dmatre

Hello All,

I have been considering the purchase of a 2015 W222 S550 in the past days, and have done a good bit of research on YouTube/Google/etc.

The information seems rather worthless, as there are only two camps: 1) "this car is going to break and it's going to be expensive" 2) "this car is great and I've never had a problem"

Obviously, they both can't be true in general terms, so I'm looking to you current owners for your experiences/advice.

Me: 59 years old, and I've had my share of slot cars in the past. I'm presently in a BMW E90 3-series, which is a great car, but in traffic it is infuriating because the car wants to run, and my blood pressure rises when traffic won't allow it.

I'm ready for a comfortable cruiser, and something relaxing to drive through the drudgery of increasing traffic in the CLT area, and.I'm thinking that a more serene car will reduce the blood pressure, and allow for more enjoyable traffic negotiation.

I have 3 Benzes in my past ('87 300TD, '04 C230Sport, '14 E350), so I'm familary with the 'Benz Tax' at the dealer, and can deal with this under most conditions. After more than 43 years in the workforce, my financial situation is capable of covering a 4-figure repair - but a 5-figure bill will completely wreck my good mood. I'm also quite capable of troubleshooting/repairing minor issues (failed coils, replace brakes/shocks/struts, etc) on my own i so routine maintenance won't be an issue.

My questions to you all are:
- Are expensive failures a common occurrence in these cars? Or are they rather seldom, but reported with great vigor on the internet?
- Any recommendations for must-have options or options to avoid at all costs?
- Any other advice for a prospective purchaser/owner?

Thanks in advance for any and all words of wisdom.

roviw1

I have had my 2015 model ( registered in 2014 ) S500 for 4 1/2 years now and I have done about 28000 miles in it, the car has covered 68000 miles now. in the UK the S500 is the same as the USA S550 model.
It is not my daily driver and I have had it serviced every year by a local independent specialist
It was a Mercedes approved used one owner car.
Apart from normal service items I have had a new " Pulsation damper" fitted, this was covered under the Mercedes used car warranty, then I had to have a coil pack replaced last year when it broke during the service whiles the spark plugs were being changed.
I changed the auxillary battery myself earlier this year and two of my door handle LED lights have stopped working.
Had the windscreen replaced after being hit by a stone and it cracked.
Oh, and I also had to change the rear door window switch pack when one of the flimsy rocker switches broke, it took maybe 5 minutes to do that myself. I did try to just change the actual little rocker bit with one from ebay and although it was pretty good it just was not quite right and did stick a little when being used so I ended up buying the switchpack from Mercedes for about £90 I think.
Apart from the above items, touch wood, I have been very pleased so far with the reliability of the car.
They are truly a wonderful car to drive and the comfort is amazing, mine is on 19" wheels . The option I would have really liked would be the 360 degree camera but when buying used sometimes you have to compromise and when I found this one it ticked virtually all my boxes, colour, interior colour, " normal" rear bench seat and the added bonus of the rare " Magic Body Control " which at the time was an expensive option, also the price and mileage etc was good for me.
I wish you luck in finding the right car for you.

Donnymac

I’m on my 3rd 550S sedan. I own it for its engineering, safety and performance. It’s miles are all open road and fluids are changed sooner than the manual recommends. It had a clean verified history when I bought it. It’s a brute wrapped in class.

That said, it’s a heavy but responsive car and there are known predictable wearables. Front end suspension, brakes, motor and trans mounts have been my experience, all routine. No other repairs for me. I’ll buy another 222.

You’re a car guy. Verify all repairs, or lack of as to any 222 you like.

Good luck.

MBNUT1

I really like the prefacelift W222 mainly because I prefer the headlights. That said there have been some expense issues with moisture in those headlights. There is a thread(s) on it. Also I think that there is a thread for common issues for the M278 engine.

Tom in Austin

I've had good luck with my 51k mile 2016 but it's not a daily driver. Fortunately, only repair I've needed is a burned out windshield washer motor. As Donny says, there are known service items which are costly depending on how/where you have them done.

