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total newbie to MB here. drove the car that has 71K and is $31 and loved it. great 4.7 turbo. but im leaving on vacation for a week and they wont hold it. on the surface it appears to be a great car. but i need all the warnings from the experts here. i always have my mechanic look at my car and he will be doing all the work on it. but it's the weekend and so cant talk to him much less get it in for inspection
carfax is clean and the dealer did all the work on the car since new including a front fender bender they said was minor. it was a corporate car and then i think changed title to the owner of the company.
im going to read this forum as late as my eyes will stay open but wondering your quick advice. gut wants it but says dont to buy it tomorrow cause you didnt get it inspected or even know about these cars. of course i most worry about the cost of upkeep and repair. i never wanted a turbo, i think they are expensive to repair. or not? my driving will be 10K a year or less in the future. i need all the help i can get . thanks! also while i can easily do the 30K car loan, i dont have the time nor money if this is going to be expensive to upkeep and thats my concern. i do my oil changes in my current car and except the trans its been pretty trouble free till over 200K.
edit: i did not look at the tires except to note they were michelins. he said same sizes front and back but thats not true is it? he said they were amg wheels. i honestly wouldnt know the difference. he printed out the build sheet and it says 18 inch tires which at least arent too expensive but that theres no spare is bugging me. so did the car come with amg or did the owner put them on. i kick myself for not looking at the tire sizes.
also one post on this forum said once 80K comes that many things need to be done including suspension parts. still reading....but curious how that can be that suspension is a normal replacment thing?
also can you plug a phone in the center console and run the cord out? it appears youd smash it if you did
Last edited by luckydriver; 10-27-2023 at 08:42 PM.
one thing i totally forgot about till now is when i was driving that depending the way my head was when i was talking ( to gf or dealer in the back), there was an echo like i was in a concert hall. bizarre! is this normal?
There is a reason this once 100K car is now 31K, age and mileage. I am not saying that these cars are unreliable but at 70K+ miles they are going to start needing things that could get very expensive unless you are a pretty good mechanic. Even then, parts are still based on the fact that this is a 100K car. If you are needing a loan to buy a 30K car, this one probably is not for you if you are worried about expensive repairs. This car could need 5-10K in deferred maintenance done, Motor Mounts, Suspension Components, Trans Service, Struts, and on and on.
it's definitely true i cannot afford 3K for a brake job especially when they appear to not even last that long based on my reading in the forums. but for the fun of it i looked at my dealers website and he has cpo cars from 2018 and 2019 but the site also says you get the balance of the 4yr 50K warranty but arent the cars by definition out of warranty at that age?
but i'm guessing a 2020 c300 for the same price as the s550 i looked at cant even compare with engine/ride etc.
also looked at some leasing MB sites directly and some have said maintenance is included which is totally opposite everything ive read on this forum. there are a few leases in my price range though i have no idea how those cars ride of course
OP the TT 4.7 is a good motor with things to look out for. Oil leaks. All are doable if you are a good DIY-er. If not a few trips to the repair shop may eye opening.
Does the car have airmatic or ABC? ABC is my pick.
You’re not spending $3,000 on brakes. Do some research. Aftermarket pads and rotors will be fine. AMG cars are expensive. But worth it.
Test drive an S-63 or even better... an S65. First hit of AMG Crack is free!
OP the TT 4.7 is a good motor with things to look out for. Oil leaks. All are doable if you are a good DIY-er. If not a few trips to the repair shop may eye opening.
Does the car have airmatic or ABC? ABC is my pick.
You’re not spending $3,000 on brakes. Do some research. Aftermarket pads and rotors will be fine. AMG cars are expensive. But worth it.
Test drive an S-63 or even better... an S65. First hit of AMG Crack is free!
