c131frdave

I have a line on a very nice 2004 S55 from a friend. But today I ran accross an '03 S600 with similiar mileage and equipment.

Looking at the specs, they both have the same dispacement and 2 turbos, but the 600 of course has 2 more cylinders and a scary flat and w i d e torque curve.

I'm curious from you guys what your input would be on which way I should go. Anybody out there that's driven/owened both cars? Pros/cons with one over the other? Thanks.

QuadBenz

AMG's are great cars, but the power generated by that Bi-Turbo V12 is immensely insane. Tough choice. Would you rather have the overall sportiness, still quick S55 or the never-ending power S600?

Gondon

Use Search their was a comparison between the 55 and the 600.

55 is SuperCharged btw, not twin turbo

whoover

And while we're at it, it's 4 more cylinders.

Vadim @ FD

dave:

Go for 600.

600HP plus are software flash away. 800HP are intercoolers away.

If you can get an 04 MY or newer. 03s have too many problems.

sound 8

Both have similar power, but the main thing is the 55 has an AMG body
and badge. My S600 looks more limo,which is what I wanted.
So what ever turns you on!

c131frdave

Suprcharger and 8+4=12. right right. duh


Thanks guys. I'm leaning towards the limo for two reasons- 1. well, power. With the tunes to the ECM the potential is ridiculous. And 2. It's a sleeper. With the AMG look and badging, a 911 Turbo is going to be hunting you. With a S600 with 600 bhp, you'll be hunting the 911..

That being said, the S55 does look very cool. We'll see. Thank you for your input.

I'm curious what they did different in 2004 than 2003 for the S600. What problems are folks seeing in the '03 that arent showing up in the '04. Thank you very much!

whoover

2003 was the first year for both the supercharged 55 engine and the twin turbo V12. The problems are mostly associated with that.

The 2004 also has a much improved COMAND with DVD navigation. There are so many improvements in it that it's worth looking for a 2004 just for the better COMAND.

Swapping the wheels on an S600 for the staggered setup used on the S55 and S65 will improve the handling to almost AMG specs. The S600 comes with ABC, like the S55, and while it's calibrated a little softer the difference is not great. The larger wheels and lower profile tires are the most significant difference in the handling department, and those are a bolt-on mod.

Reckless

I would recommend the 600 as it comes with all the creature comforts (relatively). I believe the AMG has different struts and ABC programming but the power delivered by the V12TT is beyond intense. Whoever decided to mate a V12 with twin turbos was really sick in the head. I love my 600. I don't think there is a better car in the market other than the S65/maybach. I never liked the power delivery of a V8, so I am completely biased.

If you drive your cars hard, I recommend changing out the brakes.

sound 8

Absolutely, my S600 is a wolf in sheeps clothing, I have surprised quite a lot
of cars leaving them in my dust, especially a guy in a new XKR when I passed him 3 up like he was standing still, and mines still stock!

Oxygen

I drive a S600 that looks nothing like a limo. I get hunted down.. =)



By the way the interior on the S600/65 is A LOT nicer than on the 430/500/55..

sound 8

Trouble is you are a wolf in wolf's clothing.
Car looks great though, I was thinking of doing this myself, however the
family might object to high speed racing.lol.

Red Marko

Agreed,
The plsticky look and feel is gone.

trumpet1

Get the 600. It depreciated the most from MSRP and therefore you're getting a better bargain from a used car perspective and also the interior refinement level of the 600 and the HP is awesome!!

If possible , try to get a low mileage 2007 built after Sept/Oct.

c131frdave

I didn't realize the interior was different in a 600 vs a 500 or 430. That is definately something to keep in mind, thank you. I haven't seen the 600 close up, but can't wait to do so.

Thanks for all your advice. It is greatly appreciated.

whoover

Yep, it's got a better grade of (baby-butt soft) leather for the seats, hand-sewn leather dash instead of a chunk of plastic, wood fittings for things like handgrips and vanity mirror covers instead of plastic, inlaid metal accents and other nice touches. The V12s also have more tricked-out rear seats, with four-zone climate control and more rear seat controls. The rear passenger can even move the front passenger seat up to make more legroom. That control is very convenient if you have to carry a large box in the rear, allowing you to avoid messing with the front door.

These seat and rear climate options were theoretically available as option on S55s, but they are very rare on any cars but S600s and S65s, which had them all standard.

sound 8

I often wonder, my 600 has as many goodies as the CL65 I owned.
And the 600 had that exclusive nappa leather, the 65 was a bit quicker
but another 56grand!!

whoover

If another 126 ft-lbs makes the car "a bit quicker" to you, I agree the price differential is not justified. Of course you also get race-quality brakes to stop you a bit quicker as well for that price. (The 65 has rear brakes larger than the 600 fronts and front brakes larger than some cars' wheels.) And seats that I consider very much superior. And shifting that is also a bit quicker. And more than a bit more agility due to chassis tuning and ABC calibration.

QuadBenz

I think all 600's that aren't in the USA get front 8-piston AMG brakes, and sound 8 is from the UK, I believe.

whoover

Ah. Don't know about what brakes Euro 600s have, but since 19" wheels aren't standard they can't be the S65 brakes. They could possibly be the same parts as the S55.

whoover

Yes. Rooting around the online parts catalog indicates European W220 S600s have S55 brakes. While still not the equal of the S65 brakes, it's a big upgrade from the US stock 600 brakes.

That's a rip. I guess the theory is that even the UK is just a Chunnel trip from the Autobahn, while US cars can't do more than 70 MPH legally. All I can say is that the literal-minded Germans should spend a little time on I-5 before they determine US brake requirements.

Vadim @ FD

Stock 600s are quick, a simple software flash and you are over 600HP

My S600 now -

MR888

AMG1

Go for the 600, the torque is amazing. Plus modifications are so easy.

Oxygen

If you are talking about the Dynamic Seats option, very true, but I looked into the whole AMG seat vs the regular seat setup and it looks like the only different parts are those of the lower and uppper leather "covers" as so designated in EPC.

I think I priced them out not too long ago, the front upper AMG cover from the S65 was about $1800 and the lower portion was about $1200. Not too bad if you ask me.

I think a CF interior would be a great treat to the S-Class interior as evident in the facelifted W221 S65 AMG.