1995 Mercedes-Benz 300-Series

Sedan

3.0 diesel

Automatic

wdbeb31e9sc105499

Clear

Diesel

Car has 188,220 real miles; mileage will increase slightly as I drive the car each weekend to keep the new battery charged and in good functional shape (bought the battery a month ago new from AutoZone, their top of the line for diesels, DuraLast Gold, 150 bucks; have receipt for warranty). For a non-turbo diesel this is just broken in; those of you who are diesel fanatics know about this--hence the "tank" nickname for this version; when well taken care of they last forever as opposed to the turbo ones who end up with all sorts of problems after a while, especially when not taken care of properly... Transmission has been recently serviced with Mobil 1 synthetic fluid and new filter. Driveshaft U-joints brand new, replaced when I bought the car from a Bay area dealer I know who was about to auction the car off not wanting to bother with any repairs (he got it "for free" as a trade for a new Benz--you know how that goes; buyer is told his trade-in is worth X thousands of dollars, most of which are then squirrelled by the dealer into the new car price as extra warranty, optional this and that, etc....). Engine oil and filter changed less than 200 miles ago with Mobil 1 synthetic of the type they use for big rig diesels (which is what I used in my former car, Jetta TDI, which I sold with 600000 miles on it and still running like new; yes, that was not an typo, 600k miles, most likely because of the oil and my not having a lead foot or otherwise car-abuse habits; yes, I had a turbo diesel myself, but those are okay if you flip them when they get old--if you want to have a diesel long term without seeing the mechanic too often, then the non-turbo are the better option).  Car has never been smoked in, has no funny smells, noises, wobbling, buzzing, squealing, leaks, etc. The spots you see on the carpet by the driver's seat should come off if you have it shampooed and there is no unusual wear on carpets or seats--another indicator the mileage is true, real and accurate and the car has been well taken care of; it almost smells like a new car and it does not have that "new car smell gizmo" in it! Engine has good power for a non-turbo, transmission shifts nice and smooth, doors close with that nice Benz-typical sound, car goes down the road straight and true; a pleasure to drive. Just don't expect to win any drag races with a non-turbo diesel, of course. Everything power works (except rear right window, as mentioned above; some dude decided to break into my car though there was nothing to steal... Well, I found a genuine window at the local junkyard but in the process of installing it, I broke some plastic piece in the regulator mechanism. I was doing the job in the street and night was coming, so I just blocked the window and it is not possible to open it, but you can always buy a new regulator and do the job the right way) and the window regulator mechanism and motor on the driver side was also replaced by me at a local shop when I bought the car (another reason why the dealer I bought it from wanted to auction this car off... again, he had already made a killing on that trade...). Also when I bought it, I installed an MP3/ AUX./USB removable (to prevent stealing of the device) GROM adapter to play iPhone or Android music on the existing system which I think is Bose with blue tooth functionality according to the paperwork (I never used that feature, but there is a microphone so it should work with a blue tooth phone). This adapters, with all the features added and installed were going for almost $300 at the time; I believe they still do cost a lot as it has the benefit of keeping the original stereo, thereby deterring would be thieves--they don't like factory radios at all. I also added an alarm system costing over $300 to purchase, cut new keys and had everything installed at a specialized shop. The keys are like the most modern ones, hiding inside the FOBs/remotes ("Jack Knife" key fob type). The winning bidder will receive both sets of keys, each with their fob/remote. I really took great care of the car, only using it as a weekend car, but I am from Europe and my contract ends in a few months so we will keep my wife's Cadillac until then; the California registration expires on the 24th and we do not feel like paying for another year given that we'll only be here for a few more months... I explored the possibility to ship it to Europe as I like it very much, but the costs are too high; not just transportation, but import fees, penalties for being a car made for the US (they have different pollution standards, classification and requirements there so I must part ways with it, as much as I hate doing so...). To disclose everything I know, there appears to have been some fender bender action on the front during previous ownership (have no more details on that...), but the title is clear and it looks like it did not affect the radiator or condenser, only the radiator support and for one headlight water from the washing service would trickle in and appear as "perspiration" for a couple of days following each visit to the car washing service, so I switched the original headlights out and replaced them with the only legal and DOT approved Xenon lighting system called DEPO; not the European version which is illegal to use on the streets here, but the DOT approved type, costing about $400--the old lights are still in the trunk if you want them; the new lights are wonderful at night.  