4-Corner Auto-Leveling Suspension
Front And Rear Anti-Roll Bars
Automatic w/Driver Control Height Adjustable Automatic w/Driver Control Ride Control Adaptive Suspension
unsure which. cant see in the listing but found this.
are you saying i can use the 40 dollar bosch brake pads from rock auto as well as the powerstop rotors that are 300 each, or even cheaper? i used to do my stuff on my older car like water pump, radiator and brakes but stopped a few years ago. body just doesnt wanna get on the floor any more.
watching that video above sure scared the blank out of me. i cannot imagine a big engine problem like that when i still have loan on the car. i wouldnt want to be paying on the car and then have 5 or 10K repair. i know the car is probably worth it but then theres other things like the staggered size tires. ive read tires wear a lot faster then. admittedly ill only be going 10K or less in retirement. but still it does worry me. i know the good times would be good though. and this car has over 70K on it and from my reading here it's the time things get more expensive.
im going on vacation for a week, if its there when i come back i may start to consider it. but i also want to find a lexus, infinity and avalon to drive if i can.
are the cheaper newer MB just as good a ride as the s class? im assuming not if the newer used cars are under 40K vs 100K.
Automatic w/Driver Control Height Adjustable Automatic w/Driver Control Ride Control Adaptive Suspension
unsure which. cant see in the listing but found this.
are you saying i can use the 40 dollar bosch brake pads from rock auto as well as the powerstop rotors that are 300 each, or even cheaper? i used to do my stuff on my older car like water pump, radiator and brakes but stopped a few years ago. body just doesnt wanna get on the floor any more.
watching that video above sure scared the blank out of me. i cannot imagine a big engine problem like that when i still have loan on the car. i wouldnt want to be paying on the car and then have 5 or 10K repair. i know the car is probably worth it but then theres other things like the staggered size tires. ive read tires wear a lot faster then. admittedly ill only be going 10K or less in retirement. but still it does worry me. i know the good times would be good though. and this car has over 70K on it and from my reading here it's the time things get more expensive.
im going on vacation for a week, if its there when i come back i may start to consider it. but i also want to find a lexus, infinity and avalon to drive if i can.
are the cheaper newer MB just as good a ride as the s class? im assuming not if the newer used cars are under 40K vs 100K.
This one has Airmatic for suspension. Magic Body Control is much nicer. Neither are particularly troublesome. MBC gets fluid changes.
It is old enough to be ready for suspension arms in the front.
No comparison between this car and Lexus/Infiniti. Drive them. A car guy will pick the Mercedes. Your $$$ your choice.
see that right there blows my mind that suspension parts last less than 100K. i dont get why a $100K car cant have better parts when my much cheaper car never had suspension parts replaced even with 240K on it.
and a car guy with money will pick the MB but i admit i dont have an unlimited wallet like most on this forum do. i know the notion is wrong but i believe more expensive cars should have better parts that last longer and are more durable and able to take the weight/power or whatever causes the cars to need normal maintenance of suspension parts. but reading that the MB windshield will crack sitting in my garage because the body twists under the power would just burn me up if that happened to me. and water in headlights 10K of damage..just wow
of course i realize only X percent of cars have the issues but i wish there were polls to give one a better idea of who has the problems . but since i dont want to be one of those people i guess i cant even risk it.
i did read about fidelty having warranties for about 4K which id do if i could be sure they would actually pay but everything i ever heard about extended warranties is negative. and i sure dont want to pay 4k for a warranty and then have to pay for any major repairs lol. that would be crazy
how much would i lose if something went wrong and had to trade the car in. do dealers take it in and do a thorough inspection (MB or just any generic dealer). or would something pop up on the screen that there's no way to hide something that goes wrong? i guess the latter. even the license plate the dealer put on blocked the rear cam and we got warnings while we were driving.
it's definitely true i cannot afford 3K for a brake job especially when they appear to not even last that long based on my reading in the forums. but for the fun of it i looked at my dealers website and he has cpo cars from 2018 and 2019 but the site also says you get the balance of the 4yr 50K warranty but arent the cars by definition out of warranty at that age?
but i'm guessing a 2020 c300 for the same price as the s550 i looked at cant even compare with engine/ride etc.
