What is the lowest price....

[Baron_Samedi]

that one should pay for a useable Mercedes (of any class) and expect it to be reliable on a day to day basis?

Surely there is a realistic minimum price where the cost of ownership must rule out buying a "budget" car....

 

[wemorgan]

To me a decent car such as a MB with 12 months MoT and service records is worth £1000.

 

[Rose Chap]

You only have to look at the numbers of W124s and W201s around to see that these vehicles can definitely fit the 'bangernomics' principle.

Bought smartly with a year's MOT then there is no reason why you should have to spend any money at all on (save fuel, tax, insurance) until the next MOT.

Of course there is every chance it will clap out as soon as you drive it away with some problem that's never worth fixing, but hey, you take your chances!

 

[verytalldave]

Didnt Clarkson and Co. buy 3 old cars a few years ago to check on reliability.
If I remember correctly, Clarkson paid just £1 for an old Volvo from a dealer as it was their cheapest option to get rid of a car they didnt want.
And it didnt look too bad as I recall.
I dont see why a similar principle shouldnt hold true for MB, although it might be a problem finding a dealer that will play ball...................
Then again, maybe not.

Find a dealer who is willing to do "a Clarkson", and the answer is £1.

 

[Seamster15]

All thoses £1 cars now go to Auction and get between £200 and £600 in the sales. Anything with an MOT will sell to the boys that deal in the bangers.

 

[Baron_Samedi]

Good points....

I agree that less recent models W124 etc are maintainable by some one with a degree of technical savvy but, newer models, say a W209 are going to need the use of STAR equipment (as an example) that make ownership that much more costly.

 

[kingkong]

I ran a 1983 W123 280E for almost 6 years and 30,000 miles in London. Aside from an exhaust replacement I only ever paid for routine servicing items, tyres, fluids, filters, brake pads etc.

The car cost me £650 with a 12 month MOT and an almost full service history. I sold it for £300 (mates rates) to my best man who still uses it regularly and it is still going strong.

Not only was it totally reliable, it was comfortable, smooth and very popular as well.

I've now graduated to a W124 which is even better.

 

[Will]

My 1991 300TE that I bought last year came with 12 month's MOT, new exhaust, SLS overhaul, an 8-disc CD stereo, Michelin tyres etc. Nautical blue with 7 seats. Not the prettiest example but she's not too bad

Cost me £320

I gave it a basic service when I first bought it (oil/filters/plugs etc) and other than 1x failed window regulator (£35 from Nick) it's been utterly reliable and very, very useful. Everything works 100% and drives as it should.

Still goes well, comfortable, powerful. Effortless engine, silk smooth gearchanges, decent brakes and great suspension (self-levelling works 100%).

I think I'll stick it through another MOT towards the end of the summer. I reckon it'll be ok, so if it doesn't need much (or passes with flying colours ), I'll keep her another year or so. If it fails or something drastic goes wrong in the meantime, I'll sell it and get my money back, or sell a few basic parts and scrap the rest (should still be able to get £320 back quite easy )

Great cars - who said MB cars are expensive to own or run?

If she's good to me come the MOT I might even treat her to some replacement front wings (few blisters in the usual place). I've got them in the shed, just need to get them painted

Will

 

[popuptoaster]

My last W115 saloon cost me £220 and was perfectly reliable for nearly a year until the day i sold it for £220, my daily driver W114 coupe i'm using at the moment was £450 plus the £60 for a coil to get it running right, classic insurance and free tax plus driving something different as well.

£1000 is expensive in my eyes!

 

[neilrr]

I bought a 190E 2.6 Sportline with 12 months MOT & 8 months tax for £450 from an idiot on ebay. He had a really terrible ebay listing of about 15 words of pidgin English (he was English) & took phone camera pictures in the dark showing litter on the floor & an unwashed car.

I drove the car 27,000 miles at a cost of £240 (excluding tax, ins. & petrol) & sold it for more than the cost + repair /maintenance bills/

That's how bangernomics should work.

I saw a post on one of the 190 forums today from someone who'd dropped £17,000 on the resale of their M3 convertible after after 7 months & 2,500 miles.

They need a slap.

 

[S400RST]

Would be quite interested in getting one of these cheap mercs as a runner, when im not using my mint 202... wheres the best place to look for them?

cheers

 

[Will]

eBay
Pistonheads
Autotrader
Local papers or other free ads
On here?

Will

 

[nick mercedes]

Would be quite interested in getting one of these cheap mercs as a runner, when im not using my mint 202... wheres the best place to look for them?

cheers

Look at salvage yards, older mercedes can be written off for trivial scrapes...

 

[popuptoaster]

theres quite often an older merc or two for sale over on Retro Rides - Home theres quite a few of us in "the Merc Mafia" on there and they are quite popular as they are tough and last for years as long as they are not rusty, we keep plugging them and explaining they are not horrifically expensive or complicated to look after as we figure the more lads who buy em the more will survive.