Beeson

Hello all, I'm a new owner of a 2007 S550. I have a few questions and thoughts about the vehicle. I know the 2007/2008s aren't the best years for the W221, especially the idler gear (if i'm correct.) Is that an issue that's going to happen no matter what, or is it something blown out of proportion like the Porsche 996 IMS bearing? The car is a one owner vehicle with 81,000 miles now (bought it about a month ago with 79,800) The previous owner was a family friend who had very little issues with it since new, I have every service record since new and most recently it had all of the sparkplugs and a coil pack replaced. I don't expect the car to be Lexus reliable, but I just hope it's not as bad as my grandma's old W220 2000 S500.

The car itself is magnificent, I traded my old 2010 Camaro SS 6 speed for it and honestly don't have any regrets so far. Being a teenager it's very nice to have a four door car (and a large one at that) to fit friends in. I often had issues with the Camaro space wise because i'm way too tall for it. If you're above 6'3" good luckfitting in one. The S has always been my dream car, so to finally own one is nice. This car is Andorite Grey, Premium 2 package, and the AMG Sports package with the 19" wheels. I'm not really wanting for power too bad (more horsepower would be nice, but the quote for a teen on a 600 was hilariously high) it feels slightly slower than the Camaro, but I don't feel the need to race everywhere anyways. The transmission is smooth as silk, and NOTHING rides like an S Class. My family has had luxury cars as long as I can remember and the only thing that rode nearly as nice was the old W220 I mentioned earlier. The handling is surprisingly good, I expected it to be more disconnected, but sport mode really hunkers it down to the road.

So all in all I love the car, but I have a few odd questions. I've seen them mentioned here and there on the forum but no clear answers. The transmission makes an odd noise on the outside when shifting from park to reverse or drive (kinda like if you rowed the gears on a manual with the windows down and car off.) iIt makes a long whoosh noise after locking the car from the air struts, the W220 did this too,s it normal? Slight wobble on the highway between 59-62 MPH that for some reason has almost disappeared (maybe flat spots on tires? The car wasn't driven much in the past two months or so because previous owner got a W222.) The car makes a slight clunk or vibration when put into reverse or drive if on incline (thinking transmission mount, did the motor mount test and the engine didn't leap up at all.) It's not bad at all, but i'm a bit paranoid. Also, the car not having an auxiliary input has been a bit of a buzz kill, I got the car coded at a local Indy and bought a cable off of ebay, but i'm confused as too how it works. The instructions from MB that I found on this forum say to remove the cables from the harness they came in and put them into the harness behind command. Is this correct? The H/K stereo seemed great at first as anything was an improvement over the Camaro's Boston Acoustics "premium" system, but the more I listen the more i'm unimpressed. The bass is not what I had expected from a car with 3 shallow mount subs, and the mids are a bit too overbearing. I expected the stereo in this to kill the one in my family's 17' Lexus GS350 (non Mark Levinson) but it's slightly worse. But, I hope the equalizer in Spotify can remedy some of that when I finish the Aux installation. An odd thing to me is the bass seems to sound much deeper on FM than it does on the CDs (store bought albums, not MP3s.)

Sorry for rambling on, but thanks for reading this far! A W221/C216 has been a dream car for me since I was a child, seeing them come out as a child and watching that Top Gear episode blew my mind. Plus, I've always had an atrratction to Mercedes-Benz (I guess I have good taste) Tchüss!

w2830

A teenager driving a S class? That's a pretty rare scene to say the least. Not that it's anything wrong with it. I thought I'm too young for s-class(in my thirties). You really beat me on that. Being new to the car too, I can only tell you my car also does the whoosh sound after locking it. Congrats on the car!

Beeson

Thanks, I got made fun of often by my friends at first because of my new "grandpa car," but i'm happy with it. After coming from my Camaro, I wanted the most comfortable thing possible. Don't get me wrong, the Camaro is a great car. But, they're very uncomfortable and the clutch is super stiff. I put about 5k miles on it in 4 months and by that time I wore a hole through the floormats under the clutch because the footwell was too small. So part of the appeal for the S is the space, I'm pretty tall and lanky so in most cars I have to have the seat almost all the way back which leaves no rear room. I don't have that issue anymore for obvious reasons. My family also has an old W211 E350 and when I drive it there's no room in the seat behind me. The E350 feels a bit more youthful, but doesn't drive nearly as well as the S. My S550 does feel a bit old for me, but i've always liked big luxury barges anyways and the S Class is in my opinion the ultimate daily driver. Even the MPG is pretty great tbh, I get about 19-22 average and around 400 miles a tank.

