Looked at this S500 today, Has been resprayed due to a slight fender bender but in all starts and drives very well

Problems i noticed already, window passenger not working, indicator bulb needs replacing, passenger seats didn't seem to cool neither did the driver but heat worked

Can anyone guide me with this purchase on what else to look for

cheers

 

The cooling feature works poorly in the W220; even when it is working properly.

You have done some good checking, but I would definitely pay and have the car inspected. I bought mine on Ebay and it had dozens of undisclosed issues that were very costly to address. Are you buying from an owner or a dealer, if from an owner how long have they owned iy? How many prior owners. Mine had three previous owners and I can tell the last owner did not have the funds to maintain it.

 

I agree with what Mike said. You should get a Pre Purchase inspection prior to buying the car. Make sure who ever is inspecting the car, has a STAR diagnostic computer. The inspection should not only cover the electronics but the physical condition of the car. i.e. the Frame of the car, rust, etc.

Cost should be anywhere from $70-$160.

The car is a W220 S500 2000. That is a very bad year for Mercedes. If you can, try to avoid 1999-2002 models of the S class. People call it the Chrysler era, and it's not a good time for Mercedes. Things started getting better for Mercedes after 2003. $17,000 is overpriced for that car. I got my 2003 S430 with 113k miles for $5600. $6k OTD.

 

Way overpriced. I have about 115,000 on my 2003 and it has just about every single option available. ABC Suspension, heated steering wheel, 2 reclining seats in the rear, distronic, AMG sports body, V60 puck with bluetooth, AMG Chrome wheels, and I couldn't get that much if I were to sell it.

 

Most of us agree the price seems way over the top. What I don't know is used car pricing in Australia. Is there a huge import tax making a Mercedes much more expensive to buy than the USA? Are Mercedes rare and highly desirable in Australia?

For me, I would pass on a 2000-2002 W220 unless I knew the owner and all the updates were performed.

 

I though V220 is Long wheel base here in Aus
W220 Short
Please confirm


Prices here are very expensive, dealership charges $240 an hour

Few are locals i want to try out and they charge $100 an hour but doubt have the full STAR equipment

This car is from a dealership, 1 previous owner but bought from an insurance auction due to damage hence why the car has been fully resprayed

Also what do the 1 to 5 roll on switches do at base of each seat,

 

Thanks for that Mike, you know i had that in the back of mind yesterday when i realized it wasn't an update model ( when i looked at Radio )

Yes very small market for V220 here in Aus, good for bargaining but not much to choose from

 

Taking a look at all the data, you might want to take a deeper look at this vehicle. Some concerns include the pre-safe activation from the accident. The parts are very hard to diagnose, and even more hard to purchase and install. With the seat and window issues, seems there is a major repair cost exposure. The Star diagnoses is the way to go, along with an independent inspection of the body and feame repair. If a Star diagnostic is not available, investing in a i-car code reader for $130 US will identify many issues.

I had a pre-safe error in my S500, had to purchase two replacement seats and two seat belt assemblies (which have charges) at a very expensive price; but was less risk than having a dealer tear apart and diagnose at $130 an hour. The seat and seat belt safety systems are very complex and tough to service.

The salvage title is always a red flag. I think you should take a second look at paying for an inspection at a Mercedes dealer. At $300, it can easily save you may thousands.

Good luck.

 

Slammedv220, the switches at the base of the seats are for massaging and pulsation.

 

A full-capability STAR system can be purchased from China, with a final cost of $500 - $600 US. This would be a relatively cheap piece of equipment for a professional operation. It would seem very possible for a serious indy shop to have such a system. Whether they would have the knowledge and experience to fully utilize it would be another question.