1988 Mercedes-Benz 300SE

Finished in Smoke Silver with blue pinstripe upholstery, ‘E475 YDS’ is a Mercedes-Benz 300 SE that was built in 1988.

Showing what we believe is 92,500 genuine miles, it comes with an extensive history file that has “every receipt going back to 1988”, plus a complete service history. 

And we do mean it is complete: While many think half-a-dozen stamps in the book means it’s got a full-service history, this one has been serviced on-the-dot every single year since it was new though to 2023.

Every single year, no matter how small the mileage, and the service history picks up again in 2026, after the car had covered another 3,500 miles. It’s had regular brake fluid and coolant changes throughout its life too, and a recent alternator.

A large part of this car’s extraordinary provenance is because it stayed in its first owner’s care for the first 30 years of its life. Always garaged too, of course, although even that wasn’t enough to negate the need for some bodywork a decade ago.

The seller bought it in 2022 and has enjoyed using it on high days and dry days since, including several runs down to Hastings from his home near Abingdon. That’s a good run, of around 130 miles distance but even that is someway short of what the 300 SE is capable of; with the 90-litre fuel tank giving it a range of more than 500 miles, your bladder will run out of capacity long before it does.

Stuffed with toys including central locking, electric windows and a sunroof, air-conditioning, and lashing of wood ‘n’ chrome, he says the difference between this and the Volvo 240 they used to run is that in the Swedish car people ask: “What is that?”, while in the German car you can see them thinking: “Who is that?” 

The refreshed bodywork looks great, doesn’t it? Mind you, they put their back into the job replacing both sills in 2017 along with the offside front wing and the front half of both rear wings. The rest of the coachwork was also tidied up, and this work built on the replacement of the nearside front wing the previous year. 

It’s held up well, although Our Man did note the following; badly cracked paint on the nearside front wing, along with a little rust; faded paint and a dent on the nearside front door; a chip and some corrosion on the nearside rear wheelarch; peeling paint on the boot lid, along with a change in shade and a faded colour; peeling paint and chips on the offside rear wing plus a rusty wheelarch; rust on the offside front door; and faded paint and rust on the offside front wing.

That might sound like a lot but he’s a pedantic so-and-so and the overall impression is still very positive; take it to your local classic car show and you’d still generate a huge amount of enthusiasm.

That said, there is also significant rust on the chrome front bumper, and even some holes. The chrome trim at the top of each door is also tarnished but the rest of the brightwork looks good, including the rear bumper and the imposing radiator grille surround.

As for the plastics, there is a mark to the centre of the front bumper plus scuffs to the nearside front corner. The door handles have also faded. 

The lamp lenses and glazing are also all in fine fettle, and while the badges are a bit patinated, we think they just add authenticity.

As does the front numberplate, which might have seen better days but it bears the name of Arnold Clark, the dealer that first supplied the car, so we’d be tempted to leave it where it is for a while yet.

The plastic hubcaps are a bit scuffed but the wheels themselves are fitted with matching 205/65R15 Continental Conti Premium Contact 5 tyres. The front pair were made in 2017, while the rear date to 2018. All have good tread on them, although the front ones are starting to perish.

Nonetheless, we will never get tired of telling you that experience shows that matching high-quality tyres are an infallible sign of a caring and mechanically sympathetic owner who is prepared to spend the appropriate amount in maintaining their car properly.

The metal sunroof slides to and fro smoothly, and seals well. 

Finally, while the offside door mirror is in a very good condition, the nearside mirror case is lightly scuffed.

The cabin looks very good indeed, but then this is what happens when some of the best engineers in the world design a cabin – and then one chap spends the next three decades cherishing it.

We see from the invoices on file that the driver’s seat was retrimmed in 2017, which means the weakest parts of the interior are now a sun-damaged steering wheel and a baggy netting pocket on the back the front passenger seat.

That’s remarkable, isn’t it? 

As is the fact that everything we tested worked as it should, with the exception of the dealer-fit air-conditioning. But, given how straightforward air-conditioning systems are (no, really, they are!) getting to the root of the problem would make a fascinating job for someone who’s not afraid to have a tinker – guided by YouTube, of course. 

It’s also nice to see fabric rather than leather; not only is it warmer and grippier than hide, but the stuff Mercedes-Benz uses is also remarkably resilient: The S-Class was designed to cover many hundreds of thousands of miles, and this one still hasn’t yet breached six figures.

Looking at it all in more detail, we note the retrimmed driver’s seat is still firm and comfortable, and the same can be said of the other seats, which have survived with admirable aplomb.

The woodwork is glossy too, with the only signs of sun-damage being to the trim around the gearlever on the transmission tunnel. There’s a small crack to the right of the steering wheel too between the two air vents, but that is nit-picking of the first order. 

The switchgear is still brightly labelled and works as crisply now as it ever has, although the wiper stalk might benefit from a bit of a clean. 

The instruments might look a bit basic to modern eyes but they’re wonderfully ergonomic and very easy to assimilate, even at the three-figure speeds the S-Class is capable of sustaining for hour after hour.

Door cards, carpets, and headlining all look far better than you’d have any right to expect, and we can’t see anyone finding the need to do anything other than maintain them.

