jacads

I have a couple of questions. I was looking to get night vision and the Active seating with massage. Is there particular model years that I would need to be in for those options together? I'm am going to assume the Distronic Plus is available in all models from 2012 or later correct? I look at ads on auto trader and they talk about some Mercedes have iPod cables. Wouldn't anything after 2012 have blue tooth technology and also satellite radio? Most importantly when purchasing Is it better to get a newer s550 with lets say 90,000 mile or an older s550 with 40,000 miles on it?

Thanks for your help

roviw1

Hi from the UK. I have the 2015 W222 S500 ( same as your S550) over there.
Personally, although I know the actual cost does make a difference, I would really try to get into a W222 model. There are visual body changes over the W221 car and a lot of improvements inside the car.
My personal choice would be for a higher mileage newer model. Why don't you actually try to go and look at the earlier model and newer model to allow you to see the direct comparisons.
The W222 has blue tooth and massage seats, I think, in the UK, the night vision was a rare option so may be difficult to find a car with that option fitted.
Best of luck and keep us informed on your search.
( One downside to the newer model is there is no room for a spare wheel in the trunk. )

SilberGrau57

You'll have better luck posting in the W221 Section for 2012 model, right?

tkelley.EClass

Yeah man, try this forum: https://mbworld.org/forums/s-class-w221-74/

jacads

thanks. I will

S_W222

It looks like most of your (wish-list) items are technology related. If that's the case, the best options is to go for W222. The 2014 model with >70-90K miles on it can be found really cheap for a very good price relative to the value. You can also search for 2015 with high mileage but try not to exceed 90K miles. Try to stretch you budget a little and am sure you'll enjoy the technology in the W222 much better than W221, assuming you like to keep your cars then it's better to go with W222. Another option is to find 2012-2013 fully loaded with low mileage, they have a good technology but response and internal components are relatively not as cool as the W222.

cetialpha5

Best way to find the car you want is to use a vin decoder and not rely on the dealer to post accurate information.

https://www.lastvin.com/

Use this site to see what options were available in a particular year. Just change the 2014 to whatever year you're looking for. Once you select a body style, scroll down to features to see the options for the year and they also list option codes which you can look for with the vin decoder.

https://www.motortrend.com/cars/merc.../s-class/2014/

Here's the brochure to see what the features were from MB.

http://www.auto-brochures.com/mercedes_benz.html

tkelley.EClass

These decoders are tough sometimes. You can always IM MB USA with the VIN as well to get a from the manufacturer break down. They just wont give you an actual MSRP sheet without proof of ownership. They're actually really helpful. My experience doing the same thing with BMW and Jaguar was not as fruitful.

MBCO

Do check out all the internet W221 and W222 forums, there are good sites. I recently purchased a 2012 S550 4-matic, Designo, Rear seat pkg, $130k MSRP, for 16 cents on the $, with 98k miles, 1 owner, dealer serviced, clean carfax. Has all the goodies, except Night Vision. Most people advise staying away from first year W221 (2007). Do you drive on dark roads at night where you need Night Vision? Check out its reliability. Many say its a gimmick and don't really use it much. Drove some cars with it but didn't see the need and decided to pass as its yet another piece of technology with high cost repairs.

bkdc

I have those options on my 2015 W222. The massage is overrated in my opinion. I rarely use it. The night vision was surprisingly useful. It's amazing how many pedestrians are spotted in poorly lit roads.

The easiest way to see all the options is to literally go to the actual website of each individual MB dealer. Reputable ones will have an auto packet on their used cars with a MSRP listing with all the options. That's if you are willing to go for 2016 models which might be CPO. I don't think 2015 qualifies for CPO any more.

cetialpha5

With Motortends list of features, you can get pretty close to the MSRP without the sheet. There's a few other vin decoder sites out there, but that's the best one that's free. You can use MB's EPC site which charges $75 for one year of access. It should be the most up to date as some of those vin decoder databases are old and don't have the most up to date info so some newer cars don't show up.

https://epc.startekinfo.com/epc/subscribe.jsp

You can get a window sticker for $8 from monroneylabels.com.

As for CPO, when you go to MB's CPO site, they all have CPO warranties and there are still some 2013 and 2014's which have the CPO warranty.

gregorynp

If you want the latest generation, the W222, they are from 2014 to present.