Peek-A-Boo Journalism

Online news sites are taking peek-a-boo journalism to a whole new level.

Misleading headlines sell.  Back in the day of print newspapers (I guess I can say that now) editors would put sensationalist headlines on newspapers because they new it would sell newspapers.  The New York Daily News was the king of this sort of thing, often using the entire front page to display a single headline.  If you wanted to read the story, you'd have to buy the paper.

It was a method of "baiting" people and it was remarkably effective.

The Internet has taken this to a whole new level, of course.

Online websites like Fox, MSNBC, CNN, Slate, and even the Daily Kos or the Huffington Post, have resorted to these sort of Peek-A-Boo headlines to get you to click on the underlying article.  Many advertisers pay on a per-click basis, and if your site is not generating "hits", no one will advertise on it.

Let's face it, no one is going to click on an article with a boring title.  "Economy doing OK" generates zero hits, while "Experts predict problems, despite recovering economy" will generate millions of hits.  The more enticing you can make the headline, the more likely people will click on the article.

Consider this headline, recently on MSNBC: Nearly unplugged, coma patient now speaking, walking.   "Oh my God!" You might literally say, "they almost killed a guy by taking him off life support!  The right-to-life people are right!"  But that would be an emotional reaction to the story.

The reality was, of course, the kid in question was being treated for a major brain injury, and removing him from life support was discussed - as a possible option down the road - if the treatments were not successful.

But let's face it, a headline of "Man recovers from auto accident, family advised of end-of-life issues as part of routine discussion in major brain injury cases" doesn't generate a lot of clicks and moreover, is just too long.  "They almost pulled the plug on me!" is a more compelling headline, and anyone reading this who works for the New York Daily News is welcome to use it.

But such articles are examples of more irresponsible journalism.  Now, whenever there is another Terri Schiavo, folks will use this "story" as "evidence" that brain dead people can come back to life. It also will guilt all those families out there who had to make a heart-rendering choice to take someone off life support.

To make it clear: Despite what the headline says, no one was talking about "pulling the plug" on this young man, but rather what might happen down the road, if he was not responsive to treatments. And it is clear that they made heroic efforts to treat this man - they hardly were "ready to take him off life support."

But gee golly whiz, the truth doesn't make for a compelling headline, does it? And no one will look at your sidebar ads if they don't click on the links. And without clicks, no click revenue.

So, the internet breeds sensationalist headlines designed to get you to read the article. It is a new variation of the old child's game of "made you look!" and for a legitimate (so-called) news agency, sort of despicable.

What's next? A headline reading "Family of Martians found in Area 57!" - click on the link and you'll discover there is a family named Martian living in a subdivision there. Made You Look!

More Peek-A-Boo Journalism from MSNBC!

And that is what I call this sort of thing:  Peek-A-Boo Journalism.  It is totally designed to do one thing:  Make You Look - so they can sell your eyeballs to advertisers.  They will say whatever outrageous thing they have to say in order to get you to look.

And as you become more and more inured to outrageous things, they will create even more outrageous things to say, until you reach a point where everything in the news is outrageous and by reading or watching the news, you get a distorted view of the world, where criminals are ready to head-bash you on a moment's notice and terrorists are ready to blow up your favorite shopping mall.  A scary world where you son will get Gay-Married and your daughter will have serial abortions.  And of course, the economy will tank, taking out your life savings, but only after your identity has been stolen by those no-good welfare queens.

Perhaps our news media is already there.  Peek-A-Boo!  Made You Look!

Idling Your Engine?

Does idling your engine cost money?

A lot of people let their cars idle - for 10, 20, 30 minutes at a time.  Some "Dads" with diesel pickup trucks will let them idle for hours, to the annoyance of everyone else.  "It's better for the engine" they say.  That is not really true, of course.  They just like being Dads and gunning their loud engines like morons and saying "look at me!  I have a diesel pickup!" as if they were Rudolph Diesel and invented the thing, instead of just making loan payments on it.