DaveW68

Wow! A teenager who owns an S-class? Now I've seen it all. I'm sure that when you're driving that car other folks assume that you're driving daddy's car. I bought my first Lexus LS400 23 years ago when I was 26 and some of my buds made fun of me for owning an old man's car.

Welcome to S-class ownership. As you've already seen, they are a dream to drive. Unfortunately, they are not a dream to own as they age. If the car will be your daily driver, you should probably budget around $8-10k per year for maintenance and repairs. Your car is right in that sweet spot with age and miles where many very expensive repairs will likely start rearing their ugly heads. The 7 speed auto back then was very trouble prone. Airmatic shocks and pump will likely be on their way out soon if they haven't already been replaced. And I'm assuming that you have the active seats. Those can also become problematic at they age. Nothing is cheap to work on with these cars. Parts and repairs are actually more expensive than Porsche and BMW. As long as you budgeted for these types of items and costs when you purchased the car, you'll likely be good to go. Otherwise you will be working to support your car.

Regarding the cable you purchased on eBay, just send it back to the seller. You will not be able to get your Aux working with it. There is actually a long discontinued module that is needed (you can find these used on eBay for $100-200, but there is also a cable that connects from the radio to the module that is all but impossible to find. Both are absolutely necessary to get Aux and these items have been discontinued for so long that most parts counters can't even find a part number for them. The cable you purchased from an eBay vendor might work if you happen to have the first 2 parts, but it will not do anything on its own. That cable would likely hook directly into the module and certainly does not run directly to the stereo. If getting Aux in and the ability to stream music through a Tune2Air adapter, you can contact MidCity Engineering in Chicago and they can install one of their own modules to enable Aux. But you will need to drive up there and let them do the install. That solution is around $300 installed and they'll even turn on Aux for you. The only letdown (if it's even important to you) with their setup is that all music and albums will have to be controlled directly from your phone or iPod as it does not show song titles and the steering wheel controls and COMAND cannot change songs.

Mike5215 put together a great write-up about getting a much wider range and better bass out of the stock HK system by running a specialized equalizer. I believe it was under $1500. He put in new speakers, but figured out later that those probably were not necessary. The stock system's speakers and amplification are more than enough for most people. The problem is that the HK is very mid heavy, which drowns out much of the high and low frequencies. Mike's solution is probably one of the most cost effective as it doesn't mess with Comand and keeps your stereo intact. Maybe he'll chime in here and direct you to his blog where he goes over his setup.

Enjoy your new whip!

w2830

I came from a very similar background. Ever since I was little I was so into cars. Even though the cool looks of the super cars like Ferrari are the dreams of especially young generations. Ive been always more fascinated and amazed by the amenities and features these luxury brands has to offer. I think at the end of the day, comfort and features are what matters to one most. I could care less about how others look at me.

One thing that sucks for owning such cars is there are a lot less active communities to share your enthusiasm about your car in. Whether you are prepared for the potential repairs, I would say don't let it ruin your day when it still runs fine. There's no point to panic about it when you can always get rid of it. It's not like you paid the original MSRP for it. Good luck

slcbbrown

I had a 2000 s430 that went to about 140,000 miles, and the only real maintenance issue was the suspension. Loved that car. I followed that one with a lightly used 2007 that I traded at 95,000, and I don't remember any big maintenance.

I'm no expert, but a couple things I learned:

1. The tires are a big deal. Worn out tires or tires not spec'd by an MB expert can affect the ride, road noise and handling. Your s class is a heavy car, and correctly sized tires that aren't made for the car can wear quickly. I'd have the tires checked. If they appear OK, you can have them balanced-- usually cheap to do.
2. Part of the sound system in an s class is a function of how quiet the interior is. If you are getting road noise, it can cancel out some of the sound, so you have to turn up the volume. I don't remember my 2007 having crumby sound, though I think my 2011 is better.

Good luck with your car.

