BigSank

I haven't owned an S class in 5 years since I sold mine. Drove that thing every day though and sold it at 100k miles. Been looking at a 2016 s550 from a luxury used car lot that still has about 14 weeks on the cpo left. The car has 78k miles on it and I didn't notice any glaring issues on my test drive. From what I was told the person who bought the car purchased it to drive until he could get into a w223 and my call to the dealership that sold him the car, and the new one, confirmed as much. I've been waiting and watching the car listing for 3 weeks, since they acquired the car during the last week of july (according to the car fax) and it still hasn't sold. Price has gone down from 44k asking to 41k now. I still think that's pretty high but I haven't really been in this crazy pandemic market. Every indication I've seen, even looking at 2022 s class lease residuals tells me this car should be at minimum 70% depreciated... and that's probably a gross underestimate. Car was 120k when new so I'm looking at trying to get it for 35k at most - and that's me prepared to take a higher than average depreciation hit even then. Am I crazy? I'd know how to play this easily in a normal market but I'm not even sure what the value of this car would be now at a fair value, let alone trying to get it at a steal. Pre pandemic at be trying to grab this for 30k or below and im sure it would be listed at low 30's asking. Can anyone offer any insight? Has anyone purchased a similar vehicle during this pandemic that I could use as a data point? By my indication, this car would be worth 12-15k at 10 years, 100k miles (which is what I sold my previous s class at), unless that's gotten better for some reason. Appreciate the help!

Also all of this is assuming it goes through the PPI without any issues.

cfmistry

I think your numbers are pretty spot on. $35k sounds like a reasonable good deal for that car. $41k is what I’d expect a dealer to ask.

superpop

Car is 6 years old with close to 80K miles. I would be more interested in what work has been done. All maint records including trans service etc. At 80K on these car a lot of stuff needs to be done. Struts, control arms and never mind all of the electrics. I would offer 37 and see what they say. They are probably into it for 35K minimum. The depreciation curve on this car tends to flatten out after a certain point.

flohmann1

Well, last year I paid $46k for a 2015 with 67k miles that was $131k new. It was from the original selling dealer, with a solid dealer maintenance record to 2020, and it had exactly the color/interior/options mix that I wanted (Designo White over Porcelain Nappa leather, Burmester High-End audio, Sport Package). I figure I still overpaid, but there weren't many comparables out there at the time. So assuming the options mix on your car is a little lighter, plus the one year newer but with more miles, but with some CPO warranty left on it, and I'd say $41k doesn't strike me as crazy.

PS I just did the transmission oil and that was only $600 at my local indie shop. If I were you, I'd pay close attention to brake, tire, and wheel condition (especially if they are 20" AMG wheels). Having to do those will run you $5k, easy. Ask me how I know...

BigSank

Alright, good to know I'm not being unrealistic. Everything I've heard suggests that dealers aren't negotiating on anything at all and everything is selling quickly but I also know large luxury sedans are a bit of a different arena anyways. I'm wondering if I should keep waiting the dealer out or just shoot my 35k offer at them. Admittedly the longer they hold it, the less valuable it gets as the remaining cpo warranty decreases and they probably know that.

Also it looks like the 80k service was done by the dealership before the previous owner bought the car. They had replaced the front tires too and the rears have good life on them still. Definitely didn't notice any issues with the wheels or anything during the test drive that might point to a wheels condition issue. They are 20's but not amg but I'll look into it anyways. I don't have any maintenance records before the owner previous to me, is that something an MB dealership can pull up even if services weren't performed at their particular dealership? I would be curious about the transmission service.

BigSank

All I know is the stuff according to the car fax, which is mostly oil changes, and that before the owner previous to me bought it, it had its 80k service done. I'd imagine that was either a condition of his purchase or the dealership knew people wouldn't be interested in a car that needed a significant service so soon down the line. With 70% depreciation, the car would be 36k. My research has kind of led me the believe these cars lose that at 5 years 50-60k miles and this is 7 years 5 months from the purchase date with nearly 80k. I'm thinking 35k would be my maximum and I'd imagine they would have copped it for less? They guy who bought it seemed like he pretty much intended to have an s class to drive while he waited to be able to get a w223. He may not have cared much about the trade in value. I fully expect a more normalized auto industry by the time I sell this car in a few years so I'd be looking at 10-12k residual value on the car in 3 years, even 25k over 3 years seems a bit high on the depreciation. But again I have no experience with the pandemic car market so you might be able to offer better insight.

flohmann1

Maintenance done by a dealer should show up in the Vehicle Master Inquiry (VMI) record that any dealer can pull up for you if you have the VIN.

superpop

The market is very weird right now. I traded in a 2015 with 55K miles and 118K new MSRP in January and got 46K for it on trade but probably overpaid a bit for my 2019 S63 so in the end it was all probably a wash. The other factor to consider is cost of ownership, a 6 year old S Class with 78K miles is going to cost you some money unless you are comfortable doing maint work yourself. Tires are a grand unless you buy off brand but everything else can be spendy at the dealer. Brakes are a great example. I can do a full set of brakes on a standard S class for around 800 bucks for new pads, rotors and all fluids, the dealer will want thousands of dollars for this. Oil changes are 300 bucks at the dealer, vs 100 bucks in parts and oil for DIY. Control arms, struts and motor mounts are the same and these are all wear items on this car that will most likely be due at this mileage. Indies are a little better but they all know what the dealer charges and tend to be close to the same price. The irony is that these cars are actually pretty easy to work on with a basic set of tools.

BigSank

Good to know! I'll be sure to ask the dealership if they could pull that up for me. Would a dealership be opposed to that if I'm buying the car from a used car lot thats not affiliated with the dealership in any way?

I don't really do my own maintenance anymore and the most I'd have done was oil changes and brakes/fluids anyways. I've got a really good german auto mechanic shop in the area that deals with performance/luxury cars. Labor rate isn't that much cheaper than the dealerships but they actually charge the time it takes them rather than some inflated book value. I called the dealership that sold the previous owner the car and confirmed that the car had its 80k service done before he bought it so I imagine those wear items you mentioned were checked and replaced if necessary. I'll wait to get a vmi so I can confirm if they were replaced.

will_atl

My experience is that if you get hold of a Service Advisor, they will pull the report for you quite happily. When I was shopping for a Porsche Cayenne last year I studied the CarFax and called the dealer who had the most recent records listed (although not all P Dealers report maintenance to CarFax) and they had no problems telling me about the car.
In the case of my S Class that I bought this year, I went into my MBZ dealer and my SA pulled the VMI for me without any problems. (Which reminds me, I owe him a bottle of something!)

Lorne Greene

I’m in the buying process now for a w222 and the price you quoted is about what I am seeing in my area.

BigSank

Are you in the northeast by any chance?

Good to know, thanks!