Still others, as I have noted before, cannot conceive of having fun, unless an internal combustion engine is running somewhere, whether it be a car, jet ski, generator, or whatnot.  These are the sort of people who idle engines because they like the sound of them, and prefer to have them on.  For them, operating an internal combustion engine is a big part of their lives - one of the few times in their lives they are "in charge" of something important.  To them, a commute is a joy, not endless agony.  And yea, that is pathetic as it sounds.  And these sorts of folks will tell you that you need to "warm up" your car for 10 minutes by idling it.

The reality is, of course, that modern car engines don't need to "warm up" before running them at normal speeds.  And no, shutting down your diesel engine isn't harming it in any way.  A lot of the folklore about this sort of thing is just that - folklore.  And much of it dates back to an earlier time of carburetors and more primitive fuel injection.  Starting your car doesn't hurt it.   If you are idling for any length of time at all (more than a half-minute) just shut it down.

Does it save on gas?  You bet.  Does it reduce emissions?  Yes again.  An idling engine consumes fuel and does no useful work.  And for that reason, the efficiency drops to zero when idling.  And that is one reason why hybrids can be more efficient in the city than on the highway - at the stop light, they shut off, and thus use zero gas.  Regenerative braking, of course, is the other half of the equation.

Years ago, automakers recommended you let a car "warm up" before driving.  Today, this is not recommended.  Start the car, put it in gear, and drive normally for the first few miles (no drag racing, though!).  Sitting and "warming up" a car just wastes gas.

Modern fuel injection doesn't dump gas into the crankcase like carburetors did, when starting.  That gas would wash down the walls of the cylinders, removing the thin film of oil, and increasing wear.  Today, fuel injection delivers a precise fuel/air mixture, and as a result, engines last a very long time - longer than it is worthwhile owning the car.   Today, 100,000 miles is the minimum you expect a car to go, not some fantastic maximum.

Modern multi-viscosity oils also provide better lubrication immediately, even after a cold start.  So there is little wear on start-up, as opposed to the old days.

Of course, car-makers have other reasons for not recommending idling.  Idling will cut your gas mileage pretty substantially.  The other day, when I was jump-starting my friend's Mercedes, I had the car running for about a half hour (also running my 12V air pump to pump up the tires) and when we were all done, it was interesting to note that that half-hour of use dropped the cumulative MPG on the car by two-tenths of a mile per gallon.  Burning gas and going zero miles tends to tank the mileage very quickly.

How much gas does your car use when idling?  It is hard to say, as it depends on the car and engine type.  For heavy duty trucks, some sources suggest that they may consume an entire gallon per hour, while idling.  And truck drivers tend to idle their trucks for long periods of time - sometimes to keep the cab warm while napping, and other times because they believe "it is better for the truck".   So they leave the truck idling for 4 hours while taking a nap and think nothing of it.  But if $20 fell out of their wallet, they'd be pissed off.  Truck drivers are not the brightest bulbs on the Christmas Tree, particularly now that wages have dropped to almost poverty levels.  Taking any advice from a truck driver these days is pretty dumb.  Heck, they text while they drive!

Long-term idling can actually harm some engines - not enhance them.  Diesel engines in particular are more prone to coking up (carbon buildup on the cylinder head, valves and piston face) when idled for long periods of time.  And long idling times for passenger cars merely incurs additional wear.

Does it wear on the starter to restart the car?  Perhaps, but modern cars, with fuel injection, crank far less than cars of old.  Starters last far longer today than they did even 10 years ago.  The amount of extra wear is negligible.

Is idling dangerous?  It can be.  I saw one lady the other day at the gas station, idling her car while refueling.  Not only is this wasting gas and arguably unsafe, if you open the gas cap on most cars, while the engine is running, it will set off the "check engine" light.  In addition, if a car is idling, it is at greater risk for popping out of Park (for automatics) and into reverse, and running someone over - possibly yourself.  Every year, people die when they are run over by their own cars (these idiots never use the parking brake, but don't get me started on that!).

But how much gas does a vehicle use while idling?  This website claims a car, at idle, consumes about 0.026 gallons every ten minutes (about .156 gallons per hour).  Others, such as this police officer, claim more - a half-gallon per hour, at idle.   Still others suggest 0.2 to 0.3 gallons per hour is a better figure. Using the former data, which seems to be more commonly accepted, your car will burn about 62 cents of gas an hour.  That doesn't sound like a lot, because it isn't.   And who idles for an hour a day?