I also replaced the rear light assemblies with brand new ones just because the old ones were faded and looking "tired" (being a 20-year car); the old ones are still in the trunk as well. Tires are at least 75% and very evenly worn; no pulling or balding, or anything else wrong with them, all matching set. No leaks but there is a tiny bit of seeping of steering fluid I think (I never had to add fluid in 2.5 years...). As my next project before I found out my contract will not be renewed, I was going to replace the serpentine belt, water pump and take care of anything in need of attention if closer inspection with belt off would have indicated a need for it. I never see fluid spots under the car.  AC ice cold; heating works like in a sauna on the high setting and blower motor works quietly and efficiently with no leaks of the in-dash radiator (a common issue with this model)--it may have been updated by the previous owner but I cannot voucher for it--I only know there are no current problems with that). The car did spend a few winters back East as you can see from CarFax report if you order one, so it has a bit of superficial rust, as pictured, but nothing major and it has not progressed in the 2.5 years I owned the car.   Breaks still have plenty of meat on the pads; no squealing, uneven wear of the disks or any other problem I am aware of. Lastly, I parked it under a pine tree and there is some resin here and there on the roof, but it should come off easy. Has a sunroof that works great, with no leaking. There is some fading of the clear coat on the roof, as pictured, but bear in mind there are cloud reflections, and reflections of the trees across the street in that pic as well, so the fading is in fact barely noticeable if you are just standing by the car.  There are blue jeans scratch marks on the edge of the driver's seat as seen in one of the pics, but the rest of the seats are in very good shape, as is the wood accenting. Antenna gets stuck in the raised position sometimes as common for these cars but radio and speakers sound great.  I cannot think of anything else to add here, but do make sure to ask all your questions preferably before bidding, and definitely before end of auction. I described the car the best I could, it served me very well, with zero repair costs in 2.5 years other than the pre-existing problems: U-joint replacement and front right window regulator when I bought the car (the tranny was thumping when shifting up in lower gears and installing the new joints took care of that), but it is an old car so bid accordingly. Sold AS-IS with no warranties other than my description being as true as I could make it. If the car breaks in half after you pay for it, you have two halves of a car, so please be serious about bidding on this item and do not expect a 20-year old car to be as perfect as a brand new one (if even those are perfect). I tried to sell this car a year ago and buy a diesel 4x4 truck instead (obviously before I found out about my contract not being renewed...) and some schmuck with 4 feedbacks for trivial amounts ended up as the winner. At first, I was glad that the price went higher than I expected, then I never heard from him ever again. What a pain, to convince eBay I did not actually sell the car. For that reason, I will keep an eagle eye out for anyone who has low ratings and fails to contact me with some sort of assurance they are serious about paying if they end up winning, or who otherwise seems to be of the type that ends up not paying. I will first cancel all bids from such individuals then ban them from further bidding. Let's not make it more painful than it needs to be, please. Time is too precious to waste on such things... If you got this far, you are a stickler too :))) So, thanks for going through the trouble of reading all my babblings (some people bitch about it, but I would rather give too much information than not enough and have people complain I did not make a complete description of the car), and good luck with all your auctioning!On Oct-07-15 at 09:10:10 PDT, seller added the following information: New development: I will be leaving tomorrow for Europe on a short trip (family emergency) and I will return October 14. Should not have much of an effect on the transaction. Whoever wins the auction should just send their PayPal payment in and I will coordinate with that person about how s/he can pick it up directly or via a third party of their choice. Remember, shipping is on the buyer to arrange and pay for it. I might be able to deliver to someone on the West coast provided that I do not lose money in the process and the car is fully paid for before I even step out of the house on such a trip. Thank you again for your interest in my auction.