BeachBunny

Hi all,

After almost a year of searching for a good used E350 with Distronic and not finding one, I've decided that buying new is probably my only option and probably will have to order a custom one to get what I want on it. I'm looking to order in the next week or so to be able to take advantage of the Winter Savings Event specials (if any) and to hopefully get the car before year-end.

I need help in figuring out what is a fair price and if I should be pushing hard for this configuration or are certain options not worth bothering with.

So, here it goes:

Model E350W (W is Sedan, right? I thought it would have been E350S, but the dealer tells me S means Wagon.)

Paint: Steel Grey
Uph: Silk Beige MB Tex
Burl Walnut Wood
167 - Luxury Model / 485 Comfort Suspension / 955 Luxury Code
997 - Driver Assistance Package (Distronic/etc)
P01 - Premium Package
996 - Parking Assist w/surround cams
319 - Full LED headlights + adaptive highbeam
432 - Active Multicontour Driver Seat w/Massage
889 - Keyless Go (Keyless Go ONLY, not hands-free trunk/trunk closer -- the configurator wouldn't let them add it for some reason)
U80 - 115v AC outlet
839 - Laminated Acoustic Glass, front & Rear Doors

MRSP: $65,890
Discount: -3,199 (4.8% off)
Price: $62,691.00

To me, the discount seems paltry at best. Anyone have any thoughts? If anyone knows of dealers which traditionally sell for good prices, I'm not opposed to buying from someplace non-local and having the car shipped. I'm in Florida.

noka

I currently have 2013 Xdrive 35i but am not so thrilled with it and looking to get back into an MB sedan. Interested in E350 also but just wondering why some one would order MB-Tex instead of leather. I've had the MB-Tex before in a C300 because I didn't have a choice when I purchased it off the lot but if I ordered a car, I would opt for leather. I think the MB-Tex is some of the best faux leather I have seen but am just wondering what the arguments are for not going with leather.

JDBKLYN89

Aside from the obvious maintenance/care wearing issues where MB tex has its advantages over leather, I actually find the MB tex seats to be more comfortable. I have a 14' e350 with porcelain white Nappa leather, and find the seats in my mother's 14' e350 equipped with MB tex seem to have more padding and provide a more cushioned feeling over the leather seats. Just my experience at least

Beemie

I just went through this process for a 2015 E350 wagon I ordered a couple weeks ago. (Link to my thread with info that I found helpful). MSRP had just been released during my search, so that made things a little easier.

I also found Ken Rockwell's advice in this blog post to be very, very helpful. I did actually start with AAA since I am a member, and it was a pretty pleasant process. The different AAA regional clubs appear to implement the car buying program differently, so your mileage may vary. Ultimately, I found several dealers that offered better pricing than the AAA discounts. Happily, my hometown dealer, who had been really straightforward and transparent throughout the process, offered the best price of all (in fact, in hindsight I probably could have gone straight to them and saved myself a fair amount of time, because my sales guy was seriously no BS/no games).

Looks like a nice car! In my opinion (based on nothing but internet research) the laminated glass alone is worth holding out for a special order I special ordered because the designo light brown is my absolute favorite interior, and paying so much for a car I did not want to settle just to save a few thou - I keep my cars for a while so it's worth it to me. I have dogs, and if the leather holds up like the brown leather in my 12-year old BMW 325 wagon, I will be very happy.

Good luck with your order, and keep us posted!

alexkhane

Invoice on that car should be around $62093 (+/-$100) so you're getting invoice + $600. You could try to get the dealer to commit to applying any additional incentives that might exist at time of delivery.

Johnny Rad

Acoustic glass?! Sweet. Betting it makes the cabin seriously quiet.

"Sounds" like that's a rare option on an E, right?

noka

Thanks. I'll need to go with leather if I want to get ventilated seats.

chairman

Try using Edmunds new features, or mbusa.com to configure the car you want. Edmunds has a feature that will, based on your zip code, allow you to get "bids" from other local dealers. Usually, when the dealers compete, the price can be more competitive.

Regarding some of your configuration, I have had MB-Tex and leather, I prefer leather but the price is, in my opinion, very high, so for me it is MB-Tex all the way.

My personal preference would be to opt for the "sport package" not only does it give you a firmer feel and more secure ride, but it gives you a better looking front end. The luxury suspension reminds me of an old Buick with plenty of bounce.

Regardless of what you decide, negotiate with the dealers they will try to beat each other for the sale. You are in charge.

