W123 280 CE

[jonlanewilliams]

Hello All,


Ive been a member on here for a while now, though i generally read more than i post.

I’m after some advice and I thought this would be a good place to ask.
Sadly my brother died very recently, he was only 49 and it was very sudden and totally unexpected.
The point of the post is that my brother had a W123 280CE Coupe in his garage and he intended to restore it, was going to be his pride and joy !
Now i have to dispose of the car and I’m at a loss of how to value it, do i just put it on eBay and let it go to the general public ?

The condition of the car isn’t great, however it is virtually complete and the main body panels are straight.
Below is a brief assessment of it.

It’s a 1985 on a B plate and has done 210,000 miles and has been off the road since 2008. Ive no idea when it last ran.
Looking at the MOT history, it lasted passed in 2007 with a few minor advisories.
There is surface corrosion on the wings, door bottoms and bonnet, it doesn’t look like these panels are too bad. The main area of concern is the boot floor which has some decent size holes in it and the rear light clusters . The rear lights are missing as is most of the boot trim and ancillaries. The interior is mostly complete and the cloth seats are intact but dirty, there are some trim pieces missing from the dashboard .
I haven’t attempted to start it as I don’t trust the wiring, I don’t want a fire but the engine can be turned over at the crank. The gearbox does cycle and it appears to go into park, Ive no idea about any of the other gears . The brakes actually work, which i was glad about because it rolled off the car transporter a bit to quickly.

I know the model is quite rare, there are only 26 registered on the road, however that’s not always an indicator of value.
I suppose what I’m asking is, what do you think i should ask for it or is it basically scrap value .
Knowing my brother had such big plans for it I’m at a loss of what to do with it, its well beyond my skills to restore but it would be a shame to scrap it.

Regards,
Jon

 

[grober]

When valuing these cars it's useful to undertake a box ticking exercise dealing with various aspects of the car.
E.g.
1 engine gearbox runner non-runner
2 body rust free cosmetic damage structural damage
3 electrics functional /non-functional = can be tested battery condition
4 interior trim headliner seats et cetera
5 exterior trim chrome glass
6 current state with respect to licence MOT insurance service history paperwork owners manual

Your car appears to be deficient in most of these areas which increases risk for any potential buyer this reduces the value markedly from a car in good condition running on the road.
You have several choices
sell it as is for spares
partly restore it= get the engine running and the wheels turning removes some uncertainty
restore completely and then sell it.

Your best plan is to put a toe in the market with an honest description and lots of photos--- and see what response you get--- be patient and hopefully you will get several offers which will give you a feel for its value.
Don't sell it for the first offer but negotiate for a little time to gauge the market a W123 enthusiast who is genuinely interested will be prepared to stay in touch for a reasonable period while you decide if you want to accept their offer but don't leave it too long.
ps any genuine buyer will want to give it a thorough inspection
PPS scour the for sale ads for your particular model and get a feel for the market for a car in your condition

 

[jonlanewilliams]

When valuing these cars it's useful to undertake a box ticking exercise dealing with various aspects of the car.
E.g.
1 engine gearbox runner non-runner
2 body rust free cosmetic damage structural damage
3 electrics functional /non-functional = can be tested battery condition
4 interior trim headliner seats et cetera
5 exterior trim chrome glass
6 current state with respect to licence MOT insurance service history paperwork owners manual

Your car appears to be deficient in most of these areas which increases risk for any potential buyer this reduces the value markedly from a car in good condition running on the road.
You have several choices
sell it as is for spares
partly restore it= get the engine running and the wheels turning removes some uncertainty
restore completely and then sell it.

Your best plan is to put a toe in the market with an honest description and lots of photos--- and see what response you get--- be patient and hopefully you will get several offers which will give you a feel for its value.
Don't sell it for the first offer but negotiate for a little time to gauge the market a W123 enthusiast who is genuinely interested will be prepared to stay in touch for a reasonable period while you decide if you want to accept their offer but don't leave it too long.
ps any genuine buyer will want to give it a thorough inspection
PPS scour the for sale ads for your particular model and get a feel for the market for a car in your condition

Hello,
Thank you for the reply, you make some excellent points.
Ive had a good look at different sites in the UK and EU to try and assess a value, but unsurprisingly there aren’t many W123 280 CE’s in similar condition to my vehicle and very few (at least in the UK) actually for sale in reasonable condition. I would love to get it running again, however i have the skills but not the space or correct environment to achieve this.
As you say, I’m going to try and tidy it up and take lots of photos to show an honest description, I wouldn’t sell the car without a buyer inspecting it first as its difficult to gauge condition from photos alone.
Thanks again for the advice and pointers.

 

[grober]

You can try posting in the classified section but be aware of the following.

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Buy and sell Cars here. Commercial ads will be removed. PLEASE BE ADVISED THAT YOU CANNOT REPLY TO CLASSIFIED THREADS. If you wish to contact the seller, please use the PM facility. You need to have made 30 posts in other forums before you can submit an advert and/or use the PM facility.