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'06 MB S55 AMG; '04 Audi Allroad 4.2; '05 BMW M3 Conv.; '92 MB 500E
'08 S63
But the warning is, you will be both pleased and not. Both of these are S Classes, so coming from your E55 you will be very pleased. However, neither of these is as reliable as that car, or any 55k car for that matter.
New, unproven drivetrain (at the time) reared their heads (engine head bolts on the M156 engine, 7GTronic issues), and the electronics were even worse (keyless go, door handles, etc.). And as you know, nothing is cheap on a Benz -- and the electronics are even worse.
I personally think the 55k cars are the one time MB got it right since the 500E. It takes Porsche or AMG to show them how to do reliable performance. But then there's only a very small market for the car. Nowhere is that more apparent than in the AMG SClass, which is why you don't hear people complaining about them in chat rooms. SClass owners tend not to be AMG people, and when they are they tend not to be in chat rooms. But just like we S55 owners have to look at the E55 boards for advice, when you look at the SL65, E63 and SL63 boards, some of the problems show up (same drivetrain and electronics).
But stay away from the 65 if you care at all about reliability. In fact, only buy a 65 if you don't care about reliability.
I can't speak to the 63 but my 2008 65 is the most reliable Mercedes I've owned. I owned two prior Mercedes and currently own three but my newest only has 11K miles so it doesn't count. My S65 has 123K miles. I owned a 1994 E500 assembled by Porsche and it is one of only two cars in my lifetime I have not driven past 200K miles. I sold it at 125K after the replacement transmission gave out (lasted less than 25K miles). Also has a S500 that I drove to 230K miles. It was reliable but had a lot less technology than the S65. Always had issues with the air suspension.
You have an AMG so you know that every time you take a car in they will give you a $6-8K repair list. If you don't know anything about cars you soil your pants. I just had them put on new rear tires and, as usual, they had $8K in repairs including the ABC accumulators ($2,300) new rear pads and rotors ($3,400), new motor mounts ($1,200) and new thrust arm bushings ($800). This didn't even include the new tires! Fortunately, I had replaced the accumulators myself when I did my plugs at 120K so this tells me they just throw this stuff out to customers without really doing their homework. I do my own brake work so that was off the table. I let them do the mounts even though my butt told me I didn't need them (but in hindsight it was warranted). Also signed up for the new bushings b/c TBH I figured they were probably worn but who knows.
An S65 will require new rear tires every 6-12K miles depending on sport vs. all season. An S65 will require new motor mounts roughly every 50-60K miles. Based on what I've read, the 1st generation ABC will require much more repair and maintenance than the 2nd generation (I think the 2007 is 2nd gen but not sure). S65 coilpacks will go out at some point but remember each pack has 12 coils in it and when one goes you replace all 12! If S65 oil or water lines to turbos leak you will need to fix it yourself or find a good garage because dealer will charge you a minimum of $6,500 to fix.
W221 S63 and S65 have same brakes, same suspension, same everything but engine. If you can't do your own brake work, expect to spend $5-6K or so for a front and rear brake job at the dealer. S65 engine has been rock solid for me. I have replaced 2 coil packs, a power steering hose and I replaced an o-ring on the top DS turbo (easy to get to but if its on the bottom different story).
2008 S65 has different interior than 2007 S65. S65 is fully loaded and has the nicer interior of the two. S65 is smooth as silk and torque is addictive. Can't speak to the S63.
Good luck on the decision. If you do look at the '07 S65 be aware that there were some options that year so some cars have more "stuff" than others. In '08 they raised the price a bit and included everything as standard (except you could still order designo for more)!
Poor reliability of 65 is severely exaggerated by the few (but very noisy about it) bad cases.
That's one thing, the other is, drive both and you'll realize that 63 (naturally aspirated) has no torque at all next to 65 and is a poor marriage with that heavy limo body.
NA 63 belongs in sports cars not in a big sedan.
Either car will be great. Either car can be reasonable to own or not. It depends on luck, the car you pick and... more luck.
All I know is that the 2008 S63 I owned for 2 years cost $14k to fix in the first 2 years so I traded up to a 2012 which has been flawless to own.
SO MANY THINGS went wrong (Nav went out - $2K, ABS, struts I think, and more stuff I can't remember) in just 2 weeks. It cost $8k in the first 2 months but the extended warranty covered most of this, for a very hight price though ($5675 for the warranty).
But, I LOVED THAT CAR! Anyone that says the 2008 S63 doesn't feel SUPER FAST is just plain wrong.
I say, just get whatever car that looks and feels best. You can't go wrong with either, but be sure to have a TON OF MONEY saved up in case it costs crazy amounts of money to own.
I plan on keeping my 2012 S63 when the extended warranty runs out in 4 years since I love it so much, and see no compelling reason to buy a newer S63 at that point. It's a dream. You'll be so happy to get one of these cars, they truly rock and look great.
Here's pics from 4 years ago when I first got it. If it wasn't so problematic I would have definitely kept it. I loved the looks and feel and much preferred the all leather wheel to my current wood wheel on the 2012.
Im pretty good at doing the work on my cars, I have done everything myself on the E55 except the tune by Eurocharged
I have done SC pulley, BWK, Heat Exchanger and pump, changed all brakes and rotors, changed all plugs and wires, etc. I think I can live with working on the car myself as it is all part of a special experience in my opinion. I love working on the car, whether is waking up early on Saturday, make some coffee and start wrenching or working on it on a hot day and having some cold beers to keep me going.
Im just not looking to be wrenching on the car every weekend or have the car break down on me on a family trip to Disneyland,etc. I want something that I will not be afraid of taking the family out on and leaving us stranded, I want reliability in that sense.
I have a 65 im looking at and it has a way too good price to believe the car is in good condition but if everything checks out, I will be picking it up.
I checked out an S65 and I was impressed with how fast but smooth the car was. Unfortunately the car needed more cosmetic work than I thought so the search goes on!
05-11-2017, 07:12 AM
