mbrookie1974

1989 300CE AMG

Hey guys. I am sure this is not the best forum to start this thread, but i am looking at purchasing a 1989 Mercedes-Benz 300CE AMG. the car is almost showroom condition and has 65,000 original miles. I was just wondering if there was anyone on here that knows a lot about the old AMG's and could help me decide what this thing is worth. Nothing like NADA or Kelly Blue book list an AMG option in the pricing. it has the inline 6cyl. motor. that is about all i know of right now.

thanks for any help.

Saijin_Naib

O_o I'd be very skeptical of this being an AMG unless you have some serious paperwork to back that up. Sounds like it could be a Hammer Coupe, but those are very rare.

mbrookie1974

i feel sure it is a legit AMG. it is a doctor friend of mine that owns it. he as spoken of how rare the car is and how he can't find anything on the market to compare it to. He said that it cost $60k off the lot. If it is indeed a true AMG HAMMER COUPE, what kind of money would something like this be worth in pristine condition?

ZorroAMG

LOL 60K off the lot for an AMG?

This is a fake...the REAL hammer cost closer to 160K.

It's probably a 300CE with fake badging or AMG kit and wheels.....

Bigpete123

I have a 1990 300ce 24-valve. It is not an extremely rare car by any means. More rare than the sedan, but not a collector's car like a factory-built AMG.

I have the original window sticker in front of me as I type, and the total MSRP of the car back in 1990 was $56,450.

I'm not saying that your doctor friend is lying, but he does not seem to understand the difference between a real AMG and a Mercedes with some AMG parts on it.

So if you still like the car (and there is definitely reason to like it even then), you can definitely use NADA and KBB as guides for pricing. If the car has all service records and has all major maintanence work performed (head gasket, transmission rebuild if over 150k miles, A/C evaporator), and the paint, interior, etc are impeccable, you can easily justify spending more than KBB or NADA recommend.

Keep in mind that that KBB and Nada are simply averages of what people are actually paying. Meaning that there are prices on the high end and on the low end. If KBB and Nada were smart, they'd also show you what the standard deviation is on those pricing averages so you could see the true range.

Your doctor friend might get insulted if you come with an offer that is reasonable (since it's clearly not a real AMG). But he's going to have to figure that out sometime because people are going to ask for documentation if he lists it for sale as a "real AMG"... that is unless somebody buys it without verification.

Bigpete123

And one more thing to add. Does this car have the 24 valve engine (M104 engine)? If it's a 12 valve (M103), then my car's original price does not apply... I would think the M103 would go for less money although I do not know how much.

But that could possibly explain the difference. If he got the car for $50k base, with a body kit and AMG rims, he could easily get up to $60k that way.

Bottom line, there's no way it is a real AMG... If he disagrees with you, simply ask him to give you the VIN number, and send an email to classicparts@mbusa.com. In the email, provide the VIN number and request a listing of the factory options. Here's what mine looks like for my car. I would suspect you'd see some info indicating that it's a factory AMG model:

VEHICLE IDENT. NO: WDB 124051 1B 192939
VEHICLE IDENT. NO: WDB EA51DX LB 192939
VEHICLE MODEL : 300 CE-24
TYPE OF BODY : COUPE
ORDER NUMBER : 0 0 705 20704 DISPATCH : 12 02 1990
PRODUCTION NUMBER: 5030427 8 PAINT 1 / 2: 702
ENGINE NUMBER : 104980 12 006930 _ TRIM : 265
TRANSMISSION NO. : 722359 03 346518 _ TIRES : MICHELIN
RADIO SERIAL NO. : BE1480A95161959 _ HEADLIGHTS : BOSCH
WIPERS : BOSCH
OPTION CODES : 222 240 241 301 412 420 430 446 461 494 519
524
531 543 551 570 581 592 600 639 800
CODE DESIGNATON
702U SMOKE SILVER - METALLIC
265A LEATHER CREAM BEIGE - MUSHROOM / QUARTZ
222 RIGHT FRONT SEAT, ELECTRICALLY ADJUSTABLE
240 OUTSIDE TEMPERATURE INDICATOR
241 LEFT FRONT SEAT ELECTRICALLY ADJUSTABLE WITH MEMORY
301 STORAGE BOX IN THE REAR
412 ELECTRIC TILTING/SLIDING ROOF IN STEEL VERSION
420 4-SPEED AUTOMATIC TRANSMISSION
430 HEADRESTS IN THE REAR
446 440+441+442
440 TEMPOMAT (CRUISE CONTROL)
441 STEERING COLUMN, ELECTRICALLY ADJUSTABLE (202/170/168 MECHANICALLY)
442 DRIVER'S AIRBAG
461 INSTRUMENT IN ENGLISH
494 CALIFORNIA VERSION
519 BECKER RADIO GRAND PRIX ELECTRONIC CASSETTE - USA
524 PAINTCOAT PRESERVATION
531 AUTOMATIC ANTENNA
543 SUN VISORS WITH VANITY MIRRORS, ILLUMINATED
551 ANTI-THEFT/ANTI-BREAK-IN WARNING SYSTEM
570 FOLDING ARMREST FRONT
581 AUTOMATIC CLIMATE CONTROL
592 GREEN HEAT-INSUL. GLASS, ALL-AR., HEATED REAR WINDOW PANE, BAND
FILTER
600 HEADLAMP WIPER/WASHER
639 634+636
634 ELIMINATION OF FIRST AID BOX
636 ELIMINATION OF WARNING TRIANGLE
800 MODEL YEAR 1990

starcar

Post some pictures! Some of the guys on this forum will be able to tell you just by looking at it! BTW, take lots of pictures, including engine bay/motor!

mbrookie1974

hey guys. thanks for all the help. you can see now why i titled myself (MBROOKIE). Hey, maybe that is what he meant. he has a 300ce with some AMG options on it. I did not take that close a look at the car. I just thought that it maybe something more that what it is. I saw the AMG badge on the side of the car and the rear of the car and it looked just like the picture i saw of a AMG Hammer. I will see what kind of back up he has next time i see him and see what the true story is. You guys are probally right though.

RBYCC

I purchased my 1988 300CE new in May of 1988.
Sticker was $53,340.00.

USA coupes in 1988 and 1989 had very few options as compared to the Euro versions.
More then likely the 1989 300CE has the M103-12V engine.

AMG really didn't badge the car on the side....only true full AMG variant in 1988 and 1989 was the 320CE which was also available as a widebody.

If the car was modified by AMG in the USA , the mods were done either by AMG in Westmont IL. or BHMA in Los Angeles.

Post a few pix and we can determine if it's real or not

vili1982

engine and exterior pictures will pretty much anwser all your questions.
welcome to the group

mbrookie1974

it must be a kit then, b/c it looks a lot like that white 320ce above. just not lowered quite that much. real muscular stance, low pro tires, wide body fenders, body matching grill...

RBYCC

The white coupe is a E320, not a 320CE....face lift models began with "E" and the coupe, cab and sedan all bore the same designation.
These cars had the M104-24V 3.2L I6.

The 320CE was an AMG produced coupe with an enlarged, higher compression, cammed, M103-12V taken out to 3.2L.
Only available in 1988 and 1989.

If you want to know what you're considering buying then post pix of the front, rear and sides and one of the engine bay.
The VIN as previously requested will answer a bit about the base vehicle

2PHAST

The VIN will not disclose any AMG modifications, as this car is too early. Starting in 1992, cars bought with AMG options in Europe, would have the options encoded into the VIN.

mbrookie1974

it will take a few days, but i will try to get some pics to post.