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I’ve been skimming this forum because I’m thinking of buying an ML550. I see a lot of posts from the BT and 350 owners but not much from the 550 owners. I’m not in a hurry to buy and looking for a good deal on a low mileage truck. My nephew is a Star certified MB tech at the dealership a few miles from my house. He’ll take care of the PPI. Sold my CLK550 last year.
16 E550 Cab, 2003 Ram bright red crewcab 4x4 we call Clifford :)
They are pretty rare, I was looking last year but couldn't find one local so went to test drive a ML63 just as a comparison..... i was in trouble the moment it started and i heard the exhaust... hence we own it
Hopefully someone who has one will pipe up.... do you plan to tow ?
2013 E350 wagon cuprite brown; sold:2014 ML63; R500 Saks Edition; R500; more W124s than I can count
I had the same experience. I had trouble finding a low mileage ML550 with Airmatic. Found a CPO ML63 at a local dealer. The truck had been on the lot for a while and I would up paying not a lot more than I would have for a 550...it is very quick and as mrmotoguzzi00 said, the exhaust note is very entertaining, especially on overrun.
I’ve been looking at the ML63 as well. I’m only limiting my search to the US. Don’t mind doing a fly and drive or ship. I don’t plan to tow. Wife has a 17 Yukon and I also have a 17 Ram with a HEMI
16 E550 Cab, 2003 Ram bright red crewcab 4x4 we call Clifford :)
Cool, if ya don't mind me asking what do you plan to do with it ?
I started looking for something to tow a 5k lb boat... that wasn't a large truck.... aka smallest thing possible to tow the boat.... not being a truck made the list pretty small... contemplated a GL550 but dont need the 3rd row of seats, kids are all grown.... and back to the... wanted the smallest thing... blah blah
I like vehicles that get out of their own way... so a v6 was out.... aka ml350/gle350
Cool, if ya don't mind me asking what do you plan to do with it ?
I started looking for something to tow a 5k lb boat... that wasn't a large truck.... aka smallest thing possible to tow the boat.... not being a truck made the list pretty small... contemplated a GL550 but dont need the 3rd row of seats, kids are all grown.... and back to the... wanted the smallest thing... blah blah
I like vehicles that get out of their own way... so a v6 was out.... aka ml350/gle350
Any questions on the ML I can answer ?
It will be my daily driver. I want something with power but don’t want a sports car. I loved my CLK550 but it felt like a chick car and I was always worried about parking anywhere. My Jeep Rubicon that is heavily modded for Offroad and not comfortable enough. The RAM is mine but it’s my brother in laws primary vehicle. Also been looking at Cayenne S and GTS, but i don’t have a nephew that that is a factory trained Porsche tech.
16 E550 Cab, 2003 Ram bright red crewcab 4x4 we call Clifford :)
Originally Posted by BigMike62
It will be my daily driver. I want something with power but don’t want a sports car. I loved my CLK550 but it felt like a chick car and I was always worried about parking anywhere. My Jeep Rubicon that is heavily modded for Offroad and not comfortable enough. The RAM is mine but it’s my brother in laws primary vehicle. Also been looking at Cayenne S and GTS, but i don’t have a nephew that that is a factory trained Porsche tech.
Have you driven one yet ? I was sold after that..... and the dealer wasn't greedy.... gave me within $500 of what i payed for my 2 yr old wrangler (12k miles) and asked for mid between retail and wholesale for the ML63... was hard to say no.
I have a 2014 ML550 and pretty happy with it; it was very hard to find and I had to fly to Chicago to get it. It’s very comfortable to drive, very easy to maneuver, and oddly quieter than my E550. Very much a highway vehicle. What else do you want to know about it?
I bought a CPO'd '14 ML550 earlier this year and so far, it has been fantastic. I spent several weeks looking for the unicorn that had the exact color and options I wanted and finally located it down in Florida. Grabbed a flight and drove it home to Atlanta. The long drive was a real eye opener - the ML550 is powerful, quick, beyond comfortable, and effortless to drive. Although I dearly still love our '08 ML550, the W166 version of same is a huge step up with more luxury, more features and a true "master of the road" sensation when you're driving it. What's funny is that in shopping for it, I did not have either the blind spot assist or the lane warning options on my must have list. After experiencing them, however, I would definitely add them to the "must have" options list.
Find one you want, buy CPO if you can; you simply will NOT regret it.
I bought a CPO'd '14 ML550 earlier this year and so far, it has been fantastic. I spent several weeks looking for the unicorn that had the exact color and options I wanted and finally located it down in Florida. Grabbed a flight and drove it home to Atlanta. The long drive was a real eye opener - the ML550 is powerful, quick, beyond comfortable, and effortless to drive. Although I dearly still love our '08 ML550, the W166 version of same is a huge step up with more luxury, more features and a true "master of the road" sensation when you're driving it. What's funny is that in shopping for it, I did not have either the blind spot assist or the lane warning options on my must have list. After experiencing them, however, I would definitely add them to the "must have" options list.
