midget fidger

My dad is considering buying a 2000 S430 from a family friend. It has 44,000 miles and they're probably selling it becase the warranty has expired or will expire very soon. I'm not quite sure if the price I heard (from someone who heard from someone who heard from someone...) of $30,000 was accurate or not, but the trade in value is $34,000 and if no one buys the car, he's going to trade it into the dealer for a new one. I think he ends up paying less tax on the new car that way. I've only seen/been in the car once and it appears to be in excellent condition. Nothing special on it, maybe just a CD changer. What would be an appropriate price? Is there anything to look out for on these first year S-classes? Are there any common problems with them? Do you guys know of anyone else that might want to sell theirs?

Thanks,
Jeff

midget fidger

oh, also, does anyone know how much extended warranties for these are? that's if the warranty hasn't already expired...

thanks

Crankin

They are good cars. The ac may be weak, though. If the button on the ac controller says acc off instaed of EC, it has been upgraded and will be better.

IluvS500

well do sum diggin through past threads cuz some people say that there are numerous problems with the 00 model year since its first year. But I guess if all the recall stuff has been fixed it shouldnt be a problem

highstylinS430

I've owned a 2000 S430 and they do have bugs. 2000 was the first year of the "W220" platform, which came on the market in mid '99. Mine was assembled in mid '99 so it was affected by some bugs. If the recalls have been fixed, it should be a great car. I had the speedometer & Command system (screen in middle with radio, phone, navigation) replaced 2 yrs after purchase.....but under warranty. And also a parking sensor replaced (Parktronic). I've heard from other threads on this site of the Airmatic failing and the car sinking down to the tires...I didn't have that. It's normal for the car to sink down slightly if it hasn't been started for few days, you'll notice the car "kneeling"....but once you start it up, the shocks are filled back with air to normal height.

One thing to remember is this car is loaded with electronics (i.e. Command system which is the screen that controls phone, cd, navigation) and can be be expensive to repair. The entire electrical system within the car is fiber optic.....very expensive. That's why the Bose stereo is great with fiber optic connection, clear signals sent to from radio to speakers. I highly recommend getting an extended warranty if you're buying from a private buyer (i.e. http://www.warrantybynet.com/) There's one advertised in Dupont Registry magazine called My SmartWarranty, which is probably a good one since they're advertised in that magazine for high end cars. The warranty on that car should be balance of 4 yrs./50,000 miles. About the price, Kelly Blue Book prices the car you said (from private seller) with just cd changer as option @ $39,800. Add an extended warranty and you've got an excellent car. The air suspension (Airmatic) is something to experience on the highways...always smooth and handles like a sports car at hwy speeds. S430 has harder leather than the S500 but it's more sturdy if you're going to use it alot. But if I had a choice, I'd get the S500 with Nappa leather, the S430's seats can be a little hard on long trips.

I'd also recommend, as I did, to buy from a Mercedes dealer. They do sell @ retail. Both of my certified Mercedes were bought at sticker but the price was good. Car should be "StarMark" certified/factory certified, def. a relief knowing it's been inspected by Mercedes technicians who deal with these cars everyday. mbusa.com has a national search to find cars from all the Mercedes dealers. You can buy extended warranties from the dealer which are really from Mercedes manufacturer itself. They are listed on:
http://www.mbusa.com/brand/container...dex.jsp&menu=1

Here's where you can get specs on the 2000 model year:
http://www.mbusa.com/brand/container...45678&menu=6_5

It's one of the best used cars to buy & on top list of researched cars on Kelly Blue Book's website, www.kbb.com. Hope this helps you out and best of luck! It's an awesome car.

midget fidger

thanks a lot for those links. i'll be checking around and update later on