The factory-fit Blaupunkt Vancouver is still fitted, and it works well; the seller dusted off his collection of cassette tapes and said it didn’t chew a single one. He did replace the electric aerial, and this now glides up and down when the radio is turned on and off.

The first aid kit may even be the original, and the boot lid holds the hazard warning triangle in such as way that it is visible as soon as the boot is popped open, which is a clever touch. The boot is large enough to conceal a full-size spare wheel and the original tool kit and still provide enough space to hold a fortnight’s luggage for four.

The glovebox lid features the rudimentary cupholders many of us remember holding the plastic cups from the top of our parents’ flasks, the rear seat has a substantial fold-down armrest that will help keep warring siblings apart, and there are plenty of ashtrays should you want to live out your Mad Men fantasies by taking up smoking.

The Mercedes’ service history is recorded in its service history booklets as follows:

• 22.01.1988 – pre-delivery inspection by Callanders Engineering
• 06.04.1988 and 1,040 miles – service by Greenoaks
• 03.04.1989 and 5,057 miles – service by Greenoaks
• 19.03.1990 and 8,181 miles – service by Greenoaks including fresh brake fluid
• 02.04.1991 and 11,562 miles – service by Greenoaks
• 20.01.1992 and 15,051 miles – service by Greenoaks
• 21.01.1993 and 19,846 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon including fresh brake fluid and coolant
• 24.01.1994 and 24,149 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 30.01.1995 and 28,926 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 29.01.1996 and 33,762 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 20.01.1997 and 36,803 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 21.01.1998 and 39,409 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 08.02.1999 and 42,574 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 24.01.2000 and 45,698 miles – service by Brunswick Croydon
• 29.01.2001 and 47,872 miles – service by M.G.P. Automotive including fresh brake fluid and coolant
• 14.01.2002 and 49,722 miles – service by M.G.P. Automotive including fresh brake fluid
• 23.01.2003 and 52,043 miles – service by M.G.P. Automotive including fresh brake fluid
• 28.01.2004 and 53,192 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 28.01.2005 and 55,623 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including fresh brake fluid and coolant
• 24.01.2006 and 57,253 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including new sparkplugs
• 22.01.2007 and 59,210 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 21.01.2008 and 61,427 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including fresh brake fluid
• 29.01.2009 and 63,319 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 27.01.2010 and 65,672 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 28.01.2011 and 67,485 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 23.01.2012 and 69,560 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 22.01.2013 and 71,468 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 20.01.2014 and 72,898 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including new sparkplugs and fuel filter
• 07.01.2015 and 74,445 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including fresh brake fluid
• 08.01.2016 and 75,420 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage
• 20.01.2017 and 76,463 miles – service by Chequer’s Lane Garage including an engine flush and injector cleaner, sparkplugs and a fuel filter
• 31.01.2018 and 78,787 miles – service by Edward Hall
• 21.01.2019 and 81,964 miles – service by Autoclass MK including fresh brake fluid and a change of gearbox oil
• 13.01.2020 and 84,960 miles – service by G.P. Car & Truck Services
• 19.01.2021 and 86,285 miles – service by Autoclass MK
• 28.01.2022 and 87,475 miles – service by G.P. Car & Truck Services
• 12.01.2023 and 89,016 miles – service by C&N Autos
• 19.01.2026 and 92,512 miles – service by C&N Autos

March 2026 saw it receive a new alternator – and even new underbonnet sound-deadening in 2017.

The seller spent the last few years trying to get to the bottom of some lumpy running issues. The problem turned out to be a minor air leak from the intake manifold combined with a sticky throttle idle control valve. 

As you might expect given the years of effort that went into tracing it, the straight-six engine starts well and idles steadily. It revs very well too and does it all with the uncanny smoothness that only an inline-six can deliver.

It drives well, with the four-speed automatic gearbox working seamlessly with the three-litre engine to deliver effortless wafting. 

The engine bay is in good order, with only the usual thin veneer of rust on things like the fasteners, air filter housing, and the nearside inner wheelarch.

The underside looks good too, and no MoT tester has ever mentioned structural corrosion.

Speaking of which, the SE’s MoT certificate is valid until January 2026. 

The recent Vehicle History Check is clear, and the history file contains the well-stamped service history booklet we’ve listed above, the Mercedes-Benz wallet and book pack, and a wealth of invoices and expired MoT certificates. 

Being offered with no reserve, we suspect the bidding will run out of steam somewhere between £3,000 and £5,000.

Which, if we’re right, would make this a fantastic buy for the canny DIYer on a budget who appreciates the sort of Old School engineering that simply doesn’t exist anymore.

Ridiculously overbuilt and fastidiously maintained over the years, we can’t even begin to imagine how many more decades of faithful service this lovely old barge is capable of. 

Viewing is strongly encouraged, and this lot is located at THE MARKET HQ in South Oxfordshire. Viewings are STRICTLY BY APPOINTMENT and we are open weekdays (apart from Bank Holidays) between 10am - 12pm or 2pm - 4pm. To make a booking, please use the ‘Enquire About This Vehicle’ button on the listing. Feel free to ask any questions, or try our ‘Frequently Asked Questions’.