Charlie's Official Update Thread

[Dr_Snooz]

I don't doubt it. On my BMW, I was impressed by how heavy the sheet metal body panels were. If you pushed against them, they didn't flex. They were much thicker than the panels you get on any other car. That much steel isn't going to come cheap though. Everything else is built the same way. A simple alternator will be $700. Brake caliper is $320. It's not gouging either. It's simply built to last forever. Don't worry about the alternator costing so much because you'll never need to replace it. When you start breaking a lot of stuff in a crash, however, it gets expensive very fast.

[charliekuney]

Insurance bought the car for $6,000 which is three times what I paid for it, so I'm happy. I should have bought it back for $700 and sold it on Craigslist for $2,000 but that was a headache I wasn't ready to deal with. I'll post the pictures from the insurance once I get them. On the hunt for another Mercedes-Benz! I'm on the market for a clean W140 S-Class, W124 or W210 E-Class, or W202 or W203 C-Class. I really want something all-wheel-drive after test driving a 5-speed 2002 BMW 325ix today, but Mercedes never made any manual all-wheel-drive cars, ever!

[charliekuney]

Picked up a 1999 Mercedes-AMG C43 with 125k. New transmission at 115k. Full racing coolant system? Original owner is now serving time in Florida for armed robbery and attempted murder. Black on black. 18" AMG Monoblocks. 245 rears. ESP. E55 brakes. Is nice. > I think I read that they only imported ~1,200 over 1998-2000. Black on black is the second rarest color combination. Leather doesn't have any creases. It's not as floaty as the S320 but it is definitely way more sporty!

[2oodoor]

Charlie youre an incredibly skillfull broker for your "fleet". MB AMG ? Omg I hope things work out how you want.

[Dr_Snooz]

Big pimpin' in Seattle. Just get rid of the thing before the guy gets out and sees you in it!

[charliekuney]

oh ma gaw so faaaaast

[Dr_Snooz]

Heh heh. Let me guess. You found a nice level, straight open road and put the hammer down. The car threw you back in your seat and slapped you around for awhile. It was perfectly smooth and quiet as everything went streaking by. It pulled like a mother right up to red line, never ran out of power, never strained, wobbled, vibrated or anything. The sound was exquisite and the sensation of power and speed was indescribable. The faster it went, the more planted it felt. When you stopped, your pulse was pounding and you wanted to do it again.

Now you understand why I was baggin' on the 320. Once you've had a taste of German speed, nothing else will satisfy. You'll never be able to drive another 320 again.

[charliekuney]

All true, all true; but the C43 does not have the road presence or ride of the S-Class. I miss floating around and being one of the largest sedans on the road with a Suburban's footprint. The C43 is definitely faster than the 600SEL I had. It makes me want a 1998-1999 S600 or CL600 or a newer V12. The Top Gear episode for the 2003 CL65 AMG was a good one. Or an E55 AMG. I definitely love the passing and braking power of this car, though. It just makes me want something faster, like when a CTS-V or SRT8 or newer Germ fucks around with me.

[charliekuney]

How crazy would I be if I got an older (1980's or early 1990's) Rolls-Royce or Bentley? I know maintenance is the definition of a bitch, and parts do not exist, but as with all cars I probably wouldn't keep it forever anyway. Just something to tinker with and show off

[Hazwan]

That would be interesting even though you know how bad they can be reliability wise. If you think your previous German(s) are bad then...

[Dr_Snooz]

I can't say for Rolls or Bentley, but generally, the British can't build a car that runs for longer than a few months at a time without taking a $2,000 pit stop at the shop. You know the old joke about Jaguars. You buy two: one to drive and one to keep in the shop. British cars are terrible.

[Hazwan]

I can't say for Rolls or Bentley, but generally, the British can't build a car that runs for longer than a few months at a time without taking a $2,000 pit stop at the shop. You know the old joke about Jaguars. You buy two: one to drive and one to keep in the shop. British cars are terrible.

What he said. I've worked on a couple of Jags and Range Rovers. They're just.. what even I can't even explain.

At least the Germans built their car to last. British are like lets hope it would last a month without spontaneously burst into flames

[Hauntd ca3]

come on snooze!
i grew up with English cars, jags, austin, morris, Daimler etc and they are fine.
just got to know what you are doing with them.
rather a 50s or 60s jag than a 50s or 60s anything US.
and don't even get me started on racing.

