s212 e500, I know these are scarce but..

[E55BOF]

Sounds as though if he dropped his price to £8K or so, it might go. He won't, though; I well recall how pig-headed he was about the price when I spoke to him. Waste of time arguing; he Knows What It's Worth...

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Akerlof won a Nobel prize for a study about this. But is this specific S211, on 100k miles, a good example of its type? (Eight months "maybe" suggests not - but has it been a lockdown casualty?)

"Akerlof's paper uses the market for used cars as an example of the problem of quality uncertainty. A used car is one in which ownership is transferred from one person to another, after a period of use by its first owner and its inevitable wear and tear. There are good used cars ("peaches") and defective used cars ("lemons"), normally as a consequence of several not-always-traceable variables, such as the owner's driving style, quality and frequency of maintenance, and accident history. Because many important mechanical parts and other elements are hidden from view and not easily accessible for inspection, the buyer of a car does not know beforehand whether it is a peach or a lemon. So the buyer's best guess for a given car is that the car is of average quality; accordingly, the buyer will be willing to pay the price of a car of known average quality. This means that the owner of a carefully maintained, never-abused, good used car will be unable to get a high enough price to make selling that car worthwhile.

"Therefore, owners of good cars will not place their cars on the used car market. The withdrawal of good cars reduces the average quality of cars on the market, causing buyers to revise downward their expectations for any given car. This, in turn, motivates the owners of moderately good cars not to sell, and so on. The result is that a market in which there is asymmetric information with respect to quality shows characteristics similar to those described by Gresham's Law: the bad drives out the good. "

 

[bolidemichael]

Akerlof won a Nobel prize for a study about this. But is this specific S211, on 100k miles, a good example of its type? (Eight months "maybe" suggests not - but has it been a lockdown casualty?)

"Akerlof's paper uses the market for used cars as an example of the problem of quality uncertainty. A used car is one in which ownership is transferred from one person to another, after a period of use by its first owner and its inevitable wear and tear. There are good used cars ("peaches") and defective used cars ("lemons"), normally as a consequence of several not-always-traceable variables, such as the owner's driving style, quality and frequency of maintenance, and accident history. Because many important mechanical parts and other elements are hidden from view and not easily accessible for inspection, the buyer of a car does not know beforehand whether it is a peach or a lemon. So the buyer's best guess for a given car is that the car is of average quality; accordingly, the buyer will be willing to pay the price of a car of known average quality. This means that the owner of a carefully maintained, never-abused, good used car will be unable to get a high enough price to make selling that car worthwhile.

"Therefore, owners of good cars will not place their cars on the used car market. The withdrawal of good cars reduces the average quality of cars on the market, causing buyers to revise downward their expectations for any given car. This, in turn, motivates the owners of moderately good cars not to sell, and so on. The result is that a market in which there is asymmetric information with respect to quality shows characteristics similar to those described by Gresham's Law: the bad drives out the good. "

... unless, of course, the seller is fastidious in their recording of maintenance and finds the unicorn buyer that understands that a premium is attracted by the certainty of non-deferred maintenance.

That's what I tell myself... at least I have form in that I sold my E63 645Ci on for a good price following the same formula.

 

[bolidemichael]

Goodness me, these don't come around very often. I do like the alloys.

Carlsson CK50S

 

[SW18]

Goodness me, these don't come around very often. I do like the alloys.

Carlsson CK50S

Wow, never seen one of those! It has the look of a Japanese import. Did Carson breathe on the oily bits, or were these cosmetic-only?

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

From memory - because Google fails me - Carlsson did a big Brabus style performance upgrades on the E500 CK50S - at least another 100bhp in the early Noughties.

An oily bit upgrade, not just cosmetics on this particular car, with an Estate car speedo that goes up to 225 mph (360 kph). Not speeds suitable for nervous Golden Labradors.

The upgrades later in the decade are f well documented, but this one not so much. (You can easily find details of Carlsson upgrades on the 5.5 litre E500 / SL500 etc.

Certainly seems like a Japanese import. (The steering wheel isn't on the "wrong side" for Japan, it's a status symbol to have European LHD on high performance imports in Japan)

Carlsson wanted to follow the AMG / BMW Motorsport path of a small tuner being bought out for Zillions by a manufacturer. It didn't work for them.

So that's an intro, but someone like WoodyTheWise will probably contribute more in due course.

Well worth a play for anyone interested in a Left Hooker.

 

[SpikyMikey]

What's with the disc drive hanging on the centre console?

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

What's with the disc drive hanging on the centre console?
View attachment 111698

Mercedes branded Minidisc player, surely? (Too late for a DAT)

Minidiscs were much more popular in Japan than in Europe.

 

[SpikyMikey]

Mercedes branded Minidisc player, surely? (Too late for a DAT)

Minidiscs were much more popular in Japan than in Europe.

