bobo98a

About me: I have been working on cars since i was just a little kid, I currently go to school and have a minimal wage job. so I buy cars that are wrecked as some peoples trash and turn them into treasure :P

Pic number one when I bought the care at a auction for $5,000 2004 E500



And here's the pic when I fixed it up



Then after a 2 months I got rear ended by a big *** truck with a trailer



But I got 6,700 from insurance and still waiting on my injury money which was more than i need to fix it real nice up so it all came out better than I have had the car originally and I am very pleased with my masterpiece

AzCamel

good job.. but man that car has been through a tough life lol..

MB4tronic

This is great.... whats next?

LILBENZ230

You can definitely tell even at a glance that something is very not-right with the car. But most people won't notice.. and you like it, and got a good deal on an E-class, that's all that matters!

WEBSRFR

Care to elaborate what you noticed for us not so observant people?

I agree with the comment that the poor car has had a very tough life...

Oh and I think the OP should have received a lot more than $6700 for the read end damage. Oftentimes they low-ball the initial check and you need to have a body-shop submit an actual invoice to really get a fair settlement to have the car fixed properly.

Benz-O-Rama

Yeah, the hood doesn't line up at well at all with the headlights and center running lights. Look at that gap! And he added S-Class tail lights, instead of replacing with proper 211 tails.... But, that's just a personal preference, I guess.

And is that even an OEM rear trunk lid on the black version? I don't recall these having an integrated rear spoiler...but I could be wrong. Looks like that doesn't line up perfectly on the passenger side where it meets the rear glass.

bobo98a

Actually every thing is oem parts except headlights , taillights , and exhaust. It's all oem parts but newer year from 07 - 09. I got those taillights because they are led and I still have the oem ones if I ever want to switch, I like too make it a little unique

dsm2925

Great job..

Benz-O-Rama

Why doesn't it all line up?

Efivehundred

Looks good! Now get a coat of paint on your garage and shed.

bobo98a

I'm not done lining it up yet, its not easy lining a car up that's been hit you know, too some its not noticeable but to those who work on cars and got a good eye see it but i will later I just missed it so much and wanted to drive it hahaha.

bobo98a

Know why would I do that, I'm gone mess it up sooner or later, I use my garage everyday fixing other cars and etc. :P

carfreak1234

haters gonna hate, but either way you're still driving a benz so it's all good

Benz-O-Rama

Correct, it's very difficult. That's why a good body man is compensated accordingly.

Congrats on getting it this far. Looked like a lot of work.

bobo98a

Thanks guys took me about a month because I wanted to paint it black and I took everything down to the shell off to get that perfect paint job. I think I wouldn't get any other car than this it works perfect for me, gives me the speed I want and I can afford to pay gas for it

ps. Iv been driving Mercedes Benz since I was 16 know I'm 20 I would never switch.

Benz-O-Rama

Did you pull the motor and paint the engine bay? Sounds like you pulled the interior and did the inside too. That's how you do it correctly. If so, bravo.

Just fix the damn hood and trunk alignments!

bobo98a

no I didn't take out the engine and paint the bay too much work, not worth it because ether way its still a salvage car but yeah i did the inside and everything.

thesheikh

wise man once said, "to buy a salvaged car, is like wearing a used condom"

WEBSRFR

Seems like the OP knows what he's doing though.

vettdvr

Everything is used once you use it. I bought a salvage diesel truck. It had been stolen, recovered, sold at auction as salvaged. Got it for about $10000 under book. What had been missing was the interior and electronics for the entertainment equipment. The selling shop pulled the interior from another truck and threw it in on the deal.

ALL of the diesel running gear was solid and drivable. The shop installed the interior before I took delivery. That was 50,000 miles ago and this salvaged vehicle is a great tow vehicle and I can still get what I put into it minus maintenance.

So if someone wants to rework/salvage a MB and they do the work even if there is a gap. I wish you the best.

After all everything is used after YOU use it.

carfreak1234

i agree. that's a little much. drove my old w202 for about 6 years and took it from 70k to over 200k with little trouble. albeit, there are smart salvage buys and bad salvage buys.

bobsquad7

Building a damaged vehicle is a good way to save a few bucks, . . . .I've done this for 40 years & never failed to (at least) break even, . . . usually make a profit even after driving the vehicle for a couple of years. Tolerances on newer vehicles are much tighter than on older stuff which makes it difficult for an individual to build anything produced in the last 25 years. Now days, I sublet the structural repairs to a shop equipped with unibody & frame machines and laser measuring equipment. That way I can still build a late model back to as-good (or even better) that OEM. It just takes time, skill, and a desire to build it to perfection.