[gp02a0083]

What he said. I've worked on a couple of Jags and Range Rovers. They're just.. what even I can't even explain.

At least the Germans built their car to last. British are like lets hope it would last a month without spontaneously burst into flames

IIRC The Jag/Rover division I think have been owned by an Indian company, TATA motors since around 2008 when Ford was trimming themselves down. I agree, British cars have never been known to be highly reliable mechanically. Problem with those cars IMO is that they are hand built, built in squeaks/ rattles. However, with that being said they also have had some beautiful cars made, for instance the Eagle speedster.

almost every make has had their highs and lows over the decades, others flopped for one reason or another. It really depends on the style and function you are looking for. Personally i'm partial to the Oldsmobile's up into the muscle car era of the late 60's, but mainly the 30's and 40's. The 70's with the gas crisis and all that stuff going on the American cars really started to decline. I'd have to stick with the late 70's into the 80's for the asian makes. Not many of the American makes had a good run in the 80's. I cant really critique the European stuff, the late 80's into the early/mid 90's seem to have been decent, I'd still look for a mid 80's audi quattro. Oh and can't forget the german's with the beetles.

[HON-DUH]

Woah, Charlie mane still on this forum?

How in the fuck did you get $6,000 from the insurance?

Please do share your tips and tricks

[Dr_Snooz]

come on snooze!
i grew up with English cars, jags, austin, morris, Daimler etc and they are fine.
just got to know what you are doing with them.
rather a 50s or 60s jag than a 50s or 60s anything US.
and don't even get me started on racing.

Well, I haven't owned a British car, but the word on the old MG's was that they were great fun...when they ran. Which apparently, was rare. The old Jags from the '70s or so were renowned for being complete garbage. You'd look inside an older one and all the trim would be falling off the dash and the wood veneer would be peeling off the door panels. A boss of mine had a Range Rover for awhile and the thing was literally in the shop every month. Not for maintenance, but for some problem. He'd make his secretary make all the calls for it and she'd roll her eyes whenever we'd catch her calling.

American cars have always been low-tech and unsophisticated. They are riddled with flaws because the corporate brass thought a few dollars profit per car was worth more than human lives (think Ford Explorer or Ford Pinto). Nevertheless, the cars run. They may be 25 years old, with 200k miles, have had an engine fire, no maintenance and be held together with duct tape and coat hanger wire, but by God, they still run and will still pull your trailer to the job site. There isn't anything you can't get from the aftermarket and there are a billion scrapyard parts for those who can't afford new. It just depends on what's important to you, I guess.

I'll mention that Charlie isn't asking about MG's or Jags, but Rolls and Bentley. James May, of Top Gear, had an old Bentley and he made a video about it. He doesn't mention a lot of mechanical problems, but there are challenges to owning a Bentley.

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Lc-WGyeSO-U

[charliekuney]

Woah, Charlie mane still on this forum?

How in the fuck did you get $6,000 from the insurance?

Please do share your tips and tricks

Yes, I am still here. If you really want to know what I found out about totaling a vehicle: When your insurance calls you back to let you know how much they're paying and to find out if you're going to buy it back for cheap (totaled/salvage) or when they're going to pick it up, you have to tell them what options your car has. They don't look it up by your VIN like they do when they are insuring you. They just look at market value, which if any of you have learned anything in your lives, is not NADA, KBB OR the price you can get for it on Craigslist... It's the government's website for value. They were going to give me something like $5,400 for it but then I told them that my S320 had optional brake support and that the W140 S-Class was the first car in the world to have it although the S600 was the only model before 1999 with BAS standard. They gave me an extra $600 for brake support, something that made my premium less because it saves lives.

Yes, you are all correct. I saw the Top Gear episode where they had to buy the best brand new car and best used car they could buy with like $8k. They bought a brand new Toyota that was smaller than a Yaris/Echo, and they also bought like a 1991 Bentley sedan that was immaculate and more than a proper daily driver. This hideous idea of mine has already passed. I have long promised myself that I will never purchase a vehicle from another manufacturer as no other brand of car can provide the driving experience of a Mercedes-Benz, and by that I mean in traffic, where most of us actually spend most of our driving time. I am set on a W220 2003-2006 S500 4Matic with ALL of the options. ESP, BAS, ABC, AWD, ACC, NAV.

[HON-DUH]

And what's this government website thou speak of?

