roybenz

I paid $59k for my '04 e500 4matic well equipped. I have just been offered ( by multiple dealers) $34K as a trade in- but- ( makes me feel much better) was told I could probably get $40K if I sold it privately.
What a rip off this car has been. I have owned GM cars that didn't lose value like these. For this kind of loss , I could have leased a Rolls and still been ahead. This E series is just a piece of overpriced junk. My first and last Benz.
Before any one buys one- be clearly warned that they are not as good as they are supposed to be and they lose value quicker than an apartment building in Beirut.

oilbelcher

maybe you paid too much? did you buy under MSRP? put too many options on the car? Doesn't sound right that you would see that much % deprec.

E55 KEV

I doubt that!

tbone

I'm not sure if you'll be able to get 40K via private sale. A co-worker of mine bought, via private sale, an '04 E500 with 23K miles, well equipped, including NAV, for $33.5K. This was 4 months ago.

weinschela

I'm no expert on depreciation but your car is three model years old (you also do not indicate how many miles are on it), and if you sold it privately you would end up with 40,000 which is 67+% of 59,000. You also do not say what kind of dealer and what kind of new car you are looking for. Its your choice whether to trade or sell and if you think 34,000 is too low, then sell privately. I am not sure what you think would be "reasonable" in terms of depeciation, but I would doubt any 3 year old GM vehicle would hold as much as 2/3 of its value after three model years. Even if a Chevrolet or Buick that cost $30,000 new went for $20,000 after three years, you are comparing apples and oranges. Just for fun, look at the trade-in value for a Buick Park Avenue fully equipped, and with typical mileage. Kelly BB says its about $15,000. I can't figure out what the car would have cost new, but I am guessing at least $28-30,000. It has depreciated 50%. My math says MB does better, and I would want to drive a Buick anyhow. But if that kind of math makes you feel better, maybe you should buy a Chevy and then three years from now I'd be interested in seeing your report on trade-in value and whether you suffered from too much depreciation. Just my two cents.

revstriker

I couldn't agree more.

revstriker

Then your friend got a good deal, but this is not what these cars typically go for on the private market. KBB lists a standard 04 E500 in "good" condition with a private value of $38,500. Even at the lowest level of "fair" condition it lists at $35,600.

Everyone knows (or at least they should know) that you walk away from a lot of $$ when you trade in at the dealer. KBB lists this same car ("good") with a trade in value of only $31,800. "Excellent" trade in value is $33,500.

Most likely who ever sold your co-worker the car for $33,500 was perhaps just looking to get a little more than they could on a trade in.

Anyway, all of this talk of depreciation and "trade in" value vs. "private sale" value makes leasing seem like a smart choice.

roybenz

The car listed for almost $65k for those who have asked. If it is that important to drive a 3 pointed farce- I guess a fool and his money are easily parted. I for one- expected these cars to hold their value much better than they have . Multiple trips to the dealer for repairs don't make it any easier to swallow. My 04 Lexus has yet to be repaired with the same mileage( 30+K) and has held its value much better. Sorry, but a car of this pedigree that is 2-1/2 years old and now commands only about 60% of the msrp- is a loser. Every car depreciates. But a Benz used to be known as a car that held its value better than most. This is clearly not the case anymore.Then again ,it used to rank better than the lower half of JD Powers surveys. To me this emporer has no clothes. There are those that are loyal to a brand no matter what. So there will be defenders who will take great issue with these statements. To me there are much better cars and much better values out there in this price and performance range. This one has been a huge dissappointment on many levels.

sheepdog

No one likes to lose money but a car whether MB or any other brand is a depreciation asset. General rule of thumb is 20-25% the 1st year, 15% the 2nd year and approx. 10% each year thereafter. For a $59,000 car that would translate to around $34,000. It is unfortunate but true.

fearlessone2

I am considering buying a new E500 but have been wondering if a BMW would be wiser choice. What say you folks? Oh, I have '97 C280 which has been a perfect auto but I hear lots of scary stories of poor quality still hanging out at the MB plant in Germany. Thanks.

cyclerider

I thought you were forcing M-B to buy it back under the Lemon Law? What happened with that?

