iceburns288

I'm looking into buying two cars... W210 E55 and Subaru Impreza WRX STi. I know, some of y'all think that's an abomination to compare the Merc to, but they are very similarly priced while offering very different driving experiences. The E55 is DEFINITELY a looker! An extremely classy car that just turns to awesome with the right wheels. It's got great performance too. The STi, however, is much lighter but doesn't offer the same interior features, nor does it have the same 'baller' (for lack of a better word) look and feel. On the bright side, it's got performance oozing from every hole with a sporty suspension and a -500lb curb weight advantage. It's got EXCELLENT performance. I'm not with you today to argue about which car to buy, though...

I want to know how much the E55 can cost to maintain. I know an STi will be newer, have fewer miles, and when something breaks (unless it's a major engine component, darn flat engines ) it's not that bad to pay for it. I am counting on the E55 to be pretty reliable... but, well, I know that when something breaks it COSTS and COSTS and COSTS until there's nothing left to spend! I read Exhibit A (see below) and I'm getting extremely worried about that! I would like to know two things:
If nothing major breaks, how much will it cost me to own this car annually? (excluding insurance, just throw that out)
If something major (or major-ish) breaks, and I in deep... trouble?

I am fairly young. I won't get into specifics, but I've got a pretty decent amount of cash to spend after the purchase of the car. While some of that might (ok, probably) go into mods, I've got enough money to cover the costs of any of this additional maintenance (short of a blown engine) but quite frankly I just don't want to part with it! I tend to be rather... cheap )

Thank you very much for any information ahead of time!

Exhibit A: https://mbworld.org/forums/showthrea...10+maintenance

uberwgn

If reliability and moderate repair costs are high priority, you'll clearly be better off with the Subaru. People don't buy German cars for "reliability".

Does a young guy really want to ride around in a Benz

hartracing

You know. . . a super duper Subaru is still just a Subaru. . . .Like the kid with 35k into his super-pimp Honda civic. . . It’s still just a dam Civic.
And at the end of the day, if you are going to part with your (or your daddy's as the case may be) (or may not) hard earned money for a car, you really need to make sure you love it.
Maintaince is maintaince, it all costs too much money and should not be a deciding factor in your car. Make sure you get a car that makes you lucky every time you drive it and you will not feel so bad paying for repairs when they occur, and they will, regardless of the name/badge on the hood.
Cheers,
-Todd

iceburns288

I will love both the cars, definitely. They're GREAT cars but in completely different ways. I will do a lot of highway miles though, so I'm leaning towards the Merc.

I told you, it's not about brand vs brand or image vs image. The STi is a great car, Subaru or not. It's just not designed to be a luxury car. I just don't know anything about the maintenance of an E55 (just realized I posted this in the wrong forum, but it's not a huge difference :p)

Maintenance isn't a real high priority, if you know what I mean. I've got the money and I've definitely got a little extra (in other words I have quite a window) but it's just a matter of me not wanting to spend it .

As much as I love the outright speed and moddability of the STi, I'm leaning toward the E55!

patrick_y

Put it this way. I just drove a friend of mine's 2.5 Impreza. That thing is fantastic. Get the Subaru STi. Besides, you're really not up to the age for an E55. Consider getting the C Class, since the Impreza from Subaru is actually even smaller than the C Class in terms of useable space.

You're comparing apples to oranges.

The E55 will definitely cost you an arm and a leg to maintain. Think about it this way. Tires, oil changes, spark plugs, 100k mile overhaul, $1k brake jobs and the brakes only last about 30k miles. The car costs $0.20-$0.30 a mile just to maintain, add gas, add about another 15 cents a mile.

Your Subaru? Probably under 25 cents a mile total cost with gas.

I was really bored one day and I calculated how much it would cost to maintain the car.

A lot of people say if you have to ask, then you can't afford it. I don't agree with that. But still, if you have to ask, it's going to hurt just a little bit to afford it.

Good luck. I am actually hoping to acquire a 2.5 Impreza myself. That car really handles well. I've been doing research on Subarus recently. If I were you, I'd go for the STi, I'd go for one that is not as weird looking as the normal one. The special edition one looks nice.

cragigotgame

Age has nothing to do with it, young people can have good taste too. I bought my benz when I was 22, but had been planning it since I was 17. If it was me with a bunch of money, I would go E55 for sure. I just know that all kinds of little things would annoy me about that subaru (cheap interior, ect). Its true when a mercedes breaks, it really breaks, and costs, but in my experience it doesnt break as often. And as far as performance... just take it to kleeman, you wouldnt miss the sti one bit.

cragigotgame

You can do most of the maintenance yourself too, so to me that wouldnt be a deciding factor.

patrick_y

I was 17 when i acquired my first car, at that time, I was also considering a pre owned E55.

My main point was that the STi is not a compromise. For me, I think that handling is the most important aspect when driving a car. And personally I don't give a hoot about luxury. Mercedes is not very luxurious.

The Subaru Impreza 2.5 was very well built interior wise. Handling is absolutely wonderful. I like it. I'd buy one.