JohnLane

I have a 2015 S-65. Purchased with lots of miles on it. In the last year I have added 30,000 miles of FUN. Quiet and comfy with amazing audio when that is desired.... More then willing and able to show taillights to so many ‘sports cars’ at will. It had brand new front suspension arms and tires when I purchased it. I have got to give it spark plugs and wires (preventative), fluids, nitrogen bomb for MBC that threads into the pump, replace a water pump and idler bearings, tires in the rear are due for the second time and a pair of front tires.
Carbon Ceramic brakes are worth the effort finding in your used car purchase. Virtually zero wear in a year of not being particularly nice to them and they never warp.
Peter AKA BenzNinja is a great help when needed. Buy the hardware and a membership. Thank me later.

George A.

On my 2015 S550 W222, I Agree 100% about "Peter AKA BenzNinja is a great help when needed." Headlight mod and a few others are worth it, in spades!

autoluke

What experiences have been noticed regarding motor oil consumption ?

chassis

The W222 is a great looking platform with comfort and nice features. The M278 4.L V8 in the S550 has a reputation for expensive or fatal problems at high mileage/older age. A 2015 fits into this category.

Noted problems on this site for the M278 and its relative the M157:
scored cylinders - fatal or resleeve required
oil in engine wiring harness - workarounds exist, repairable with time, $ and effort
failed/cracked turbo lines - repairable with time, $ and effort
a valve, chain or cylinder head issue - this one is less common so you would need to do research on this, I don't have the details. It's on this site.

I would not own an S550 long term without a warranty such as from Fidelity. If you prefer not to buy a warranty, look for a much more reliable V6 as found in the W222 S450. The 2019 S450 is one of the most reliable preowned MBs in the market now. Also 2019: C400, E450, GLS450, GLE400 and SL450.

autoluke

What would you consider to be long term ?

JohnLane

My 279 powered 222 car uses 1-2 liters of motor oil in 10,000 miles. Zero leaks.

Guys FWIW.... Old tech 279 with port injection and long proven design does not have issues seen in bent eights.
Direct injection; presented as a gift for big power in other engines has proven to be a Trojan horse when injectors fail for disastrous issues in effected cylinders. DI injectors are known to fail such that they leak down when not running. When a big enough puddle is left on the back side of intake valves and the engine is cranked it wakes up with a bent rod. Should the injector fail for a crap spray pattern the cylinder/ piston melt for at best major engine work with a sizable bill at the machine shop. Sure you want a four liter being asked to operate at what has to be the edge of destruction at high miles?
The coil pack issue for the 275 in 220 and 221 cars has well known fixes. Oil consumption in my 275 powered car got solved by driving the thing hard enough to seat the rings.

superpop

I have had 3 S Classes in the past 10 years or so. A 2012 W221 4M, a 2015 W222 4M, and now a 2019 S63 4M. They are wonderful cars, I had a warranty on my 2012 that I didn't really ever use. On the 2015 I had to replace one air strut in the front that was making a clunk sound on occasion but still worked fine. I sold the 2015 in 2021 with 55K miles on it and it was pretty much trouble free that whole time. The S63 has had a few things that needed addressing under warranty but now it seems to be fully sorted and just uses brake pads, tires and oil. These are easy cars to do general maintenance on including brakes and oil changes. If you can swing it I would shoot for a 2019 or newer example because of the tech upgrades they did in 2019. MB lags behind just about everyone on electronic stuff like carplay etc. It is like most any car, if you get a lemon, you could spend a fortune but that is not exclusive to Mercedes, I have seen Toyota's fail catastrophically and they are not cheap to fix either.

autoluke

Back to my original concern...any unusual oil consumption on the bi turbo V8 ?

MBNUT1

Thanks for the summary. The above are reasons that I am hesitant to buy a prefacelift W222.

carlosinseattle

I'm glad you're asking for opinions, because that's all we have. I can tell you from owning one of the worst MB vehicles EVER made that I still think it's worth it to go with a nice used S-class. I had a 2001 S600 with the V12 motor and hydraulic ABC (Active Body Control). The car was "magical" when it worked and frustrating when it didn't. I spent close to $15K in maintenance and repairs over the 5 years I owned the car, definitely not ideal. But the products MB is putting out is head and shoulders better than what they did in that timeframe. I curently own a 2017 S550, which I bought last year as a CPO car. My car had high mileage, but impeccable maintenance history, and had never had any services performed, outside of brakes - so every part on the car, except for brake pads and discs, were the exact parts that were on the car when it left the factory. Every time someone turns a screw on a car is an opportunity to make a mistake, so for me, less is better, with the exception of oil and brakes.

