RonCL55

Well, to follow up on the prior comments and notwithstanding that the S coupe is a great car, I have decided to list mine for sale. I think now is the right time to move on while the car is still under warranty.

I am not intending to be a Debbie Downer on the car, but unfortunately I have decided it just doesnt hold up to my expectations. Probably this is a personal problem of mine because I used to own a CL55 and based on that car I had pretty high expectations. So here is my thinking that resulted in this decision.

First, the S coupe is an absolutely drop dead gorgeous car both inside and out. In my case, with the Magnetite metallic black exterior and Designo red interior with Flowing Lines, I dont think I could get a car better suited to me personally from an appearance standpoint. That is why I bought it in the first place. But at the end of the day, the exterior of the car looks the same as every other S, E and C coupe in my neighborhood (and there are a ton) and so there is nothing unique about it like the appearance of my CL. For me that is a significant issue.

Second, the S coupe handles nowhere near as well as my CL. As many have said, they are fine with a highway cruiser, but for me that is probably the most significant issue and it was frankly very unexpected. I was expecting something that handled at least as well as my CL since it was 10 years newer. I simply failed to do my homework on this issue.

So overall every time I drive the S coupe I cannot help comparing it to my prior CL and I come away disappointed. For me this is obviously a personal comparison issue and it is unlikely to affect others. But I cannot get past it. You have to love the one you are with and not constantly compare her to a prior love interest. So it is probably best for me to move on. However for the right person, I think the S coupe is a great car and I dont want to overstate my personal issues. So please take everything I say with a grain of salt.

Good luck to the rest of you with your S coupes. It is still a gorgeous car inside and out!

haa

The Air-Matic suspension is a mixed blessing, it allowed for all wheel drive so it is awesome for those of us in snow belt areas but it is nowhere as good as the ABC when it comes to handling. It appears that MB has decided on one look for all their cars coupes and sedans and SUVs with the exception of the G, SL and GT and that really sucks! The new A-Class is the same as the C, E and S even standard equipment and options are almost the same!

amgboy916

Appreciate the honest opinon and insight, I guess I only have one last question for you,

what car do you think is next?

also with that being said would you truly take a CL over the S coupe? ive heard that the W222 sedan has magic body control, I may consider that option if the S coupe handling is really that bad


also its important to note you went from an AMG to a regular mercedes. I feel AMG is more performance and handling oriented while the S550 is more focused on comfort so I don't think its fair to expect it to handle like an AMG

RonCL55

Thanks amgboy 916. It really was not like going from an AMG to a regular Mercedes. All CLs had the same ABC suspension system so even the base model was better than all current S coupes.

The only exception to that is the $230K S65 coupe with the magic body control system that you mentioned. That is an upgraded ABC system. I was actually thinking about getting a S65 and was negotiating with a dealer for a 2 year old “new” one but then I did a reality check. I couldn’t see paying that kind of money for a car that is indistinguishable from a C class to most people.

However, I dont want to come off as too negative here. This is a personal problem for me because every time I drove my S I compared it to my CL and that is not a good thing.

In reality the S coupe is an awesome car and I would say that my S both inside and out was the most beautiful car I ever owned. It also doesnt handle “really bad”, it just doesnt handle “really good”.

In terms of you question about the sedan, I am not sure. I have not paid that much attention to sedans because I am a coupe guy. However, sedans have always been worth significantly less than coupes and so it is tough to compare.

What’s next? Not sure. First I have to sell my S coupe and then we will see. For now I will use my four seater Ferrari as my daily driver until I sell my S and get my next toy. I was just looking at a 52 Studebaker coupe restomod with current running gear. So you never know! My criteria is it has to look unique and handle incredibly well. I know, I am nuts (imagine if I take a 52 Studebaker over a 16 S Coupe)!

lexnoir

I think we need to add the horrible voice recognition to the list.

Ron...I'm going to need you to post pics of all your cars.

RonCL55

Thanks Lexoir. . Funny you ask this. I just contracted to buy a black 65 Vette yesterday subject to an acceptable PPI. A bit out of my comfort zone because it is a convertible and I am a coupe guy. So here is a picture. I still have the S Coupe but I will probably sell that in a few days, that is the second picture. I have a Ferrari which is going to be a lifetime keeper, that is the third picture.

