Which S-class to get when you can't have warranty?
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Joined: Jan 2018
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From: Dar es Salaam
Evo 9
Which S-class to get when you can't have warranty?
My first post here.
I have always wanted to own an S-class, as a second car.., at the moment i can only afford 2nd hand, and due to weird tax-structure in my country year 2005-2007 (European versions) are the only ones without a hefty import tax penalty.
Another caveat is we only have a single Mercedes dealer and he will not provide warranty for used cars not bought there (understandable). Third party auto warranties are non-existant.
I am cool with dropping $5K /year for maintenance for the next 5 years., so am looking at an S-class that i wont have to spend more than that amount yearly maintaining it.
I have reviewed many models, and so far it seems i should stay away from the V12 engines as well as AMG types (High maintenance).
That leaves me with S300, S350, S500 and S550.
Other things i would like to have and that will pretty much sway my decision are massaged seats, night vision, soft close doors, ambient light, cooled seats.,if i can't have those i might as well get a Toyota!
What is the best version to own without a warranty?
I have always wanted to own an S-class, as a second car.., at the moment i can only afford 2nd hand, and due to weird tax-structure in my country year 2005-2007 (European versions) are the only ones without a hefty import tax penalty.
Another caveat is we only have a single Mercedes dealer and he will not provide warranty for used cars not bought there (understandable). Third party auto warranties are non-existant.
I am cool with dropping $5K /year for maintenance for the next 5 years., so am looking at an S-class that i wont have to spend more than that amount yearly maintaining it.
I have reviewed many models, and so far it seems i should stay away from the V12 engines as well as AMG types (High maintenance).
That leaves me with S300, S350, S500 and S550.
Other things i would like to have and that will pretty much sway my decision are massaged seats, night vision, soft close doors, ambient light, cooled seats.,if i can't have those i might as well get a Toyota!
What is the best version to own without a warranty?
Member
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 95
Likes: 10
2008 S550
Congrats for making the decision to join the S-Class wagen (pun intended).
I'll let others comment on the maintenance costs (I only got mine for 6 months) but I think $5k/year is too much/conservative. Yes, things are expensive when they break but how often you would expect costly things like transmission or ABS pump, etc. to go down? With that budget you'll have a new transmission every year, lol.
The night vision, massaged seats, etc. are not necessarily related to the engine size S300, S500, etc. but rather to the package that was installed on the car. There are some standard features that come with all S-Class and then there are some predefined packages but from my experience, when I was searching for mine, there is a complete mix and match out there. Example: I saw a car with night vision that is supposed to be part of the ultimate package but it was lacking ventilated seats. I've also noticed that the higher you go with the number, the more features become standard (i.e. an S600 has standard features that an S550 has them as optional).
These are rare cars so you need to make a list of must have + nice to have + optional features and then look at what's available, in what condition, how many kms and at what price and make a decision. I have waited 3 months to find what I was looking for at the right price on the market (Montreal, Canada). Also, with just 2007 (since you don't have the option to look at 2008+ cars because of the import taxes) as the year "available" I guess the S-class list you can choose from starts short anyways.
I'll let others comment on the maintenance costs (I only got mine for 6 months) but I think $5k/year is too much/conservative. Yes, things are expensive when they break but how often you would expect costly things like transmission or ABS pump, etc. to go down? With that budget you'll have a new transmission every year, lol.
The night vision, massaged seats, etc. are not necessarily related to the engine size S300, S500, etc. but rather to the package that was installed on the car. There are some standard features that come with all S-Class and then there are some predefined packages but from my experience, when I was searching for mine, there is a complete mix and match out there. Example: I saw a car with night vision that is supposed to be part of the ultimate package but it was lacking ventilated seats. I've also noticed that the higher you go with the number, the more features become standard (i.e. an S600 has standard features that an S550 has them as optional).
These are rare cars so you need to make a list of must have + nice to have + optional features and then look at what's available, in what condition, how many kms and at what price and make a decision. I have waited 3 months to find what I was looking for at the right price on the market (Montreal, Canada). Also, with just 2007 (since you don't have the option to look at 2008+ cars because of the import taxes) as the year "available" I guess the S-class list you can choose from starts short anyways.
Member
Joined: Jun 2012
Posts: 97
Likes: 1
2007 S550V4
An alternative that some take when a warranty is unavailable is to create a reserve account for expenses. At $5000 per year for expenses, I think you would more than likely be fine with an S550.
I've owned my 2007 S550 since 2012. My warranty ends in June this year and I plan on upgrading before then. I've only had to use my warranty twice, but each repair was $3500-4000, easily exceeding the initial cost of the warranty at $2000 from Carmax.
Annual maintenance costs for me have flip-flopped per year between around $400 and $1500. I have all of my services performed at the dealer so those costs include the regular A, B, C, etc. service intervals and replacement of fluids, filters, and batteries.
The cost mentioned above doesn't include tires and brakes.
I've owned my 2007 S550 since 2012. My warranty ends in June this year and I plan on upgrading before then. I've only had to use my warranty twice, but each repair was $3500-4000, easily exceeding the initial cost of the warranty at $2000 from Carmax.
Annual maintenance costs for me have flip-flopped per year between around $400 and $1500. I have all of my services performed at the dealer so those costs include the regular A, B, C, etc. service intervals and replacement of fluids, filters, and batteries.
The cost mentioned above doesn't include tires and brakes.
Super Member
Joined: May 2002
Posts: 540
Likes: 39
From: Suburban Washington DC
1995 S280 5-speed
Not much regular maintenance that a modern car needs these days beyond oil changes. Main worry is unexpected repairs. Something electronic quits or a turbo blows, could get expensive pretty fast. I think replacing just one air strut is around $2,000. You should find a good independent repair shop instead of taking it to a dealer if you expect it to be affordable.
Member
Joined: Nov 2017
Posts: 95
Likes: 10
2008 S550
Let me +1 this. I never would have bought the car if I didn't knew the guy from this repair shop that specializes in European cars. He not only knows Mercedes-es but actually worked and on and already sold S-Class-es. The actual parts will still be expensive but I'm not paying MB dealership rates; so I'm hoping the maintenance costs to be manageable.
