Well, it's time for a new car. I've been through a 86 560 SEC (loved this car to death), and now drive an 88 300SE. It's time for an upgrade and more around the $20k range. My father owns a beautiful green S500 Coupe and I love the looks of this car and the looks it receives . Well it's between a coupe 94-97 S500 coupe, preferably Silver. I'm 18 and in college, currently. I'm getting a pretty nice job soon,so I will be able to afford this car. I am hoping to find one in good condition, setup a $5k reserve for maintenance throughout the year. Of course I will be adding to that money each month so it will continue to grow and will be able to take care of any problems on the fly. My plans are to invest money into this car on some nice wheels, a bad audio system, any kind of performance mods as well that will fit within the budget. I plan on keeping this car for a good 5-7 years, until it's time to upgrade. I am stuck on this car, because I loved my 560SEC and this car has a lot of similiarities and reminds me of it. The design demands attention, it still looks like a $50-60K car. This car is rare as well, I've only seen 2 around town, compared to the E-class, which are very plentiful. I know it performs about the same as the 560 SEC, which was surprising to see, I was expecting a substantial step up. I would like to put a body kit on later on maybe Wald, which looks real slick IMO! I do notice these cars are selling very cheap now, which is great for me, but I'm hoping they won't depreciate too much more. The 560SEC's, which are over 15 years old are still selling in the $10-15K range in good condition. Ok, well what do you guys think? Any people that would steer me away from this option and lean towards the E430 Sport, or does this sound like a good plan?
*Excuse any Type-O's*

Good luck in finding one. I have a Silver S-600 coupe. I would check on the cost of insurance due to your age. With mine being a V12 maintenance is a little more. I have posted some things in the thread titled "Looking into buying '96 S500 coupe, what problems can I expect?"

I would suggest that you look at a 96 or newer due to some of the issues that were fixed in 96.

Nice car but id go with the e430, much more practical... never use the words "invest" in the same sentance as "car"- no car is an investment if you are stuck on the "tank" then try and get a 96 ad newer- i believe that was the year the put a more reliable tranny also the quirks with the ac system were reduced... i think it will be hard to get a e430 sport for $20k- unless it has 1002132miles... for $20k why dont you look at something that requires a little less attention (less miles) german cars are no bargain and if you do find a s-class/e430 for 20k then youll be paying big maintence/repair bills to offset that low price

Well, I've been in Mercedes all my life (past 2 cars), my dad has driven all Mercedes ever since I was 5. Nothing else really appeals to me. I know that you have to pay the price in maintenance to drive in luxury, but if that's what it takes, so be it. I love the image of Mercedes, the quality, the reliability that is provided with Mercedes. My 300SE has 295,000 miles and is running without skipping a beat. My 560SEC got up to 286,000 and was running as strong as ever and that was after I aolmost abused that car. I didn't change the oil or any fluids in that car for a year and a half, but it was still running strong. I sold it and the guy says he has no complaints whatsoever. That was my first car at 16 and I have become much more responsible when it comes to taking care of my car. The E430, I know can be found for under 20K. I found one on a visit to Houston for $18.9k with 75,000 miles. It's smaller than I would like. I love big cars and coupes even more. I'm telling you my 560SEC spoiled me for life. Mynext purchase in 5 years will likely be the newer CL 500 or 600. I'd of course pass that up for an E55 . So right now the coupe is looking like a definite. Things are really looking good for me now, so I may never have to sell this car, but hopefully will be in a position to give it away rather than sell it. I know that sounds crazy, but if I don't need the money, I'd rather bless someone in need with it. Someone who is doing something for themselves, not just any person off the street. My only concern was with the starting up maintenance, so hopefully with a $5000 reserve I will be ok, given I add to that amount each month.

If your looking at an S500 I would think $5K would be a safe amount to start with. But I would recomend having the car checked out by a dealer. My dealer told me they would charge $70 to check over a car when I bought my first one. I would also do a carfax report just for the history.

I purchased my S600 from this dealer and they have done all the maintenance for me and the previous owner. I have had the car almost 8 months and had about $2000.00 in unexpected maintenance costs. But again that is for a 600. I have spent another $1000+ in Oil changes, 45000 mile service and tires.

I also have one other thing I need to fix. The seat belt presenter on the drivers side has a gear missing some teeth. I did some research on this and there is a company in Cal. that makes new gears for this but has not finished the one for the w140. I am waiting to spend the $50 for the replacement gear instead of spending 637.00 for the new motor assembly that includes the gear.

Hope this helps you with your decision. Good luck