rabbitjetta

My girlfriends uncle had a towing business and got an old 300e 4matic. I was wondering if his $500 asking price is too much. I don't know much about the older mercedes but I want to get one to learn and start as a project. Overall this car is in good shape with no surface or underbody rust. Interior has no tears or issues other than the floor on the back passenger side got wet from sitting and the headliner is falling down. It's got 250k on jt and I was able to get it running....

blackice

Hi Rabbitjetta,

No $500 seems a rather reasonable price IF the car comes with a full maintenance record, possibly done at a MB dealer, even with 250k miles. Nevertheless, considering this mileage some parts must have been checked or replaced: auto gearbox, drive trains, suspensions, exhaust pipe line, electrical harnesses, pneumatic system, tires, breaks...
The engine is rather robust if well maintained.

When the 4 matic system goes wrong, this could be costly to repair. Also check if it is still working properly or if parts have been replaced (mechanic and electronic ones).

For the water/wet places problem, fix it ASAP, because if your car does not have rust yet, it will get some soon. This means that you will have to check all rubber seals (including the back door if it is a station wagon) because water insertion could have many sources: trunk rubber seal, open roof (if present), antenna(s) hole(s), chassis and wheels compartments round rubber seals, windscreen seal (at the bottom mostly). First check the water evacuation seals (my convertible has 4: 2 in front and 2 before the rear wheels) under the car: most of the time they are obstructed and water remains creating rust damages that you will not see. So with a screwdriver "gently" hit the chassis to see if you feel "soft" parts or worse if the screwdriver makes a hole. I had this on my convertible: the Mercedes blackson chassis covering is so thick and there are 2 levels of steel sheets floor, that at a first glance (from outside and inside) the chassis did look great. But after testing it I discovered 2 nice holes under the driver's seat! A $6000 job to fix properly!

The real problem with these cars, is that you end up by wanting them to be as they were when coming out of factory: silent, smooth, comfortable, powerful, reliable and good looking!
So check all these points and ask your girlfriend's uncle what he thinks of the car. If you do not get any conclusive answers or do not feel professional enough, my best advice would be to have it tested in a MB dealer garage to have an objective POV on the car. They might be able to see other points that will help you to make an "educated" choice.

Good luck with this "adventure" and you are right choosing this model, it is one of the best in Mercedes production and 4matic are rather scarce.

rabbitjetta

Thanks for the valuable information. He does not have much info on the car, the guy drove the car in there a few months before, he was older and didn't want the car anymore as he replaced it with a new E350.

It appears to have been well maintained from what I can see there was no oil in the coolant and the oil level was fine even after sitting a while.

I am only 19 right now and have been working with European cars sense I was 13. In this time I've had 8 Volkswagens and Audis that I have redone and really want to learn mercedes a bit as I'm looking to attend their program through UTI. The only Merc I've worked on is my mothers w211.

blackice

Well, first of all you should try to get a lower price such as $400 for at least not to be too disappointed if you encounter... future problems. And this is part of the game as well.

If not, and if $500 is not a huge sum for you, you should consider this car as an interesting opportunity. W124 are very well built cars and most of the parts are still available either from MB or from OEM companies. Just be careful as you may find very cheap parts, but our experience (I belong to a W124 club in France) is that they do not last in time. Brands such as FEBI-BILSTEIN, BILSTEIN (different from Febi), MEYLE, LEMSFORDER, BOSCH, BERU... are good alternatives. The rest belongs to the unknown world of hazard! Sometimes you get great parts some time it is a disaster and your regret not to have invested in better brands earlier!

You can always send me pictures of your future beauty (outside, inside with & without carpets, trunk without carpets, engine (several angles with flash and hood totally up 90°) and if you can pictures of the chassis. I will gladly tell you my feelings about it.
Just for information where are you located?
Personally I live in Paris France, but my W124 E320 convertible comes from NY and later Miami.
It was a true story to import and legally register over here!
Good luck to you.

Example of a defective engine wire which wires coating was made to be ecologically friendly and dissolve itself. But MB had the wrong supplier and most of the early harnesses wire isolation coating look like this if they have not been replaced:

rabbitjetta

I will have to get some pictures of the car. The ones I have are from about a month ago here and when they had it in the back of their yard. From the pictures I have it looks rather rough due to the dirt and dust that is on the car and the interior needing cleaned up. The only thing I can see it needing from a 30 minute look over is a new exhaust, headliner( probably just leave it), oil dipstick (pull thing missing) and that is about it. Under the car on the other hand there was just light surface rust if hardly any and I will have to pull the carpet up to check in there.

I am in the US, my family has always driven MB, Audi or VW so we know how expensive they can be. My grandfather just got a new w222 S65 and loves it btw.