also looked at some leasing MB sites directly and some have said maintenance is included which is totally opposite everything ive read on this forum. there are a few leases in my price range though i have no idea how those cars ride of course
if you cannot afford a 3k brake job. You cannot afford this car.
how much would i lose if something went wrong and had to trade the car in. do dealers take it in and do a thorough inspection (MB or just any generic dealer). or would something pop up on the screen that there's no way to hide something that goes wrong? i guess the latter. even the license plate the dealer put on blocked the rear cam and we got warnings while we were driving.
if you’re being calculative over financial aspects on a s class that was over 100k now 31k in pricing. If you cannot put aside 2-4k a year without blinking an eye per year. Than you cannot afford this car.
you cannot expect reliability on a car that is now priced at 31k from over 100k.
Let’s be realistic here.
from watching that video above that looks like more than 10 to 15K of work if that stuff went wrong. i def wouldnt want to put 15K in a 31k car i admit. and yes im used to way less maintenance on my car. sometimes just is the oil changes. i do think i need a more reliable car that has less cost when things break down. ive been spoiled all these years for sure.
You may have issues within the first few years of ownership, or you may not. It might come a couple years from now. There aren't issues that every car will have after X amount of miles. They're general guidelines. Saying at 80k it's going to need suspension parts isn't right. 80k all freeway driving vs. 80k a lot of bad roads are two different things. The main thing is age. Plastics, rubbers, all age over time. Cars that aren't garage kept will deteriorate faster, etc.
It's mainly going to be just the needed fluid changes, brakes, tires, etc. unless there are issues apparent now, such as suspension noises or alignment issues. You'll probably spend 1-2k at first to do all the services needed, and some preventative work. Then it may or may not be trouble free the next two years of ownership. But you have to be prepared some issues that can pop up and have the money set aside if such a thing occurs. From searching, there isn't anything that will for sure happen after X amount of miles. Wear and tear items will eventually need replacement, such as motor mounts, trans mounts, suspension, etc. The engine and turbos seem very solid, especially the later models. Earlier models had known issues, which are all corrected by the last years of production on the engine.
You may have issues within the first few years of ownership, or you may not. It might come a couple years from now. There aren't issues that every car will have after X amount of miles. They're general guidelines. Saying at 80k it's going to need suspension parts isn't right. 80k all freeway driving vs. 80k a lot of bad roads are two different things. The main thing is age. Plastics, rubbers, all age over time. Cars that aren't garage kept will deteriorate faster, etc.
It's mainly going to be just the needed fluid changes, brakes, tires, etc. unless there are issues apparent now, such as suspension noises or alignment issues. You'll probably spend 1-2k at first to do all the services needed, and some preventative work. Then it may or may not be trouble free the next two years of ownership. But you have to be prepared some issues that can pop up and have the money set aside if such a thing occurs. From searching, there isn't anything that will for sure happen after X amount of miles. Wear and tear items will eventually need replacement, such as motor mounts, trans mounts, suspension, etc. The engine and turbos seem very solid, especially the later models. Earlier models had known issues, which are all corrected by the last years of production on the engine.
is the 2016 s550 a model with solid turbo (i dont know if 16 is considered a late model or not)? i had never wanted any turbo on any car because of perceived notion that they have more maintenance and breakdowns. but i admit im clueless with the reality. except to watch that video a few posts up lol. matter of fact i drove a G90 and in the manual it said oil changes at 40K vs 100K for the V8 for example. i actually had money down on that car and ready to buy but they had to clean it up. then i read the carfax more closely. it had 4 wheel alignment at 6K and 8K miles and a few other unusual things for a car with less than 25K on it. after more research i discovered why so many records on a car driven so few miles. there are wide spread vibration issues among 15 to 21 model year cars where people were replacing steering racks, drive shafts, wheels, tires. brakes etc. what was maddening is no single solution worked for anyone. if someone told me that if you get that issue you pay 4K for a part and its solved i would have bought that car for sure. but people went months or years with the issue. some being bought back by genesis because the cars were so faulty. so i walked.
