POS

One of my AMGs has to go and the 500SL 5-speed is just too good to part with. So, I'm offering my w124 AMG for sale. Most of you know about this car; well, here's a bunch of pictures and history that fufills the whole story for those that are curious. I'd like it to go to a good home, but if I can't sell it, I'll move it to my father-in-law's nine car garage and drive it sparingly; I can always sell the 64k-mile w123 300D, but the nice thing about the w123 is that it doesn't need the garage space that the w124 does (the w123 doesn't fly as well, though).

The AMG is currently in the best shape since it was new, so maybe now is the best time to let it go. It's documented, has low miles, looks great, drives great, and hauls absolute butt while doing it. See here for more info:

1987 300E 3.2 AMG

bluecoupe

The car is nice, but if pops has a 9 car geerage, why not just keep it? the current economy will make it tough to sell this car at $13.5...

Good luck with your auction though.

W211 BEAST

Amazing car. I would love to add it, but I dont have any extra $$$ right now. But honestly if I could have a 2nd car right now, it would be this.

watut

One can only hope and dream

W211 BEAST

But I REALLY want it.

RHW

The ebay listing is very well done. Someone will cough up a high bid for this car.

2PHAST

Hmm, given how far from original the vehicle is, 13.5k is a bit optimistic.

POS

Far from original? Not quite. Original AMG 3.2 high performance engine (try to find or even duplicate one of those). Original AMG suspension. Original tranny. Original AMG limited slip rear. Original AMG body kit. Original AMG welded tail. Original interior minus dash and wood. And all originally assembled by AMG of Chicago in 1987, not in my garage or anyone else's then claimed to be an "AMG".

To me, the car figures its price as compared to a 500E and not to a 300E, and although it's closer to the 500E in spirit, even I don't think it's worth as much as a comparable 500E. Therefore, it's priced accordingly. But, park the 3.2 AMG next to a 500E and see which one gains the most traffic. I know the answer. Production of the 500E was 10,479 with 1505 to the US; production for the AMG 3.2 was about 200? and 20 in the US, and who knows how many still are around - five? ten? maybe fifteen (doubtful)? Want a w124 500E? Easy to find; no problem. Want a real w124 AMG? Good luck with that. Rarity is a factor here.

Regardless, it is what it is, and I want for it what I think is fair. If no one agrees with me, and I'm completely wrong, then I guess I'm "stuck" with it - not all bad.

Bigpete123

color-matching the grille and wheel centers wouldn't be all that tough. Then at least from the outside, the car is back to "original". I don't think that would really hurt the value.

I don't feel that replacing the dash or the wood inside the car detracts from its originality, unless those parts are not 1:1 replacements of the AMG parts.

Although your listing does say that the front bumper is a fiberglass replacement, the interior has a few things to be fixed, and the paint job sounds like it's not quite up to the original quality, all of these things are merely the result of age...

$13,500 seems about right to me, but what do I know?

neanderthal

nice car.

i think the price is fair, perhaps a tad high. but just a tad.

hopefully it sells to someone who can appreciate it.

2PHAST

Hmm, well you brought it up, sooo....

Fake front bumper
Butchered rear bumper
Non AMG exhaust that does not even align correctly with the rear bumper
Non original wheels (monoblock II vs. monoblock 1 wheels) BTW, your car would of never come with 17" wheels, period correct would of been 16"
Left rear quarter panel replaced.
AMG grill frame gone
Poor quality repaint
Mis-matched wood
temp guage not working
power steering leak
B pillars need to be replaced
map pockets need to be replaced
Door handle mis-match, part painted part not painted, not original.
I also see a bit of rust on some of the control arms.
None of the standard AMG decals in the engine bay to identify displacement, type of plugs or anything else.

So aside from the obivous problems, I see no documentation to prove this vehicle is actually a AMG built vehicle with a 3.2l motor, it could be a regular 300e with a bunch of AMG add on's. Even with the warranty registration card pictured, does not prove much.

If we want to go further, the styling of the 87 model leaves much to be desired, no lower paneling which was introduced in 1990 and looks nicer. Plus the interior and steering wheel is dated as well, much less desireable than the 90+ models.

Hmmm, "park the AMG next to a 500e and see which one gets more traffic" You must be joking, if your aiming that comment at me, my 500e makes your AMG look very sad.