Find one you want, buy CPO if you can; you simply will NOT regret it.
Thanks to everyone for their replies and information. This is what I was hoping to hear. I’ve only driven an 08 ML350 but plan to find a W166 550 to drive. From what I’ve seen, they’re out there. Since I’m a good 6 months out from buying, I don’t anticipate having a problem finding what I want. Our Yukon has blind spot and lane assist and I’d rather not have it even though the Yukon tells me I wander at times LOL. It even tells you when your eyes aren’t on the road for too long, creepy. CPO would be great if possible. I’m setting a budget of $40k which looks to be right to find what I want. White, silver, gray or blue. No black or red.
I’ve been skimming this forum because I’m thinking of buying an ML550. I see a lot of posts from the BT and 350 owners but not much from the 550 owners. I’m not in a hurry to buy and looking for a good deal on a low mileage truck. My nephew is a Star certified MB tech at the dealership a few miles from my house. He’ll take care of the PPI. Sold my CLK550 last year.
I have a 2014 ML550 I found at Myrtle Beach dealership and a CPO. Paid to extend warranty to 4 years unlimited mile warranty. I have had it for 18 months, best car I have ever owned. Took me 6 months to find it, and only about 2% of MLs that year were 550's. They usually are highly optioned, mine stickered new for $83K.
Just recently added K and N air filters, and damn what a difference it makes. PITA to change them, but once i got the air boxes opened up, it looks like they had never been changed, after 70k miles! Now it lights the traction control light on first second shift. This car is a sleeper and i now can hit under 5 sec 0-60. Retune you can get to 500 hp with no other mods. Be patient, it will be worth it.
I drove a a 2014 ML550 in May and really liked it. The dealer played stupid games and I walked. I regretted it for a few months. In August I found a 2014 ML400 and while it wasn't as powerful as the ML550 it was well above the ML350.
As far as the K&N filters when I owned a shop I removed them frequently. All the grit and garbage that you find in the normal filters I found in the airbox or through out the intake system. If you are trying to shorten the life of your engine and turbo's they work great for that.
I have a 2013 ML550 and think it is a great car. The power and ride are very satisfying. At this point I'm waiting for the release of the GLE53. My ML550 is for sale.
I just found my Unicorn. A diamond white 2014 ML550 with all the bells and whistles with 58k miles. Picked it up from a Land Rover store from a single owner trade for a fantastic cash deal. Took it to my dealership for a pre-purchase inspection (a definite must as out of warranty), and was told buy it, or someone here will. By way of comparison, it drives quite different than the ML350 which I also have. Same chassis, but totally different driving experience with the bi-turbo 8. Love the drink cooler/heater! Its a heavy vehicle about 400lbs more than the 350. Off the line she's not like my SLK, but still very quick. The real plus is acceleration from 50-100+. It is effortless. After 2014 they went down to a bi-turbo 6 with far less hp. Be mindful she's a gas hog...about 16 mph average.The best I have gotten on the highway was 22 mph. Bottom line, if you are an MB ML fan, this is a gem. If you can afford it, you can't afford not to....
I have a 2013 ML550 in Diamond White Ice also and mine has 47,000 miles. I am the original owner. I will be selling mine in a few months. Another unicorn? Contact me if you are interested .
I just found my Unicorn. A diamond white 2014 ML550 with all the bells and whistles with 58k miles. Picked it up from a Land Rover store from a single owner trade for a fantastic cash deal. Took it to my dealership for a pre-purchase inspection (a definite must as out of warranty), and was told buy it, or someone here will. By way of comparison, it drives quite different than the ML350 which I also have. Same chassis, but totally different driving experience with the bi-turbo 8. Love the drink cooler/heater! Its a heavy vehicle about 400lbs more than the 350. Off the line she's not like my SLK, but still very quick. The real plus is acceleration from 50-100+. It is effortless. After 2014 they went down to a bi-turbo 6 with far less hp. Be mindful she's a gas hog...about 16 mph average.The best I have gotten on the highway was 22 mph. Bottom line, if you are an MB ML fan, this is a gem. If you can afford it, you can't afford not to....
Just curious - what did you pay for it? I'm thinking about picking one up soon and want to see some numbers
It’s been a while since I posted in this thread. We ended up trading my wife’s Yukon on a 2016 CPO GLE350 4Matic w/20k miles. I couldn’t get her to go older to an ML550. Happy to have the CPO warranty and a vehicle basically restored to new condition. 7 page report from the service department of the work that was done.
08-08-2018, 01:33 PM