Don’t want to come off as too shallow here (though my wife will tell you I am). I either love a car and it is a lifetime keeper or I move on. I typically buy a car that is well depreciated so I dont get hurt too bad if I decide to move on. That is what I did with the S coupe. I would have had my CL55 forever but I totaled it. So the 4th car picture is an homage that CL55. That was the best car I ever owned, bar none.

I love cars and I will always have as many as I have garage space for.

lexnoir

The shallow part made me laugh. I man is entitled to his toys! Nothing shallow about that. Wow that Vette is sexy. Get it get it! How's the Ferrari? When I bought my Porsche Panamera I had high hopes for it. But it really wan't something I was in love with. If we're paying homage, I have to pay homage to my 2008 CL which I agree was one of my favorite cars! I typically get rid of my cars after 2 years. So I have a long list of cars I've ran through. I usually get rid of them after 2 years while the value is still good. But I put too many miles on a car to lease and I can only afford 1 toy! As I have other hobbies. Before you criticize the wheels, I know...I never loved them.

RonCL55

Lexnoir, the CL looks awesome. A Benz in black is a wonderful thing. I also agree with you about the wheels. They really make or break a car. I do think you made an awesome wheel choice on your current S Coupe. I am surprised about the Porsche, I would have thought that would have been a good car, but I have never driven in one (as I said, not a sedan guy—though I did have an 01 E55 once which was totally raw, bolted to the ground and I loved it).

The thing about the Ferrari is it is a big coupe much like the S coupe and not like other Ferrari’s out there (which are toys that cannot be really driven regularly). So I am elevating the Ferrari to my daily driver. The Corvette is my first venture into a pure weekend toy category, before that I have always viewed my cars as regular drivers.

If you are a high mileage guy I get it in terms of turning them over (I am the opposite, I probably put about 6000 miles per year combined on all vehicles). On your current S since you own it, I would suggest selling it before the end of the current warranty or buying the extended OEM warranty and then selling it. It always makes a car more attractive to guys like me if the car has a solid warranty so that I dont have to worry about buying problems.

lexnoir

Thank you, black is beautiful. But a pain in the *** to maintain. Since I almost always buy black cars I decided to flip it and go white this time. I'm going to go online and check out that 612 Ferrari. I'm sure that sucker handles better than the S Coupe lol. I tend to trade my cars in, so no need for me to get a warranty. I always get something and say I'm keeping this forever, I just have a really short attention span when it comes to cars.

That stingray is bad ***. Do you mind me asking how much it's going for?

RonCL55

I paid $63K for it. Honestly, it was a bit of a struggle for me. I really wanted a “restomod” that was totally done. I love the looks of old cars but hate the mechanics and how they drive. So I was looking for something that was totally done up with new running gear and very driveable. However, I couldn’t find anything that fit the bill (there were ones that were show cars that were 200k but then you could never drive them for fear of injury and that is also insane money). So I went in the other direction. This is a totally restored car that is supposed to have had every nut and bolt brought back to original. It has the original engine and transmission and the engine was recently rebuilt. The interior is also brand new. All that makes it valuable is some people’s minds (hence the price). What I am going to do is drive it for a while and figure out what I want to do with it. Likely that will be a new GM crate motor and a 5 or 6 speed automatic transmission, Willwood disc brakes and a killer stereo (no existing sound system to fuss with!). Since the car is fully restored now, the theory is that I just have to bolt on things I want to make it more driveable and it should be good to go. The engine and transmission should be $10 to 15K so it wont be that bad. We will see if the theory holds.

lexnoir

Congrats! You literally have me looking at classics now, my friend just restored a 69 Impala, and he's looking to pickup something else. So I'm getting the itch too. Enjoy the toy.

