[michaelschaible]

Hey All,

I'm hoping for a little guidance here.....I've owned an '86 300sd a 91 and a 92 wagon and an 88 300SEL. I'm about to bid on a 92 600 SEL on Ebay a Florida car since day one with complete service records from the selling dealer the car is advertised as flawless as it only ha s 19000 miles. What are the unknowns with this very complex piece of machinery? It is the first year for this model and I've been told to stay away from the car beacause of a very high buy back rate when new and the very expensive repairs..... can I expect this baby to be a reliable daily driver for the next 50,000 miles????? I want this car really badly but am a little worried should I just hold out for a 500?
P.S. I'll probably end up paying about 30k

 

[rfrey]

I have owned a 92 600 SEL now for almost two years. I was the second owner and purchased it with 120,000 miles for $19,000. To date I have spent almost $2,000 on maint. This includes $1,100 to fix the self leveling suspension and another $500 to rebuild the bose amp. Even after these repairs I still find the car worth the amount I'm dumping into it. My purchase price was still well under the average cost of a new car and it rides so much better and will last twice as long.

Oh, one last comment. Be careful not to pay more then the NADA value of your 600 SEL. If you do, be prepared to fight it out with your insurance company if there is ever a claim on your vehicle.

Regards,
Rob

 

[Dingo Dave]

Michael

Spend a couple of hours trawling through the posts on this forum.

It is well worth the effort - you will then not go into your purchase blind.

The price seems a little steep for $US, but the mileage is very very good. I'd be looking closely at the books.

If it checks out ok, go for it. This is not just another car. It is sheer driving pleasure.

good luck

 

[bdonkersgoed]

Looks like a sweet car!

Only 19,000 miles!! Wow . . . the person who owned it must have had one car for each day of the week or something

Good luck in the auction!
Bryan

 

[JNLeChevet]

Don't be afraid of the first model year syndrome. The earlier models did not have many more bugs than the later ones and MB corrected most of them. The transmission is the only major difference - the later ones were better and more reliable.

My concern on a 1992 with that low a mileage and location would be heat and time. Rubber and plastic parts brittle with age and heat. I bought a 1999 from Florida with very low milage and have spent most of my time and money on rubber gaskets/seals and plastic parts that have gone brittle. However, if the car was serviced properly by MB, quite a bit of this should already have been done.

Check the records for oil pan gasket, transmission pan filter/seal, ignition harness, miscellaneous "fasteners".

ENJOY! A W140 is a magnificent beast.

 

[jhodg5ck]

The 92 is prone to evap failure and eventual harness replacement. At 19K, the harness should still be OK.

As stated earlier, poke around the forums here for a few hours, you will learn a Lot.

Jonathan