So is it the Lexus dealer who is screwing you on the trade-in? Or BMW?

revstriker

So I take it you did zero research on the car holding it's value before you purchased it? I say this because the depreciation you are experiencing is certainly not unexpected. Especially when considering your car is 8 cylinders and gas costs upwards of $3 per gallon.

You should note that a good rule of thumb is that cars normally depreciate on average between 15% and 20% of it's value each year. So a $65,000 car would depreciate to $39,300 (at 15%) or $33,200 (at 20%) in it's third year (as yours is). Considering its value is at least $40,000 (don't mistake trade in for value), the depreciation appears to be on the low end of this scale (about 14.94% at 40K to be exact). Another thing to note is that MSRP means nothing when it comes to depreciation. A car is worth what it sells for. If a car with an MSRP of $65,000 is going out the door for $59,000 as yours was, then $59,000 is the value. This bring the actual depreciation rate down to about 12.15% on average over the three years.

revstriker

You probably won't get a great answer to this question on a Mercedes Board, but the bottom line is that every make of car can have a problem. Sure, some have a better record than others, but you can still have issues with whatever you choose. Just hang around the BMW boards and you will hear similar stories.

For the record, I've owned several Mercedes and have only had at the most, very minor issues on very rare occasions.

revstriker

Funny! To be fair though, the trade in value listed is consistant with KBB.

If you believe this, then I have a bridge to sell you in Brooklyn. And of course, Lexus and BMW have never had any Lemon Law Suits filed against them??

Alan Smithee

Roybenz, you and anybody else trying to sell a 2003-2004 have a lot working against you at the moment. First of all, most E-classes are leased, and most leases are 3-years. So, guess what? There are a lot of 2003-2004 E-clases coming off lease right now. Second, there were a lot of problems with the early cars, which takes its toll on value...especially when there are a lot of them available. Third, there is a facelifted and improved E550 hitting dealers as we speak. That means remaining new 2006 E500s are deeply discounted...about $10k here in LA. Subsequently used 2005s, 2004s, etc. are taking a big hit right now. And, as others have pointed out, comparing the retail cost to wholesale trade is never going to be pretty. Also think about all of the great new cars available in the $35-40k range.

All that considered, resale values for the W211 is pretty damned good...especially compared to Audis.

MB and other German brands had great resale when model changes were infrequent, competition was minimal, and sticker prices jumped every year due to the economy of the 1970s-80s. Times are much different now.

husk323

you should have gotten a diesel they always hold their resale value

sosh

The last US car I owned was a 1994 Cadillac Seville STS. After a year and a half I received 49.5% of MSRP with a private sale. Car had 16000 miles and was in excellent condition. I also had a 93 BMW 325I for my wife and after 2 years it brought 55% of MSRP with 18000 miles. Apparently the guy who started this thread has never owned any new car before!!

55fanatic

yeah maybe its rolls royce?

If you were a smart shopper in the first place and did your research, not using the "brand image" instead... you would of known that the value of these vehicles has farther to drop then most other cars cause its significantly higher... You would of also know about the product quality...

The W211 eclass was very problematic at the begining... you took a gamble and lost... you got a car that was the worst outta the bunch and your sore about it

HELL ONA HARLEY

34K for a lemon (according to you)..... Not bad.... L.O.L...

18 posts and everyone of them is sniveling about your car, Better sell it, cut your losses and be happy in life.... Its way to short to be biatching on the web about it.
Good luck with you lexus.

TPAbnz

OMG, stop whining and compare apples to apples. Try assessing your retail purchase price against the retail price the dealer would sell your used car for. Look at your retail re-sale price and the E-500 will look pretty good.

If price is so important, sell the car yourself at reail.

