engine and tranny wise and brake wise. All of these add to how a car performs. These put it above the C36 when comparing it to a E36 M3.