Beeson

Surprisingly that cheap auxiliary adapter did work, my uncle and I inserted the pins into the correct slots and it works great! I'm still slightly disappointed with the sound system. It's very odd with it's bass, some songs sound nice and deep, and others sound worse than my mom's Ford Escape. It's very weird. The car is pretty great, I'm still nervous about potential repairs coming up, but my family say's they're alright with it. We own a diesel/Semi repair shop so most mechanical things will we'll be able to fix with the help of this forum's awesome DIY's. I have another question about the transmission (after reading all the horror stories i'm a bit paranoid) does your car seem to shift later after driving it hard? I drove pretty hard one night on a back road and the empty highway by my house and the next morning the car was shifting at 2k rpm instead of the usual 1.7/1.8k. After about 20 mins of driving it went back to normal and hasn't done it since. Is that normal? It's nice and smooth shifting even out of first so i'm pretty confident it's fine. Our 2006 E350 shifts terrible out of first when it's cold. It's a nice jolt from first to second, then a slight delay from second to third. It does have an aftermarket warranty, but we just haven't bothered taking it in because the car is usually in C mode and we hardly drive it. I'm waiting for the balance shaft to go out because it's right at the sweet spot for it at 64k miles. Thanks to everyone for the suggestions, and not being rude about my age. I thought I was going to be blasted for being a teenager in high school. Also, the Mike guy does have an awesome write up, I think I may replace the front Mids with the Goldwood's he was talking about. They're cheap and hopefully they will make it a bit warmer. I wanted to put my 2 Kicker 10" L7s from my old car into the S but it's kind of against the character of the car. Again, I apologize for rambling and my terrible grammar. Have a wonderful day!

Drives550

Nice looking car. I've always liked big cars too. Not a teenager, but I get it.

As for your questions - I think the best answer is to relax. Maintain the car as recommended by Mercedes and your mechanical sympathies, treat it with a bit of common sense respect - things will break or they won't.

My car makes funny noises here and there (they all hiss within a couple/5 minutes after shutting down; the air system de-pressurizing; I get a bit of a clunk into D some times), and thanks to my warranty have had about $4k trying to chase down an annoying occasional whistle-type noise. Noise is still there.

But, the car is fine. It's been fine. Maybe the little noises mean death is imminent; maybe they don't. Other than changing fluids, regular maintenance, I don't think you can fight off the inevitable (if it's there).

Once I stopped worrying and just drove it, it was a much more enjoyable experience. The car's gonna make some noise, have some vibration here and there; it's 10 years old. When it's broken you'll know it.

That said, at your mileage, if they've not been done - def all 3 mounts and transmission fluid change.

Drives550

Oh, and yeah - the tranny reprograms itself a bit in an effort to serve what it detects to be your driving style. Drive hard, it'll shift a bit later; drive soft, it'll pick grandpa shift points. And it will re-evaluate itself regularly. Your experience here seems normal. Some make a point of putting the pedal to the floor once every few days/week just to keep the transmission thinking we're young.

DaveW68

How about posting a DIY thread with pictures of the install. Also, name of company selling the part, part name, cost, and a video of it working would be helpful. We've never heard of an aftermarket cable that just plugs into the back of the radio actually working and allowing a functional aux in with a car that didn't come with it from the factory.

Beeson

It was one of those cheap eBay cables that pop up, The link to the one I purchased is down below. I'll try to post a video tomorrow of it if I can. I followed the instructions from this pdf I found on an old thread. It works surprisingly well, it sounds like any car with Aux should, no static or distortion. I ran the cable clumsily out of a small hole I cut into the bottom of the command cover (I had already broken it when removing it, I pried too hard and bent one of the springs causing it to not move smoothly.) The cover that snaps on the bottom of the faceplate had just enough of a gap at the bottom to run the cable through. I don't really care about the cable coming out of the dash because I could run it into the glove box eventually. Being able to have the phone out in the car is nice.

