On Wed, 16 Apr 2008 20:52:51 -0700, "Rockman59" <Rockman59@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>
wrote:
>Should I be concerned about the timing chain in an '82?
>_____________________________________________________________________
>The rule of thumb on replacing the chain and related guide parts is 10
years
>and/or 100K miles. That being said this MB probably has the single row
>timing chain...not good. Since you probably would replace the chain and
>related parts you might as well upgrade it to the double row chain.
>Regarding the 3K service, $200 to $400 is about what you will pay at an
MB
>dealer...you can get the work done for much less at a good indie MB shop.
>As far as the hardtop...it takes two men to install and remove the top,
>unless you have one of those ceiling mounted chain lifts mounted in your
>garage. If $9300 is the asking price I would offer 5K...or less. The
>market for these older MBs is pretty soft and you WILL spend $$$
replacing
>parts. That ball joint job alone is not cheap. And the car is due for a
>new timing chain and that job alone is around $1K if I remember
correctly.
>I would never buy one of these cars with the idea of making a profit.
Buy
>it, drive it, enjoy it, but don't expect to make any profit. I had a '73
>450SL that I drove for 32 years and loved every minute of it. It was a
great
>car.
>
The hard top can be removed and put back on with only one person w/o
a lift. It is tricky but it can be done. I would say it is about 80#?
>"developer" <no.spam@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
> wrote in message
>news:k8qdnUVPtuvjQXzanZ2dnUVZ_jCdnZ2d@[EMAIL PROTECTED]
>I ran across an '82
>380SL with 58K miles today. Asking price is $9300.
>>
>> It seems low-mileage and pictures show the exterior looks great -
interior
>> is not so great (leather is cracked, carpet looks old, but dashboard
seems
>> fine).
>>
>> It's been garaged for 6 years. Owner says master brake cylinder was
>> recently replaced, but front end ball joints have cracked seals and
need
>> replacing.
>>
>> Obviously before I would have it checked out by a reliable mechanic
before
>> making such a purchase, but thought I'd seek some opinions online.
>>
>> From looking at prices of others, this seems like an okay asking price.
>> He's honest enough to admit to the cracked seals, so right now I'm
>> assuming there's nothing else wrong with it.
>>
>> What sort of things should I look for when I go for a test drive?
>>
>> Should I be concerned about the timing chain in an '82?
>>
>> I also found an old article from 1994 in Road and Track which says
3,000
>> mile servicing can run $200-400. WTF kind of 3000 mile service costs
that
>> much? That's a hell of a price to pay for an oil change. I'm having
>> trouble believing that's for real.
>>
>> I may be able to get some help from a friend on replacing the ball
joints
>> and if I can spare myself the labor expense, it wouldn't be too
expensive.
>> I'm actually tempted to buy it, fix the ball joints, drive it a bit and
>> put a "For Sale" sign on it and my current car (ask for a profit on the
>> 380SL; more reasonable price for my car) and see what happens.
>>
>> I'm concerned though that I might be buying a money-pit and red isn't
my
>> favorite color for a car (although that might help its resale value).
>>
>> I just checked blue-book on my current car and it was $9300 - exactly
the
>> asking price for the 380SL.
>>
>> ...
>>
>> And just a couple questions about the hard-top.
>>
>> How user friendly is it?
>>
>> Is it a simple process to remove and store? How heavy is it? Is it
>> easy enough for one able-bodied person to lift off? I have visions of
>> struggling with 150 pounds of awkwardly shaped metal and dropping it
and
>> horribly scratching the paint and possibly denting the top so it
didn't
>> fit right anymore. That would really suck.
|
