$5k To Invest: C43 AMG vs Maserati BiTurbo
Let’s say you’ve got $5k to spend on an investment vehicle and you don’t want to put your money into a C4 Corvette because you want something with a European flair. With all them Porsche’s appreciating 400% in a few decades you might as well buy something Euro, but what can you get for only $5k? Here are two examples of cars that SHOULD be worth more in 2033 than they are today, but don’t blame me if you lose all your money and end up living on the street. Seriously. Classic cars are NOT places to put your savings, retirement, football pool winnings, or tooth fairy money. Find this 1998 Mercedes-Benz C43 AMG offered for $5,800 in Los Angeles and 1985 Masterati BiTurbo offer for $6,590 in Solana Beach, CA via craigslist.
DT regular (and AMG aficionado) Cory explains this isn’t a bad deal for C43. You definitely do not want 18″ wheels of any sort on those cars. The wheels on there are S class wheels and must have spacers to make them fit right. The 17″ monoblocks are getting hard to find. Some lightweight 17″ bbs would be good option. I would bin the goofy radio and put the climate control back where it is supposed to go and buy a continental radio which looks a million times better. See pic below. Weird choice of shift knob- so throw that out. I have a w202 sport knob I would donate. The hot setup on these is the 5.4 engine out of a E55, S55, etc. Matt from the Smoking Tire did a nice video on a 5.4 swapped C43. The engine is almost a 100% drop in swap with no ECU work needed. Headliners always fall on these cars so check that. I don’t care for the tuxedo interior but this appears to be good shape which is unusual.
From the seller of the C43 AMG:
1998 mercedes benz c43 amg
condition: good
fuel: gas
odometer: 140000
paint color: black
title status: clean
transmission: automatic
This 1998 Mercedes-Benz W202 C43 AMG finished in Black over a tuxedo Nappa leather interior. The W202 C43 was produced between 1998 and 2000, featuring an AMG-tuned version of the M113 V8, a modified 5-speed automatic transmission, upgraded brakes, and suspension. Over its production run, 1,125 U.S. specification examples were built and only 579 for the 1998 model year.Interior and body are 7.5/10 , absolutely perfect for a project build. My intentions were to build c55 track dtm build but other projects are consuming my time.
Miles are 229000 on the chasis. Motor and transmission have 140000 miles on them. I have been daily driving this car the past few months.
Brand new tires wrapped around 18” s55 AMG wheels
Car fax attached No accidents, 3 owners Arizona car.
Price is 6800 OBO
From the seller of the Masterati:
1985 Maserati Biturbo
condition: good
cylinders: 6 cylinders
drive: rwd
fuel: gas
odometer: 20049
title status: clean
transmission: automatic
Rare 1985 low mileage Biturbo. Automatic transmission. 20,049 original miles. Accident free and rust free car. Interior in great shape. Needs some fine tuning. Paint and body good condition. Brand new tires. Car from out of state. Not california register yet.
See a better way to waste $5k on some cars that’ll probably be worth $500 in 5 years? tips@dailyturismo.com
That’s an early Biturbo with the troublesome blow-through carbureted setup, which were responsible for most of the Biturbo’s bad rap. Also not sure that auto trans is well-suited for keeping it on-boost.
The later versions with fuel injection (from ’87-on in the American market) were much improved, and they made ongoing improvements year over year, so if you really want a Biturbo, get the very latest model you can find, in addition to the usual classic-car advice to find the very best example you can find and afford, as you’d wind up spending more to bring a lesser example up the same standard.
I had the hooptiest version of the Biturbo for about 300 miles, looked like this but with a 5 speed. It was about as fast as a fox body mustang.
Gotta love DT math…
“I have $5000 to spend. I’ll shop for decades-old European beaters in the $6K range expecting to negotiate down but completely ignoring the fact that the car I choose will require an additional 50% of the purchase price in immediate sorting. Then I’ll keep my fingers crossed that a car no one really cares about will miraculously appreciate beyond the cost of my initial investment and the relentless, ongoing, wallet-draining maintenance requirements.”
I loosely follow this investment strategy, but usually I find a $2500 car and then sink 200% of the purchase price into sorting. You’ve got to take bigger risks if you want bigger rewards.
Also, I’ve learned that you never realize a loss on an investment if you never sell. Smart investing is “buy and hold until you die then it’s no longer your worry “.
Truer words were never said! The only thing remaining to be mentioned is that both of these models are JUNK!
I’d take the BiTurbo all day, though it seems unlikely that car will ever pass smog in CA…
Arriving in a Maserati Biturbo makes quite a statement: “I am the most talented mechanic you will ever meet.” Beyond that, I don’t see the appeal, other than a decent interior.
So I will have to declare the Mercedes the winner here – although I ought to see if I can find a BMW 635 to submit.