[charliekuney]

I forget what the lady at the DMV showed me. You can go there and ask. I wouldn't recommend calling unless you can get a hold of one out in the boonies.

[charliekuney]

Charles now owns an Astral Silver W123 1982 Mercedes-Benz 240D 4-speed sedan with a black MB-Tex vinyl interior. 225k miles, third owner, California car, no rust, no accidents. Oddly optioned: manual windows, but power locks (standard) and sunroof (optional), air conditioning but no climate control, locking glovebox, manual transmission but no tachometer, cruise control - that's it. Had all of 67hp back in 1982, not sure what she has now! It's definitely slower off the line than my Metro was but once it has momentum it can keep up with traffic (so long as there is zero incline). It's actually a very relaxing vehicle to drive. It's so slow that I cannot have road rage: If someone cuts me off or does something of the like I can't rush up to them to do an instant payback. She isn't a showroom-worthy garage queen but "the original owners were an elderly couple from Cali and the previous owner was a German man who owned a 240D before he moved over here." I wouldn't hesitate to drive this car from Seattle to Miami to Boston to Los Angeles and back, or even to the tip of Chile and back and then all around the other continents. It's slow, cheap to own, gets decent gas mileage on the highway where it's flat and starts right up on the coldest days after sitting for a week. Power steering and power disc brakes but no ABS or traction control or anything of the sort. Floats at 50mph as it does at 85mph+ (speedometer stops there haha). I have a set of rare factory aluminum steelie look-alikes with the soon-to-be paint-matched wheel covers, as well as a set of the factory bundt-style alloy "sport" wheels. I have every intention of keeping this one as long as I possibly can to save money to start a side project of the car that I want, still undecided since I'm the most indecisive person I know.

Anyway, how goes?

[conozo]

I read some of this thread, how many cars have you owned total? Looked like you were going through cars every 2 months.

[charliekuney]

I bought four nearly identical 1988/1989 Misty Beige/Seattle Silver LX-i coupes over a period of about 18 months, kept my last one around for about three years before letting my dad drive it daily and then selling it to my neighbor, which they still drive daily. I'm on my fifth Mercedes and I also owned a Geo Metro XFi right after the 600SEL, so ten cars total over the past seven years:

Seattle Silver 1989 Honda Accord LX-i coupe manual $900 - bought from Craigslist from original owner, then totaled. (~180k)
Seattle Silver 1989 Honda Accord LX-i coupe manual $300 - bought from Craigslist "not running" with high mileage but swapped out fuel pump main relay from totaled car. Sold gutted. (~280k)
Misty Beige 1988 Honda Accord LX-i coupe manual $500 - bought from Craigslist, lower mileage than previous but worse body condition. Still see it driving around almost every single day. (~180k)
Misty Beige 1988 Honda Accord LX-i coupe manual $350 - bought from Craigslist "not running" but all it needed was a cap for the battery post so the cable clamp wouldn't shimmy off while driving. (~180k)
Arctic White 1992 Mercedes-Benz 400E $2,000 - bought from Craigslist from second owner, maintained at dealership since new. (~178k)
Smoke Silver 1992 Mercedes-Benz 600SEL (traded for 400E) - traded from Craigslist. Previous owner smashed around in it without proper maintenance, sucked air filters into throttle bodies, choked catalytic converters. (~91k)
Aqua Blue 1992 Geo Metro XFi manual $1,400 - bought from Craigslist from original owner. Gutted it and drove the shit out of it until the head gasket blew. (~113k)
Brilliant Silver 1998 Mercedes-Benz S320 LWB $2,000 - bought from Craigslist, probably the nicest car I've ever owned and got me started on the silver exterior / black interior charm. Got hit by the contents of a Lexus GX's roofrack that came flying around a corner, insurance payed me $6,500. (~180k)
Black 1999 Mercedes-AMG C43 - bought from sketchy people on Craigslist at night (learned my lesson). Drove the shit out of it until the transmission's conductor plate went out, sold it to my best friend when I moved to Miami. (~134k)
Astral Silver 1982 Mercedes-Benz 240D Diesel manual $1,800 - story is above.

[Dr_Snooz]

Dang Charlie. You give CAH a run for his money. LOL

[charliekuney]

The Metro and S320 I intended to keep for as long as possible but that didn't happen. So long as this car doesn't die on me or get wrecked I plan on keeping it as long as I can, unless I find a nicer diesel W115/W123/W124. Any new cars from here on out will be additional vehicles.