Debating between some E500's I found and a couple of Sclass that caught my eye. I LOVE the W220-221 more than any other model out there. This one I found is a 2000 S430, only 48k miles, clear carfax, meticulously maintained- soooooo what do you guys think about it? I feel like it really should be a great car that should last a long time without too many issues. I have plenty of funds set aside for repairs and lots of preventative maintenance to give my baby lots of TLC- and I wanna do some lighting upgrades, ground lights, interior ambient lights, custom exhaust tips, some fun stuff like that. SO, do you think it is a good deal? Or should I jump a few years up and pay more $ to go with a newer model with still good mileage? Here are the three finalist- LET ME KNOW your thoughts guys! I need help for sure

Car #1- https://www.truecar.com/used-cars-fo...-benz-s-class/
Car #2-
http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invento...ting=180035322

Car #3-
http://www.cargurus.com/Cars/invento...ting=178392681

Alright- which would you buy??

Aweeeee snap, you are right! Shoot, is there a way I can move it?

I've owned two 220's and loved them. I'd recommend 04 and up since the car got a lot of upgrades after the 04 facelift. And while I liked the 430, the 500 had upgraded leather and heated/cooled seats standard. And try to find one with the AMG appearance Package. Most 500's got them, a few 430s. Helps kill the Granny Factor.

Okay, cool cool! SO you think the second car is the best one? It's the silver on stone white interior, 2004 S500 with only 58,000 listed at $11,600 (which I think I can talk them down to 10k). I can't tell if it has the AMG styling, I don't think it does, but it looks good to me. I could always have body kits installed to any of the cars I may get though.

First link doesn't work. Second link is to a very nice S430 with a stone interior and no AMG kit but decent rims. The 3rd is to the 2000.

These are nice cars but they can do some damage on the budget with repairs. While you can buy a 220 for $10k now, parts are still priced for the $80,000 car it once was. AirMatic causes problems, I've had a 500 eat a $6000 tranny. Engine mounts and transmission mounts collapse, rear main seals leak, etc. A spark plug change on a 500 is around $500 ( 16 plugs, and part of the engine has to be removed to reach the most rearward plugs.

They hold up well and can look brand new, and have a perfect CARFAX and maintenance history and still bite you. If you basically double the asking price on a $10k 220 that's probably where you'll be in three years.

The real downside is that you pay $10k for the car, which is market value. If it needs another $10k in repairs, that money does nothing to increase the market value. Now it's a $10k car you have $20k into (and climbing). But if you're ok paying for the car and repairs just to have and enjoy the car, go for it. They're amazing!

Okay I fixed the links- they should all work now. The first is a blk 2000 S430, the second is a 2004 blue/silver, and the last is a silver 2004 for like 11,600 I believe. When you click the links, just give them a second, because they don't take you to the correct listing right away. So which do you think is the best deal in terms of mileage vs year vs price? I like the last two the most, but the first one is the most affordable- so I am torn ya know? I love the color combo of the second one and the tinted windows, and the last one is just overall a really strong car, extremely clean and so forth and it has better mileage than the 2nd one.

Of those the 04 S500. I put an AMG body kit on my 430. It's 4 pieces: Front bumper cover, rear bumper cover, two side skirts. All you need are the actual bumper covers (and grills up front). All of the inner structure and hardware are the same. Also the moulding across the front will transfer. I pieced mine together from OEM parts on EBay and had a shop shoot and install. Came out perfect.

Okay thansk for all of your advice man! I am pretty aware of the repair costs- but I am also hardly driving the car over the next few years, plus I will have a two yer bumper-bumper warranty and am paying for this in cash upfront. SO I feel, at the end of the day, with one of these with the lower miles- sure I will have to do repairs and whatnot and they are costly, but from all that I have read (and again, with the very few miles I will be putting on them) I don't anticipate having to do too much to them. Besides, I may only own the car for the next 4 years or so. I have already set aside 8-10K for any repairs and maintenance on top of my warranty. So, fingers crossed, cause I LOVE these cars and I want one so bad haha!

Looks like you have it figured out. While there was a lot I liked about the 221, the 220s were the last of the "elegant" S Class.

I think there are many folks who would disagree with you about this. The W220 was the shrunken Lexus-ized Benz that went more mainstream. I think MB tried to return to the elegance and stateliness that they had with the W140 when they developed the larger, more posh, and tech laden W221.

