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Looking at purchasing a 92 500SL

513 views 2 replies 3 participants last post by  ceta4zng 
#1 ·
Hello everyone,

A small local lot has a 1992 500SL for sale, $5500. It has 64,000 miles, hard top is on it currently, body looks good from a cursory walk around. Lot says they had the ignition and a small fuel leak repaired before putting it out.

I'm wondering what I should look out for. Common problems, etc. Also, anything crazy I should know about owning one an older Mercedes? Will I be under the hood or in the shop every few months?

Thanks all.
 
#2 ·
Hi, and welcome to the forum. Please take a moment to complete your profile (hit the USER CP section top right).

I would strongly advice you to spend some time reading the archived topics on this forum: http://www.benzworld.org/forums/r129-sl-class/1563124-r129-sl-purchasing-tips-advice-archived.html

It could also be an idea to use the search function here or on google. There are quite a number of areas you should be concerned about buying a R129 at that price. It could very well turn into a serious money pit.
 
#3 ·
no way to tell without service history - which you probably will not get. Infinite reasons for previous owner to sell out of the car. But there is a reason.

Having owned mine for about 18 months and cycled through most of the repair and maintenance needs - I find the car very reasonable to own IF you do the work yourself and only pay for parts. I would recommend separating the work you can do yourself versus what you will pay to have done.

Deal breaker - Transmission work is difficult to DIY - so pay extra close attention to how the car drives and shifts.

Close to deal breaker - Check for leaks from the soft top - that is a bear of a job - or very expensive if you are going to pay someone - and not doable at a dealership as they will not replace seals. They will only sell you a new cylinder.

Suspension, brakes, fluids, hoses, tune-up parts all doable DIY at a price. I would say at $5500 you can spend that on repair and maintenance on a 25 year old Mercedes over the course of a few years - maybe sooner if you don't turn your own wrenches.
 
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