MrTracy

It has been announced that this will be the last year of the V12 engine. The W215 body style was already made in limited production compared to W220 models. Now the V12 models was made in an even smaller production. It is "My" belief that the CL600 will firm up in value and over time; appreciate. Just my two cents.

BlownV8

Hope so but seriously doubt it. Nothing depreciates faster than an MB with a V12.

C280 Sport

Will not go up in value but a select few of us will have our V12's for a while and they will attract some nice attention at cars and coffee I am sure My 06 CL600 did among the exotics. Not bad for a sub $20,000 car lol.

MrTracy

You got jokes... LOL I think they will appreciate. The M5 BMW with the reliability of a crack head; They still hold value. Now the V12's will be in limited supply in time.

BlownV8

No jokes here. Not my first V12 rodeo either. Lost more money in depreciation and repairs than most spend on a new car.

MrTracy

Oh, I agree.. these V12s have always dropped uncontrollably. However the Benz V12 engine is truly a masterpiece. I just think its like an ugly chick in elementary school who turns into a run way model.You don't miss her until she is gone. With cars going to the way of turbo charged V6 & V8.The V12 will be a little more desirable to nuts like us.

C280 Sport

Or more like dating a supermodel with a drug problem

BlownV8

Love my V12 biturbo but I also love my V8 biturbo. I can see why MB is getting rid of the V12 though since the V8 cars are quicker and can produce the same or more power with boost. They will still produce the V12 but not for use in MB's.

MrTracy

You are partially right. They do produce high horse power numbers. Let's not forget the V12 is a torque rich gorilla

tusabes

The 65 series cars are slower than the 63 series v8 cars . No reason to keep the v12.

The v12s from the 1990s that we’re used in the original pagani zonda haven’t appreciated at all . When r230 and c215 coupes finally go up in value after 30-40 years the v12 will go up due to rarity but most of the cars will be parted out due to failed abc suspensions by then

MrTracy

There were more much more R class & C class built than the big V12 Coupe.

ItalianJoe1

They won't go up in value, they just aren't special enough. These are cars that are worth less than 10% of their purchase price right now. That's not gonna magically get better. They have no real market appeal. Most people don't give a **** what kind of engine is in the car, just how it performs. I wish they would go up, I would feel better about all the money I've sunk into mine, but that's not how it works.

tusabes

i don’t think you understand what an r230 and c215 are. They are not R and C class cars!

the r230 is the SL
the c215 is the CL

C280 Sport

And there were many of them so that does not help your argument of V12 ownership.... C Class is the Honda of MB. R Class was build for many years as well.... The V12 MB Coupes were built in small numbers because of many reasons. Hence why the coupes and the V12 are being cut out for the most part.

ctravis595

i think in 15 more years the w215 will really start to appreciate, but even then not much at all

here in florida, it's not rare i see a w215 once or twice a week. sometimes ill see 2 or 3 w215's in one day

but i wanted to comment because this is just a marketing ploy by mercedes i believe

remember when chevrolet stopped making the camaro in 2002, only for it to have the most impressive comeback of the entire lineage?

benz will bring back a v12 eventually and people will be very excited, thus why it will sell. right now, v12's are old news so nobody is excited

RonCL55

Sorry, I dont agree. They are never going to bring back the v12 because MB no longer cares about the S coupe from a sales perspective. MB changed their marketing strategy a few years ago when they began to make all of their vehicles look the same. It used to be that the CL/S Class was the gold standard of MB’s product lines (and the coupe was even distinct from the sedan) and they put all the innovations into it and kept it distinct from the rest of the product lines.

Now every C and E coupe looks like an S coupe and the point is that MB sells way more C and E coupes that way (because the C and E owners think that people will believe they have an S coupe and paid $10,000s more). MB by their marketing strategy is *******izing S coupe sales but when there are 10,000s more able to buy C and E coupes than S coupes, MB doesnt care. They dont care if anyone actually buys an S, it is just eye candy to convince C and E buyers that the Cs and Es are good deals.

So with the S coupe intended merely as a support mechanism for C and E coupe sales, MB is over time stripping down the S coupe and eliminating things like unique styling, world class suspension systems and V12s. Keep it cheap to manufacture and eliminate any unique options. It’s now just an image and is no longer intended to be a world class GT car.

So sorry, no more V12s. Get em while you can!

Wolfman

You completely forget that tastes, markets and environmental condition change...

Any manufacturer must adapt or die.
1. The Germans slept on the development of EV and now are caught being behind in this segment. Since the Chinese market represents a large chunk of their sales and the Chinese government dictates the rapid deployment of EV's, manufacturers will have to adjust with an updated strategy (ICE, Hybrid, EV)
Because they have slept, they are now jumping on EV's. Good example is VW planning to spend $50 Billion over the coming years just in EV and autonomous driving. That's big money.
In Germany, there are numerous cities already that prohibit cars with older/dirtier engine emissions to enter the city so the urgency is there already.
2. Modern engines like the inline 6 will become the norm and MB will leverage ICE's with powerful hybrid setups. All AMG's are already slated to go that way, eventually making way to EV's
3. The V12 was killed off because it is an ancient outdated engine that is not emissions/particle compliant in Europe and developing a new engine for a tiny market segment makes zero sense, especially when newer engine designs run circles around it in terms of power output. BMW's current V12 in much newer iteration and it also appears to sunset soon.
4. Tastes change. The latest SL isn't the prettiest car but it lost sales against SUV's, not other convertible brands. The S-Class coupe is beautiful IMO but would have lasted much longer if the Chinese would have bought them. Culturally, the wealthy in China are chauffeured or if they drive, it'll be an exotic. But forget China, nobody brought the coupes in the US either...

I loved our V12TT SL with its locomotive-like torque drama but ultimately it wasn't very quick and quite front-heavy.

ctravis595

mercedes having similar looking models is certainly nothing new. w215 just looked like a w203 coupe with w210 headlights...same goes for S class and CL class often looked pretty similar.

RonCL55

Mercedes sharing styling elements is certainly not new and has always been done to show that it was a Mercedes. However, nothing ever looked like the W215 that we all love. The same cannot be said for the current crop of MB coupes. Here are pictures of the current C and S coupe. Do you think the average person can really tell the difference?

C280 Sport

I have always wondered why a country like the USA is so in love with SUV's? Take the younger generation. They do not want a house, kids, marriage and want to save the planet but yet large SUV's and crossovers are the in thing. Usually people buy a SUV for the space because they have all the above like I listed.

C280 Sport

When I am in Florida I see more MB Coupes then vs up north. I think because of the weather and the older people buying them as a second car not needing the space or practicality. I use my CL only in the summer and I love my CL600 but to have it as my only car? It would never work.

C280 Sport

MB has always like every other car maker (BMW, Lexus, Infiniti, Porsche) resembled each other in terms of models. 202 C Class looked like a 124 E Class and a 140 S Class. CLK and CL had many similar looks. CLK 209 and C Coupe (W203) had similar looks. SLK, SL, SLS have similar looks and even the same parts. W211 E and W203 C Look similar. I think it is getting harder to tell the difference yes but it has always been this way.

ctravis595

The “average person” doesn’t know what half the mercedes models are. Unless I see they have an AMG in the garage, I usually don’t talk to people about mercedes. They often assume you’re a douche for owning a nice German car 🤷*♂️

Good point about SuV’s c280sport, I think it’s that same illogicality (sp?) that will eventually bring back the v12, who knows maybe it will be an American-only thing. Not many places have a love for torque like the USA

MrTracy

You are right... My mistake.