Bigpete123

Guys, I'm thinking about throwing in the towel.

I know what some of you are going to say. I'm not going to get into why I want to sell it (because it will probably make some of the hardcore MB guys mad! ). So the purpose of this thread is to simply ask your opinions on how much you would pay for this car if you were in the market. I'm not decided on whether to sell it yet, but please don't try to talk me out of it because that's not what I'm trying to start with this thread!

The car is a 1990 300ce 24-valve. 204k miles, Smoke Silver exterior, Cream Beige leather interior. Tons of maintenance put into this car... Tranny rebuilt last yr, head gasket, valve job, tons and tons of other stuff. I have over $13k of service records on this car since I bought it about 5 years ago. I do have SOME service records back from the beginning of its life, but I have never been given assurance that the records are complete... so obviously I can't give that assurance.

-H&R Lowering springs
-euro headlights,
-e-code front corner lights,
-euro taillights...
-18x8 AMG replica rims (tires have only about 5k miles on them).
-High-end custom audio work (which I might actually pull out of the car before selling since there's no way I'll get it's value back in selling).
-Sound-deadened interior.

The car seriously looks about 8-10 years newer than it actually is. Maybe some of the guys on the forum who have seen it could back me up on that.
Most of the modificaitons I have made were an attempt to modernize the look of an otherwise dated car.

Known issues:

1. A/C has never worked since I've owned it. Not really an issue in Seattle except for maybe 1.5 months out of the year. I was quoted about $700 to get it fixed a few years ago. I didn't think it was worth it.

2. Cruise control stopped working after I had the head gasket replaced and the valve job done. It hasn't bothered me, so I haven't had it looked at. From what I've read, the computer circuit board may simply need to be resoldered, which is a DIY project. But there are other potential causes so I won't bother speculating re: the cause.

3. Occasional rough idle and hesitation. I have had mechanics go through the thing looking for the cause of the problem. I've been told that the only suspected cause left on the list is a bad catalytic converter. This is something I will of course disclose since I like to think of myself as an honest guy.

4. Paint is generally in great shape. There is one door ding that got down to the primer (and is kind of "kinked", meaning that there's a sharp line where it was hit), and a few other minor door dings that could easily be popped out. The lower body cladding could probably use a repaint in the next few years. There is a scrape on the front air dam (I think my wife did it but she plays dumb!!!)

5. The car will not be a collector's car due to the modifications I have made, such as cutting a hole in the rear deck for the subwoofer, etc. But then again, it also has 204,000 miles on the clock so that alone would be a deal-breaker for most collectors.

Here are the values that websites are giving me:

KBB: $3k
Nada.com: $3,200 - $4,500
Edmunds: $2,451.

The rough average of these is $3k. Man, that really just feels low, but I'm a realistic guy. Non-modified/modernized 300ce's are bringing down the average I think. But that probably means that I should remove all of the mods that I can and sell them to you guys if I want to make more money!

The alternative to selling is to just hang onto it and buy a second car. My wife and I live and work in downtown seattle and really don't need 2 cars (and only have 1 spot in our condo's parking garage). So like I said, this is just a "feeler".

Thoughts?

A_G_L

Sounds low to me but what do I know, I'm Canadian!
With the same mileage, here in Vancouver, the 24 valve model sells for at least double that! Just down the road there is a normal 300ce and they want 9K with 180,XXX miles!

Import it, Canadians are dumb, we have no comprehension of what things are worth!!

watut

Pics? I might be interested, Im looking for a 300CE

White_Knuckles

Sounds like you put a lotta love in that baby. A backup car isn't a bad thing when one's in the shop. If you can park it on the street or stash it without the condo buggers making comments, keep it. You won't recover your investment after that trans. expense which must of been 4 digit.

Tire kickers looked at my '94 E320 when I put a "feeler" up on Craig's list. Most were insulting low-ballers offering half of my $4,500 asking price. Funny, most walked away discovering it wasn't front wheel drive.

Bigpete123

Yeah. The more I think about it, the more I realize that selling it for $3k or $4k really isn't worth it to me. That's not exactly a landslide of cash I'd rake in. I have a feeling I have put a lot more love into my car than most people, so somebody would be getting a really good deal for that price.

I was looking through autotrader listings and found this beauty. AMG Gen I body kit (or replica, not sure), good color combo... 200k miles is pretty darn high though.

http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/vdp.js...=&cardist=2161

Wolf190

bigpete123, I don't really remember what your car looks like but from the sound of things it is pretty nice... My boss has one on the market, totally stock, $8000. His is a beautiful car but the mileage is more around 140,000 - 150,000 miles. If I was you I would start that car at $6-7 thousand (again I don't remember the condition) and work down from there, but don't take any less than $4,000. Someone who knows their mercedes will eventually recognize it as not just another car, but a well cared for pavement ripper

When I bought my car it was $4,800 at 122,350 miles. Whenever I sell it I plan to start at $5-6 thousand because of the work I plan on doing to it this summer just to give you a perspective.

