OK, here's the low-down. Finally got to see the car last night. Very sharp looking car, but I'm on the fence as to making an offer.
Good: -Evapectomy has been done; ACC functions perfectly and will freeze you out of the car. Not sure if vacuum pods were done at same time, but they all seem to work. -Other than the headliner which is falling down, interior looks really nice. -Exterior is very nice, straight, rust-free; metallic silver paint, a great color. I really only like white and silver in South Carolina heat and humidity. -Vacuum pump has been changed. Record of repair at ~150k miles shows new timing chain at same time, and some other stuff from front of engine. I suspect vacuum pump failed, dumped into front engine cover and took out the timing chain. Lucky the motor wasn't destroyed as well. -New radiator and condenser and grill after minor collision with trailer hitch; engine holds temperature nicely. Bad: -Owner says it uses coolant, about a cup every two weeks/500 miles and shop has declared that head-gasket needs replacement. I haven't yet confirmed, would surprise me if shop wanted to do the work even if not needed or perhaps combine it with the following.... -One or more glow plugs are bad, and isn't this engine (OM606) notorious for breaking off glow plugs which then require head removal? -Engine electrical harness is original and owner says shop says it needs replacement. -Engine has low power; during wide open throttle acceleration, power dropped off significantly at about 4k RPM and the car would quit accelerating and not up shift. I did two runs, and it was a little better on second run, so maybe it simply is really carboned up (lots of smoke during both runs) or maybe some of the complex stuff in the intake is not working correctly. -Right rear window regulator has failed, window is taped in place to hold it up. -Coolant is green stuff. -Brakes pulsate, probably warped rotors. -Records are incomplete, seem to be no records of oil changes for significant periods in first 150k of cars life, but then good records after that. First indicated oil change is at 8k miles?!? Some service at dealerships, some at independent garages. -Rear view mirror adjustment is broken -Passenger visor vanity mirror cover is broken Owner is advertising for $3800, told me after test drive that he'd take $3000 "as is" or $3400 after fixing the rear window. I'm thinking about offering $2500 after testing coolant for presence of gasses indicating head gasket failure. I would need to fix brakes, glow plugs, window regulator, and change coolant immediately. Other bad news; as I was leaving the owner of the independent MB garage I use was pulling up to look at the car. So, I'm now bidding against someone who knows as much if not more than me. Very respectfully, /s/ LCDR Max Dillon '87 300TD 314k miles Charleston SC -----Original Message----- From: mercedes-boun...@okiebenz.com [mailto:mercedes-boun...@okiebenz.com] On Behalf Of Gary Hurst Sent: Thursday, September 24, 2009 7:23 AM To: Mercedes Discussion List Subject: Re: [MBZ] '95 E300 for $4k It's a really desirable car and could easily merit that price On 9/24/09, Dillon, Meade M CIV SPAWARSYSCEN-ATLANTIC, 53310 <meade.m.dil...@navy.mil> wrote: > Dieselvolk, > > I've located a '95 E300, 243k miles, all records, for about $4k. > Silver with grey interior, from the pix looks to be in very good > shape. Seem like a fair price? > > I need to add a third car to our stable so that I can start some of > the larger projects on my wagon (like overhauling the rear suspension) > and not be racing the clock every night to get her road-worthy again. > > Very respectfully, > /s/ > LCDR Max Dillon > '87 300TD 314k miles > Charleston SC > > > -------------- next part -------------- An HTML attachment was > scrubbed... > URL: > <http://okiebenz.com/pipermail/mercedes_okiebenz.com/attachments/20090 > 924/11175ab3/attachment.html> _______________________________________ > http://www.okiebenz.com > For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives > http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ > > To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: > http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com > -- Sent from my mobile device _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com _______________________________________ http://www.okiebenz.com For new and used parts go to www.okiebenz.com To search list archives http://www.okiebenz.com/archive/ To Unsubscribe or change delivery options go to: http://okiebenz.com/mailman/listinfo/mercedes_okiebenz.com
