kraut56

The car is doing just fine right now: drive it almost everyday, and the only "real" repairs have been a right rear wheel speed sensor and a bent front right inner tie rod.

Other expenses like used spare wheels with tires, oil filters and oil for both engine and suspension, special battery charger, and (spare) coil pack are not really must-do.

I will give a total expense summary after October, when I will have one year on the car.

Enjoy all my threads, and how I deal with issues.

Understand I have all the tools and am very capable in using them. This is a "hobby" car for me - not the primary.

clmallow

While the S600 is not *currently* my primary car (I also have a 2001 Jaguar VDP), I am hoping against all hope that i might be able to make it my primary some day.

However, after having read through s600newbie's posts on the other forum, I'm absolutely terrified of what I have gotten myself into. I don't have the resources or knowledge to fix things myself (I'm relying on my Indy mechanic mentioned earlier, a 50%+ discount on all parts I get through a rep friend at AutoZone, and these forums!) nor the bank account to afford to maintain this thing.

As I said in response to one of s600newbie's threads: I think I just made the biggest $15,000 mistake of my life.

This is what happens when you pull the trigger based purely on desire instead of taking the time to educate yourself about something. Very, very difficult lesson learned here.

MBNUT1

clmallow, For a bit of spiritual uplift read this thread

https://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w...2003-s600.html

Astro14

Clmallow- you've bought one of the finest cars ever built. There is nothing like it in terms of engineering, sophistication, luxury, power and performance. The S600 is the car Duesenberg or Packard would have built if they still made cars. Yep, price of ownership is high, but this a passion, not an appliance with which to get to work. When I hear that V-12 light off, the grin is hard to get off my face.

I currently own 7 cars (and have owned quite a few more) - the MB S600 is like none of them, save that grand old 81 year old lady in the garage. It is the spiritual sucessor to an 81 year old car with wool broadcloth on the seats, adjustable suspension, a straight eight engine of impeccable smoothness and prodigious torque that can keep up in modern traffic when cars 1/4 of her age are all in junkyards.

For going to the airport, daily commuting, or providing transportation to teenagers, I would recommend a Corolla. For the sheer enjoyment of man and machine, for memorable road trips, for the closest thing you can get to an F-14, the S600 has no equal.

tusabes

The pre turbo s600s are riddled with expensive problems and repairs will easily exceed the $15000 purchase cost . There is a reason they are so cheap - because they have so many expensive problems

Welwynnick

Well, my TT has been much more expensive to keep than my NA 600, but then there are some much more compelling compensations.

What has surprised me is that the regular running costs (fuel, servicing, insurance etc) are very similar.

Nick

kraut56

Nick,
amen to that!

Although my NA S600 (April 2002) is so far quite trouble free and enjoys the summer driving, I'm very cautious nevertheless.

But, at only 83 000 km ( 50 000 miles) I knock on wood hoping never to see some of the horror stories of others. I did however observe that most of these horror stories was with cars with more than 200 000 km ( 120 000 Miles), so I hope that I am not affected as badly.

The running cost so far has been minimal, but, I will post a year total after October.

Tusabes is maybe a little biased, for whatever reason. Did he ever own one???

tusabes

I've had two sl600s and a cl500

I prefer my s430- No abc suspension and no v12 problems

kraut56

Great! So how did you make out with the S600s and at what milage?

I'm keen to hear.

Zach8131

So a 2001 S600 non-turbo with 87,000 miles for $5,000??

kraut56

Do your homework here about the true condition of the car (check for all the known problems posted at the forums), and yes, that's about what it's worth. Better have a lot of spare cash for the unknown and unexpected. You should be able to fix cars yourself, because most of the problems can be diagnosed only by MB, unless you have your own MB STAR diagnostic system.

In my opinion any S600 that has been modified to look "cool" is a no-no to me, because it probably was abused. Mine is stock with zero mods.

tusabes

Sold them both bc of four figured problems