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I was curious about the durability of your cars and how they are holding up. My commute is around 25K miles a year and I am curious if the S-Class is able to withstand this. Obviously all maintenance would be done by schedule and I prefer everything to be in working order so fixing anything that breaks ASAP.
I was curious about the durability of your cars and how they are holding up. My commute is around 25K miles a year and I am curious if the S-Class is able to withstand this. Obviously all maintenance would be done by schedule and I prefer everything to be in working order so fixing anything that breaks ASAP.
What has been your experience?
Thanks!
Hi JohnDoe,
I have just ordered a new S560 W222.
Going by my previous S350 2011 model I can tell you after nearly 100,000 kms prior to selling it the back seats looked and were brand new.
The front seats showed no signs of leather cracking or any other blemishes including colour discolouration etc.
The Gloss wood trim (burr walnut) did in fact show some "swirls" and scratches.
A friend bought the car off of me for two key reasons.
1. It still looked great after 8 years.
2. He knew I looked after it.
All of the above I believe was as a result of the build and quality of materials and my fastidious maintenance of the car.
- I had it ceramic coated. After 4 years some paint correction etc.
- I had the insides coated with stain guard etc - any fabric and carpets etc.
- I detailed the car almost every month. It was garaged at home and work: I have a clean, tidy and painted (Floor, side walls and ceiling) garage.
- It received leather cleaner and moisturiser at least every 3 months.
Go ahead and get one. You will enjoy it. They are indeed durable.
PS: In contrast to a BMW that I owned with cream leather, after about 3 years the leather started to show significant signs of wear.
You gave me a good insight. Now that you brought up interior protection, the first thing I might do is take it to my detailer to get everything 'chemically' guarded.
No problems mechanically other than wear items? Catastrophic failures/problems?
I have a 2015 4Matic with around 34K miles on it at this point. I purchased mine used for around 1/2 of MSRP with 17K miles and 2 years old. These cars drop in value like a fat kid on a teeter totter in the first 2 years so I always suggest buying a nice 2-3 year old example with low miles. If you can find one from a private owner that has all of the records that is even better. I have replaced my front brake pads once and put a new set of tires on last year. Other than that, these are pretty trouble free cars. I have done a few oil changes and other than that it has been flawless. Biggest problem with these cars is they ruin you for anything else. If you have a long commute you will love the ride quality, features and quietness of the cabin. It is like a vault inside.
You gave me a good insight. Now that you brought up interior protection, the first thing I might do is take it to my detailer to get everything 'chemically' guarded.
No problems mechanically other than wear items? Catastrophic failures/problems?
Thanks!
No problems at all.
Just maintenance. This said I always prematurely (like every 6 months changed my oil and filter).
A mix of short (40 km round trip) journeys and about 40% longer trip (150 km round trip and some interstate (Melbourne to Sydney 1600 kms).
Parts replacements were the usual consumables.
- Brake pads.
- oil and various filters including the Pollen filters (my younger son had Asthma).
- Once a year full laser wheel alignment, tire rotation and balancing.
- Sets of tires - about once every 25 to 30k. I always had the latest version of the original OEM which were Continental Sport Contact xx - overall an all-round good tire. I didn't want to mess with whatever the factory thought were a good OEM tire.
On the day I sold it @ 109,000 kms it still drove, felt as tight and was a silent / quiet like on the day I bought it.
Some people couldn't tell the engine was switched on at idle and thought it had switched off.
My friend has an independent garage and is an ex Mercedes workshop foreman. I would take it in every now and then and get some fault codes reset.
For example: I always had my briefcase on the front passenger seat as I drove to work. The weight of it would set up a fault showing that the seat belt was not done up whilst an occupant was in the front seat. !!
Other than consumables no major component failures of replacements in 8 years.
The newer ones are less costly for sure. My 2008 S63 was incredibly costly. My 2012 less costly. My 2018 is ... totally no cost for the most part. It's had some issues but all cars do. Just get one and enjoy. Easy peasy. You will be SO HAPPY you did. You deserve one.
Thanks for taking all the time to post your experiences! I feel much better now and may just pull the trigger.
I like to keep my cars for as long for 6-8 years and sometimes keep em if the resale value is just too low. I'll be looking forward to pinning that mileage award on. If everything goes well, it'll still feel great after years of stop-n-go!
My 2017 S63AMG has 77,000 miles on it!!! I have had absolutely no problems with it except one day it had some misfires. The dealership did a code check and found nothing. They said that I must have gotten into some bad gas that day. 10,000 miles later and no more misfires. The only problem with these AMG cars are unusually quick wear and tear on tires and brakes. I've never had to have a brake pad replacement on a car under 100,000 miles but I'm now on my 3rd set. I don't drive and brake aggressively. Also , for some reason, I go through tires quickly as they begin cupping within 10,000 miles. On my 3rd set of tires. I've had the alignment checked and they say it is fine. Other than tire and brake pad/rotor wear and tear, I've had no issues at all.
Wow! That is a lot of driving; slightly more than even imaginable! But I guess if you love your car so much, let me guess that your E350 has half of that
Your post makes me confident in the S-Class, and that it is a viable commuting option!
I have 126,000 miles on my 2015 S550 that I purchased new in November 2014. No major issues whatsoever over the years. I’ve considered trading it, but can’t seem to let it go because it’s been such a great car.
Bought a 2017 S350d 10 months ago with 18k miles at the time of purchase. Its been back to the dealership 10 times in 10 months and booked in next week yet again
1) Touchpad stopped working after 2 months, in end the touch pad was replaced [3 trips to MB dealership]
2) Both puddle lights on wing mirrors stopped working - water / moisture entered the so called sealed led unit [1 trip to MB dealership]
3) Excessive moisture in both head lights which never cleared - long battle with MB - finally agreed to install desiccants gel pack - 7 months later moisture is back. [1 trip to MB dealership + many emails & phone calls] - nothing can be done now told to live with from the dealer... even tried contacting Mercedes Sindelfingen on facebook they just direct me back to the same local dealer who cant do anything more for me.
4) Air condition stopped working completely - Leaking condenser due to manufacturing fault. [3 trips to MB dealership]
5) 4 faulty parking senors (front bumper) due to water/moisture causing corrosion new wiring loom required also. [2 trips to MB dealership] - September 2019
I dont garage my car it is left outdoors, as we get alot of rain here in Ireland I'm suspecting this has contributed to 3 of the above moisture issues, however thats still not an excuse.
The car is still under warranty right now, I love everything about the car how it drives etc but I'm afraid to say I'm starting to contemplate a move now as the build quality appears to very poor.
Last edited by sclass350d; Sep 20, 2019 at 08:56 AM.
PaY a little more and get it certified than do extended warranty 2 yrs for 3400 dollars , I have early 2014 s63 and only problem was back rear seat belt. I wouldn’t get service plan tho. 40 k mile maintence was only 510 dollars at dealer and they charge close to 2 k for it, and there are 2 options that I think are awesome ,the night vision and 3 d sound . So far 39k miles and car looks and feels like a 165k dollar one. And I would make sure rotors and pads are newer like previous post they go quick.
The only problem with these AMG cars are unusually quick wear and tear on tires and brakes.
This is a problem with the driver of the vehicle.
The faster you accelerate, the more rear tire wear occurs,
The more rapidly you brake, the more front tires wear and the more brakes wear.
The faster you take corners the more both tires wear.
The closer you use DistronicPlus to follow other cars, the more brake wear you get.
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