fivepointfivev8

Hello, I'm so glad there is a forum such as this one! Similar to Pelican in my world. I am a car enthusiast and have a been a porsche owner for several years. I have an old school air cooled 911 carrera which I love but only drive it to our local PCA events or to simply release stress on the weekends. I am now in the market for a sedan and I'm contemplating on purchasing a 2005 C55 AMG. I've test driven a 2006 and was blown away by how much power the engine produces. I love the materials of the interior and the styling of it all. In the price category, I'm also considering a BMW 335 (which i haven't yet driven). I love the styling and power of the C55. My biggest concern is the reliability of the car. I'm sure you've all heard what nighmares people have had going to the MB dealer for service. I'm not the typical MB clientel with loads of cash waiting to be spent on service. Can anyone provide me some advice. Also, is there a most desired color, I particularly like the silver on this car. I am looking at a black one that is also real nice and priced well.

Any help will be greatly appreciated!!!

Quicktwinturbo

You should go for it... There are a lot of C55s in market (including mine).


C55s are blast to drive and they are solid.. My car has about 27k miles and I didn't have any major problems yet.

fivepointfivev8

I think the reason why these cars depreciate the way they do is because of the whole Mercedes relationship with old people. My father has always owned a Mercedes E class models over the last 20 years and I never thought I'd ever be interested in one. After driving the C55 yesterday, my thougts on the car have completely changed. Also, these AMG models are very exclusive, not many out there. I think the CLK grille makes the car look even more athletic. The car I'm looking on Monday is an '05 with 14k miles, and owner wants $39K. The silver '06 I drove on Friday has about 15K miles, and dealer wants $48K - they won't budge on the price either... if you do a search on cars.com, you'll won't see very many. So far, I've learned about doing a VMI, I'm going to get one if I can.

fivepointfivev8

Did you say yours is for sale?

Quicktwinturbo

https://mbworld.org/forums/classifieds/194417-c55-sale.html


Let me know!!

rory breaker

I sold my E46 M3 recently and picked up an 06 C55 and havent looked back. From a daily driving perspective, it is much more comfortable, much more feature rich (both my M3 and the C55 were fully loaded - the Benz takes everything the M3 did another step forward - expect for the park distance control), quicker, smoother....they are great cars. You can pick one up for pretty cheap now as well, and expect them to take another little dip once the C63 comes out (not until next spring however).

As long as you have an 05/06 (vs getting a C32) and its under warranty, I wouldnt sweat it, you've got a long warranty left. I havent had any issues yet either, although Ive owned mine for all of 2 weeks and 600 miles :P

fivepointfivev8

can you expalin how the warranty works? The factory came with a 4/50K mile right. Is it possible to purchase an extended warranty from a private sale? The one I looked at on friday (over priced) was certified, meaning they'll add 1 year to the warranty when the factory one runs out. I'll basicly end up with a 2 year warranty. Is that enough time before something major goes on it?

fivepointfivev8

one other thought, I have a VIN, would anyone be able to generate a VMI on it, or do I need to go through the owner/dealer? The C55 I'm looking at is at a Porsche dealer.

Quicktwinturbo

You could buy extended warrenty from MB or others.
C55 is a very reliable car and you won't have a major problem for long long time.

Tump43

Had my '05 C55 for a year and a half, no major problems at all, very reliable at 26k. Had the stealer reprogram the navi once, replace the tel-aid module once, and replace the left valve cover gasket once under warranty. The rest was regular maintenance and modding.

The MB extended warranty is not as good as the 4 year 50K MB warranty. I purchased a Mecury Platinum warranty till 100K or 2012. Not as expensive as the MB extented, lasts longer, and covers more. Got mine through autowarrantybrokers.com.

From owning the C43 AMG do not purchase an AMG without figuring in the cost of a warranty for as long you expect to own the car. Some AMG parts are ridiculously expensive, e.g. AMG cat-back exhaust on the C43: $12,000.

The C55 is a fantasticly entertaining car to drive, as comfortable and quiet as you like with your family in the car and a beast on the back roads alone.

Regards,

fivepointfivev8

very interesting, basicly like buying an insurance policy. Looks like the platinum plans range around $2,500. Have you had any warranty work done with this company? You basicly forward the service receipts to them for reimbursement or would the MB dealer take care of it like a doctor's office. For reference, the extended warranty I purchased on my nissan truck was about 2 grand, and that basicly doubled the factory warranty. The only time I really needed it, turned out it didn't cover the problem I had with the exhaust system. I'm beginning to understand the mystery behind why these cars don't hold their value, has nothing to do with the car, its the cost of service -especially when they get old(er).

rory breaker

Yep, it seems these MB Starmark warranties or whatever they are are a huge waste. For example BMW will charge you $2k-$3k to CPO your car under warranty and extend it 6 years/100k. MB charges you the same $2k and gives you 1yr/12k or 2yr/24k. Doesnt make much sense.

If you are the type of person that owns a car forever, then yeah, absolutely invest in it. My factory warranty will expire in 30k or 2010, I go through cars quickly and I'm not sure if I'll still have this then or not.

Also, just to be clear, factory warranty is 100% transferrable. If youre in VA, I know a loaded 05 that I passed up on that was in fantastic shape. 34k on the clock, you can get it at a good price. The guy aboves is very nice as well...if you prefer black interior to gray let me know and I'll pass on his info. [plug]QTT's is sweet though, dyno'd strong and looks to be in perfect shape [/plug]

zoink

I wouldn't worry too much w/ C55 engine.... it's basically the same engine as W210 E55... the one that has existed since 1998. So, all the bugs should have been sorted out already. And the engine is bulletproof - assuming maintained properly.

I had an '01 E55 w/ 73K miles.... no mechanical problems whatsoever.... only MAF that caused CEL.... but it was a cheap and easy DIY.

I had an '05 C55 for about 1.5 years..... no problems w/ the engine either....

fivepointfivev8

Well, if you haven't noticed already, I decided to buy one. Thanks for all the advice and info I received from everyone offline. I picked it up last week, had 14,500 miles and now it has 15,600. Its a real blast to drive. I ended up getting an extended warranty through Continental out of Delaware (7yr/100K) for peace of mind. The PO put on a fresh set of Rosso's in the rear - I can see why tires don't last long on this car!

sfrolich

Mine's for sale too

Yeah, the AMG 55 engine was one reason I bought the car. It has been in vehicles since 2001ish and it is a rock solid motor.

https://mbworld.org/forums/classifieds/208843-c55-loaded-except-xenon-35995-a.html