i agree things age even if your car is in your garage. i know im comparing apples to oranges to compare my current car to the S class but i've gotten away dirt cheap on maintenance and repairs for 10 years and 240K on my car. i admit ive been lucky. but heck after i retire next year maybe ill go 500 miles a month lol. i literally have no clue what ill be doing. so the chances of 'stuff' happening with such low driving really are less i agree.
regarding your 1 to 2 k to set up the car, the dealer showed me his invoice and what he did to put up the car for sale and it totaled bit over 1000 bucks. the normal inspections of course, rim repair was about 300, 4 wheel alignment. and since the car was serviced at the dealer since day 1 i was able to find out the accident was minor bumper damage. i realize theres value in having the complete car records at the same dealer since new. attached the carfax for inspection. 25k for brakes just scared me and tires at only 30K scared me. but i have to remember my high highway driving is rare and that brakes lasted 75 to 100K and my pirellis always lasted 60K or more. but it wont be driving that much again. which is THE reason im retiring lol. keeping that in mind i still have to work till june next year, sadly , so i would be putting at least 8 or 9K work miles on between now and next summer.
one thing i have to find out is if my mechanic has the STAR machine which apparently is needed for all the codes etc. (correct me if im wrong). i have no clue if he does and since i saw that car friday afternoon , i had no way to get in touch with him till tomorrow and ill be leaving on vacation so will have to try to remember that lol. but my mind will probably be on the cruise.
i guess my failsafe would be buying a good warranty for about 4K for 4 years (saw that on this forum thats how much it costs) because then i wouldnt worry so much. even though my mechanic said they try never to pay out and are just not fun to deal with. though for warranty work i could take it to the MB dealer and hopefully that would make it easier to get paid out.
of course when i come back in 10 days the car may be gone and this all moot, which would really stink. but it's in fate's hands.
the dealer did schedule A service for 190 which seems way too cheap to me. i think he said thats a discounted price the sales team gets. whats normal price for that service
also beside the STAR question is there anything else i should ask my mechanic before i buy. hes 3 blocks from my house and i used him over a decade and i do totally trust him. which is rare these days lol. im assuming he's worked on MB but i know i should ask.
Last edited by luckydriver; 10-29-2023 at 11:52 AM.
forgot that the only flaws i saw in the car when i drove it was the horrible squeaking in the drivers seat. reduced by the manager knowing how to unfold the wings so to speak . they were tight on my back anyway. also i dont think the cooled seats worked but the heated def did. and the LKA button didnt light up no matter how much i pressed it. he said it needs to be programmed. is that true? personally id never use lane keeping but i do believe he should make it work if i buy the car.
OP buy the Fidelity Platinum warranty for peace of mind. It will cover all the suspension parts that wear and you pay one deductible. It will also cover most everything else that happens. But not brakes, tires, maintenance.
LKA is annoying. I turn it off in all my cars and don’t look back.
If you manage to find one with Carbon Ceramic brakes with fresh brake pads you can look forward to never needing to replace brake pads. That car will have 20” wheels and orange brake calipers. Chances are it will also have Magic Body Control. A nice combination.
have you used the warranty? ill have to dig deeper in the forum regarding payout difficulty. i assume it would cover all the repairs if the stuff in the video a few posts above happened. i guess i worry they say something is maintenance. but nothing i can do about it lol
tires are
Rear Tire Size: P245/50HR18
Front Tire Size: P245/50HR18
according to the listing. he told me in person that they tires are the same size but i didnt look
Last edited by luckydriver; 10-29-2023 at 12:48 PM.
Error on my part.... Any car with all wheels driven will be airmatic.
Fidelity is very easy to work with. You take the car to MB with a (or a list of) complaint(s) and MB contacts Fidelity and gets it done. You pay a deductible. Get Platinum coverage or don’t bother. Pay more for a low deductible.