Ha! I'm sure their are.

To my eye, the hood star looked out of place on the 221. For me the 221 looked best playing to its athletic, sporty nature. Gorgeous lines and with the AMG kit it was perfect. I didn't like the interior as much as the 220. Hate the column mounted shifter vs a "proper" gear selector. The wood trim on the 221 looked over processed to the point it looked like it could be plastic, where the 220 had very natural looking wood trim.

Much preferred the 220 seats. Despite having tons more adjustments I never got the 221 seat right. Vastly prefer the Bose audio to the HK. On the road, there's not a lot of daylight between the two.

I liked my 221 a lot, especially after I did the audio and the S63 diffuser and exhaust, but I wasn't sad to see it go like I was my 220s.

Oh man, I totally agree with you! I love EVERYTHING about the 220s. Oh and also I am getting a comprehensive/bumper to bumper warranty. Now I realize they do not cover literally EVERYTHING, but I am thinking that it should cut down on many of the costly repairs people talk about, plus it will protect me from any of the major components going wrong and leaving me high and dry. Do you have any thoughts about this?

The seats in the W221 are certainly firm. But I think they are more comfortable with the upgraded leather in the S600 than they are in the S550 and S63. Amazingly, after 11 years, the seats in my car still look and feel brand new at every seating position, as does the leather that wraps the dash, doors, and armrests. I'm assuming the firmness has contributed to the longevity of quality. I've driven a few S550's and they feel cheap compared to the materials in the S600. I haven't driven a W220 since the early 2000's when I was comparing them to Lexus, but a cursory view of cars up for sale shows the vast improvements in the W221.

I do know that there is a much higher level of quality cooked into the W221 at all trim levels. From COMAND to little things such as the aluminum switches throughout, the W221 is very much more upscale car than the W220. Unless you're an audiophile (which you obviously are), the HK system likely seems just fine. I do sometimes miss the richness of sound in the Lexus ML system, but as I get older even that is starting to wane.

Oh it's very much a subjective thing. I haven't been in a 220 since I had the 221. I may get in one and think WTF?!

The car I really want now is the 04-06 CL.

Any warranty is better than nothing. I don't know if anyone will write a decent exclusionary warranty on a car that old.

Off the subject but I just rented this thing for a couple weeks on vacation. Full report when I get back.

Too bad it isn't the 435i. That turbo motor is a blast in that smallish car. But I think you'll enjoy that car a lot.

Yeah I have no idea what's in it but it's smooth and sounds great. Decent power too. Drives nice even on run flats. We're meandering up the east coast for a couple of weeks. Figured the vert would be fun. We'll see. Wind can get old.

My first s class was the 2000 s 430 in black with tan interior. What a great car. If I were buying, I would probably sacrifice some mileage to get the newest version that fit my budget. So, maybe up to 60,000 miles for something like a 2004.

The only big issue I had with mine was suspension related. I think I bought new shocks for the back and was able to have the fronts rebuilt. If one of the cars had the suspension worked on, it might be a good choice.

Yeah 04 to 06 were much more reliable than the first iteration (2000-2003). They had the kinks worked out by the face lift. Plus the newer widescreen navi. 60k is about where the AirMatic starts having issues. Ideally you find one where the prior owner had eaten a big AirMatic repair and decided to unload the car before something else went.

The 2000 navigation was almost useless but cool for the time. It wasn't screen quality, rather the typing addresses, etc. I don't know whether or not the navigation system could be upgraded (using MB stuff) enough to help.

Yeah, I had found a nice 2004 and a 2005 with 58K miles on it. But, after all of my research and all of the reading on these forums, I have decided to not get a Benz right now I am super bummed, but I just can't afford a car that breaks down all the time. I am too scared to buy one now haha! So, I guess I will jst continue to love them from afar until I can afford to get a newer one some day. For now, I have decided on a gorgeous 2006 Infiniti M45 sport- I LOVE the styling, plush interior, sleek designs, beast of an engine, and the reliability is rated very high with the lowest repair costs of all the big luxury vehicles.

completely off base yeah lol

it looks really nice though i wonder how it drives

I would own that car in a snap if it has no rust between the doors on the bottom. Fairly straight forward to repair and imo better ride quality than the 221.

I have a write up on the 205 board (Sleeping With The Enemy). By day two I was head over heals in love with it. I vastly prefer it to the C. Drives great.