But on the other hand, if you are idling for 10 minutes at the bank, 10 minutes at the drive-through at McDonald's, 10 minutes while eating your fast-food (I've seen it) and 10 minutes while your spouse "runs in to get a few things at the store" the amount of idling can add up - to about $100 a year in gas, depending on price, idling consumption and idling time.

Not a lot of money, to be sure.   But then again, if I saw a $100 bill in the street, I certainly would pick it up.  I prefer not to idle because I don't like the smell of car exhaust, and I prefer the silence of nature to the rumbling of engines.  Unfortunately, I am in the minority on this issue.

Idling cars are usually the sign of idling minds.

Yesterday's Dream Car

Once a highly coveted object of status, this 20-year old car can be bought, in like-new condition, for less than the cost a Chevy Sonic.  What does this say about status and desirability of luxury goods?

Kids, particularly boys, love to obsess about cars.  Many a teenager has a poster of a Ferrari and a hot babe in their bedroom.  When I was young, my friends had that famous Farrah Fawcett poster, and that poster of a Lamborghini, on their bedroom walls.  Both were images of the unobtainable perfection.  Both were likely things you might not want in real life anyway (high-maintenance cars and high-maintenance women are rarely as satisfying as they might appear to outsiders).

But a funny thing happens to desirable cars, as they get older.  They simply get older, and less desirable.  And few, if any, become rare collectables, as people who bought Ferrari's in the 1990s discovered to their dismay.  A Magnum, P.I. 308 GTB or a Miami Vice Testarossa will depreciate like any used car, it turns out.

Now, if you are astute and like cars, and have a knack for fixing things, you can pick up one of these cars, for not a lot of money, and have a very nice ride for only a fraction of the cost new.   A lot of them were third or fourth cars for their owners, and often were garaged and waxed and rarely driven - and have very low miles as a result. 

And this illustrates how the vast majority of Americans - like the herd animals they are - over-pay for most things.  The fellow who bought the above car, brand new, in 1990, burned through $40,000 in depreciation in five years - over $600 a month.  The fellow he sold it to, went through half that, in the next five years.  And so on.  Were those first few years of ownership really that worthwhile?

What has happened in the last 20 years to make the car shown above worth less than 1/4 of its original sales price?  Has automotive technology advanced that far?  Not really.  But cars like this are sold on status, and part of the status is being able to say you paid $80,000 for a car.  When it is new and shiny, it is a bauble or trinket and indicia of your apparent wealth (apparent being the key).

But as a decade-old used car, or two-decade-old used car, there is little status associated with it.  At that point, it almost becomes an anti-status symbol.  Older BMWs and Mercedes are a sore reminder to the owners of new ones of their eventual resale value and intrinsic value in the marketplace.  And perhaps for this reason, luxury-car makers don't want to see their vaunted rides tooling about after 10 or 20 years, showing rust, dings, dents, and their pedestrian underpinnings.  And of course, they don't want folks to see their status cars parked in non-status neighborhoods.

And perhaps that is why the Germans are getting more aggressive about changing sheet-metal on cars more often - shortening product cycles to less than five years.  The above car was made from 1990 to 2002, largely unchanged - a lifetime in the product cycle of most automobiles.  And therein lies the problem.  How do you sell this car to someone in 2002 for 80 grand (or far more) when the original version is for sale, in good shape with low mileage, for a quarter of that price?

Making cars look different is one way to make the older versions look obsolete.  And at one time, that sort of practice was considered only a sin of Detroit - who changed sheet metal on a yearly basis, throughout the 1950's and 1960's.  Meanwhile the staid Germans hardly changed a thing - keeping their VW design intact for 40 years, for example.  And even when they re-designed the cars, they kept the look very similar.

Of course, there are some folks who are not very bright about cars, and don't notice the differences in sheet metal.   To them, any car that is shiny and clean is "new" - because their three-year-old car, parked outdoors, is already fading and dirty.  It is funny, but people give me a hard time for driving a "brand new BMW" and when I tell them that it is over a decade old, and worth maybe $9000, they sort of freak out.  That's less than half what they paid for their new Altima!  And that already has a big dent it it!