STLe320

is it just me...or is the "300ce" really crooked on the trunk!?

Saijin_Naib

Nah, looks right. The reflection is cast weird though so that may be doing it.

RHW

Like you said, best bet is to pirate your mods to us then take what u can get for the shell.

Hard core or not, unless your living situation calls for it, stepping away from one of these cars at 200K is not a bad decision. That AMG kit car tells the story, offered at 4500.

Bigpete123

Yeah. I've thought a bit more about it. Our plan is to buy a more fuel efficient car such as a hybrid. But when I look around, there really aren't any good options. The prius makes me want to vomit, and I can't see myself driving a civic. I don't want an SUV hybrid (which are all "mild hybrids" anyway)... People are paying more than the sticker price for these things because there aren't enough competing models and the supply isn't meeting demand.

My wife and I only drive the car on the weekends. I did the math and we only drive an average of 6,000 miles per year total, so the fuel cost savings really doesn't justify the premium you pay for the hybrids (vs. comparable non-hybrid models). It's more about all of the other reasons why we shouldn't consume so much oil. Oil prices are expected to continue to climb, so maybe the economics will fall into place sometime in the future.

So what I'm gonna do is this... Hang onto the MB until one of the following happen:

1) The car requires a repair that will cost more than half of the car's current value (a damn spark plug could do this car in, lol), or

2) Somebody finally designs an attractive hybrid in my price range and I decide to buy.

If #2 happens first, we might just hang onto the MB for a while since the car really seems under-valued in the market IMHO.

Garfunkle_W124

Hell, I threw in the towel a month or so ago and bought a 240sx. Then I sold it and bought another 240sx coupe. Don't feel like a traitor, just do it


PS, to stay on topic, ask 4k for it

Chappy

As far as resale, non-working items like the A/C and cruise control can be big issues to a perspective buyer.

If you need to sell, sell the mods and use the coin to make the necessary repairs. You'll come out ahead...unless you can locate a buyer who doesn't mind the present condition.

Good luck!

Bigpete123

Thanks.

Dollar for dollar, I have a hard time believing that I would come out ahead. For example, if I spend $800 on the A/C and $300 on the cruise control, will I really be able to make that $1,100 up in the sales price? prolly not.

Somebody might ding me $500 on the price for those issues. Either way though, I have decided for the short term, it doesn't make sense to sell. I'll do it in maybe 6 months (or sooner if something bad happens). Or who knows, maybe I'll decide I should just keep putting money into it until the wheels fall off. I dunno!

RHW

You could spend more than $800 on the a/c "very" easily.
Without a/c I would bet you pull <$2500.

shdoug

I would buy a car with no A/C in Seattle. There's very little humidity and the sun is not very intense.

Bigpete123

exactly. You would only use an A/C for maybe a month in Seattle each year. And even then it's not like you're dying of heat stroke without it.

ronald7410

Yeah! Sell me your euro headlamps

ronald7410

Pm me if you do

Chappy

Understood.

My opinion is that if the A/C isn't fixed, your potential market for buyers is significantly reduced in the $4K+ arena. When I had my '91 CE for sale, most of the inquiries I received were from out of state (South Florida, New York, DC and Texas). I ended up selling to a gent locally with cash in hand.

BTW, my CE had more mileage than yours (221K), but virtually everything worked....mine sold for $5,900.

ksing44

I don't think the new civics are so bad. I actually prefer the sedan, with split folding rear seats to extend the trunk . It sounds pretty handy and they get 36mpg, which is pretty good. I may get one for my son.

That said, I think the longer we wait the more likely we will be to see more higher mileage cars worth considering. For example, Honda is planning to sell a new hybrid. Also the VW diesel Rabbits may be nice and get 50 mpg, although diesel gas certainly isn't a bargain.

I think I could like a VW rabbit diesel with upgraded suspension and maybe other bits taken from the GTI. With a VW diesel, I could even play with the WVO conversion. Now that would be cool.

RHW

Seattle is the right place to sell that car then.

Wanta buy a wagon?

GEDaggett

Go old school with a 1980 turbo diesel rabbit and set it up for veggie power. There is one for sale here in illinois for $1500.00 in good shape. The old ones got better mileage than the new ones. with a 4 speed you can get 45mpg or better around town. Once you do the exhaust and intake you can easily average 50+ mpg. I am looking into the conversion kits and will probably be getting an old diesel this fall. Maybe a 300sd merc for the wife. they are pretty cheap (relative).

berti_00

you can converete these cars to run into propain as well... almost all cars in europe do that and its soo much cheeper... you go double the milage in propain than in gass... and its safe.

i might bring a kit from europe when i leave on june to do my benz... i can run it on either or... i just need to get the tank here somwere and know if people do install them here