I agree with the OP, if you bought diesel, you wouldn’t be singing the (E500) depreciation blues!

roybenz

Funny, I thought these boards are where your thoughts both postive and negative about the cars were posted. Ok I'll stop *****ing- final points-
Car s*cks. Consumer surveys and general public opinion recognizes that this version of the E series was the worst one ever. My lemon law action is still pending. My lawyer says that Mercedes is the most litigious mfgr there is.
They never admit it is their fault . They litigate every case and appeal every decision. So that is the status of the case so far. Lemon lawyers only get paid if they prevail. The law firm I am using is the best in the state. They took the case without hesitation. To be clear MY PARTICULAR car is a real stinker. And MSUSA has shown me that they are too. ABMB--Anything but Mercedes Benz for me.

Benz-O-Rama

Eeesh!

Roy, while these boards ARE for comments about cars, both positive and negative, you have to understand that most members here are here because they love their car and are proud to be fortunate enough to be able to own one of these. I appreciate the fact that you've had a run of bad luck with your particular car but I would bet that if you were to take a poll here, most people would say that they love their car, me included. I've gone through the lemon law process with a Saab and I , like you, don't have the warm and fuzzies about that automaker any longer. But please, please stop the incessant complaining. If you hate the car, sell it and move on. You're not gonna get anywhere on this board with these types of post.

Man, good thing Jangy hasn't read this thread yet! Sic 'em boy, sic 'em

slk55lvr

I am truly sorry that you've had such a bad experience with your car, and in your case it's understandable that you'd want to move on to another mfr. That said, expecting to trade ANY sedan in after 2 1/2 years for more than 54% of its selling price is foolhardy. You mentioned buying a high end car for the lost value this one had, do you have ANY idea how much a benley/Rolls Royce would dpreciate after 2 1/2 years and 40,000 miles?

Lease yourself a nice Mini Cooper or buy used, it's obvious new car buying is not for you.

patrick_y

First of all, you really should've gotten a Rolls Royce (if it's new). At my local Rolls Royce dealership, I have to put a hefty downpayment (the size of a small car) and a high monthly fee just to lease the car. And the monthly payment is too large to write off.

Secondly, you really could've done some more research before you bought the car, Mercedes' resale value is already considered to be better than most cars out there. Cars are expected to lose about half their value in the first three years. I've seen American cars such as Lincoln Towncars lose half of its value in the first year with normal one year mileage. It also depends which area of the US you live in, areas with more extreme weather conditions get worse resale values on the car. Areas with lots of snow, high humidity, extreme cold/heat get worse resale value. Larger cars that drink more fuel also depreciate faster if fuel costs rises. Also, if you looked at consumer reports, you would've seen that the 2003 model E classes had several small but irritating problems. Car trouble happens, buying the car without research increases the possibility of such troubles. It's like buying stock, you want to do your research before buying it. Just because the stock is from a big company (or the car is from a reputable company) doesn't mean that it will make money, even IBM, CSCO, DNA lose money periodically.

Lastly, for a well educated man such as yourself, you really don't need to employ poor language covered with asterisks to get your point across. The tone of voice in your initial post is one of emotion, not thought. I hope that when you acquire your next auto, you will use thought and not emotion.

For the cost conscious, get a pre owned car, it's already depreciated heavily, try to find one with 10k miles and get a killer deal on it. I'd do this if I had confidence in the previous driver of the vehicle.

patrick_y

I saw a Rolls Royce, 2004, 8k miles, has the 21 inch wheels (a popular option) and was in a nice colour combo (Cornish White with Pacific Blue and Cornsilk interior) for $280k advertised price if I'm not mistaken at my local authorized dealer. This car costs about $345k new.

This one is a killer, a Maybach 57, Atlas Silver/Atlas Gray (two tone exterior) with gray interior. 2004 model year with 2k miles, $190k. This car costs about $330k-340k new.

Seriously, I'd go for a Maybach 57 if I found one at that price in a colour I appreciated. You get better service than anything in that car, plus it'll last a solid 20-30 years with normal upkeep compared to the normal car that will only last 10-12 years.