- Are expensive failures a common occurrence in these cars? Or are they rather seldom, but reported with great vigor on the internet?
Expensive repairs are seldom, but when they happen they have an outsized impact because of cost; lack of options for MB specific systems, and parts availability. In my opinion, they are rare. Other thing to consider are the potential gremlins in the tech features. I'm amazed at how many things still work perfectly with my 80K mileage car. But if something breaks after the warranty period, I expect it to be costly to remedy, unless I decide to buy the part and install it myself.

- Any recommendations for must-have options or options to avoid at all costs?
All options are personal preference. 4-Matic was a non-negotiable for me, had to have it living in the rainy PNW, and we have a cabin in Montana where the roads are maintained by landowners. But for some, they might prefer the supreme comfort of Active body Control, which isn't available on 4-matic cars, at least not in the US.
- Any other advice for a prospective purchaser/owner?
Spend as much time as you can with the available used S-class cars in your area, that will help you get more familiar with the features and if they're important to you or not. One of the things I do is try to drive several similar used cars so I can compare how they "feel" in comparison to the others. Best thing is to compare a super low mile cream puff car to one with high miles and see how they feel different. One other thing you miight want to consider when purchasing a car is consistency of ownership. MB's tend to exchange hands more frequently than other brands. I think the 80%+ are leased, 10% pay cash, and a miniscule number of people purchase with a traditional loan. That means at least 80% are going to change hands in the first 3-4 years of ownership. Once the car goes back, it can be sold as a CPO by the dealership, but the vast majority are auctioned off and shipped somewhere. Then they sit for 1-10 months on a car lot. Worst part is the test drive where they get pushed before the engine fully warms up; that's torture for an engine. The more times the car changes hands and the amount of time it sits unsold increases the chance for abuse.

chassis

5 years as a daily driver.

SW20S

The W222 is a great car, and surprisingly reliable...BUT you have to understand this is a very expensive car, parts are very expensive, brakes are a $2,000 proposition with OEM parts or OEM rotors and quality ceramic pads, it has air suspension which doesn't age well (although its been pretty solid in the 222), just a lot of potential for expense. You need to be prepared for that.

I would get a warranty, or make sure you have $2,500 or so on hand at any given time to deal with a repair, and add to that amount every year so you self-insure yourself against repairs. Not a car to buy for $35,000 and say "why would I buy a new Camry", if you know what I mean.

BenzV12

Engine and tranny mounts are common problems in Mercedes-Benz engines but honestly, those are replacement parts when they're due .Some say avoid 4 MATIC cars but I have not observed any problems with the 4 MATIC even after 100K miles . A well maintained car with a good service history can be bought but yes being an S Class things are not cheap regardless of its age .
You may face some weird problems like massaging seats not working properly but I don't think those would put a dent on the car's reliability .

dmatre

I want to give a big thanks to all who responded to this thread (Request for Advice).

I will be picking up my new-to-me 2019 S450 4matic on Friday, and the advice of folks here made the decision a good bit easier and less worrisome.

It's a CPO one-owner car, just off lease (in service date of 2020), in Designo Diamond White Metallic with Black/Black leather, with 35k miles.
I'm picking up an additional warranty just for piece-of-mind and 'surprise minimization' in the next years.

I figure any inherent problems will be sorted under the 1-year CPO warranty, and the additional warranty is to help me sleep better....

I'm hoping for years of enjoyment to come with this car, and I'm grateful to each of you who responded with your advice/recommendations/comments.

Thanks again!

vinflouen

I have a 2019 S560 and i am a maintenance hound.
no problems, just silly stuff like a coolant valve.
no issues with this car.
i am at 66k miles

jayagopal50

Michigan:driven in winters,2015 European Delivery 2014,now @130K.I have no intention of selling it.I have a 2022 550 EQS too.W222 is way more solid and spacious.Not settling for a 6 clyinder.

Tom in Austin

Good luck with the with the car, hope your repair experience is favorable and I'm sure you'll enjoy it tremendously

dmatre

It's now a done deal, and I'm back in the MB fold.

Thanks again to everyone who responded!


Old Car - 2011 BMW E90 MSport (now in my son's hands), New Car - 2019 S450

Lanzz

Congrats, d, she is a beauty. Will look for you rolling around Charlotte.

BenzV12

Congratulations and thanks for your update on your decision as well
Happy Driving