RonCL55

If you are getting the itch, here is something that I came real close to buying. It is a 54 Studebaker. The paint is an incredible deep metallic grey (probably cost at least $10 K). It has a new frame, a huge new engine and brand new automatic transmission and brakes. On the exterior and running gear wise the car is awesome. On the interior the guy tried to keep it “original” and restored the bench seats with cloth. I would bag the benches front and back and put 4 bucket seats in it and then you would have a fabulous car, totally unique, totally driveable car. The nice thing is they are only “asking” $34K for it and probably it would only take a couple of thousand to do up the interior. Best deal out there that I know of (and I did see it live). If I had a 4 car garage this would be in it.

lexnoir

That's clean, just not my style.

RonCL55

That’s why car ownership is so fun. There is something for everybody.

HAILERS2

Just like the CL's I've owned, the doors will close on your leg when getting out if the car is on the slightest grade or if the wind is blowing againt the door as you get out.

Can't tilt the sunroof to keep the car cooler when your parked for some time. Same problem with a XJL.

Runflats are a darn sight quieter than the 20" tires I had on the CL.

lexnoir

I agree on the door. Whenever I'm opening the passenger door for a female they have to duck the corner of the glass.

As far as the XJL, I had a 2011 XJL my sunroof tilted and opened. What year do you have?

exi

Ron, stupid question, but is this magnetite or obsidian black, or something else entirely? I don't think I've seen a pic that shows off the actual color so well. Looks sharp. Helpful since I'm in a selenite grey metallic S now, and next time around, I'm either going back to black -- as in 040 black -- or one of the two metallic shades.

HAILERS2

I've a '17 bought in Dec '17 now with 40K miles. Sorry about the comment aboou how the roof won't tilt. It does tilt. I was just brain dead when I wrote that.

That said, I tilt my ML almost daily but can't remember ever tilting the XJL. Never have fully opened the XJ roof.

I found another irritant about the S Coupe. Usually when I get in a car, I reach over my left shoulder and grab the seat belt prior to starting the car. Unfortunaltey on the S the belt isn't offered up til the starter button is pushed. I'll learn a new/different habit with this S Class.

I read a post above with photos of a C class and S class and how they look sooooo similar. That made me feel better abouit the XJ when I drove it today.

RonCL55

Sorry for the delay, been traveling. It is magnetite. In my opinion that is the best black that Mercedes has. I like metallic and the magnetite has flecks of grey in it. The other think is magnetite is not that common and so it distinguishes your car from other black Mercedes (which is always a good thing._

exi

No worries. Looks far better than other sunlit pictures I've seen of the color. I assume looks actually black, close to 040 black, in low light / cloudy days?

RonCL55

It does. Here is a Magnetite car (not the one I had) on a cloudy day.

exi

Thank you! Helpful with your first picture. Better representation of the pics I've looked at in the past.

RonCL55

So here is a little news that I heard this morning. 3 months ago I sold my 2016 S Coupe to my neighbor for $67K. It is the car shown in post number 67 above. He just told me that he traded it in the other day for a Maserati. So the car will be on to its 5th owner and only has 21K miles on it and is still under warranty. It will likely be “tainted” because of the number of owners in a short time and likely will be wholesaled somewhere. It is actually a good car if you are looking for a black S Coupe, it has a perfect exterior with no nicks dents or scratches and it has a stunning red and black interior and is loaded (sticker was $135K). So somebody will buy it and likely get a really good deal. It is still under the factory warranty until the end of the year (which can be extended) and at 20K miles I did a full servicing on it and replaced the brakes all around. So you might want to look for this VIN number as it likely would be a pretty good buy for someone. WDDXJ8FB6GA013039

On another note, I bought OEM AMG 20 inch stagger block wheels for the car and never used them. They are still in the factory boxes and have never been mounted. They look like the wheels shown in post number 71 above. If anybody is interested I am going to put them on eBay next week.

jeckyl&HydeS63

What are you asking for the rims and where are you location?

RonCL55

I was going to put it on EBay for auction with a reserve of $1500. If you are interested now I could sell if for the reserve price plus shipping. I am in Southern California. I have not yet figured out with EBay what the shipping costs are but the box sizes are:

2 at 22”x22”x10.5” at 34.8 lbs
2 at 22”x22”x11.5” at 35.6 lbs