zesarz4

Hello there! , i'm trying to decide between a:
s550 2007 82k miles 1 owner or

s550 2009 137k 4 owners

both of them have no accident reported and clean title same price
they are 5 hours away from me and thanks to my job i can't go see both of them.

Which is gonna be easier to maintain and less expensive.
I've heard the 2007 has more problems from this forum so any insight you guys have is welcome , and any question i should ask both of the dealers?

S430Sport

2007

One owner will have maintained it IMHO. Servicing gets lost once it changes owners unless they have a good records. Even then the new owner (You) will have just spent a chunk so getting things done as far as servicing it becomes an extra expense over and above the cost of the purchase. Make sure the servicing has been done to avoid them. The 2009 has 140K on it and I doubt that they have had a full transmission service. At least the 2007 has some meat on the bone so you have a breather till you need to service the trans. Ask for a DAS scan before you purchase.

slcbbrown

I usually assume that the mileage trumps a couple years. I like to plan on 100k miles from a car without big problems, and consider myself lucky to go the next 20k the same, and figure I'm driving a bit of a timebomb above 120,000 miles.

If I knew how the higher mileage car had been driven, I might adjust my thinking, but 4 owners makes that impossible. Also, 80k over ten years is pretty light duty, on paper.

If my mechanic said both cars looked good, for their ages, I'd drive the '07 cross country-- probably not the '09.

Mike5215

Oh no no no. Either of those cars will be repair and maintenance nightmares. While I don't discount the prior owner(s) adherence to the recommended maintenance schedule or the physical condition as contributing factors, the fact is there are literally tens of thousands of dollars worth of gear in a 221 that have no maintenance schedule whatsoever. They're fine one day and gone the next.

You could double the maintenance schedule and sacrifice a couple of virgins a month on the hood and a 221 will give absolutely zero f***s and still bite you on the ***.

These are great cars but terrible long term prospects as far as being a car that just needs oil changes and tires and runs into the 200k range. (I have one car like that. It's a 1999 Civic.)

If you want an S, find a 2010 and at least get all the goodies that came with the face lift, and find something in the 30k-50k mileage range so somebody will sell you a warranty on it.

zesarz4

The only 2010 is s440 hybrid and no no no i don't wanna mess with the battery on that thing .
i just saw a 2007 110k with al the premium options it was a fleet car it has all the services engine/trans etc. i might go for that one

S430Sport

Agreed...anyone who gets into a Mercedes with 100 K plus miles is going to have some maintenance expenses. But that's what this forum is for. Get the knowledge and the tools to correctly maintain or repair your vehicle and save big $$$$. I think I am correct in saying that the question was which car was the better bet between the two options for less maintenance cost. 2007 is my bet. In comparison to my 1998 Passat wagon 5 speed stick with 250K on it, there is none. I drive it to AZ 6 times a month...oil, filters, tires and plugs. Easy and cheap. I go to see clients and take my wife out in the 2007 S550.

DaveW68

That's fine. But plan to budget around $8-10k in annual repairs and maintenance on that car if it will be your daily driver.

So say you buy that car for $15k. Then add $24-30k in maintenance and repairs over a 3 year period and you're into it for at least $40k, not including insurance and gas.

Or you can buy a 2010 for $30k (or less) with less than 50k miles, purchase a warranty to cover you for 3 years for $5k, spend around $500-$1k per year in maintenance, and have a car that cost you less than the 2007 over a 3 year term with much better resale value when you're ready to sell it.

The math never seems to add up on older W221's with high miles and no warranty coverage. People see the low price tag and assume that the cost of repairs and maintenance won't be "that bad". They couldn't be more wrong.

Mike5215

It can't be the only 2010 W221 in existence. Might need to travel a bit. You're kind of bottom feeding with these high mileage cars. Is money an issue?

underdog01

Yes, listen to these guys!!!
Two years ago I purchased an 2007 s550 with 96,000 miles on the odometer. One owner car who the dealership knew well. The car was maintained VERY well, the original owner brought the car to the dealership often just to have the air pressure checked in the tires!

The car drove great and I didn't have one problem for the first year. However, at the end of the first year I was spending one weekend after another performing maintenance on this car.
Nothing out of the ordinary for any car with over 100,000 miles. Tires, brakes, fluid flushes, etc. Some of these parts are expensive when compared to the comparable domestic part. Both the lower and upper ball joints on both the left and right side had to be replaced to the tune of $400 per side with me doing the labor.
Then the check engine light would come on about once every other month. Usually just sensors that needed to be replaced. Most of these sensors were inexpensive (as long as you stay clear of the dealer) and easy to replace, but it would still burn up a Saturday.

I put a lot of miles on a car, over 52,000 in two years, but things are rapidly starting to fail. Expensive parts that are not "maintenance" type items. In the last two weeks the Sirius radio went out, quickly followed by the regular AM/FM radio and the cd player won't play. I was concerned the Comand center was failing, which is only a matter of time for all of these cars. A new Comand is $3800.
There is a whir coming from the transmission I think. This will be $6500-11,0000, depending if I go reman or not.

This last week my wife was visiting her sister in a city four hours away. The power steering pump went out. She took the car to the dealer and they charged her $1600 to diagnose and replace the power steering pump. They charged her $266 to try and diagnose the radio issues. They have concluded, for $266, that the radio doesn't work!

I'm at the point now where I'm waiting for the other shoe to drop.
You will learn quickly the slogan for a ten year old Mercedes "S" class: You can afford to purchase, but you can't afford to keep it.

I'm now looking for a 2013 with low miles so I can dump this money pit and take solace in a warranty.
My suggestion is to listen to Mike and Dave, and purchase a 2011 or newer with fewer miles and purchase an extended warranty.
Honestly, if you can't warranty this car, due to age of the vehicle or cost of the warranty, you can't afford the car.

zesarz4

You know , you and the other guys are right , i'm gonna look for a e350 2010-2014 it's cheaper and should be easier for me to maintain thank you! , any thinks to look for on a e350?

steveb9771

Four owners makes me wonder why? Did some of these owners move on due to problems with the vehicle?

EasyPhil

E350 is a nice car but it is not an S Class. Cars cost money to maintain and if you cannot do the work yourself it's going to cost you a lot more than if you can.

DaveW68

Perhaps not a bad idea if you can stomach the looks of that car and the cheap interior. If you do buy it, get a low mileage example and purchase an exclusionary warranty policy for as long as you'll have it. Even though the E is less complicated than the S, they still have their problems and are expensive to fix.