So what, you say.  You don't drive expensive cars or seek status.  Au Contraire, mi amigo!  We all seek status.  And yes, when people lease a new car - even if it is a piece of crap made by Chrysler, they are seeking status.  Having the newest and latest car - often distinguishable only by the fact the grill or headlights are sightly different - is a form of status-seeking.  "I can afford a new car, buddy!" is what many people subconsciously think, as they drive down the road and see someone they perceive as "poor" driving last year's model.

But it is only a year or two before the product cycle changes, and suddenly it is you who are the poor schmuck still making payments on the old, obsolete version.  And of course, it is hardly old or obsolete.

Owning brand-new cars for the sake of having brand-new is, oddly enough, more common a status goal of the underclass and lower-middle-class than it is of wealthy people.  The strivers as Vance Packard calls them, are the ones most likely to be serial leasers.  The truly wealthy really don't need or want to show off in that manner.  A five-year-old Mercedes has more style and class than a new Camry does, any day.  And ironically, they cost about the same.

What's a Car Worth? Part II

The inability to value things is one sign of math-impairedness in this Country.

One thing that annoys me is when people are unable to grasp numbers.  A friend of mine tells me that something is for sale.  I ask them, how much?  And they say, "I don't remember."

So I press further, "Is it more than a dollar?  Less than a Million?"

And they say, "Of course! Don't be ridiculous!"

And I reply, "Well, we've narrowed it down considerably from Infinity.  Now, was it less than $100,000?"

And they say, "Well, I don't remember the exact amount!"

I reply, "I'm not asking for the exact amount.  Exact amounts are meaningless, anyway.  I just want the ball park figure.  Was it less than $10,000?"

And so on, until we establish that the price was between $225 and $250, which is pretty good, considering he said he "couldn't remember the price."

But it illustrates how people are taught Math poorly in this country.  Kids are taught there is a "right answer" to every math problem, and if they don't get the correct answer, their knuckles are rapped with a ruler and their friends will laugh at them.  So for most kids, not answering at all is the safest route.

In 8th grade, we did a "unit" on estimating, and the kids nearly freaked out.  The teacher was trying to instruct us on how to estimate things - how to quickly figure out the rough idea of what was the correct answer.  And estimating is so important in life - perhaps moreso than getting the "right answer".   If you are trying to figure out how many shingles you need to re-roof your house, you estimate the size of the roof and go from there.  You don't try to figure it out to the last shingle.

But the kids in class freaked out.  How could you give an answer that was not "correct?" And moreover, if there was no "right answer" how could you tell if you were right?  Kids want boundaries and they want things black and white.  They want to be able to look up the "correct" answer and be done with it.  And it is an example of weak thinking and it pervades our life in America today - that there are "right answers" to "secret tricks" to solving all our problems, and no grey areas are allowed.

But when it comes to pricing things, whether they are Nuclear Reactors or a chipped teacup at your garage sale, there is no "right answer" but rather a very large grey area as to what the market will bear and what you can specifically negotiate.  And this tends to freak people out, as they worry they are giving away their broken teacup for too little, and thus will get "ripped off".  And perhaps this is how hoarding starts - when people get so paranoid about "giving away my good stuff" that they instead squander it by keeping it.

But pricing any item is not hard to do.  And in a way, it reminds me about the old joke about the Philosopher and the Socialite at the cocktail party:

Philosopher: Madam, would you sleep with me for five million pounds?

Socialite: My goodness… Well, I suppose…

Philosopher: Would you sleep with me for five pounds?

Socialite: Sir, what kind of woman do you think I am?!

Philosopher: Madam, we’ve already established that. Now we are haggling about the price.

And when it comes to "haggling on price" that is one way to start, at the outliers and work your way inward.

Is this car worth $1?  Sure, but more than that.  Is it worth a million dollars?  No, but it is not an utterly ridiculous question.

This car, new, sold for the staggering price of $83,730 when new in 1990 - which is something I am still trying to get my head around.   This makes my M Roadster, which stickered for $44,000 nearly a decade later, look like an economy car.  The SL Roadsters were very pricey cars.

But, like any other car, they fall down the resale depreciation chain very quickly.  If we assume a 50% drop in value every five years, by 1995, this car was worth $42,600.  By 2000, it was worth $21,300 and by 2010, it was worth 10,650.  Oddly enough, that comes very close to a target price right there.

