mattflyae

I would like to buy an 05 c320 4matic or a 06 C280 4matic some where in the 20k miles range. I want to keep the car to 120k miles before selling it. From what ive read on this forum, some think that driving without warranty is a bad Idea but i wanted to see what everyone thinks.

I had a 2001 audi a6 2.7t that i drove from new to 145k miles before selling it so I am accustumed to that german cars maintenance bills. But its not a Mercedes and i dont know what they cost to maintain. thanks for your input.

kevblah

I have an '02 C320 recently out of warranty. Not really a big deal, I guess.

But, I doubt you'll be able to drive the car up to that kinda mileage, not because the car won't withstand it, but because if you're someone that has to buy a relatively new Mercedes, it'll be hard to be the same guy that drives a car that will be deemed 'old' by the time the mileage gets up there. Unless, you drive A LOT and will get there in no time or if you're one of those really adaptable people.

mick1

Mine is out of warranty too. I like to live dangerously.

rlee02135

an '05 out of warranty? you must drive a lot...

mick1

I probably misunderstood the question. Sorry

The odometer just rolled over 30K miles this week.

The dealer offered an extended warranty some time back but I declined.

rlee02135

so at 30k you are out of warranty?
i thought it was 4 year/ 50k?

mick1

You are probably right. I thought my car was out of warranty because the dealer had made that offer a long time ago. So it looks like I still have a year and nine months to go (12K miles a year)

Saprissa

driving a 2003 C320...

my original 4yr/50k warranty expires in September,
however, i bumped up to 100k warranty, after purchasing the car back in 2003.

mattflyae

Well, how many of you are sorry that you are driving out of warranty? I mean I drove my a6 from 50k to 145k out of warranty almost another 100k miles! I just want to know if the Mercedes will be comparable in cost out of warranty or If it will be more...

I spent about 4000 in repairs over that time from 50k to 145kmiles so its not like it was perfect worry free car, but I still enjoyed it.

tee_tz

My C320 (2003) is out of warranty later this year, and I'm extending it!! I would NEVER EVER DRIVE OUT OF WARRANTY (unless it's cheaper car brand -- cheap to fix/parts/etc). Just about 1.5 weeks ago, my car just slowed down on the highway - like a fuel cut-off. My car was towed (for $90), and taken to Mercedes-Benz dealership, where the next day they repaired the Cat. Convertor (for $1,300). Also, while it was there I did my last Service B under warranty (34,000 miles) for FREE! Cost: $590.

So basically in the last 1.5 weeks, I saved $1,980 on my car, just for having warranty. So, these are issues you should think about. Mercedes-Benz is not a very realible car, you will experience problems, it's a huge investment so consider warranty!

For the most expenses things you buy in life, a house and a car, you should protect your investment. For a DELL a 90-day warranty is cool; why spent $300 for a $400 computer, if it breaks, just buy a new one.

Just my 2 cents.


Tee_Tz.

Cloudz

meh, it really depends on your luck. I have friends with 320s, 240s without any problems even after their warranty. However, my C240 had a lot problems before and after the warranty expiration.

It's really just... luck, and how you treat your car. If you drive up the mountain insisting on using the 5th gear, you might break something, or if you insist on going 50 in gear 2, then you might break something as well. It really depends on luck, and how you treat it.

GhostofSoCal240

These cars, esp. the early ones (the first few years) have lots of quality control problems (see the thread stuck above on how to fix the many squeaks and rattles they develop) and use a lot of substandard parts.

It's a big risk to own it out of warranty.

I bought an extended warranty right before my factory warranty expired, and it fully paid for itself within the first 6 months.

Buellwinkle

It all depends on you. Personally I don't think it even comes close to worth it. First off, the assumption is MB dealers are honest and will do everything they can for you under your extended warranty. This is not a good assumption. They get paid very little, both in rate and billable hours compared to non-warranty repairs so they do the minimum required to get it back to you. If it's an intermittent problem, they just give it back to you without looking at it and put down couldn't reproduce in the paperwork. On the otherhand, without a warranty, some dealers have been known to do uneccessary repairs for the sake of revenue. Also a 1 hour job is charged 3-4 hours which they can't get away with under warranty.

If you are going to keep your Benz after the expiration date (40k/5yr), then either learn to fix it yourself and/or find a good reputable and honest independant. Don't look at what he charges hourly, that's just a bogus number. It's more important that he's honest. For example, my dealer charges about $800 if you need a MAF sensor, my independant charges under $400 yet the hourly rates are about the same. My dealer wanted $3,455 to fix an oil leak my independant charged $60 to fix.

w203elegance

Haven't had warranty for over a year. Still running like a champ. Make friends with private mechanic, that KNOWS your car....and save thousands.

yeuchau

I don't think mainteance between Audi and Mercedoes will be that different in price, however I would recommand you get a warranty
I think warranty is definitely worth the money

GhostofSoCal240

You can do the best of both worlds. Find a good independent, AND have all the work paid for by the extended warranty company.

Work done under the extended warranty does not have to be done at the dealer.

Like all insurance, it is nothing more than legalized gambling. At the end of the extended warranty, either the owner or the extended warranty company is going to have ended out coming on top. With these relatively unreliable cars, and with the cost of modern parts, over 3 or 4 years, it won't take much for the owner to come out on top. But there's no guarantee of that. You could be one of the lucky ones and have no repairs from years 5 though 8.

I think you'd have to be very, very lucky to not have $1400 (the cost of my 4 year extended warranty) in years 4 through 8.