I use Spotify Premium at 326kbps with an iPhone 7 Plus (using that ****ty lightning to aux adapter ) and it sounds wonderful. I changed my mind almost completely on the system, with some fine tuning in Spotify's equalizer I really got the nice, crisp, yet deep sound I wanted. The Bass is tremendous at 50-65% volume and slowly starts to fade off after that, it does stay tight and clean until almost full volume where the rear sub starts to distort (by that time I know I need to turn it down to save my ears.) The voices are crystal clear. I also posted a screenshot of my equalizer settings below. On songs like "Nothing Else Matters" by Metallica (SFO version) the violins in the background are perfectly placed in the soundscape and really gives you that concert vibe with Logic 7 on. (bear with my nerdyness) "Escape" by Kehlani has really clean bass and is very strong on the vocals. Almost everyone asks me if I put subs in my car when I pull up because it's really that audible. Some songs require Logic 7 to be turned off to sound good, and some don't sound right with it on I have this same issue with the "surround" setting on the family's GS. Another song that sounds great is "What do you do" by A$AP Ferg, it really has the precise vocals and rapid bass hits.

I'm still thinking about putting one or two of my L7 Kicker 10" subwoofers in to really emphasize the low end and take some of the grandpa vibes away. But, if I do that I'll have to remove the rear sub woofer and permanently modify parts that I really don't want to do. Our E350 has 2 10" Kicker L7s (kicker's high end speakers are great, their Walmart stuff is laughable) and it has to be pounding in the trunk to even hear it in the cabin. Luckily (or not) ours didn't have H/K so we didn't have a sub blocking airflow into the trunk, just a thin piece of styrofoam that was easy to remove, and even then it wasn't too loud. Also fyi, if any of you guys think our stereo is bad, listen to a base 8 speaker w211 system. That distorts 65% volume with the EQ on the headunit flat.



I'm pretty happy the car now, and thanks to everyone for the feedback. I've kinda relaxed now, if it breaks it breaks. Not the end of the world and not my last car. I'm looking to purchase a Bluetooth puck for the car, do any of the work or do I need a special model. I'm also looking to retrofit AMG paddles for the steering wheel, my rubber coating on the buttons are starting to get sticky and I figured why not, they're cheap anyways. Why not add S65 badges while I'm at it to make it have 300 more horse (that's how it works right? )

http://www.ebay.com/itm/Car-Accessor...gAAOSwNRdX6oXJ

Beeson

I also can't believe I forgot to post this, my car had been in a minor accident with previous owner and had the drivers side swiped by an ignorant driver. The rear tail light was replaced and the quarter panel and rear door were repainted (slight orange peel sadly.) The rear taillight happened to be aftermarket sadly and happened it happened to rain the hardest it has all year during cars and coffee. The taillight filled with water and had condensation at the top. So I took the tail light apart and emptied the taillight (this is when I found out it wasn't a Daimler part.) I put the taillight back together and resealed the gasket with superglue. Well, my dumbass didn't know that superglue would eat through the gasket and two days later it flash flooded again and leaked water into the trunk. I was 25 mins away from home going 40 on the highway when the radio just shut off. I knew what happened instantly and panicked. All I could think about was the $1000 amp getting soaked, the $300 Sirius box soaked, and who knows what other electronics. 25 mins pass (and so does a major panic attack) and I'm home investigating. My uncle, friend, and I tear apart the entire trunk to see the water was dripping in from the taillight on to the Sirius Box and into the spare tire well (a puddle of like half an inch in the well.) I immediately dried everything out and unplugged the SXM box. The fibre optic connection was dripping water. I leave the trunk open and my uncle gets a tuber ware bowl filled with "damprid" and puts it by the electronics. We let the car dry for a few days (I use the family loaner, E350 lol) and then get in the car again. I connect all the cables again and turn the car on and immediately panic ensues. The command system says "audio gateway unavailable" or something like that. I unplug the SXM cables and sure enough, water ran down the fibre cables blocking the lights. I let it dry another day and everything is fine two and a half weeks later. We had to make another gasket (traced the old one and cut rubber material to same size) and it seems to be fine. Everything in the car works perfectly and I really think I dodged a gold platted bullet. Here's some pictures of me "fixing the taillight" originally and the opened trunk.

sakodik

You got yourself a W221 with AMG package, thats not even close to being grandpa. The problem with getting an s-class this young is you won't be able to find a successor anywhere else. I've been trapped in the s-class world for over a decade as there is no happiness in the bmw 7 or lexus LS. Maybe an A8 but that center console is way too busy.

The only major problem I've encountered was a failed ISM which made the car unable to drive (unable to change gear out of park). Everything else is wear and tear or accident damage (windshield, shopping carts, etc). Congrats and good luck, use this forum's knowledge, it will keep you on the road longer.