Nuru

Considering trading to a CPO 2012 E-class 4MATIC 12k miles (vs my 28k).

Better MPG, more hp (louder engine though), better warranty, folding rear seats, Bi-Xenon lights, $3 - 6k more than I owe now, but lowers my payments by almost $80/month. Same color as my current model and the "bank auditor" likes that.

Drove car for a few days and did enjoy it.

Comments?

MBNUT1

Sounds like a no brainer About the only thing that I would take into consideration is the 2014 facelift and whether that might result in a better deal on a 2012 / 2013. I have an opportunity to buy a factory rep 2013 4matic with 7k miles which had a 65k sticker for $50K. I am holding of until the 2014's come out and 2k of the 65k sticker is for the rear seat DVD package which is of zero value to me.

no_mulligan

Sounds very nice upgrade. I would make sure the carfax is pristine. If you bought extended warranty on the 2010, can you sell it back? Are you considering buying extended CPO warranty even though not as good as factory ELW? Negotiate on car price and warranty together puts you in a stronger position than already signed contract to buy.


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Nuru

MBNUT1, thanks for the response.

Aren't the 2014's coming out this month? I was told the official launch date is April 13th or April 15th. I was holding off until they show-up and I thought this was the month they do show-up? I believe there are some tax incentives being offered by the dealers if you purchase cars this month?

Nuru

no_mulligan thanks, I think so too. I believe the car has been used as a loaner vehicle since the dealer got it. So they have been taking care of it since its arrival. I did not get an extended warranty on the 2010 and its warranty is up later this year, so I wanted to get back into a warranted car without much cost and this car covers the following options I had planned to retrofit:

• Folding Rear Seats
• Extended Warranty
• Bi-Xenon lights (still checking on this one)

Other things I am checking on:

• 4MATIC (still checking on whether or not it is a SPORT version).
• actual mileage (10 - 13k?)
• Warranty offering (it is CPO, but i am considering extending that, if i get the right combo of cost and funding).

We are still negotiating the price quoted sofar is too high for my budget, but I hope they have room to negotiate some. With the 2014's coming in this month, that will be added pressure. but we will see?

Nuru

Every so often, though, I think of trying to go after a CPO'ed E550, but then I chicken out.

no_mulligan

Ok, I recommend that you send a PM to konigstiger with the VIN. Ask for the data card. This will tell you everything about the build of the car. No need to wonder about Sport or Comfort suspension, or any other option,etc..
Also, ask the salesman for the VMI (vehicle master inquiry). Look it over carefully. It will tell you every service or repair done and when. It should be very clean unless people abused it.
There is lots of room to negotiate. On a brand new car, there's 20% from MSRP. Most people don't get it. People who try hard and time it can get 10% off. No different on used. I've bought CPO as well. Good Luck.

MBNUT1

In addition to the deal I can get above (unsolicited) My BIL bought a brand new one at the end of last year for $8k off a 59k car. I wouldn't buy one for less of a discount than that.

Nuru

I have the VIN and I can pull the Data Card, which i plan to do tonight. I will review the VMI. The interior looks clean, outside is very clean. Next I will drive it and see how I like it.

sofar I have verified:
• Folding Rear Seats - yep
• CPO Extended Warranty - 100k - yep
• Not Bi-Xenon lights, supposedly they are HID (still checking on this one)
• 4MATIC Sport - yep
• actual mileage 13k -yep
• Warranty offering (it is CPO, but i am considering extending that to 135k, if i get the right combo of cost and funding).


Need to whittle that price down a bit. However I don't think it is worth it to take it non-CPO'ed.

Nuru

you know i did not consider any of the 2013s, there could be one laying around with a substantial discount with miles. I will look around a bit to get a comparison offer.

no_mulligan

Don't forget about carfax. Lots of accidents show up


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Nuru

Won't forget that

Nuru

got the datacard - does not appear to have Bi-xenons/HIDs, also asking the dealer to re-verify their original statement on that.

alsyli

Hate to be the dissenting opinion, but owing more overall for a car that isn't fundamentally different from the car that you currently own (aside from the engine, the increased HP of which probably isn't noticeable in day-to-day driving) isn't a good use of $, IMHO. Does the $80/mo difference really make that much difference to you, if you have to pay more overall?

Your current car is already very low mileage, and you know if it's been reliable or not. I'd never purchase a car that's been used as a loaner since I imagine most people probably aren't very kind to their loaners.

I'd rather keep your current car for 2 more yrs and then get a CPO 2014 E350....

K-A

If it only raises your Loan debt $3K then why not (hard to believe that a 2 year newer car will only cost you $3K more when all is said and done, which is a good thing if true). IMO the upgrade in that case may be worth it, and since you're not Leasing cars, you can make that difference up in resale value, which makes it a wash.

Only issues will be blander front without the hockey stick LED's, which is subjective.