If I got the car I plan on putting about a grand in it right away to change the fluids, hoses, valve cover, exhaust and just getting it road worthy. It wouldn't be my daily driver, I have a new Passat for that. I just want something I can learn about Mercedes with as I am planning on working for MB someday.

rabbitjetta

And Good news, I talked to my uncle that owns a car dealer and we ran the car fax on the car. It was bought at the local dealer, it is a one owner car, all of the services have been done by that dealer sense it was new. It appears it had oil changes every 5K miles, belts replaced every 40K, Coolant,Transmission and Diffrental fluid changed every 50K, Airbag replaced in 2004, Axles done in 2006. Carfax shows no accidents or signs of flood damage or anything at all.

rabbitjetta

There is a little water on the seat from when I rolled down the windows to check if they would work.
And the wheels would be changed out with w210 AMG wheels if I can find a good set.




Interior needs cleaned up a bit, underneith all the dust and dirt the vinyl/ leather and interior plastics are perfect.





It needs cleaned up and a few oil leaks taken care of .... I didnt take many pictures of the bay.








Headliner is falling down/sagging. Not that big of a deal.





Paint is not faded or peeling and there is no rust.





Only damage to any exterior trim is the crack in the top left of the grille.





Driver seat is just now starting to show wear.








No dings or scratches on the rear.





All the door trim is like new.

blackice

Hi Rabbitjetta,
The Carfax is unexpected good news, showing that the car has been well taken care of almost all its previous life. And also, the car is well equipped (electrical and heating seats, open roof, leather in good condition, rear headrest, headlights wipers, airbags...) leading me to think that it could be a very good base to be restored.

However, what a shame to let such a car abandoned like this! It deserve a better treat! The interior seems in a great condition, but so dirty. When you go to see it, look under all the carpets to see if there is rust on the body. Same thing in the trunk, especially on left and right rear fenders. You may have to unscrew some screws to view the bottom on each side.
The engine looks good from what I can see. However:
- there is some (superficial?) rust on the top of the radiator and over some screws,
- there is no liquid in the coolant expansion tank (but I cannot see it very well),
- the rubber parts are missing on the front left and right parts of the engine along the fenders,
- it seems that there is some grease on a tank under the air intake hose (on the right on the engine picture),
- and above all spiders webs (just kidding!)
In fact it is hard to tell you more. If by any chance you have the chance to make more pictures of the engine bay, I may say you more. The engine will need a good cleaning too!

You will have to polish the plastic parts of the headlights to recover the white color. It looks a little blurry and yellow to me. However in Europe we never had these lights: it was just plain glass!

The paint needs just a good polish with some "elbow oil" as we say in France...

Again, check all the electrical and pneumatic devices/systems because when they fail, you encounter possible big problems (but could also be very easy to repair like an air hose disconnected...)

So, if you can just discuss a little the price, I would definitely go for it as long as the chassis is not deeply rotten. This is something you must look at before you buy the car. Restoring a chassis is costly, except if you or your family are in the coach car business.

Keep me informed, I like when someone brings back a car to life! A bientot. Serge.

blackice

One more thing, the car needs premium gasoline to work well and... consume less (as strangely as it seems!).
Again, be careful with the parts you will purchase, because such a car deserves good components to work well. Your uncle will certainly agree with me.

Oh, I by the way Happy New Year 2015 to you and your family!

rabbitjetta

I guess I should have been more descriptive when I said good condition... under all the dirt it is spotless. And yes the coolant tank is empty as when my girlfriends family puts a car out back. the coolant was low in this picture but it hadnt went down from the time before I had seen the car. I would like to get the euro lights for it if I did get the car. I would love to get this thing and yes it is going to need some cleaning. I am trying to talk them down to about $400 as I have a Cat from my old Audi that I would go ahead and throw in if i needed to sweeten the deal for them.

I think I may just buy the car if I can get it for that and if it doesnt work out I can easily take the good parts off the car and scrap the rest. I just hate to see a car go to the junk yard that does not have a chance. I will try and post more pictures of the car this weekend If I can get back to it.
What are the rubber parts that are missing, and is it common to have grease under the air box.

blackice

Thanks for your information.
It seems to me that you will get you Christmas gift soon...
About the parts missing parts, please find hereunder what I am talking about: (but maybe it is there, as it is not clear on your picture)


And no it is not normal to have grease anywhere in the engine compartment or under the car. However grease prevents rust... On the E320, there are known leaks on the engine such as on the right forefront behind the cooling propeller (hope my English is understandable..). But a Mercedes should have minimum grease or oil leaks.
Good luck with your purchase!

rabbitjetta

I've always used Volkswagen parts or mercedes parts on the cars I've owned. I never run anything but premium in them either. I actually get 2-3 better mpg using it when my car only calls for 87.

I will look at it more before I decide and post pictures. Thanks for all your help!

AMG Boost

If that car runs, only $500 seems like a steal of a deal. Even if it only lasts you 1 year its worth it.