The vendor of as we speak’s Nice Price or No Dice E500 claims it to be the “last non-AMG V8 wagon offered by Mercedes” however has nonetheless festooned it with AMG badges and wheels. Let’s see if the worth has escaped that “AMGification.”
Country Music legend Willie Nelson turned 90 this yr. And whereas most of us would merely be grateful to get up every morning at such an age, Nelson is amazingly nonetheless cranking out music. One of his most enduring hits, Crazy, was written whereas Nelson was nonetheless in his twenties and was working three jobs to help his younger household. Crazy was one in every of a batch of songs that Nelson bought on the time to a Houston document producer, who, in flip, supplied it to star-on-the-rise Patsy Cline. It took Cline a number of weeks to document the music, owing to its distinctive chord development and her needing time to recuperate from accidents suffered in a automotive accident. Despite these troublesome beginnings, it ended up being Cline’s signature music.
The 1974 Plymouth Duster 4X4 we checked out (and have been principally terrified by) final Friday jogs my memory of Nelson’s reward to Patsy Cline’s profession as a result of it’s each previous and unabashedly loopy. Based on the feedback, lots of you agreed. Based on the 92 % No Dice loss it suffered in our voting, you all thought its $13,500 value to be simply as wackadoodle.
No one ever accuses the Germans of being wacky. Crazy within the pejorative, maybe, however by no means nutsy. That’s to not say that the Germans don’t like to chop unfastened each every so often, and German TV has lengthy been residence to quite a few exhibits supposed to elicit a chuckle. German automobiles can be fairly enjoyable, too, even when the primary objective is practicality. Today’s 2004 Mercedes-Benz E500 4Matic wagon is a primary instance of such utilitarian enjoyable.
First off, we have to prolong kudos to Mercedes for nonetheless providing a station wagon mannequin to this very day. That’s a daring assertion and a center finger to the face of our crossover loopy (there’s that phrase once more) world. The mid-size E-Class has been a stalwart of Mercedes’ lineup for many years now, and the earliest editions of the collection, the Nineteen Seventies/80s W123 fashions, are actually reaching uber-collectible standing.
This W211 mannequin, three generations later, has but to succeed in that degree of appreciation. That’s to not say it may not finally get there. After all, there’s so much to love right here. First off, this wagon comes with Mercedes’ rockstar M113 V8, right here in five-liter displacement, making 302 horsepower and 340 lb-ft of torque. That’s matched to a five-speed electronically-controlled computerized driving all 4 wheels by means of the automotive’s 4Matic AWD system.
According to the advert, this E500 comes with 175,000 miles on the clock however the vendor avers that it drives like a a lot youthful automotive. That’s partially due to what’s touted as correct upkeep and maintenance and half to the guts transplant the automotive obtained in 2019. That kicked the automotive’s authentic engine to the curb and changed it with one other unit exhibiting solely 57K of use. On prime of that, the drivetrain has seen newer upkeep, together with belt and pulley replacements, fluid modifications as properly and a complete new switch case put in throughout the final month. Now, the automotive is touted to wish nothing and to run like new.
Aesthetically, it’s a lot the identical story, though there are some chips and scratches within the bodywork that the vendor acknowledges, in addition to some badging and lamp tinting shenanigans which may not be everybody’s cup of sauerbraten. There’s additionally that comically tall roof rack field that seems to have been rattle-canned gold after which festooned with extra stickers than a first-grader’s bed room door. On the plus aspect, that’s a straightforward blemish to repair. As one other plus, the automotive comes with each its authentic wheels and a good-looking set of AMG five-spokes. Airmatic suspension ensures that the automotive can carry a load with out criticism or displaying the Carolina Squat.
The inside appears to be like to be in nice form, too, and options all types of consolation and comfort facilities in addition to the fascinating fold-out kindersitz within the rear.
The vendor’s cause for the automotive showing on Craigslist is redundancy. They say the Benz was initially supposed as a Vay-Cay automotive, flatbedded behind a motorhome, and for use when at campgrounds. That complete state of affairs was discovered to be too unwieldy (and certain excessively bougie), so the present proprietor ditched the automotive/trailer arrange for a tow-behind Jeep.
Now, this clean-title Benz is up for grabs with an asking value of $7,500. What’s your tackle that value for this all-season wagon? Does that appear like a deal for a automotive that may achieve this a lot? Or is that value additionally a lot an excessive amount of?
You determine!
Fort Myers, Florida, Craigslist, or go right here if the advert disappears.
H/T to ReluctantFloridaMan for the hookup!
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Source: jalopnik.com