6.9 For Sale

[Oversize]

Thought this one might be of interest to anyone looking to pick one up. Note that I have no affiliations with the seller.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Mercedes-ben...-/270705826154?pt=AU_Cars&hash=item3f0753196a

I've run out of room & money to buy any more & it'd be nice for it to go to one of us!!!

 

[Styria]

Well, it's up to two grand with six days to go. Excellent set of pictures which amply illustrate the poor condition various areas of the car are in. It needs a new interior as the leather is beyond salvaging, and the dash is showing a crack. It's the sort of car one can spend quite a lot of money on. I would treat this car with quite some caution. Just my opinion. Regards Styria

 

[Styria]

Thought this one might be of interest to anyone looking to pick one up. Note that I have no affiliations with the seller.

http://cgi.ebay.com.au/Mercedes-ben...-/270705826154?pt=AU_Cars&hash=item3f0753196a

I've run out of room & money to buy any more & it'd be nice for it to go to one of us!!!

Hi Mark,

Just as an aside - you've not long ago bought a 6.9 from Queensland (?) - any chance of a report or assessment from you on that car ? If I remember correctly, the seats had sheepskin covers on them and I raised the spectre of the condition of the leather under those covers. That makes it four or five 6.9s now, doesn't it ? Regards Styria

 

[Oversize]

Looks like extra pics were added which better illustrate the condition of the car. Yes, it looks like the interior needs work & there's rust visible from the outside. It looks like it's been resprayed as there's overspray on the sunroof seals. I'd be concerned that the sunroof's been leaking & that's caused the damage to the front seats. Visible rust may also indicate more underneath, so a good inspection would be essential (depending on the intended use of the car).

What has to be remembered is that these cars are over 30 years old & never designed for Australian conditions (well, mechanically yes, body & interior no). It's very rare to find one in original condition that doesn't suffer from at least some rust, problems with suspension, a worn interior & a cracked dash. I'd never recommend a 6.9 to anyone that wasn't financially viable, or mechanically minded (or both). At $2K, it's cheap spare parts (assuming it doesn't go higher). Not much more than a decade ago, wreckers were asking over $5K for a M100 engine alone. In saying that though, not many go bang mechanically. It might be parts that are never needed; taking up valuable garage space in the meantime. I haven't seen many with a blue interior, so that might make it more desirable. If anyone's annoyed about the cost of gas cells, try to think of them as high performance sports shock absorbers; it eases at least some of the pain!

Styria, in answer to your query my red one did arrive from Queensland safe n sound; but went straight into storage. I took a couple of pics & will post them when I have a reliable internet connection (wireless is rubbish). After a very brief inspection it appears free of significant issues. A bit of rust in the front doors seems to be the worst problem; like many. Fortunately this isn't visible from the outside, so not an immediate concern. That'll be addressed later in the year. Some interior items will need repair & maintenance issues will be performed when I move into the new place mid April 2011. I'll be pulling up the floor insulation, wiper grille & headlining to check for rust & water leaks. I've really got itchy fingers right now & can't wait to get started on them all (four at last count). And I'll be taking plenty of pics for everyone.....

 

[John S]

You have taken on a lot of work Oversize, to save a great classic, I congratulate you on your planning and wish you the best of luck.

 

[Oversize]

Thanks John. Yes I'm under no illusions there'll be a lot of work ahead of me in the near future. It helps being an ex-MB mechanic, but I don't profess to know it all. I must admit it never ceases to amaze me when people spend squillons on cruddy Fords & Holdens, while these far superior cars are being neglected. Just doing my bit for the cause!

Oh & having a closer look at the e-bay pics; what I thought was just water on the roof, actually appears to be rust bubbles around the sunroof. Buyer beware!!

 

[Oversize]

Oh & another thing to be aware of when buying a car interstate is the cost of freight. It can be anywhere from $500 - $800. Other options would be to fly over & bring it back, but I'd rather check it thoroughly and complete necessary repairs, before driving one such a distance....

