Advice pls, considering C200 sport auto

[dow24]

Hello all
Newbie to MB. Am looking at a C200 sport auto saloon with AMG body kit/alloys.
Silver, CD ABS Sunroof Alloy Wheels Central Locking Leather Interior Alarm Multiple Airbags Power Steering Immobiliser Cruise Control Electric Windows. Reg'd Feb 1996. 60k miles. Guy wants £6k for it.
Would appreciate comments and advice on what I should be looking for, common problems, expected fuel economy, major parts/service intervals, is the price about right etc. ANything you think will aid my decision!!
Thanks in advance all
D24

 

[R2D2]

Condition and service history is everything. A 60k w202 will have had its ball joints done or they will need done soon. Steering dampers go regularly, Shocks should have been changed especially if it is driven as the bodykit and wheels should indicate. Servicing must have been kept up though, at a specialist is more realistic than at a main dealer given the age of the car.

Mercedes are a clockers dream because they dont wear much so any wear on the seats, pedals, door trims or too much stone chipping (or none!) requires consideration.

Where abouts are you (and the car being sold) and any chance of any photos of it??

 

[dow24]

I'm in Fleet, Hampshire. Pics attached but not much detail. Going to view today / tomorrow....

Thanks

 

[R2D2]

Two tone seats are very unusual in a c200 so when were they added? So far so good but we need big pictures! Are there any members near by who could help with this one?

 

[racall]

No air-con .Seems a bit expensive to me!

 

[High-Lo]

Price details obtained from http://www.wisebuyers.co.uk with 60k mileage adjustment on a 96/P C200 Sport:

Mercedes C Class (1993-01)
C200 4Dr Saloon 2.0 Sport Auto (1996/P)

Average Mileage: 75,000
Price New: £26,330
Insurance Group: 13

Car valuation adjusted for 60,000 miles
Retail: £4,725 The valuations quoted are prices you should aim to pay for a used car, not the advertised price. You should adjust your valuation to allow for extras that were not standard specification.

Sell your car now
Private Good: £3,975
Private Average: £3,335
Private Poor: £2,555
Part Exchange: £3,585
Trade: £3,395

To be honest the £6k price tag is a bit overpriced for me. Assuming that its a private sale with guide price at £3,975 is it really worth the extra £2k for AMG two-tone leather, wheels, bodykit? Although admittedly these parts (if all genuine) wouldn't be cheap to buy.

Hope this helps,
Steve

 

[GrahamC230K]

It does look like it has come from the facroty with those wheels, AMG Kit and interior. If so, you can understand the increase in used value.

 

[High-Lo]

Strangely enough, the price for a 96/P 60k genuine AMG C36 is not far off:

Mercedes C Class (1993-01)
AMG 4Dr Saloon 3.6 C36 Auto (1996/P)
Price New: £43,030
Insurance Group: 19

Car valuation adjusted for 60,000 miles
Retail: £7,625 The valuations quoted are prices you should aim to pay for a used car, not the advertised price. You should adjust your valuation to allow for extras that were not standard specification.

Private Good: £6,385
Private Average: £5,335
Private Poor: £4,065
Part Exchange: £5,755
Trade: £5,438

Another consideration would be the insurance premium. Even if these AMG parts were added from factory I'm sure the bodykit would attract an additional premium (due to the cost of replacement parts)?

Good luck with the negotiations it sure looks like a nice Merc.

Cheers,
Steve

 

[Tan]

It apppears to be expensive as the car is a pre facelift c-class and has no aircon.

 

[Shude]

The guy has stuck the C36 front bumper badge onto the dash fascia?

 

[Howard]

The guy has stuck the C36 front bumper badge onto the dash fascia?

perhaps it fell off and he put it there to remind him to stick it back on .....

My worry is that with the AMG seats, mats and 'stick on badge' is that it has been driven like an 'AMG' to keep up appearances although its a 200 ........

 

[dow24]

Thanks so far guys, some great stuff in here, and some amusing questions to ask!

Anyone know what economy I can expect from a C200 auto (I appreciate there are many different driving styles and I am resonably 'enthusiastic') but do the odd long run to Edinburgh which usually returns something decent-ish....