Aha, could be - I wondered if by inserting the relevant disc it was a way to change the engine mapping from "Sunday Morning Pootle" to "Eat my dust Impreza"

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

Proving, once again, that owning an E500 is a sign of a wise financial mind, here's more on Doreen, the original owner of that distinctive brown E500.

When she died, she left a little bit of money (£41 million) to the charity she created to benefit her local community, after having developed international sales for the "Fisherman's Friend" pastille.

Fisherman's Friend tycoon leaves £41m to hometown Fleetwood

 

[JimmyV3103]

Is this another one not spotted so far?

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

 

[SW18]

Is this another one not spotted so far?

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

It's mine: S212 E500 for sale, Obsidian Black, FSH | Mercedes Cars for Sale

I'll be sad to see it go, but I have just taken delivery of a company Tesla courtesy of a very beneficial tax regime, so it's time to say farewell.

Great to see that you still own (and are presumably still enjoying) yours. It's the only other black S212 E500 I have ever seen.

 

[JimmyV3103]

It's mine: S212 E500 for sale, Obsidian Black, FSH | Mercedes Cars for Sale

I'll be sad to see it go, but I have just taken delivery of a company Tesla courtesy of a very beneficial tax regime, so it's time to say farewell.

Great to see that you still own (and are presumably still enjoying) yours. It's the only other black S212 E500 I have ever seen.

I sure am - just a few hundred miles short of 150k - will try for 300 - 400k I plan top keep it as long as I can - am yet to see anything I would rather have! Enjoy the Tesla!

 

[DavidL]

It's mine: S212 E500 for sale, Obsidian Black, FSH | Mercedes Cars for Sale

I'll be sad to see it go, but I have just taken delivery of a company Tesla courtesy of a very beneficial tax regime, so it's time to say farewell.

Great to see that you still own (and are presumably still enjoying) yours. It's the only other black S212 E500 I have ever seen.

That's odd, a friend of mine has recently sold his 212 e500 estate and replaced it with a model Y on a good scheme. He can't fault it, although I gather the suspension is a bit hard, but I can't say he really likes it either!
But the new owner is having a replacement rear subframe with a hefty contribution (possibly all) from MBUK.

 

[SpikyMikey]

It's mine: S212 E500 for sale, Obsidian Black, FSH | Mercedes Cars for Sale

I'll be sad to see it go, but I have just taken delivery of a company Tesla courtesy of a very beneficial tax regime, so it's time to say farewell.

Great to see that you still own (and are presumably still enjoying) yours. It's the only other black S212 E500 I have ever seen.

Lovely looking wagon. I'd be seriously tempted if it wasn't just a tad too big to fit down my drive.
GLWS

 

[JimmyV3103]

That's odd, a friend of mine has recently sold his 212 e500 estate and replaced it with a model Y on a good scheme. He can't fault it, although I gather the suspension is a bit hard, but I can't say he really likes it either!
But the new owner is having a replacement rear subframe with a hefty contribution (possibly all) from MBUK.

What happened to need that level of work - any early warning signs to look out for?

 

[conor1n]

What happened to need that level of work - any early warning signs to look out for?

I would expect that it is due to rust.

Known issue on 212s and MB generally cover with a no quibble 100% contribution.

Just need to send in pics and any other info and they do it, I believe.

 

[SW18]

That's odd, a friend of mine has recently sold his 212 e500 estate and replaced it with a model Y on a good scheme. He can't fault it, although I gather the suspension is a bit hard, but I can't say he really likes it either!
But the new owner is having a replacement rear subframe with a hefty contribution (possibly all) from MBUK.

Funny coincidence! The model Y has the advantage of being the only EV that can just about match the boot space of the S212 and at the same time match the torque of the E500, so it does make sense that I'm not alone in taking that direction.

I'm interested in whether your friend's E500 estate was one of the 'known' ones that has been seen (or owned) members of this forum. They're exceptionally rare - somewhere I've got a list of the 8 (or maybe it's 9) that I've seen in almost 8 years of watching Autotrader and eBay.

 

[DavidL]

It came on here briefly from PH fairly recently so should be on your radar.
Yes subframe for rust.

 

[Londonscottish]

Funny coincidence! The model Y has the advantage of being the only EV that can just about match the boot space of the S212 and at the same time match the torque of the E500, so it does make sense that I'm not alone in taking that direction.

I'm interested in whether your friend's E500 estate was one of the 'known' ones that has been seen (or owned) members of this forum. They're exceptionally rare - somewhere I've got a list of the 8 (or maybe it's 9) that I've seen in almost 8 years of watching Autotrader and eBay.

Yes, the car is known on here as are the previous and current owners.

MB are picking up thd tab.