I wish you luck, but without solid proof of this being what you claim, your asking price is high, plain and simple.

Here is a good example, not to long ago, a member was selling a 1992 300E, german model, all AMG options, wheels, body kit, grill, sportline interior, suspension, brakes, exhaust, M104 motor etc. Starting in 1992, when you ordered a Mercedes and you chose AMG options, these options were coded into the VIN, so you could actually verify if it was a AMG built vehicle and what was put on the car at AMG. In this case, the orginal purchaser ordered pretty much everything EXCEPT for any engine mods, so just a bone stock M104. Clean car in blue/black metallic and very original, asking price 10k, no takers.

POS

For the items in contention, some of those are valid and all of them are listed in the ad. As a purveyor of AMGs for the past few years and quite a student of the AMG world in the '80s, some of your comments just prove to me that you don't know much about the old AMGs - which is normal, it takes a lot of research to know the details about these cars. The car is a real AMG 3.2, and it has been proven 100% to my satisfaction. Anyone who knows the AMGs could validate my findings, and I've placed those finding out there in the real world for all to see.

* Fiberglass was often used by AMG for replacement pieces - sometimes, AMG used fiberglass as the original pieces.
* Original wheels were the 17" Monoblocks - proof of this can be found in any old AMG literature.
* Not all AMGs got the stickers - both Richard Buxbaum and Hartmut Feyhl have validated this with me. They both said that if they had the stickers around and they thought about it, they'd use them, but many cars never got a sticker.
* Not AMG-related, but "poor quality repaint"? You've never seen the car and I never advertised it as perfect - shades of grey do exist in black and white world.

I did bring it up and anyone is free to comment however they like. It may not be your thing, 2Phast, because you like heavily aftermarketed cars, but that doesn't mean the car isn't what it is. Is the price too high? Maybe, maybe not. We'll soon find out. Like I said, rarity is a factor here.

STLe320

Hmm...I see alot of orange-peel in the paint.

And what's up with your driver's side door handle?

W211 BEAST

The only part of the car that looks iffy to me is the exhaust pipes. Other than that this car seems like a keeper. Idk why you would ever sell this. If I had the money Id take it in a heartbeat. But it does seem a TAD expensive.

doktorno

Full disclosure, I have known POS for about twenty-four years, back when we were sneaking his parent's 250SL pagoda and drag racing their 280SE 4.5.

Actually 2phast, we parked the 124 AMG next to my black on gray 42k mile 500e with evo wheels and the AMG did get more traffic, and my 500E is just about perfect. The 500E mentioned in the ebay ad was my car and we did race the two vehicles. My 500E was faster in a race but it was obvious that the 240 or so horsepower was real. With about 120,000 miles or so in a 1986 300E with a manual I can assure you that this AMG has more than 188 horsepower.

Having driven this car and seen it in person, I will simply say that it is special. The car looks great and every time I see this vehicle I am impressed. Not perfect but find me a perfect old Mercedes. As for the rarity, there are likely ten 500E/E500s in the city of Houston and surrounding areas. There are likely ten 3.2L AMG W124s in the U.S. If you were going to assess value on rarity, it would not be with my 500E.

STLe320

I think I'll take Rick's 500

2PHAST

Hmmm, be careful with your assumptions, I have been around the block a few times as well and know much more than your assuming I do.

Fiberglass AMG parts is a strong indicator that it is a copy/aftermarket piece, most all AMG body pieces were constructed of a plastic type material. Most people know this so your going to be hard pressed to convience anyone otherwise.

As for the ducktail, I didn't mention this before, but early on, AMG did mold these into the trunklid, but in later years, they used the epoxy glue to affix them to the trunklid/fenders. The "off the shelf" ducktails you could purchase, shipped with epoxy glue. AMG stopped molding these into the trunklids in the late 80's because of the amount of labor involved and the cracking issues they were experiencing.

You may be satisfied with the vehicle being a true AMG and the motor a 3.2l built by AMG, but I would never take your word or any sellers word as the gospel. Solid proof, e.g. invoice, documentation from AMG, VIN decoding, letter of authentication etc. would be necessary for me and many others. A previous owners word is just not good enough, especially at the price your asking.