 

[Styria]

Hi Mark, you say you're an ex MB mechanic - are you familiar with the M100 engined cars, i.e. the 600, 6.3 and 6.9 ? Does your knowledge extend to the hydraulics on the 6.9, and how about the work that WGB is carrying out on the rear suspension of his 6.9 /

It is a job that I will undertake sometime in the "not immediate near future" - first thing is to get the body right and I want to carry out some work on the front suspension of Gleaming Beauty. Regards Styria

 

[Oversize]

Hi Styria,

Unfortunately I was only an apprentice when the W116 was still being serviced by dealers & due to the high value & complexity of the M100 cars, the maintenance was usually snapped up by more senior mechanics; who also got the test drive them at the completion of the job!!!! I did conduct basic servicing, but never saw any substantial work undertaken. I guess that's testament to the workmanship of MB at the time. Most of my experience was on the W126 & I left MB around the introduction of the W140. Hence my experience with the W116 is limited, but having worked for MB I really have an appreciation for their engineering & feel privileged to have gained my experience working on them. Many people feel intimidated by their complexity (hence they choose to restore Fords, or Holdens) but if you have confidence, passion & the appropriate equipment they're much less daunting.

I never had the opportunity to complete the work that WGB has undertaken & it's probably only now that repairs of this level are necessary to keep these cars on the road. Hats off to him for tackling such a job, his attention to detail, the terrific posts & for a successful repair.

Yes, I have knowledge of MB hydraulics and although it was focused on the W126, the principals for the W116 are the same. I'm certainly learning plenty through Topklasse & look forward to getting stuck into things, rather than just talking about it!

 

[Styria]

Mark, I don't have a problem if you just want to talk about things - really, that's what it is all about. The work later on ? Great, I really look forward to those posts if and when you find the time. In the meantime, keep talking.

I agree with you regarding our Doctor Bill (WGB) - I never cease to be amazed at his stamina level to not only work on his 6.9, but to then also find the time to submit his comprehensive posts. Nothing seems to faze him, and his knowledge is very close to 'second to none' - and it's not as if he has retired from his profession as he still runs his pratice during the day and looks after a dozen D) grand kids as well. Regards Styria

 

[Oversize]

Did any of us buy this one? Finished with 39 bids, including at least one international buyer interested. Sold for $4300 to the lucky new owner. Maybe things are starting to turn the corner & prices will come up again? I saw a really rusty one in Melbourne sell for $3500 about a year ago. If they're going up at the rate of say $800 every year (23% per year), it'll take 63 years to reach $50K!

The collectable car business is a strange thing. 20 years ago a nice XY GT could be bought for $35K & not so long ago they were worth $300K (maybe half that of a HO). That's a rise of $13250 per year, or 38%. That's nearly double the rate of a 6.9. Doesn't make much sense, considering the XYs not much more advanced than your average tractor! But I guess they never raced the 6.9 back in their day, they didn't have racing stripes & they made more of em....

 

[Oversize]

I spoke to the seller yesterday & he said that there was 80 people watching the auction! One potential buyer wanted to send the car to Lebanon as a gift & another wanted it just to put the engine in an SLC! Mazing.....

 

[Styria]

Eighty people watching ? Does that tell us something ? I just don't know. Wish we had the European market at our disposal. Last look I had two days ago on the German website by the name of Mobile.de (they are listed in our Websites and Links Section), a 450SEL 6.9 is advertised for about Euro 44K.

I spoke to one of the MB Club members yesterday, and he's just bought a low mileage 450SE with about 118K. kilometers. He reckoned to have seen 450s adverised on the net for about five and nine thousand dollars. Let's keep fingers crossed. Regards Styria

 

[Michel]

Glad to see the value of 6.9s climbing.

I believe that what keeps their value down is the abundance of the rusty ones and the ones with major hydraulic problems popping up for sale for next to nothing.

You try and get a decent one cheap!
There are 2 for sale on carsales:
One at $15K and one at $20K
I believe this is are a true reflection of what these cars are truly worth (to start with)...

 

[Tony66_au]

Re the inflated prices of GTHO's, HT/G Munro's and E38 and E49 Chargers it was driven by easy credit, access to housing equity, stupidity and the whole I deserve it thing some blokes go through lol

Add the Bathurst factor and the Me first and the Gimme gimme brigade got in very deep very quickly paying well over the odds on cars that you honestly couldn't enjoy driving without an armed escort to guard the car when parked.

Sadly a few of these cars got sold off far cheaper than they were bought for when the credit crunch hit and housing repayments went north again and this isnt opinion, this is first hand observation.

Madness considering these cars originally sold for between $2000 and $4000 (And Chargers never won Bathurst, VG Pacers did which never really got silly price wise).

The whole 6.9 450 thing still has me scratching my head in disbelief though and that such a car is still worth relatively little surprises me still although this is good for me considering I dont have one yet.

Tony