I found a 1983 300SD sitting on a small independant car lot, and it seems to be in very good shape. It has 218,000 miles, and almost everything works except for a rear window, and antenna. The leather on the seats aren't cracked, but they need to be re-dyed. The dash has a few cracks, and the paint is in good shape, except for front fender that has been repainted, and the paint is cracking. The owner said he spent a lot of money on getting the acc working correctly, when it was just a bad switch over switch. I havn't road tested the car yet, but the owner said that it drives very good (he has taken it on a few road trips). I might road test it next week. He said that he wants $4500 for it, but I can offer him something for it. He also wanted to know if I would want to trade in my 300CD. What do you think I should offer him?

I would offer him nothing and keep the car you have.

A 300CD is a wonderful car with great styling.

A 300SD would be a better choice if you were married and had kids who would ride in the back seat.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

I thought you wanted a Subaru...?

I will probally keep my car for a while, since I have put a bunch of money into in the past few months. But I thought having a 300SD would be nice to have too, since it would be nice to have something with a larger back seat so I can have passangers back there

I still do want a Subaru, and will probally still get one. I was just driving buy, and saw the nice 300SD sitting on the lot and had to look at it . I probally won't get it, since he probally won't go to around $3,000, which is the most I would want to pay for it...

In that case, it might be a nice purchase.

I have read that the back seats in W123 coupes is not really a usable back seat. More like a 2+2, ala 450SLC's.

Whatever they are asking for the car, I'd offer a lot less, purely as a negotiating tactic.

I suppose I'd shoot for $3,500 or so. (just a stab in the dark). Just know that this car will ultimately require more money in maintenance and repairs than what the car is actually worth, so I'd look at this in terms of its mechanical state than anything else.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

The back seats in the W123 coupes are very small, I am short, and I even have a hard time fitting into the back

Hello from England, Eric!

As you may know, I drive my '83 300SD every day. Believe it or not, of all of the cars I own, the '83 is my favorite daily banger for some reason! I bought mine from a customer who let it sit for three years at his house in Florida, had it shipped to Ohio and wanted to fix it up for his 16 year old daughter. He brought the car to my workshop and asked for an estimate of what it would take to make the car ready for her to use every day. We checked it out thoroughly and found it to be in remarkably good condition save for some items from the car's period in hibernation. The suspension needed work (rusted control arm, blown shocks, ball joints, etc...) and of course it needed a major service and glow plugs, a water pump and belts. He also wanted to have the A/C working for her which would of course add up depending on the condition of the system. So I called him back with a $3,000 estimate and he decided to get her something with a warranty instead (I think he got her a Honda Accord). So I asked him what he wanted to do with the car and he asked if I wanted to buy it. Since the body was extremely solid from not being exposed to salt in the winter, although the paint was baked from the Florida sun I figured I'd make him an offer. So after some phone calls I wound up with the car which I promptly proceeded to begin fixing and a month later Kristen and I took it on a road trip down to Florida, working A/C and all!! It ran great and gained my trust on that trip so it became my everyday car. Prior to that, I used the ML320 but have now made the ML into the trailer pulling vehicle for taking customer's cars to shows, etc...

I bought it with 220K on it and right now it is showing 255K on the ticker and still going strong. I couldn't plug it in last winter but that proved to be no problem. The engine is very tight and doesn't use ANY oil between 3,000 mile changes. Here is what I have done to the car to make it roadworthy for me (this might not be all inclusive):

-belts
-glow plugs
-valve adjustment
-major service (all fluids and filters)
-water pump
-new Michelin Energy MXV4s
-front pads and rotors
-rear pads
-front lower ball joints
-front upper control arms
-right rear a-arm
-both rear a-arm bushing sets
-four new Bilstein shocks
-new reapr springs and pads
-new A/C suction hose, drier, expansion valve and switches
-first summer I charged it with R-12
-recent conversion to 134a after old hose was leaking
-rheostat
-new MB windshield
-new Sylvania headlights
-new oil cooler hoses/resealed filter housing
-new steering shock

I think that's about everything, but I love the car to death. I've probably got close to $5,000 into it but it was worth the time and money to me. You just can't beat those old W126 300SDs! Kristen's is an '84 and I have some work to do on it when we get back from England but that's something to look forward to!

Good luck!

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Regards,
Aaron

Aaron,
Thanks for the advice

The car I am looking at appears to have a few minor leaks, but no major leaks, but I have no idea if it burns any oil. I forgot to check to even see if it has a block heater installed. I also havn't checked out the suspension, but from what I can see, all the bushings look good, and aren't cracked and dried out.

If things look good, I might try and find a good shop in my area and have in looked over.

I still need to check out and see how much it would cost to insure, I just switch insurance companies yesterday, so I might be able to get a good deal for it.

After I look at it some more next week, I can update some more on the overall condition...

I agree, although I use the 300D as my daily driver.

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Jim

After my experience of buying a 82' 300Sd and trying
to sell it, I would say $3,000 should be the most you
should pay. If you have a mechanic look at it, make
certain the car is raised on a lift so you can take a
look yourself. Examine the underneath for rust, which
is really hard to do with the car on the ground. Any
significant finding should cut your offer of $3k to $2
or less. The oil leak(s) should be pinpointed and the
repair process thought about. Some are an easy fix
while others are not, and the leak will only get worse.
(don't bother with the 'oil stop leak' products)
The CV boots can deteriorate just because of age,
and the axleshafts are expensive for the 126, unless
you are in to putting new boots on yourself.
Make sure everything works on the test drive unless
it has been covered. Try the cruise control for example.
Listen for noises like rear-end whine, and note how it
handles a bad road along with resulting noise(s).
Check the weatherstripping for cracks on the back
glass and elsewhere. If possible feel the carpet and
trunk floor for water after a big rain.
In conclusion for $3k you do not want a big list of
things to repair and sink money into. If its a straight
trade for the 300cd which you'd be spending money
on anyway, then o.k.
I know Wal-mart is bad, but they have great prices
on diesel rated oil. In my little town of Sault Ste. Marie,
Mi. it is the logical choice. I'll stock up next time I'm in a city
and hopefully won't give them any more business.

If you really want a 126, keep looking. I found mine with 238,000 on the clock. California car with dealer service records past 110,000 miles. I fooled with the ALDA and added some cosmetics. 297,000 on her now and she runs like a top. $4000 total spent.

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'85 300SD (formerly california emissions)
'08 Chevy Tahoe
'93 Ducati 900 SS
'79 Kawasaki KZ 650
'86 Kawasaki KX 250
'88 Kawasaki KDX200
'71 Hodaka Ace 100
'72 Triumph T100R

Engatwork,

I absolutely love that color!!!!!! Took a while for mine to grow on me.

Attached Thumbnails

 

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'85 300SD (formerly california emissions)
'08 Chevy Tahoe
'93 Ducati 900 SS
'79 Kawasaki KZ 650
'86 Kawasaki KX 250
'88 Kawasaki KDX200
'71 Hodaka Ace 100
'72 Triumph T100R

If you have a 300SD and a 300CD, how will you know what to bring to the NW GTG?:p :p

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Natalie

I went by and checked out the exterior of the car again, and maybe tomorrow I will take it for a test drive. From what I can tell, the paint is better than what it looked last week, and there are only a small dents. The window seals look a little cracked, but not that bad.

If you got the 300SD, would you be selling the coupe? If so, any idea how much you'd ask for it?

I've got a friend who's starting to really like my car, and I mentioned to him that there's a coupe version and his eyes lit up...