viren.89

Like some of the other people I'm at the cross roads where I choose if I stay or move on ?

Warranty ending October 2014 -In ~ 10k miles I'll be needing new tires, new rotors, Brake fluid change and coolant change.

What I have ?

04 E55 AMG - S/C pulley/tune/HE/Pump- Aftermarket Rims/ Matt black dip - Avic Z140-BH installed in the car and 20% tint -

3000k HID fogs.

No pano, no keyless, no distronic- Only Parktronic , Heated/Cooled seats, Adaptable Xenons, (reverse camera integration possible with Avic, 250~$)

200,000 kms ( 124,000 miles) - IIRC only one owner before me- fuel tank replaced, fuel pumps replaced, I got one sender unit

replaced last year. Sub frame bolt replaced (dead body thump), Shock replaced rear. I can get the receipts from the dealership since I threw mine away.

Oil change done every 10,000 kms 6200 miles - Just got trans mount changed and motor mounts were in good condition so

mechanic didn't replace them.

I have not modded the car beyond the normal items cuz I was never sure how long will I keep the car.


----
2012 is 80k plus and I do not wish to spend that much on it yet cuz I have 40k student loan and I rather spend money on a potential business and then on a car.

So I'm wondering if I should go get a less miles E63 and throw a S/C on it and call it a day until I have established business to get 2012 + E63

or keep driving the E55 until it gives up ? I'm open to suggestions. I would prefer same size car though - not a C63 for example.

I really need to make a decision and I'll then stick to it.

Thanks in advance.

tc1728

Since you are asking, you should not even have the E55 if you are thinking of starting a business. I was driving a C32 back when I was a pharmacist and decided to quit and start my own business. Sold the C32 and drove my grandfathers ML until my business started to make a bit of money, now I drive whatever I want, within reason, of course. We are all different but if it was my call, I would sell the E, get something cheap to drive until reach your business/financial goals. TC

viren.89

Thanks for the advice but I'm just wondering that instead of spending ~1000-2000$ on upcoming expenses I should keep the money and invest 15-20k (financed instead of paying cash) more and get a newer ride which I can keep until I'm well settled.

It'll allow me worry free 2 more years since I'd have warranty on it for at least those years.

tc1728

Between your 2 options. I would keep the 55 till it dies. Good luck with your decision. TC

Enigma94

You want to get a 2010 E63 and then supercharge it???? sounds like a good 50-60K deep in a car with decent mileage which is just obscene if you still have student loans and are trying to save money to start your own business.

You're probably going to get 15K for you E55 or there abouts so assuming the car is paid off, do you want to have a 25K car loan to get into a 2010 E63?? If you wanted a newer car id just get a 08/09 E63 for 30K and call it a day. I personally would just put the 2k into your E55 and just drive the wheels off it because adding more debt isnt going to help you in your pursuit of starting your own business regardless of how much money you think you are going to make. Dont spend the money before you have it, stuff happens in life and you never know what can happen and you dont want to be knee deep in 40K student loans and 20+K in a car loan if your future income/plans take a hit.

cdd

You're not going to like this, but if you've got 40K in student loan debt, then you should sell the E55 and get a Civic.

Then when you can pay cash for an AMG and chuckle at the people complaining about how expensive the maintenance is, then get back in the game.

I'm really not trying to be a d i c k, but I think you're already probably extended too far and getting a 2010 would be a crazy idea.

efiftyfizzle

I hate to give people financial advice, but all your business ideas aside, if you have a $40k student loan, you shouldn't be worrying about upgrading your car. The E55 is already a pretty decent car as it is and a 2010 E63 is not much better. You should really focus on paying that loan off and by the time that's done you can afford the 2012 Bi-Turbo E63. Just my 2 cents.

viren.89

My local MB dealer offered me - 17 K for my car under the condition that I upgrade to another Benz through him.

So when ever I pass the dealership this dilemma pops up in my head again lol

Warranty ends in Oct 2014 and that's when the loan payment starts too.

I have the cash to pay off the loan cuz I knew this day would come so I was saving on the side but then I realized why pay it

off in one go when I can invest 40k and earn income then pay it off. Kill two birds with one arrow lol . That's goal.

stockC43

Just keep the E55 and spend your money elsewhere, loans, business etc. driving these cars every day the w212 n/a e63 (to me) is not worth the upgrade. At least not if you need to watch your spending. It's just not that much better of a car where it's worth spending another $20-25k for one. Just hold out for a e63 biturbo. I can see the 156 w212's becoming like the 00-02 s/cl55 of the 220/215 amg's once the biturbo's become more affordable. who's going to want the " older one" with high fuel consumption, repair costs and less power? That's just me though.

