Advice on Buying

[anthrope]

All,
    I own a 1967 250SL that I purchased this summer that's turned out to be a complete money pit. I bought it for $21k, sight unseen, and have hence spent at least as much, and am still looking at a lot more work to be done on the car. So, I've decided to cut my losses and sell it. In the meantime, I'd like to start looking for another one, and saw a couple on ebay that looked interesting. After my rather chastening initial experience, I will make sure to have whatever I buy properly inspected.

So, can I please get experts' opinions on this one:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ONE-OWNER-INCREDIBLE-DOCUMENTATION_W0QQitemZ220167828919QQihZ012QQcategoryZ6338QQssPageNameZWDVWQQrdZ1QQcmdZViewItem

If the link doesn't work, the item number on ebay is 220167828919.

Also, if anyone can recommend cars that might be available for sale, I'd appreciate it very much. Thanks much in advance!

Prashanth

[rwmastel]

Prashanth,

You spent $21,000 on a car purchase and then spent another $21,000 on the car since and it's still not what you want?  I guess I would have to ask, what do you want?

I know you're new to our Group and this web site, but how to buy a car has been covered many times.  I'll do a Search for you and see what I can get.  An educated buyer is a happy buyer, but it takes time and effort to educate yourself.

Rodd
Powell, Ohio, USA
1966 230SL: arabian gray, natural leather, euro, auto, both tops
1994 E420: pearl black, black leather, auto
2006 C230: alabaster white, 6-speed manual, no options

[anthrope]

Rodd,
    Thanks for the response. After realising how bad the car was, I figured I'd simply get the car mechanically strong, i.e, one that starts, stops, idles and drives well (not perfectly, just well). To that end, here's what's been done:

- The injection pump has been rebuilt by Hans
- The entire exhaust system has been replaced
- The fuel pump has been replaced
- The fuel tank and expansion tank have been replaced
- The shock absorbers have been replaced
- The injectors have been replaced
- Most of the linkage parts have been replaced
- The front tie-rod assembly has been replaced
- The brake servo has been replaced
- The head gasket has been replaced
- The intake manifold gasket has been replaced

There are a lot of other minor things that have been replaced that I'm forgetting. And, it's Hans and his mechanic that have been doing the repairs.

Now, despite all of this work, the car doesn't idle properly, constantly misfires, etc. I'm certainly not looking for perfection, but am now convinced that I can't get this car to where I'd like it to be.

So, what I'd like to buy is a car that is basically in good condition that I can maintain and take care of. So, I'd be grateful for any help I can get in finding one!

Cheers,
Prashanth

[waqas]

Looks like a really fine car. (I like the color too!)

If the description is correct, and the original owner has kept records of every oil change, then the mileage of only 17k is truly amazing!

I strongly recommend you fly down and spend a good amount of time going over the car, including lots of driving time before you make the decision.

Waqas in Austin, Texas

[Douglas]

Personally, I'm consistently underwhelmed by this dealer's Pagodas. Ditto for Cooper in Manhattan. As a rule, I avoid their cars.

I'm immediately turned off when I see ridiculously low mileage (17K), then see that the car has been repainted, wood changed, and fenders changed. That piece of trim behind the rear wheels mounted ridiculously high doesn't help either.

Douglas Kim
New York
USA

[seattle_Jerry]

Sounds to be like you are 90% there on your own car, mechanically speaking.

Whats the saying about the devil you know?

1967 230SL Havana Brown Auto with A/C

[rogerh113]

It seems that a lot has been done for the car to still run as poorly as you describe.  Does 'Hans' really know his way around a 113??  Perhaps the board has a recommended mechanic in your area that is worth a visit.....  I have heard of mechanics not knowing a car and randomly replacing things in hope that it would fix a problem.  On the 113 that could add up pretty fast and possibly not have much impact.  Perhaps your car is really a wreck, or maybe not.  If nothing else, you have a lot of nice new parts that you will never recover the cost of if you sell now.

It is also important to remember that the car model is, at best, 36 years old, and will not run like a new Honda (super smooth idle, etc).  When set up properly it is a real stunner, though, and will run far better than any other car of its era that I have experienced.

I seem to remember a funny commercial about a German car expert called Dieter (but maybe not so funny if he was working on your car......)

Regards -- Roger

[jameshoward]

I'm with Roger - you've done too much and spent too much to quit now. I've struggled with an idle problem on my car for a few months both before and after I had my FI pump re-done. I finally solved it by going over and over and over the excellent posts by Benz Dr and Ja17 about linkages, timing, valve clearance, etc. I learned in spades that you need to be a little lucky in addition to well informed (and the info is all here). One day it just came right. I could have chased that issue for months longer and spent a lot. It just takes time. Personally, I'd stay with what you know, do a lot of reading here (start with linkages adjustment; valve clearances; learn about mixture; ignition and timing) and get to know your car. I'm sure your close. Or switch mechanics if you don't have the inclination/time. I knew nothing about these cars until a year ago and with the help of the members of this site have got my car running pretty well without spending a fortune (i.e. just a small fortune, but mainly on parts).

[zoegrlh]

Anthrope, one word of thought.  Is the coil and the series resistor matched with the points?  I had a problem with a miss in my 280SL after I self tuned-up the SL with new Bosch/MB points, condenser, coil, resistor, and sparkplug wires.  As I found out later, I had not matched the resistor ohms to the coil nor did I match the points to the coil.  during the production run of the W113, several coils and resistors were used at different ohms from 0.4, 0.6, 0.9, &1.8 ohms. Also noted, different distributors were used.  Now once I got the correct points for the correct resistor ( mine is a 1.8 ohm) and matched the correct coil (the red label for 1.8 ohm resistor), it has been running, as Roger put it, like a new Honda (supersmooth idel, etc).  Worth a check in your case.

Robert Hyatt
Williamsburg, VA.

1970 280SL, Red on Silver,4-speed, Euro spec; 1999 C230 Kompresser Sport, Black on Black; 1990 Miata, Black on Red, 5 Speed

[dwilli3038]

There is a freshly restored 250SL for sale here in Athens GA. I believe the price is $45K. If interested please e-mail me and I will give you the seller's contact information.

Daryl
'64 230 SL Buckeye Benz Scarlet interior and Grey top Serial # 508
'77 280SE

[Peter van Es]

quote:Originally posted by zoegrlh

Anthrope, one word of thought.  Is the coil and the series resistor matched with the points?  I had a problem with a miss in my 280SL after I self tuned-up the SL with new Bosch/MB points, condenser, coil, resistor, and sparkplug wires.  As I found out later, I had not matched the resistor ohms to the coil nor did I match the points to the coil.  during the production run of the W113, several coils and resistors were used at different ohms from 0.4, 0.6, 0.9, &1.8 ohms. Also noted, different distributors were used.  Now once I got the correct points for the correct resistor ( mine is a 1.8 ohm) and matched the correct coil (the red label for 1.8 ohm resistor), it has been running, as Roger put it, like a new Honda (supersmooth idel, etc).  

I fully agree with Robert and Roger. Although our Technical Manual is far from finished, and we still need more people to help produce it, it is beginning to be useful for this sort of thing. Check out the Distributor section, which provides all of this info in one convenient place. Another good section is the Engine Starting Aid. I haven't added the linkage tour yet, so look for that on the forum. I still need to receive the high resolution pictures for that one!

Peter

Also known as 'admin@sl113.org' and organiser of the Technical Manual (http://www.sl113.org/wiki/pmwiki.php). Check out http://bali.esweb.nl for photographs of classic car events and my 1970 280SL.