However, especially if you have HID's right now, I would never get a W212 without P2, and if this one doesn't have it, I'd keep looking. It was a must on both of mine.

no_mulligan

If the OP likes it, believes that value is there and gets a few years under warranty (BTW, would have paid THOUSANDS for that on the 2010), go for it. Live life. It might be your last Benz.
I see a Hyundai as a possible good use of money. Tho, I won't be driving one.
Past reliability does not forcast future especially under 50K miles.
I say trade up if you can get the numbers to work but do the homework first to cover the bases from getting burned. I never trust salesman talk. In writing is the only way.
Shopping is so exciting. Kudos to OP for doing homework here before purchase. Shopping/negotiating is exciting for me! Others dread it.

Nuru

Dissenting opinions are fine!

Actually my C300 was a loaner car that had 11k on it and it gave me no trouble at all. Good Car, no issues. I have also purchased other brand's loaners and had no issues. I have had issues with new cars and 1 owner used cars, but nothing with the loaner cars sofar.

My car has 28k on it, so yes the mileage is not that bad. however, my warranty will expire in a couple of months, and I also have the opportunity to get a warranty for another 4 years.

Nuru

Actually, I am with you on the HID lights as I really do not like the lighting on my 2010, since it P1 w/halogens. I did drive another 2012 with P1 and it had better lighting than my 2010, but it was not P2, nor did it have halogens.

As far as the cost, it is closer to $6k, so I am still at the range I initially stated ($3k - $6k).

Nuru

Thanks no_mulligan, yes I am researching this and other cars. I did find a Steel colored car a luxury, with only 5k miles and it has lane assist on it, and was ~$3k more, but it was P1 with Halogens. I did like the Lane assist option, but they would need to drop their price by $3 - 4k more to get me to drive up there and try to make a deal. But then there's the lighting issues.

Nuru

OK, another small update:

• Folding Rear Seats - yep
• CPO Extended Warranty - 100k - yep
• Not Bi-Xenon lights, supposedly they are HID (My Sales Rep is sure they are HID, and will provide me with the retail sheet, listing all options tomorrow)
• 4MATIC Sport - yep
• actual mileage 13k -yep
• Warranty offering (it is CPO, but i am considering extending that to 135k, if i get the right combo of cost and funding).

Also got an offer in the mail from the dealer (vehicle trade-in offer - not associated with this deal - probably auto-mailed?) that may make this deal a bit better as if I am reading this right, I may get another $2k off (fingers crossed!)

Nuru

Did not get the list as was planned. Will contact the sales rrep tomorrow to see what happened - probably will get it tomorrow.

In the meantime, I found a few more cars with pricing all over the place. One I thought was interesting is one that has 27.5k miles, but has additional options - lane keeping assist, Active Blind spot assist, driving package, and Distronics plus. It also has the following options:

FE Torque Converter housing
FE Converter 0 MM
NAT2 with optimized DMFull load ventilation

This car is a luxury model vs the others are 4MATIC/4MATIC SPorts

Dunno about the lighting system, probably halogens

I went in to a dealer and got the VMI for this vehicle and others. This one had a clean VMI. But it has a lot of miles for 2012 car, that started service in 11/2011.The pricing is ~$5 -6k less than the other car I am really considering. But it is also at a non-Mercedes dealer, so I dunno. A few additional features and a lot more miles than I want - probably a no go. - Thoughts anyone?

Nuru

Deal is restricted to new cars so no help on the deal I am considering

no_mulligan

Lot of miles goes against one of the main reasons why you are looking. I would pass. My two schools of thought on miles are as follows. First, sell before 100K because value goes down significantly after 100K (has to do with bank lending) AND have a 100K warranty with enough time based on my driving miles/yr. Second, sell before 150K AND still have the 100K warranty, here, I "roll the dice" on the last 50K. Lastly, I have a 10 year rule that says I will not hold a car more than 10 model years no matter when I acquired it becuase there are likely things that will deteriorate and repair cost versus car value becomes questionable. At 150K, high mileage required services will drain the wallet.
I've never seen a CPO sold by a non-MB dealer with MB warranty. I would not get a car and then try to get it CPO'd. I think if you buy a used MB under original warranty, when it runs out, that's it and you are not entitled to extended thru MB.
There's a recent thread here where the OP didn't like the luxury/comfort suspension that was special order by the previous owner of the used E550. It didn't corner to his expectation. So, buyer beware. Post the option code on the DataCard here for experts (not me) to explain, not just the description.

Nuru

yep, you have some good points, plus being as non-benz dealer, they cannot offer a Benz warranty. However, one can purchase a Benz extended warranty before the factory warranty expires on a car. but then again the car does have a lot of miles on it in a short period of time. I will probably put less than 4 - 5k miles/year on the next car, so if I get the trade-in bug again in say 4 years, I won't have a ton of miles on either car. Hmmm

Nuru

Okay, finally got the correct story on the lights - not Bixenon or Hids, so I am re-evaluating the go or no go on the original target car. They do have a Black/Black car with the same configuration with only 11k miles on it, and now if I buy, I may consider that one over the Palladium Silver car. i will scout around for another week though.