I’m in the business and get to make that call daily for client cars. Fidelity is the best. Far and away.
Don’t bother with any of the other companies advertising. Many to most of them are a scam. Long list of ‘covered items’ that don’t fail where items that DO fail are not on the list... not covered. Some of them want to supply used parts or only pay a reduced hourly rate to the repair shop. Really.
18” wheels means tall sidewalls which makes for a soft ride. Same size front and rear means they can be rotated. Tires will last longer. Continental DWS06 will be an excellent choice.
Error on my part.... Any car with all wheels driven will be airmatic.
Fidelity is very easy to work with. You take the car to MB with a (or a list of) complaint(s) and MB contacts Fidelity and gets it done. You pay a deductible. Get Platinum coverage or don’t bother. Pay more for a low deductible.
18” wheels means tall sidewalls which makes for a soft ride. Same size front and rear means they can be rotated. Tires will last longer. Continental DWS06 will be an excellent choice.
thanks for the positive input...cool then ill get the car good to know fidelity is so ez to work with. sounds positive . hope the car is there when i get back
i love my conti extreme contacts but switched to P7 when they were out of stock and i needed tires right away.
Error on my part.... Any car with all wheels driven will be airmatic.
Fidelity is very easy to work with. You take the car to MB with a (or a list of) complaint(s) and MB contacts Fidelity and gets it done. You pay a deductible. Get Platinum coverage or don’t bother. Pay more for a low deductible.
I’m in the business and get to make that call daily for client cars. Fidelity is the best. Far and away.
Don’t bother with any of the other companies advertising. Many to most of them are a scam. Long list of ‘covered items’ that don’t fail where items that DO fail are not on the list... not covered. Some of them want to supply used parts or only pay a reduced hourly rate to the repair shop. Really.
18” wheels means tall sidewalls which makes for a soft ride. Same size front and rear means they can be rotated. Tires will last longer. Continental DWS06 will be an excellent choice.
would fidelity pay for things like those oil seals in the vid above that dripped on the alternator and killed it? or ive read about engine scoring but i admit i didnt research further. or is something like that normal wear and tear? i guess what im asking is what have you seen fidelity deny?
the ride was insanely smooth and i def prefer same size tires for rotation. i dont buy things like car shield. i dont think ever bought from informercial in my life! word of mouth by smart people on forums and friends are what i trust.
edit: looked up fidelity. seems way too good to be true but i love it. if the oil leaks on the water pump, turbos go . im good. do they consider suspension parts normal wear and tear and dont cover it ? i only ask specifically because of someone bringing up the suspension in this forum. i do see struts not included.
PLATINUM EXCLUSIONS:
Brake linings, brake drums and rotors, disc brake pads, standard manual transmission clutch friction disc, pressure plate, pilot bearing, throw-out bearing and arm, air bags, solar powered devices, glass, lenses, sealed beams, body parts and/or panels, weather stripping, trim, moldings, lock cylinders, tires, wheels, all batteries except Hybrid/EV/Hydrogen High Voltage batteries as listed under Gold Coverage, light bulbs, upholstery, paint, bright metal, freeze plugs, filters, heater and radiator hoses, exhaust system, catalytic converter, shock absorbers, work such as front-end alignment or wheel balancing (except when required in conjunction with a mechanical breakdown), safety restraint systems, audio/security or other systems not factory installed, or vinyl and convertible tops.
Last edited by luckydriver; 10-29-2023 at 01:49 PM.
Airmatic struts will be covered. Struts are covered with related parts. “Shock absorbers” are not.
Yes; oil leaks are covered. The car has to pass an extensive inspection.
what are the logistics of that inspection. example: my guy looks at the car and says it's ok. im assuming thats not enough for fidelity. but would be enough for me to buy it. but then if fidelity looks it it after purchase and finds fault of course no way would i want the car. will the MB dealer let them inspect it before purchase?
oh i thought struts were a type of shock. good to know that expensive system is covered
10-27-2023, 07:53 PM