I would also doubt that the vehicle as a LSD, as AMG never embraced installing LSD's into their cars (even today), it wasn't even a listed option. Any potential buyer should have the car put on a rack and spin the rear wheels (with the drive shaft disconnected) to verify that both wheels spin the same direction. Its the only way to tell for sure. Having a 3.27 stamped on the diff cover just indicates the presence of a 3.27, not the presence of a LSD.

Given that I have seen many AMG's in person and on different forums, even AMG's built in the 70's had engine bay decals. It may be as you claim, but this is the first reputed AMG that I have ever seen that does not have a valve cover decal or even a decal indicating the type of spark plugs to use (which is common).

AMG's from the 80's and 90's almost all used 16" Monoblock I wheels, in either a one piece design or a two piece design. AMG fitted the 16" wheel to the 300e and the 190e during this period. I have AMG literature from this time period that show the options and the cars. 1987 is way too early for the introduction of the 17" AMG monoblock, those were not available till the 90's. Even the 1992 190e 3.2 and the 300e 3.2 and 3.4 variants came with 16" monoblocks.

Again, I am not saying it is not a true AMG, my comments express my opinion that I have "doubts" because of no verifiable documentation and based on that and the number of issues with the vehicle, that the asking price of the vehicle is high.

Also, I am not interested in purchasing the vehicle at all, I easily could if I wanted it though, so please don't read any motive into my comments.

berti_00

if i had that air filter and put it on mine... i can say mine is an amg too


listen to rikk... he knows alot bro, i meet him a few times

POS

Wow, not quite sure where to start with all this misinformation you have, so I’ll simply state:

1) I have personally spoken to Richard Buxbaum (head of AMG of NA) and Hartmut Fehyl on many occasions. The information I get from them is priceless, and a lot of my knowledge was gained by talking to the two guys who started and ran the company. I’ve asked them many detailed questions over the past two years, including the two you posed. These quotes are directly from the emails I have with Hartmut regarding the 3.2 AMG:

(a) regarding fiberglass vs. polyurethane – “We had both, the early version were some fiberglass and later were made in PU, some of those fiberglass ones made it to the US, but not many. However, all the copies were made in fiberglass. If I look at it in person, I can tell the two fiberglass ones apart, but not on a picture.”
(b) regarding the AMG stickers – “At one point we used some silver stickers on the valve cover pointing out the HP and the different spark plugs we used but not consistently.”


2) Secondly, it was Richard who tipped me off about a 1983 500SL AMG for sale a couple of years ago. I bought that car, and it’s the only AMG I’ve ever seen that has the original AMG build documents, price sheets, and bill of sale with the VIN for that particular SL on each page. In other words, it is a real AMG as backed with the original AMG documents. That car has the engine upgrades but does not have any AMG stickers under the hood. It has limited slip, by the way, which also shows up as an item and price on the build sheet.

3) This AMG Tech Guide was published in late 1987/early 1988 by AMG of North America; I scanned it for your education. Notice the words “AMG Aero 8x17” on page 29 and “3.27 (Ltd slip)" on page 30 for the w124:





Rikk ain't as smart as he thinks he is.

W211 BEAST

Hmmm.... Interesting

Parshman

I would have to say served on this one!

Don't bring me into this my friend 2PHAST, oh by the way I did sell the car for 10K thankyou. And 2 my car got more looks at a local car gathering then the 500E I was parked next too. I remember everyone hating on my car when I first posted. I do have to say POS it is a damn shame about the grill. Umm does the front spoiler have an AMG stamp?

Chappy

I'd be very interested....but learned just 2 days ago we're expecting our 2nd child.

Best of luck with the sale....hope it finds the 'right' home. Make sure to also put your ad in The Star if you're an MBCA member.

Bigpete123

Don't worry, I think Rik is on a mission to single-handedly drive the price of w124's down! lol just playin with you rik!!

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...t=#post2810981

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...t=#post2805666

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...t=#post2794639

https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...t=#post2800165

POS

Doesn't matter anyway - I closed the auction, and I'm going to keep the car. Bottom line is I like it too much to let it go.

Bigpete123

prolly a good choice. Either way, if you love the car or if you have it purely as an investment, it makes sense to hold onto it.