They made enough of these cars that, despite its quasi-exotic pretensions, it is really just a regular old car, and will not be "collectible" anytime soon.  They made far too many of them for regular depreciation curves not to apply.  And collectible cars need to be about 50-60 years old before they appreciate significantly, which is one reason why the Pimp Barges of the late 1970's may be good bargains for the collector right now.

Moreover, in order to have any measure of collect-ability, it should be in much better condition that it is.  From the listings and pricing sheets we found in the last posting, it appears that there are some of these cars out there with very low mileage and in very good shape - garage kept, new top, new tires, new brakes, all fluids changed regularly, like-new interiors, etc.  These are cars that look nearly showroom new.  And they are selling for $15,000 or so - asking price.

Clearly, this means the car in question is worth less than that.  So, we are now hemmed in by two indicies of value. The book values seem to point to the sub-$10,000 range, for a car in "average" condition, and our price listings do show some in that price range which look to be in about the same condition, if not better.

So, I am thinking $9,000 or less.  With the problem with the top and the interior, plus the broken A/C, I would knock a couple of grand off that, even - perhaps $6500 to go away, maybe $7,000 on a good day.

As I noted in the previous posting, he would be smart to sell the hard top separately.  There is likely some aficionado out there with an immaculate car who would spend $800 to $1000 on the hard top.  Throwing in the hard top with the sale of the car would add little value, and often the people buying the car don't want the top (as happened with my two Cabrio sales).

Now, here is the hard part.  One reason this car has sat for three months un-driven was that it was someone's "dream car" and they don't want to let it go for "just nothing."  This is, of course, emotional thinking and it gets in the way of life.

Knowing when to unload a vehicle is important, and not driving or using it is one sure sign. And this happens more often than you might think.  A lady nearby kept her dead son's car in the driveway for five years, before selling it for half the book value, to "make it go away".  She couldn't deal with selling the car (hint: ask a friend to deal with it) and found it comforting to see his car in the driveway, as she put it, like he was still home.  

Or another friend, who has her late husband's "dream motorhome" which cost $100,000 new, but has been sitting for the better part of a decade now, un-driven.  On his deathbed, he tells the now-widow, "Don't just give that away, honey, we special ordered it!"  But in the interim, a major recession has intervened, motorhome manufacturers and dealers have gone bankrupt, the demand has fallen, and of course, it has been sitting for nearly a decade.  She won't sell it for "nothing" but every day it sits, it gets closer and closer to "nothing" in value.

Motor vehicles rarely appreciate in value.  Even rare collectible cars are usually worth a lot of money because they cost a lot of money to restore.  That $50,000 restored muscle car represents a loss to the guy who restored it, in most cases.

But more pedestrian rides?  They depreciate on a near-linear scale.  Even cars that "hold their resale value the best!" don't hold it very well or very long.  Hanging on to a car to "get your price" only insures that you will get less.

Make it go away and move on with life. 

What is your car worth?

What is a 21-year-old Mercedes worth?  Thanks to the Internet, it is not hard to find out.

A friend of mine wants to sell his Mercedes roadster.  I went over to look at it and we had to pump up the tires and charge the battery.   It has not been driven in three months.  Cars are like fresh fruit.   You cannot "save" an apple for three months.  Eat it or get rid of it.  Cars hate to sit.  If you ain't using it, it is just depreciating in value and costing you money.  All you are doing is creating a nice, low-mileage used car for someone else to enjoy.

So I tell him to sell it.  Clearly he isn't using it and the money he could get for it would pay for the maintenance on his other cars for years to come.  And it is cluttering up his driveway, anyway.

A lot of people tell me they "don't know how" to sell a car.   How do I use eBay?  How do I used Autotrader?  What are the mysteries of Craigslist?  For some reason, a classified ad seems simple and safe to them, but an online ad just freaks them out.  They are afraid of being ripped-off or selling the car too cheaply, or having to wait weeks or months to sell it.  So, instead, they take the car to a dealer, and trade it in - thus guaranteeing a rip-off, instead of running the risk of one.

