I had Dieselgate cash in hand at the time, and the salesperson I finally got a hold of was supposed to call me as soon as a WRX came to the lot so I could at least sit inside it. Never happened, and ended up with a Volvo wagon. On the flip side of sleaze was the BMW salesperson who called once a day (although he was…

2 unrelated thoughts:

I feel like this is a correct price if it were in “Excellent-Driver” condition (ie, not concours, but that category right below it). In my NE experience, if there’s rust up top, there’s going to be a whole lot of rust below the belt-line. I’d say NP if it turns out the body is in great shape. ND otherwise.

Watching any classic car auction must make your head spin!

A couple years ago, $3k used to (and maybe still can?) could get you a facelifted 960/v90 in good running condition all day long. I’m personally a fan of the facelift look, which also gets you updated suspension (including moving to Independent Rear vs the solid rear axle here) and nicer seats. I vaguely recall that…

NP

Seriously - someone’s been watching too much Clarkson.

A few years ago, I bought a cheap first gen X5 (called E53 is Bimmer land). I was tickled that I could get one with a manual transmission, and that I could pay cash (just bought a house and needed to figure some things out). Diving down that rabbit hole, I am still amazed at the enthusiast following these things…

If I always saw cars with my financial goggles on, I could no longer be an auto enthusiast. Pretty sure my financial advisor would be me over the head for buying anything but a 5 year old Honda Accord (base model, of course, since options are a waste of money).

Agreed - I parked next to a new Outback in my first gen X5 and realized my “SUV” was only a couple inches taller. Calling an Outback a wagon is like saying an X5 is just a wagon version of the 5-series. 

Having owned a couple Saab hatchbacks, I can attest to just how convenient a true hatchback is. (Disclaimer: I’m a wagon fan too. I’m generally a fan of convenience and not wasting space - ie, sedans). With it’s much larger opening, a giant hatchback clamshell was in ways even more convenient then a wagon! I once slid…

Woah now - are you saying that anyone with enough money to buy a C8 should have common sense? That’s some heavy stereotyping there.

Yes, a proper track should have a sand trap and a tire barrier with a catch fence.

If anyone here has questions regarding how well this thing has been maintained, or if they really want/need this truck, think of it this way:

Wow that’s clean. They sold a ton of these, and as ugly as they looked when new, they cheaped out in materials, and they have not aged well (same goes for most MB products of this generation). Forget the miles - you’re not going to find a cleaner first-gen ML. NP

Lol - I dig your world, I really do! Back in my world, I just trie shopping for the first generic 15-year-old car that popped into my head (a 2007 Hyundai Sonata - $20k when new). I was hoping to find some sweet $1k deals, but instead I found prices between $5-7k.

This world you live in - this world of $40k cars depreciating to 5% of their original price in 15 years. Where is the door? I really need a 911 GT3 but only have $10k.

Good on you for admitting to your mistakes publicly - I’m sure all the people laughing at you have never, ever, ever made a stupid mistake.

They probably realized they could get just as much money for the BBS basketweaves on the car, sold them separately, and found the first 4x100 wheels on craigslist! 

Being a reformed VW fanboy, it’s funny to see some of the first comments here. Some answers for the culturally uninformed: