Yet another should I buy this car thread - 300SE lots of pics

[smp22]

Hi All.

I have had a 190e 2.6 (m103) for a couple of years now and I love the car but it's a high mileage example and I bought it because it was cheap and driveable. I want something nicer now. Something that I won't have to feel bad about sinking money into. I LOVE the W126 cars. So, I went out to look at this example during my lunch break today:



The ad lists the car as having 100k KILOMETERS (that's 62,000 miles) so it's a baby! Ad says "mint condition" and the price is low so I thought, something is going to be wrong, and there is ... but are they a deal breaker, that's what I need input on from the community. So, here goes:

VIN WDBCA24D1MA573944 (if someone can run that for me it would be much appreciated)

On with the show


Emblem is cracked :/ bumper has damaged areas:




Only one area of rust I could find outside on the drivers side front fender:


The rest of the fenders seem good:




Headlights don't have any rust around:



100k ....


all lights seem to work:


The interior is not in the greatest shape but I think it could be cleaned up well, not sure now as I can't remember if that's a tear or a stain in a crack...



But this is ... WHY IS THIS?



Sunroof is busted, not sure how fixable or not this is. Trying to open I didn't hear the motor at all:


No rust around windows, pillars, windscreen...





The M103 valve cover is prone to having it's paint flake off, my 190e at 300k km is definitely in MUCH worse shape than this one .. which leads me to believe that the mileage might be accurate. Valve cover is actually in pretty good shape, mind the oil:


But there's rust starting in here:


And that makes me wonder about the battery tray:


Paint code etc:


Classic cracking center console


Dash:




Why do I want a 300SE?
I want a daily driver, not a garage queen. But, I want a nice car that I don't mind dumping money into for repairs. I want it to last a while so I want something with low mileage. Up here in Toronto, Canada, it's hard to find these cars without any rust, much less with so little mileage. I looked under the car and I couldn't see much rust, just light surface rust on some of the metal suspension components etc but nothing really to worry about. The chassis on this car is not rotting away.

I went to go look at the car during lunch and it was parked at a the guy's shop between two other vehicles. I had VERY little time to look at the car so it will need another look and of course a test drive. I asked the mechanic about the history of the car, why the owner is selling and here is what he said:

The guy has a lot of cars so that's why the mileage is low, he has other cars to drive.
He's selling it because he's ill (and old I presume).
The car comes certified and e-tested .. can be put on the road right away.
The owner has had it since 92 (but he's not the original owner).
The mechanic said that nothing has ever been wrong with the car, I didn't have a lot of time to pick his brains or talk about service records but I'll go over that with the owner when I get him on the phone


Right off the bat the things that concern me are:
1. The rust on the front drivers side fender
2. The rust under the rear deck (click here for a video of the underside of rear deck) how bad is this? I hear about it but i don't know how far along this is.
3. The interior, are those seat belt areas repairable? Is the sunroof repairable? I know I can change the center console cover but I don't want to swap seats .. these just look really dirty, I imagine that they will clean up really well.
4. damaged paint on bumper. I've done a bit of paint work and it was mostly successful on the 190e, I think I can repaint the rear bumper myself (or am I totally underestimating the size of that job?).
5. Exhaust is starting to look a little rusty, will need replacement either right away or soon
6. Green coolant


Things I like about the car:
1. low mileage
2. mostly rust free
3. the colour combo (and my girlfriend LOVES THIS CAR)
4. started and ran fine, all lights in dash work which is a good sign and I like the M103 because it's familiar and also the most fuel economical of the gasser W126s (north america).
5. Price, it's priced very attractively and it is ready for the road (cert, etest)


So what do you all think? It's far from perfect but are any of these things deal breakers? Of course, I will drive the car before I make a decision or an offer but there are no signs of head gasket failure or any leaks (except the timing cover leak which is common on the m103).

I've been looking a long time and this is so far the nicest 300se for this kind of money and the mileage is just too attractive to pass up. Other cars I am considering are the w124 wagons and sedans or a w126 diesel all of which are impossible to find up here in good shape, so far anyway (the sedans are not but nice ones are priced very high). My 190 is a great car but I didn't buy it thinking I would go ape over benzes and I have .. and now I want a "nice" one

[MacGyver85]

You've already answered your own question. You've referred to the price being low repeatedly. If that is the case, you must believe it to be priced below value and that's indeed a buy. The only way for others to assess if THEY would buy it is to know the price and I didn't see it listed.

If you like it, buy it and have fun with it.

[MT_Merc]

It'd make a decent daily driver as long as the rust isn't any worse than you can see and the mechanical stuff is sound (low mileage is no guarantee). Give it a good once-over and be careful of putting much money into it - pretty easy to get sucked into that - but if you like the car and the price is right, then go for it.

[maximapitko]

Are you guys blind? There are some nasty rust issues with this vehicle and from I can see in the pics, there isn't a single part on it that says 60k miles. I would run as far as I can! Even if the mileage is real (HIGHLY doubtful), judging by the current state of the vehicle (and the green coolant), this vehicle has never seen the care it deserves. It makes me sick when I see vehicles like this one. Please run!

[VaiFanatic]

I'd avoid it.

[lowesguy]

Very needy SE in my opinion,be prepared to sink some cash into it,motor looks beat,rust?=project!

[benzi]

Dont know too much about your market but that looks like a bit of work. We are lucky in NZ to have good selection of w126, which we Can pick and choose from. The ml03 is a good engine. It sounds like you like the ml03 as well. A w126 does not have to be a low mileage example to be a good one. The important thing is Condition and documented service history.

[magicbigdaddy]

Similar car in PNW with zero rust would go for $1000 to $2000. I would wait for a good one. +1 on the mileage, I have one with 140k and the interior is like new. Something fishy about the mileage on that example. Looks over 200k hard miles to me, or extremely neglected. Keep looking.

[ChiefRider]

It's a judgement call. The primary concern (to me) is the rust. When you have it up by the firewall and rear deck, it can mean interior water leaks, something intolerable for me. This bears a more thorough exam. Beyond that, if the price truly is low for your market, it could be great transportation. Rust diminishes its candidacy as a vehicle to fall in love with!

And the failure of the material around the seat belts is common, although a little extreme in your example. Not hard to repair.

[420 SE]

the cluster would support being well garaged or at least out of the sun. The needles are still very orange.