Selling a car is not hard.  If it is taking weeks or months to sell, you clearly have overpriced it - and that is the most common problem.  People over-list cars and then whine about how hard it is to sell them.  And they over-list them because the dealer offered them a pile of money for the car.    The dealer will offer an "inflated trade" price, folding the excess price into the new car they sell you.  It is not a real price or a real bargain, but you can kid yourself you "got good money" for your trade-in.  However, if you realistically price the vehicle, it should sell within a week or so.

But how much is it worth?  Thanks to the Internet, it is not hard to find out.  There are three "book values" you can easily find, plus you can check asking prices on eBay, Craigslist, and Auto trader.

Bear in mind these are guidelines - raw data, not pat answers.  You have to come up with answers yourself (that pesky thinking again!).  But the data is helpful in figuring this out.

Here are the sources I would use, and my comments on their limitations:

1.  NADA Guides (www.nadaguides.com) is a dealer book that lists dealer asking prices self-reported by dealers.  As such it can be kind of high in price.  But the pricing information can be useful.  Trade-in or private party prices you should expect would be around low retail.

2.  Kelly Blue Book (www.kbb.com) is sometimes the highest of the three "books" and again relies on self-reporting of data.

3.  Edmunds.com (www.edmunds.com) used to be a great site, but now they "hide" the car price appraisal under a pull down menu.   Like most Internet sites, they are hiding the good free stuff and trying to "steer" you to sites that sell you cars.  But their data is good, I think and the most pessimistic of the three.  It takes into account color, year, mileage, and zip code.

4.  eBay (www.ebay.com) can provide you with ideas on asking prices.  Auction prices are not hard data until an auction has ended.  "Watch" a few auctions for some cars similar to yours and then see what the car sells for at the end of the auction.  Also, "buy it now" prices are a good indication of ASKING (not sales!) prices for vehicles.

5.  CraigsList  (www.craigslist.com) is another source of ASKING prices.  The ads are free, so you do get a lot of dreamers.  Take it with a grain of salt.

6.  Autotrader (www.autotrader.com) is another good source for ASKING prices, but look for private party sales, not dealer sales.  These ads cost money, so there are fewer weirdo ads and cons.

Of course, toss out ridiculously low asking prices - they are probably come-ons for Nigerian scams.  But the rest of the data can be useful.  Examine each car - condition, mileage, etc. and realistically compare it to yours.  It is better or worse.

From this, you can come up with a price that is reasonable.  If you want the car to go away more quickly, price yours about 5-10% less than similar cars offered for sale locally.  It is not a lot of money, oftentimes, and it will make the vehicle "go away" quickly.

eBay can be a great venue if you are not an idiot and fall for the obvious Nigerian scam artists - people asking you to end the auction early and ship the car to Europe or other far-fetched scams, such as the fake cashier's check/wire transfer gag.  Also, when someone peppers you with "endless e-mails" just block them from bidding.   Those folks never bid and never buy.

I have sold about a dozen vehicles (trucks, boats, cars, motorcycles, RVs, trailers, a jeep and a tractor) on eBay with good luck.   If you use a low opening bid (and no reserve) the car will go away in seven days, guaranteed.  And in most cases, I ended up getting more for the car than I would have selling it in the paper.  And most of the bidding doesn't get serious until the last hours or minutes of the auction.  But that is the subject for another posting as well as some of my previous postings.

Anyway, here is the data below for my friend's car.  I believe his has less than 100,000 miles on it (70-90) has been repainted (dark grey) and has a decent paint job.  It has a small dent in the hood and an aftermarket air dam.  The interior is OK (needs cleaning) but the side bolster on the driver's seat is torn.  Two new tires.  Starts and runs fine, but A/C doesn't work (needs recharge, or what?).  The convertible top is worn - the isinglass windows are yellowed like an old toenail and one has cracked (nice duct tape repair on it!).  He has a new top for it, but it has not been installed.  It is a good driver, but not collectable.  It would need some work to make it look 100%.

So, here is a question for you, intrepid reader:  What do you think the car is worth, based on the data below?  I will post my answer in the comments section later.

