ZedStyle

Hey guys,
my friend has the opportunity to buy a 98 E430 for 8k cash. I know blue book says one thing, nada says another, etc., to me the best guage of the true market value comes from people who own it.
it's white with grey interior, and is in good condition. still need it to get checked by a mechanic, but how much do you think it would be worth, assuming it was in great shape?
oh yeah, it has 140k on it!
thanks!!!

slk55lvr

Any well cared for, formerly 60 thousand dollar sedan will always be a bargain at 8k. If it's a train wreck of a car, it could be too much even if it was free. If you know the owner and the car checks out during an inspection then it's worth it.

420cap_N

actually thats not a great deal i bought my 97 e420 for 7k off of cars.com

Tommy_s4

i agree, even though it sounds like a good deal. Take it to the nearest mercedes benz dealership and get that car inspected from bumper to bumber and find out every problem. on top of that you can look a little harder and fine one with even lower milage.

4runner

There are some better deals out there, even with lower mileage. 2 months ago I purchase the wife a 1999 E430 Sport Package w/90k for a little over $11k off of ebay of all places. Met the guy half way and drove it 3 hours home. Within the first 2 weeks, check engine light came on and a day later an ESP (Anti-Lock Brake System) light came on. Surfed the MB forum and changed the MAF sensor insert, got rid of check engine light and changed brake light switch, got rid of ESP light. Brake light switch $16 at dealer and MAF sensor insert $100 on ebay, changed myself from viewing MB forums and she has been purring right along. Changed all internal oil's as I had no documentation showing when changed last. I've been lucky so far. Good luck in your search.

ProV1

be sure to get the service and maintenance history, if those check out you'll be good to go. I'm realizing that MBs are not that hard to work on, so even if a few things break you can replace em pretty easily. but if the car was neglected she will bite you in the a$$, so beware!

Richard / E320

ZedStyle;

If you look long and hard enough, you will always find a better, cleaner and less expensive vehicle. I think it's more important to know the service history, doing a complete mechanical and body inspection.

Based on mileage, and you can't tell by looking at a vehicle, one with 120k miles that did a lot of highway driving is probably better than one with 90k miles but never left the city limits. Stop and go traffic means more transmission shifts, higher RPM's rather then steady RPM's, and harder on the cooling system.

ProV1

when shopping used cars nowadays, be especially weary of where the car was driven in the past! hundreds of thousands of flooded cars from the south are cleaned up and shipped to all over the country and sold for top dollar, dont be a victim!

ZedStyle

much love guys, truly appreciate the help. this girl really wants a w203, but she found this and thought it was a good deal, so thought we would check it out.
i think we might end up passing on this one, but i'll let you know...!