Hey guys,

looking at getting a 05-06 SL65, and it seems that they are dropping in price quite substantially. Every dealer I have talked to so far is willing to drop their asking price and I am guessing these cars arent moving.

Any thoughts on the current market? What would be a smoking deal on one, and am I going to be stuck with it? Also, how often do white ones come up for sale?

 

I've been looking at SL65 recently. For an '05 you're looking at very low 90s. For an '06 about 100k.

 

I agree, very low 90's for average miles, a few thousand higher for low mileage. I don't see white ones coming up for sale very often as silver and black seem to be the most common colors. I would like a white/charcoal SL65 one for myself.

 

Auction prices that have sold within the last few months on 05 SL65's

06/05/08 RIVRSIDE Lease $74,500 30,529 Avg BLK 040 12G A Yes
05/15/08 MANHEIM Regular $90,000 10,952 Above SILVER 12G A Yes
05/14/08 DALLAS Regular $82,325 12,205 Avg Black 12C A Yes
04/09/08 W PALM Lease $80,000 24,425 Avg BLACK 12G A Yes
03/20/08 MANHEIM Regular $88,000 10,176 Above SLVR 12G A Yes
03/11/08 FAAO Lease $75,000 26,249 Avg GRAY 12G A Yes

 

They have a black/black '05 65 at MBSD for 85k. Of course, it has zero options, no keyless/parktronic/distronic/pano ect....

 

I picked up a 05 white/charcol fully loaded for 95 a couple months ago. white is very hard to find, we spent alot of time calling around and looking on ebay and autotrader.

 

Are you offering to go to auction and then sell this guy a car at no profit?? One of these cars on this list is in my garage right now and while nearly perfect it does need some minor reconditioning to be saleable (speaking for very reputable highline dealers only). In this price range you aren't going to sell a car that needs new tires (1/2 tread doesn't cut it on a $90K+ vehicle or even a $50K vehicle at some dealerships), SOOOO...you are going to put new tires on the car before the first customer looks at the car ($1000+), then a few hundred for a detail to get rid of any minor imperfections in the paint, clean the carpets, condition the leather, paintless dent removal (if necessary), etc. Then you buy anything that's missing from the car and auction cars are almost always missing something like a key or two and almost always missing the books (another few hundred $$$). If any of the wheels have even minor marks on then they need to replaced or repaired. I could go on and on but you get the point. By the time you add up the actual costs the reputable dealer puts into the car you are a few $K higher then the auction price. Then a dealer has the "other" hidden costs: insurance, transporting the car to the dealership, rent, phone, carrying costs, etc. It should be obvious that dealers don't get to make money on every car they sell. Sometimes the market changes quickly, sometimes you buy the wrong car, etc. In the end the dealer must make enough profit on all sales to continue operations. A retail buyer with no inside connections should expect to pay close to market since the dealer has to sell at market regardless of whether or not they will profit from the sale. I'm not saying you should not negotiate and try to get the best deal possible but in the end these wholesale numbers are not particularly valuable to the retail buyer. They are very valuable to the person looking to trade one of these cars, since these numbers accurately reflect what one might expect to be offered on a trade.

So back to the question. The reasonable RETAIL price that anyone who is not a dealer or best friends of a dealer (like I am) is the lower end of market price. For an 05 SL65 current market price is in the low to mid $90s and you really shouldn't expect to pay any less for a decent car. If can find a decent one for less then consider it a great deal, buy the car, be happy. Not every dealer is independently wealthy and can afford to sell at wholesale...most are just working guys and gals who are trying to make a decent living, create a few jobs in their community and enjoy what they do. The latter must please the customer to develop repeat business or they will not be around next time that person wants to buy a car from someone who they can trust (since many dealers can't be trusted). If the good guys don't make it in this business then YOU (the customer) are left dealing only with guys who are in it to make a quick buck and don't in ANY WAY care about you, your safety, your happiness, etc. In the end, none of us want that!!!

Rant off

 

look at the way US economy is going... you don't need to hurry at all... those 65s are going to sit down forever...

wait until the new one comes out..

 

I saw that one as well, how valuable are those options it doesnt have when I go to sell?

 

I think it at the very least needs parktronic and keyless go, pretty sad to see a 200k car without those. Makes me wonder who ordered this car

I wouldn't touch a no options 65 unless I was getting a really good deal on it, so you're likely to take another hit when selling.

 

Agree with the Keyless Go and Parktronic options. However, never really cared for either the Distronic (this is the type of car where your foot should love the accelerator, not let the computer control it) or Pano Roof. It's a roadster; you want some sun then drop the friggen' top!

 

Couple weeks ago I bought an '06 SL65 with no Pano or Distronic. Paid $112K. It had 1,200 miles.