Broken 2007 Mercedes-Benz S600 Brought Back to Life

It’s time to talk about the Silver Elephant in the room.

When Tyler Hoover saw the ad for a 2007 Mercedes-Benz S600 with a busted engine, he knew there was potential there. He negotiated the owner from the $10,000 asking price to a very reasonable $4,500. When he drove 200 miles to tow the car, which he dubbed the “Silver Elephant,” what he saw was worse than he imagined.

In the video above, Hoover goes over every step he went through in restoring the S600 to its former glory. The S600 wasn’t just in need of a new engine. No, the car had scratched wheels, cracked windshield and bumper, and the motor was already disassembled, with parts destroyed by a careless mechanic. Starting with the motor, Hoover decided to scrap the mess that was in the car and go with a used engine that he found for $4,500 plus $1,450 in labor.

CHECK OUT: What Forum Members Are Saying About the Silver Elephant

Hoover realized the heating issue that put the car out of commission in the first place was a busted radiator. So he paid another $660 for the replacement. He then moved on and began fixing the minor issues with the lightly used S600. The biggest repair left was the windshield, which cost $1,400. After all the repairs and cosmetic issues were completed, the grand total for the S600 came to $14,450. This is still well below the low-$20,000s price tag that you can find a 2007 S600 online.

With an original MSRP of approximately $160,000, the total cost that Hoover paid was less than 10% of that price. Not too shabby at all.