Hi everyone,

I'll be purchasing an e550 in the very near future and looking into buying a warranty.

I've received two quotes and I'm pretty shocked that the MB warranty is so much cheaper than the aftermarket ones. After researching a lot, the only aftermarket one that I would consider was Fidelity and the price, for similar mileage and time is almost $1000 more than the MB one.

Is this normal? does the Fidelity one cover more than the MB one?

Someone will hopefully chime in if I am wrong.

The MB extended warranty is only available on new and CPO cars. An owner of a new car can extend the 4 years to 7 years, while a CPO owner got 1 additional year MB factory warranty and have the option to extend for two years. In both cases it is 7 years.

If you buy a non-CPO car, you do not have the option of a MB extended warranty. The original 4 year/48k mile warranty is the only MB warranty.

Depending on the aftermarket warranty detail for number of years and/or miles, I can see where the aftermarket would be more expensive than the MB warranty, especially if you compare a two year MB extended warranty to a 7 year aftermarket one.

Third party warranties are typically more expensive than the dealer warranties especially if you shop around with dealers to get the best pricing. There are threads on here with contact info for dealer in CA, TX and other places who will give you a great price on whatever you need that MB offers.

The MB ELW and CPO are different warranties. CPO is obviously a dealer used car for sale that they qualified for the CPO program. You get 1 year beyond the original factory warranty, if any left. You can extend for 2 additional years for up to 3 years total. No mileage limits on CPO.

MB ELW is available to purchase on any new or used (non-CPO) MB still under the factory warranty. However, if the car is already a CPO, then they won't allow the MB ELW to be purchased for it. IIRC MB ELW goes for up to 3 years after factory expires and there are options for 75k or 100k miles.

Also, I doubt that the Fidelity warranty covers more. The MB ELW offers the best coverage. It is an exclusive warranty meaning it covers everything except what is listed as excluded. IIRC they don't cover batteries, tires, glass, etc.

The CPO is an inclusive warranty meaning it only covers what it listed. Granted it lists most everything but their could be gaps.

However, it is not like you have a choice between the two since the car you like will either be CPO or not. Third party warranties would be your only option if you get a non-CPO that is out of the factory warranty.

I believe you can buy the MB extended warranty as long it still has some of the original MB warranty left on it. Price goes up if you don't buy it within 30 days of getting the car. It doesn't have to be the original owner. You can only buy the extended warranty if you buy the car from a non MB dealer or private party. If you buy from an MB dealer, you can only get the CPO warranty. If they sell it to you without the CPO warranty, you can't buy the extended warranty or CPO warranty. You can buy an additional 2 years on the CPO warranty from any MB dealer in the country so check the extended warranty thread for dealers to contact, some of them just basically sell it for $100 over their cost. Most dealers get a nice commission on selling 3rd party warranties which is probably why they're more money, not that they're better than an MB warranty. The two major problem with 3rd party warranties is that they may deny your claim and they may go out of business. Some of the major ones are less likely to do that, but that's why the MB warranty is the best. You also typically get a loaner when it's covered under the MB warranty. On the extended warranty you can also get some of your money back if you don't end up using it. You don't get it back on CPO and if you trade it in to a dealer, it expires although you can transfer it in a private party sale.

Is there a list that shows the difference between Original and CPO Warranties?

haven't seen a list. you can read the terms online of each and compare.