1. NADA guides:

Pricing	Original MSRP	Low Retail	Average Retail	High Retail
	$83,500	$8,000	$10,250	$17,300
Options: (add options) ADD-SL MODELS REMOVABLE HDTP 10% 10% 10%
TOTAL PRICE	$83,500	$8,800	$11,275	$19,030*

"Price Depends on Condition" in this category.  I think it would have to be perfect to

See:

http://www.nadaguides.com/Classic-Cars/1990/Mercedes-Benz/500SL/2-Door-Coupe-Roadster/Values

2. EDMUNDS.COM

Jekyll Island, GA

	True Market Value®
Trade-in	$2,627
Private Party Sale	$3,628
Dealer Retail	$5,296

Search 1990 Mercedes-Benz 500-Class Convertible Listings Near You View Inventory

Customized True Market Value^® Prices

	Trade-In	Private Party	Dealer Retail
National Base Price	$1,935	$2,991	$4,751
Optional Equipment	$0	$0	$0
Color Adjustment - Black	$0	$0	$0
Regional Adjustment - for Zip Code 31527	$-101	$-156	$-248
Mileage Adjustment - 75,000 miles	$793	$793	$793
Condition Adjustment - Clean	$0	$0	$0
Total	$2,627	$3,628	$5,296

I put in 75,000 miles, not knowing actual, and put in condition as "Good".   You can type in other numbers and see how it affects the analysis

NOTE:  EDMUNDS IS ALWAYS THE LOWEST OF THE THREE
See:
http://www.edmunds.com/mercedes-benz/500-class/1990/tmv-appraise-results.html



3.  KELLY BLUE BOOK:

KBB only goes back to 1992:

Trade-In/Sell Values

Show Used Car Prices

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1992 Mercedes-Benz 500SL

Roadster 2D

Mileage: change

this car

• Trade-In Value
• Private Party Value
Print Report

• Excellent
  
  $9,864
• Very Good
  
  $9,564
• Good
  
  $9,389
• Fair
  
  $8,589
• Verify Condition
  

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get the offer

4.  E-BAY

Mercedes-Benz : SL-Class 500SL 1991 Mercedes 500sl convertible, 2 tops, VERY NICE! Cus...

1991

167,555

2 Bids

$2,025.00

Time left:5d 5h 42m

Mercedes-Benz : SL-Class Sl 500 sl 500 private 1 owner both tops red/ parchiment michel... 1991 67,429 Buy It Now or Best Offer $12,500.00 Time left:4d 3h 36m

Mercedes-Benz : SL-Class SL-500 1991 MERCEDES-BENZ SL-500 1991 69,936 5 Bids $1,069.87 Time left:2d 23h 1m

Mercedes-Benz : 500-Series 500SL SL 500 LOW MILEAGE CORRISION FREE SOUTHERN CALIFORNIA C... 1992 105,221 10 Bids $3,451.00 Time left:17h 20m

Mercedes-Benz : SL-Class 300 SL 1992 Mercedes 300SL Parts Goldmine Needs Ignition Contr... Enlarge 1992 140,000 0 Bids Buy It Now $2,450.00 $2,550.00 Time left:1d 2h 47m

Mercedes-Benz : SL-Class 300SL Convertible Enlarge 1991 104,700 0 Bids Buy It Now $6,400.00 $7,300.00 Time left:6d 3h 56m

Items per page:25 | 50 | 100


5.  CRAIGSLIST:

http://jacksonville.craigslist.org/cto/2676207759.html

protection/certification/

guarantee. More info

!!!!!!!!!! MERCEDES BENZ 500SL !!!!!!!! - $7950 (JAX)

---

Date: 2011-11-28, 7:34AM EST
Reply to: sale-ubc9d-2676207759@craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

---

1990 MERCEDES BENZ 500SL WITH ONLY 73000 GARAGE KEPT MILES.......ONE OF A KIND.....NO ACCIDENTS......NO STORIES......CUSTOM SOUND SYSTEM.....MUST SEE IN PERSON...........LUNDY @ 904-422-8377

• Location: JAX
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

PostingID: 2676207759



http://jacksonville.craigslist.org/ctd/2700054478.html

1991 Mercedes 500SL all or parts - $1995 (Arlington)

---

Date: 2011-11-29, 8:36AM EST
Reply to: sale-u7dba-2700054478@craigslist.org ^{[Errors when replying to ads?]}

---

1991 Mercedes Benz 500 SL. Complete car / no hard top. Just had engine rebuilt but has sat for over 1 year. Will sell all or part out. Asking $1,995. Engine worth more than that alone. 904-553-8355

• Location: Arlington
• it's NOT ok to contact this poster with services or other commercial interests

Note: NICE AIRDAM on the parts car!  Trashed, otherwise!