Good luck

J.Raymond

You might double-check with your dealer on this:

389 KEYLESS-GO Package: Hands Free Access MSRP $900

Includes:

P12 Control Code
871 Hand Free
881 Electronic Trunk Closer
889 KEYLESS-GO

J.

petee1997

I'm surprised no one is opting for the E400. In Canada the 400 is replacing the E350 and the price should be the same. We still have the E550.

J.Raymond

The base E400 MSRP is about $10k more than a base E350 (MY15 2WD sedan) ....

However - the base E400 comes standard with the Premium One package, leather, lane tracking, KEYLESS-GO, 18" AMG wheels and a MB-Tex dash. These features would add ~ $7.5k to the base E350.

Here in the States - there is no listing for a luxury model E400 .. just the sport version in 2WD and 4M.

Was looking at the E350 - decided to order an E400 mid-August. Shipped from Bremerhaven 10/10 aboard the Clover Ace. Being held-up a bit by hurricane Gonzalo

J.

El Cid

Luxury is definitely the way to go. You might try truecar.com for their pricing and to get quotes from dealers. Can also use autobytel, autotrader and cars.com to contact dealers. Be ready for a lot of phone calls though.
Some insurance companies and credit unions also have discounts with certain manufacturers. But appears some are actually truecar connections now.
Can always purchase a bottom line cost report from Consumer Reports, especially since you have an exact car in mind.
Best time to make the deal is last day of month and quarter, but the winter sales events are also good timing.
Another dowside to leather is that MB charges $1,000 just for the leather facing on seats and door panels.
When I got mine (Oct. '09), I negotiated a great price even though I had to order it from Germany-took four weeks. Of course, car market was in toilet then, but also getting new model year car. Saved about $7,500 off MSRP.
BTW, great sounding car.

edbro

If you are a USAA member then you can get some pretty good deals through their car buying service. I got $6,800 off and didn't have to do any haggling.

Costco has a similar service but I've never used them.

El Cid

Used USAA in 2009 and checked it out last month on another vehicle. They had exactly the same discount as truecar.com. In fact, their graphs for prices looked almost identical. Ended up going to another dealer and saving more money.
BUT it is one way to see what kind of deals are out there.

CEB

Although USAA uses TrueCar now, they do have a special deal with MB with additional discounts.

BeachBunny

Okay, so I've been "dialing for dollars" over the past few days and still have the same spec as before.

Currently at:
Paint: Steel Grey
Uph: Silk Beige MB Tex
Burl Walnut Wood
167 - Luxury Model / 485 Comfort Suspension / 955 Luxury Code
997 - Driver Assistance Package (Distronic/etc)
P01 - Premium Package
996 - Parking Assist w/surround cams
319 - Full LED headlights + adaptive highbeam
432 - Active Multicontour Driver Seat w/Massage
889 - Keyless Go (Keyless Go ONLY, not hands-free trunk/trunk closer -- the configurator wouldn't let them add it for some reason)
U80 - 115v AC outlet
839 - Laminated Acoustic Glass, front & Rear Doors

MRSP: $65,890
Discount: -3,199 (9%) + a 50/50 split of any additional incentives which I may be eligible for at time of delivery
Price: $59732

Any thoughts? Is this good or should I keep grinding away? What have others paid for 2015s?

pamiboy

Nice build. There something in the math that doesn't add up.
3,199 is not 9% of 65,890.

BeachBunny

Pamiboy: You're not wrong, I copied & pasted and forgot to change all of the numbers. I also got a newer offer in which gives me more of any additional incentives

Corrected/updated post:

MRSP: $65,890
Discount: -6,600 (10%) + a 100% of any additional incentives which I may be eligible for at time of delivery
Price: $59,290

alexkhane

How much of that 10% are they counting as current incentives? November promotions just came out, and it looks like the MY15 E350 has at least $2.5k dealer cash. If they're accounting for that, then it looks like you're getting a few hundred below invoice, which is a decent deal.

BeachBunny

That's an October offer... Will be on the phone with the dealers in the morning to find out what November brings.

El Cid

Assume you used the truecar.com and Edmunds pricing sites? Since you know exactly what you want, could purchase a price report from Consumer Reports. Prices will probably get better closer to end of month you get.

BeachBunny

El Cid: TrueCar/Edmunds are waaay higher on pricing. Prices on this particular car won't get any better/worse on time of month purchased -- it's a custom-ordered car. The dealer will get credit for the sale when the car is delivered, not purchased.

If I put the order in today, they start building it this/next week (based on the dealer's changeable order slots), it gets loaded onto a boat in another 1-2 weeks, takes another 1-2 weeks to get here, then spends another 1-2 weeks held up at the port/customs/VPC. Many variables with NO ONE willing to guarantee delivery time, for good reason.