witz323

My dad has asked me to help him find a CPO S550 4matic (2014-2015) and I thought this would be a good place to start. Him and my mom are in their 70s so they want something comfortable with all wheel drive as the car will be driven in Wisconsin. My first question is, are there any major differences between the 2014 and 2015? I guess they would pick up some additional warranty with the 2015, but i'm curious if there were any changes made to the car.

Also, what are some "must have" options? I realize answers will differ here, but keep in mind this is for an older couple. Their focus is more on comfort and luxury versus sportiness and AMG bits.

Thanks in advance for the help.

WEBSRFR

I personally would skip 2014 as that was the first production year. I'd prefer to get 2015.

Given their age, I would recommend that you stay away from low profile tires that are more easily prone to failure.

I also highly recommend that you extend the warranty for as long as you can. These cars are not cheap to fix. I believe there is a way to extend the CPO warranty a full 7 years from the original in service date. When you shop around negotiate the combined cost of the warranty extension + car cost so they don't try to jack up the cost of the warranty. Any Mercedes dealer can sell you the warranty extension.

Options are subjective so look around to see what they are and what they like. I do highly recommend the radar cruise control option. Though the system is somewhat rudimentary, it does offer radar based emergency braking and given their age I would consider the radar to be a must have feature.

Other bit of advice is to expand your search areas. When I buy cars I expand the search radius to about 300-500 miles, especially if I'm picky about options. You can negotiate everything over e-mail and a phone call. Before you set foot at the dealership, have them e-mail you a buyer's order. This makes it impossible for them to switch prices or engage in other car dealer shenanigans.

Other bit of advice is check the CarFax and ask for a VMI. The VMI is Mercedes' internal register of everything that has been done on the car and it will give you a good idea about how well the car was maintained and serviced by the previous owner along with any reported issues. It's like the car's health records. And don't accept any BS from the dealer about how they are not allowed to share the VMI. I have been able to obtain VMIs from dealers, even those who claimed they can't do it.

If you want one more bit of assurance you can have the car inspected at a high end body shop for any previous accident damage as not all damage is reported on CarFax.

That's about it. Take the time to find just what you want and enjoy the car.

witz323

WEBSRFR - Thank you for the reply. Our search range is the entire country. I purchased my last 4 cars all over the USA and have had good success doing that. Enjoyed a couple road trips too.

The VMI tip is great. I was unaware of that, so thank you. Radar Cruise Control sounds like a cool feature...especially for them.

WEBSRFR

Expanded search is the way to go! Sounds like you know what you are doing

Enjoy the search. I love negotiating car deals over e-mail and phone calls. When I step in at the dealer I already have a buyer's order that was emailed to me and I make it a point to not discuss any pricing details at the dealership. For out of state purchases I actually sign the buyers order with a credit card deposit contingent on a test drive.

This commits them to sell me the car at the agreed upon price and gives me an out for any reason after the test drive.

beckerkumm

I live in central WI and just picked up my 2014 in Texas. Tickets to Dallas are cheap and lots of choices down there. I watched cars.com, autotraders, etc for a couple of months. I would have preferred the 2015 but a 2500 mile decked out 14 showed up. Look at how important the back seat packages are to the folks as there are more choices without the power and ventilated back. I have the exclusive nappa interior but doubt that many see that as a deal breaker. I do like the night vision for our deer population but that is a rare option. Heads up would be nice but not available in 14. Air freshener is standard in 15. Drivers assistance is nice because of cruise control but the folks do need to be able to handle the car lurching back into the lane sometimes if they tend to edge towards the lines when traffic approaches. The self braking is more important than the lane assist. I prefer the magnetic door stops that were discontinued sometime in 15 unless you are in the hilly part of God's country. If you watch the internet and note the pricing differences between MB dealers, certified cars, and those from non MB dealers, you will get a pretty good idea of the market. When shopping for vehicles on word alone, there are few times where the great cars are priced cheap. Most all dealers have a good idea of value, a few are high ( as are most individual sellers ) but very few are low. I've seen cars with 20K miles that look pretty good ( hood chips excepted ) and cars with 700 miles that have defects that won't " buff out". I really like when the sale person sends pictures of the defects and a description. The ones who tell me the car is perfect I tend to discount. No car ( or daughter ) is perfect. Just almost. Dave

Nice Ride

The only 2 differences I Touch pad in Center Console instead of Buttons and HUD as option. Mostly everything is the same....

Found an out of State CPO loaded with every option except the Fridge in the back for under 75K- Sticker was 148ish....