Thanks

D24

 

[R2D2]

25mpg normal, 30 plus on the way to Edinburgh

 

[C240Sport97]

the car seems expensive. you could have had this:

C240 Sport

for £6000 :bannana:

my dearly departed

 

[Shude]

Actually 6 grand for a 1996 C200 is rubbish unless the car is the best example EVER, I mean for that price you'd expect it to have been dealer serviced the week before and have brand new tyres, 12 months MOT and road tax etc

If you want to know what spec the car was before (if?) it was modified then PM the VIN to me and I can look it up for you. You could also ask your stealership to do this but they tend to be a little blunt if they don't know you. You should have no problem getting the VIN off the present owner, if they want to know why you could say it's for HPI-check purposes or you wanted to check on the price of parts for it or something.

 

[dow24]

Thanks Shude, gonna go and view tomorrow so will get VIN then - appreciate the help. I'll mail you tomorrow....
D24

 

[Satch]

Overpriced, especially for a private sale. You can do a lot better and IMHO those seats plus bodykitting mean that is one vehicle I would not expect to be able to resell easily.

 

[Will]

My honest opinion is this:

Although it may have a certain amount of 'appeal' to it with the AMG bodykit and wheels, the C200 as I know it is pretty underpowered. As a guide, in standard form it feels coarser and less willing than the 190E 2.0 IMHO.

Regarding the price - those extras are an excellent bonus to get with the car - if it was being sold for C200 money! It seems extremely expensive to me, and those extras don't add enough to the car's value to justify the price tag.

But at the end of the day, it's a pre-facelift W202 C200, with no air con and questionable provenance (not wanting to get personal, but you can often sterotype the type of life that this type of car could have lived).

I have seen C36s sell for less than that before.

I would value the car at around £3K. The Bodykit and wheels could add, say, between £1000 to £1500 for the right buyer. It may have leather, but it is one rung above the base model, and doesn't have air-con or much else going for it.

So to sum it up (and again, I must stress that this is all IMHO!) I would say that it 'looks' like a nice car (looks pretty much like a C36 I suppose), and the leather, wheels and bodykit could add to its appeal for some people, but it doesn't make a £3K car worth double.

Also please note what others have said regarding the possible insurance implications for such obvious modifications.

Just for a comparison, my C230 Kompressor Sport, which I bought last year in July, which came with a pretty reasonable spec (17" AMG wheels, leather, air-con, heated seats, 5-speed Auto etc etc) and was within 20K miles of the mileage of this cost ££££ less than this C200.

By all means, please go and view the car and make a proper judgement, but the AMG badge stuck to the dash would say enough for me.

Please don't slate me for this - if you like the car, go for it, but try and get a bit off the price.

Remember, it's a buyer's market out there - you have control and can dictate the prices. Have a look at Sean's (C240 Sport 97) car that was traded in/sold. No offence intended, but that took a while to go, and seemed like an excellent car.

Good Luck,

Will

 

[jimmy]

Have to agree with the others, it looks a nice car but appears over-priced.

 

[stwat]

My honest opinion is this:

Although it may have a certain amount of 'appeal' to it with the AMG bodykit and wheels, the C200 as I know it is pretty underpowered. As a guide, in standard form it feels coarser and less willing than the 190E 2.0 IMHO.

Regarding the price - those extras are an excellent bonus to get with the car - if it was being sold for C200 money! It seems extremely expensive to me, and those extras don't add enough to the car's value to justify the price tag.

But at the end of the day, it's a pre-facelift W202 C200, with no air con and questionable provenance (not wanting to get personal, but you can often sterotype the type of life that this type of car could have lived).

I have seen C36s sell for less than that before.

I would value the car at around £3K. The Bodykit and wheels could add, say, between £1000 to £1500 for the right buyer. It may have leather, but it is one rung above the base model, and doesn't have air-con or much else going for it.

So to sum it up (and again, I must stress that this is all IMHO!) I would say that it 'looks' like a nice car (looks pretty much like a C36 I suppose), and the leather, wheels and bodykit could add to its appeal for some people, but it doesn't make a £3K car worth double.

Also please note what others have said regarding the possible insurance implications for such obvious modifications.

Just for a comparison, my C230 Kompressor Sport, which I bought last year in July, which came with a pretty reasonable spec (17" AMG wheels, leather, air-con, heated seats, 5-speed Auto etc etc) and was within 20K miles of the mileage of this cost ££££ less than this C200.

By all means, please go and view the car and make a proper judgement, but the AMG badge stuck to the dash would say enough for me.

Please don't slate me for this - if you like the car, go for it, but try and get a bit off the price.

Remember, it's a buyer's market out there - you have control and can dictate the prices. Have a look at Sean's (C240 Sport 97) car that was traded in/sold. No offence intended, but that took a while to go, and seemed like an excellent car.

Good Luck,

Will

Im with Will. Way to exspensive IMHO. Looks nice but £6k

Stu