CharlyE500

+1 W212 NA will lose more value in no time. E55 is still not that bad ! I just don't know why people keep selling E55..... this is the best value car in the market.

viren.89

It's just the scare that "what if" something big goes wrong once the warranty is finished.

I'm so paranoid that every time I get an oil change done - I get a full inspection done along with it for all the body parts/panels/fuses/bearings.

My mechanic (indy)-even for oil change gives me appointments on the day when he isn't that busy cuz he knows I'd ask him to spend time in checking out all the stuff.

Every time I'm at the MB dealership I ask them to run star diagnostic - the foreman knows my car and doesn't charge anymore cuz I get it done every time and he knows

all test comes out clean *knock on the wood*. Airmatic test-SBC test and everything.

I've just read so many stories here so I get worried since I live far away from any shop that could work on the car and I also take 250-260 mile one way trips often so reliability is of outmost importance.

CharlyE500

I have owned my 06 for 5 years and my total cost of repair is less than $2K. (Exclude maintenance).

Repair ==> Water pump, engine mounts, valve gasket seal.

Maintenance ==> Tranny service, plugs, tires, coolant flush, alignment, batteries.

Mod ==> Rear diffuser, 63 conversion, header, tune, wheels.

5 years ago, I went to Mercedes dealer of Anaheim quoted $4K for valve gasket seal and control arms + other stuff.... turn out only need to fix the valve gasket. My indy shop told me my control arm was perfectly fine and it's been for the last 5 years ! I guess I am just lucky (knock on the wood)

Good luck !

f8l ws6

My E55 has been excellent so far. I've had mine almost 1 year and have 65K miles now and put on about 12k of those myself. I've been to the dealership for parts a few times but they never cost me any more than my domestic cars. Never broke down or done anything strange. This is the best car for the money you can buy in my opinion. I say drive the wheels off it!

e500slr

I think you need to calm down a little on the fear of repairs. Yes the car can need big repairs but it's not that bad. Mine has been very reliable so far. To be honest the 2010 E63 isn't that much better to justify throwing that money into it which you could use for your loans and business expenses. Cars are money pits, and like people said the E63 NA will depreciate alot worse than the E55 ever did due to the M157 in the newer models. The E55 is a great car, easily one of the best value cars ever. Keep the E55 and put the money to better use, you won't regret it. Good luck.

2BenzGarage

Then I would recommend paying off the loan, taking the money you would have spent on the loan payments and putting it away in a "car repair" account instead. Always feels better to pay yourself instead of the bank

stockC43

Even "if" you spend $3-4k ( crazy price) on repairing sbc and airmatic your still $15k ahead. Nothing else on these cars fail that is very expensive and/or can't be fixed with aftermarket or used parts. I doubt these cars will ever fall below $10k unless there literally falling apart, so not much left on depreciation either. Early 212's are still falling, fast.

viren.89

Thanks guys.

Some of your opinions changed my perspective.

First thing on Monday I'll do would be to call my warranty company and ask them if I can extend it a year or so because I've only needed to use it for Tranny

mounts, valve covers/gaskets and Bosch water pump.

How much is justifiable paying for the warranty ? Originally I paid 2400$ for 2 years unlimited kms.

Thanks once again. I'll stick with my E55 at least until the time my loan is off and business is off the ground.

Sugar_Mouth

Keep the E55. :-)

Enigma94

I think it's a bit silly to worry about repairs if you have the money to go buy a 45k car on top of your 40k in student loans. Like others have said, you shouldn't be looking at more than 3-4k in repairs and that's only if something catastrophic happens. Keep the e55, pay off your student loans then save for the bi-turbo.

justinwrock

This.

I don't know what your financial situation looks like, but if it were myself in that situation, I'd follow the quoted advice.

viren.89

I've never kept a car for more than 2 years and I thought before the warranty ends I'll sell it off but things changed (I liked it more than I thought I would and also the cars that came after this aren't that much of an upgrade- that's why I was for sure going to put a supercharger on the E63 if I went that route) and I was worried that I would end up investing in the car (E55) if I am not even going to keep it ?

For example -from my perspective it didn't make sense to invest 2-3k in the car if the value is going down, day by day.

Now on the other hand I'll be keeping the car until the "tires fall off" as you all suggested so no harm there lol

60nomad

The response about driving something cheap until biz gets rolling is the best idea but, if you have to drive a nice car (which many of us do) then, I would not even think of a 2010 and then plan on modding it! They are extremely costly to mod and it would make no sense in your situation and IMO...in anyone's situation! Keep the E55 as the depreciation from now till a year or two isn't much more, if any! Almost like a free car for a year or 2 minus the maintenance you need which comes to like $150 per month! Or, get a Honda for now and wait for the 2012 TT E63 to come down a bit more in price and get one of them. I can easily buy one now but I am still waiting for them to come into the $50k range because at that point, the depreciation is far less.