Today’s Nice Price or No Dice ML 55 AMG trades any pretense of gas financial system for heavy responsibility horsepower. Is it value exchanging simply shy of ten gees to expertise that gas-guzzling goodness?
There was little probability of final Friday’s 1983 Volkswagen Rabbit convertible changing into anybody’s “honey bunny.” At least not at its $8,800 asking value. The advert claimed that value had been set for a fast sale, however the one factor it managed to expedite was a 75 % No Dice loss.
Let’s think about two very disparate vehicles: Porsche’s 928 and the Mercedes-Benz M-Class. As totally different as they’re, they each have a few issues in widespread. The first is that every is the product of a well-respected German automaker. The different commonality the 2 share is that they had been every meant as replacements for different current fashions, however these replacements didn’t go down as deliberate.
In Porsche’s case, the 928 was meant to step into the sneakers of the 911. For Mercedes, the already long-in-the-tooth Geländewagen was the M-Class’ goal. While neither plan went the best way the automotive makers meant, with each the 911 and G-Wagon nonetheless in manufacturing immediately, the entire thing labored out much more fortuitous for the M-Class than for the 928.
Seeing because it was meant to exchange the G-Wagon, the M-Class was designed with some critical off-road capabilities, being constructed round a two-speed switch case and three diffs with ABS-based digital locking. Wanting so as to add some avenue cred to the road, Mercedes launched an AMG-imbued version of the M-Class with a growly V8 and particular bodywork to make its goal identified even to the laborious of listening to.
Perhaps essentially the most well-known of those ML 55 AMG sport utilities is the one which our good pal Tyler Hoover—purveyor of the self-proclaimed “Dumbest Automotive Channel on all of YouTube—as soon as owned and had stolen whereas it was idling at a detailer’s store. Tyler documented his seek for the Benz on video, in addition to its eventual restoration from the place the thief had actually pushed it into the woods.
This 2000 Mercedes-Benz ML 55 AMG isn’t stolen (I checked the VIN) and appears to be in fairly exceptional form for being virtually 1 / 4 of a century outdated. Perhaps that may be chalked as much as having a comparatively low 91,846 miles and having been nicely cared for by its earlier proprietor. It’s now supplied on the market by a vendor, and whereas the vendor is gentle on the main points within the advert, it does provides a free Carfax for the automotive. That report notes this to be a one-owner automotive and that it has a clear title and a single accident in its historical past. That occurred in 2002, and there’s no proof of that indicated within the footage offered immediately.
This being the big-grunt AMG, it’s powered by a 5.4-liter M113 V8 with a plastic cowl touting its AMG origins and 342 horsepower bellowing out under that. Transmission duties are carried out by a five-speed G-Tronic automated.
There aren’t any apparent points with the bodywork or AMG-specific trim. The also-AMG alloys look to be in nice form, too, with no curb rash or pitting. Obviously, the unique ML’s humpty-dumpty styling is as much as private style, however should you favored it when it was new, you’ll in all probability nonetheless prefer it now.
The cabin is full, proper right down to the big spare tire cowl within the nook of the boot. There’s minimal put on on the motive force’s seat from ingress and egress, however apart from that, all of it appears to be like solely evenly used. It’s fairly posh in there, with heated seats, a Nav display screen infotainment system, and energy home windows and locks. And simply to remind you that you just’re within the high-zoot version, the instrument cluster has been snazzed up with white-faced gauges bearing the AMG badge. One factor to notice is that the rear seat headrests aren’t proven within the footage. A purchaser would wish to affirm with the vendor that these are nonetheless kicking round.
Anyone occupied with kicking the tires on this outdated however daring Benz might want to come to phrases with the automotive’s $9,999 asking value. That will get what’s arguably a fascinating trip, albeit one which by no means met a fuel station it didn’t like. If the shock of 16 max mpg doesn’t scare you, then we’ll now have to resolve the destiny of that $9,999 price ticket.
What’s your tackle this ML for that type of cash? Does that appear like a deal for the automotive, because it’s introduced within the advert? Or is that an excessive amount of for a lumbering AMG?
You resolve!
Denver, Colorado, Craigslist, or go right here if the advert disappears.
H/T to Paul Stevens for the hookup!
Help me out with NPOND. Hit me up at remslie@kinja.com and ship me a fixed-price tip. Remember to incorporate your Kinja deal with.
Source: jalopnik.com