cte430

First of all, please indulge me as I'm sitting here looking at 12 + inches of snow! This is really starting to get on my nerves. Anyway, I was thinking about how often I used to hear about people putting SERIOUS miles on their cars. I'm 39 now, but it seems when growing up whenever my dad got a new car the one he was getting rid of usually had over 100k miles on it, LOL. I had a '87 BMW 325 that I put 160K miles on it in 3 1/2 years. I beat on that car so bad, it wasn't funny. All I did was change the oil (sometimes!) and changed the timing belt at 90K. Never a problem. When I got my first Benz around 1990 I remember seeing pictures in the brocuhre of hood badges for mileage milestones. I thought they were very cool. Funny, but I haven't seen that in a Benz brochure since.

Now, with all the hi-tech on cars today, it stands to reason that there is more to fail than the cars of yesteryear. I'm wondering if the leasing craze has more to do with it though. Could manufacturers be making cars differently because the majority of them will be leased, with the original owner not expecting to keep the car as long as in the past? I purchased my car and would love to put 100K, 150K, or 200K miles on it if I had to. I'm just not sure if the car will make it though. I'm sure there are many issues involved in this. Anyone else who is snow bound, please chime in

nyca

i have a 98 passat with 135K miles on it. some problems creeping in, transmission shifts are not as smooth, etc. but Mobil 1 is keeping the engine running fine.

i'm interested in replacing this car with the E, and would be targetting 150K miles of service for that car. sometimes reading the posts here, I fear that expectation may be far fetched, but who knows.....

GDawgC220

i drive my '94 c220 daily, about 50 miles a day commute. Got 136,600 now and it runs great. Sure, some things are starting to wear out, but not in need of replacement yet (mostly ball joint and driveshaft coupler starting to wear from age).

IMO, these cars built today will still last. I remember going into the dealership and seeing a '98ML with 160k miles on it!!!

I have a pic of a w220 S-Class '01 S430 with 122k miles on it

All of the cars my parents buy, we will drive till they either get too old, too expensive to maintain (not worth it to repair even) or just kicks the bucket. I mostly will go this route, but being young, who knows, I may want/like to switch cars every few years

-G-

clembo

Chris,

I don't believe that the cars are engineered or built as well as they used to be. That being said the cars are better overall. I think that it is guys like us (same age as you) who are always looking for a new technology or car design. I love my E500, it's one of three cars that I own, but I'm already keeping an eye out for it's replacement. Our parents never burned through money or other assets at the rate that we do. I think that your leasing theory is correct and it has a lot to do with the changing atitudes of todays customers (although I own my cars).

Snow here in Boston as well, not as much as expected, I think you had it worse.

Take care.

rickyfanmdr

I had my last Mercedes 17 years and drove it over 100,000 miles (I only drive 5,000 to 6,000 miles a year). It was a 1985 380SE. I LOVED that car!!! It was really tough for me to give it up, but I LOVE my E320!!! The 380SE was so much simpler! It will be interesting to see how well this car does. I expect I will have it a good long time, so I'll find out! I just bought the extended warranty. I've never bought one before. I think I'm hedging my bet on what could be a costly car to repair. Did you know that we can't even currently change the light bulbs in our tail lights (not that I need to, mind you)? You have to replace the whole friggin' thing, although there is redundancy in the sytem. Could be a costly car to maintain in the long run.

It's a pretty night at the beach here. I was running around with my pano and windows open today! Had to rub it in! Take care.

allenjdmb

I have a small business that sells and refubs older Benz cars. I"m a second generztion Benz geek who owns two new ones as well. In keeping these old cars going, we find parts and assemblies that can last for decades. With proper care, these older w124, 123 and 126 cars can run comfortably and safely for 250-350k. These late model cars will never make it. They are not designed to. Betweeen cost cutting, the environmental issues, and the simple fact that MB does not have car guys running the show, the new cars will simply last long enough to get through the warranty period, plus whatever time it takes to get them back in thier system and Starmark some critical parts. There is simply not enough quality in the raw materials, particularly glass, paint, plastic, and leather, to go the distance. They know this, and they are fully aware that the changes in financing and ownership habits, plus the costs of out of warranty repiars (due to complexity), will keep people from owning these cars forever. It will simply not be economically feasible. Sad, but the wold we live in.

cte430

Allen, that is a very interesting perspective. Kind of what I was thinking of, just didn't put it as eloquently as you did. I mean, there has to be difference in how cars are built simply because most people are not keeping their cars as long as they used to. Sad.

Legacy

The pressures of meeting new regulations, reducing weight for improved gas mileage and the constant need to remain both cost competitive and include all the bells and whistles have all conspired to produce a Mercedes-Benz, or any other production car, that is going to be less durable, less rugged, more potential for failure of fancy electronic devices in the later years (and not covered under the extended warranty).

Only time and experience will tell how long after the 4 year warranty expires I will keep my E500 even with an extended warranty. In the mean time, I am enjoying my car.

It is "the world we live in".

nyca

the electronics and power accessories are the weakest link in my opinion. with proper maintenance, the motor and drivetrain would run a loooong way I think, just as durable as "the old days".

allenjdmb

The main reason that it can't--heat. These late model engines are designed to operate at such high temps that simply cannot have the longevitity that previous stuff had. Newer materials have improved (?) gaskets and such, but heat is still the enemy, as always. Synthetic oils are great too, but you don't think MB wants you to go 12k between oil changes for your own good do you? Of course not. We've seen what's happened, even at less than 100k miles, with this last oil debacle. And since 94, the trannies have nowhere near the guts that they once did, not to mention the fact that they have not been economically feasible to repair for many years. If the parts for a rebuld on an old early 90's 4 speed cost $2k, what do think it's going to cost to repair one of these computer controlled late model 5 (or 7) speeders? A new in the box MB tranny for an old 300E is about $4k now from the dealer, whatcha reckon one of these late model ones will be for an S500? The mind boggles...
Again, sad, but the world that we live in.

Frank Wiesmann

Recently I came across a 1999 S500 (W220) on an internet used car website froma Mercedes dealer with 313,000km , that is about 195,000 miles!

westsidewagon

cte430,

Do you have snow tires on your car(s)?

If now, WHHYYY????

cte430

Don't really drive this car in snow, so no snows. I take the SO-3's off in the fall and put Pilot Sport A/S on with their own set of AMG wheels. BTW, I hate the Pilot's. The car has a serious drift to the right problem, which has been discussed here before. The Tirerack has been awesome and just yesterday informed me they will take them back. Going to try the Yokohamo AVS, but it's not like I have a lot of choices in the staggered setup!