6.  AUTOTRADER:


http://www.autotrader.com/fyc/searchresults.jsp?lastBeginningStartYear=1981&num_records=25&search_lang=en&page_location=findacar%3A%3Aispsearchform&search_type=used&distance=200&address=31527&marketZipError=false&body_style=CONVERT&make=MB&model=500SL&make2=&start_year=1989&end_year=1992&min_price=&max_price=&seller_type=b&transmission=&engine=&drive=&doors=&fuel=&max_mileage=&color=&keywordsrep=&keywordsfyc=&keywords_display=&sort_type=priceDESC&body_code=1&certified=&advanced=&highlightFirstMakeModel=&showZipError=y&default_sort=priceDESC&systime=&isFlashPlugin=true&sownerid=564561&dma=JACKSONVILLE_BRUNSWICK&rdm=1324678039623

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$16,000

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Used 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster 2D

• 37,600 miles

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Make offer on this loaded 500SL in pristine condition with ridiculously low miles. Perfect exterior finished in Red with impeccable Tan interior. Runs perfectly, Good tires, Good brakes, All scheduled maintenance, A/C blows cold air, No ... read more
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85 miles from ZIP code 31527
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$11,900

• 5 Photos

Used 1992 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

• 62,000 miles

• Black

Factory Hard Top, Always garaged, Second Owner, 18" AMG Wheels on Z-Rated Pirelli P Zero's, Fully loaded, Looks & runs excellent, Low mileage, Maintenance records available, Must see, Never seen snow, No accidents, Non-smoker, Upgraded ... read more
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217 miles from ZIP code 31527
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$8,900

• 1 Photo

Used 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

• 96,600 miles

• White

** MUST SEE AND TEST DRIVE TO APPRECIATE ** 1991 Mercedes 500SL in nearly flawless condition. Looks brand new. Always garaged and driven less than 5,000 miles per year. New 100 mph plus tires, new battery, new stereo with CD player. Beautifu... read more
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72 miles from ZIP code 31527
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$16,000

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1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster 2D

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$14,500

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Used 1992 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

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JUNE SPECIAL!!!! Price reduced to $12,900.00 This is a very nice 1992 Mercedes 500SL. Red with the Palomino leather and they are original and in ab... View more details

63 miles from ZIP code 31527
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Ash Tisdelle Classic Car Center

1-866-603-2617

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$12,500

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Used 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

• 119,000 miles

• White

With the hard top. Original Paint. Actual Milage. Car Fax Available. Outstanding beach car. A real head turner and a blast to drive. $12,500 Or Be... read more
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73 miles from ZIP code 31527
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$10,500

• 10 Photos

Used 1990 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

• 120,000 miles

• Silver

Classic, 1990 Mercedes 500SL V-8 hardtop/convertible. Working cloth roof, hydraulics completely re-built, additional hard top attachment as well. ... read more
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190 miles from ZIP code 31527
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$ Unlisted

Used 1991 Mercedes-Benz 500SL Roadster Convertible

• Mileage Unlisted

Call Valden 863-669-5287 This stirring 560SL 500SL would look so much better out doing all the stuff you need it to, instead of sitting here unutil... View more details

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Kelley Buick GMC of Bartow

1-888-810-1251

• Family Owned and operated .
• Hometown and Proud of it!!!

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7.  HARD TOP:

You might get more selling the hard top separately.  However these are IMPOSSIBLE to ship, so whoever bought it would have to come pick it up.  eBay might snag a buyer from as far away as Atlanta or Florida.  Craigslist might get a buyer from Savannah or Jacksonville.

I would think you might get $800 to $1000 for the top alone.

Example:

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Mercedes-Benz-SL-R129-Hardtop-1990-2002-Silver-Stand-SL500-SL320-SL600-/360413756737?pt=Motors_Car_Truck_Parts_Accessories&vxp=mtr&hash=item53ea557d41