Fix it or "spares and repairs"?

[ollya]

I'm the 3rd owner of a 2003/04 CLK 320. It was the private car of the manager of Mercedes dealership before my brother in law bought it, I got it from him when it was about 4 or 5 years old.
I want to sell it but it failed the MOT on front suspension bushes at the front. I've seen original bushes on eBay for £45 so my plan was to take the arms out and push new bushes in exactly as I'd done before at the other end. I got stuck in but sheared a bolt holding the anti-roll bar my plan was to screw it back up into the subframe but we're two years in nearly and I've not done that or sort the bushes.

It's gotta go!

So, do I knuckle down and sort it, hopefully I can do that for £45 + a bottle of wine for the neighbour with a press + the cost of an MoT but obviously quite a bit of my time that I've struggled to prioritise.

OR

Do I put it all back together and try an sell it for spares and repairs...and if so how?

The details are:
2003 CLK 320 Elegance - 85K miles
Black with beige interior.
18" 5 spoke alloys, lots of tread on rears, not so much on the front.
Sports suspension (I think from the Avantgarde but I'm guessing)
Bose stereo, xenons, heated electric seats driver and passenger, no command.
It's had more than its fair share of supermarket dings and and the front is bumper is cracked (badger incident)
Air con doesn't get cold.

I'm not sure what it would be worth with an MoT or how easy it would be to find a buyer....is there a "spares and repairs" demand for this sort of car?

 

[ollya]

just to add......not so long ago (in miles terms) I had all the fluids changed, new filters throughout and new plugs. I think that came to about £500 or £600.

 

[Jobsworth]

Two years is a helluva temper tantrum
You can just cut the broken bit off flush, drill it out and use a longer bolt and a nut on the top if you don’t have the skills to save the thread in the subframe. It’s gotta be worth more fixed than broken, surely?

 

[ollya]

I guess that's what I'm asking - is there a demand for this sort of car if it's not cosmetically perfect? I'm trying to think who can afford the tax, insurance and fuel but then can only afford £1500 for a car.
I've tried and I don't think there's enough access for a bolt on the top. I'm pretty sure it will screw through completely once I can cut a decent groove in it.
Ultimately it's a lot of labour to sort it all out and I don't want to put that work in and then be stuck with a car nobody wants or alternatively do all that work when the next buyer would be happy enough doing it themselves or only wants the car for its motor or something.

 

[markjay]

Older car are generally worth more in parts than they are complete, BUT you need a lot if space abd a lot of time if you intend to sell it eBay bit by bit... and ultimately you'll still need to get rid of the unwanted parts (including the chassis).

Spares-or-repair is the easy option, assuming you can find a buyer.

Persevering with the repair is a good compromise, you won't spend too much on it and you'll get a good price. How much do these go for on Autotrader/Gumtree?

Can you fix it by drilling a bigger hole and fitting a Heli-coil?

 

[optimusprime]

ollya That car looks very nice . And it is to good to sell for bits . I would repair it .

 

[Smart320]

Looks rather nice to me , I would guess it would sell easily with an MOT and a sensible price