vixapphire

Hi y'all. I used to be around here years back with an e55 wagon I bought in '05, after which I had a Porsche for awhile, and have been rocking an SL63 silver arrow that's quite lovely if a bit terrifying to contemplate the anticipated maintenance/repair costs! And now, I am looking for a second car to be more of a driver/hauler for when I need the extra row of seats and/or a big trunk.

I've been eyeing the W210 E55 (01-02) and the old w124 500E sedans. The 500E's are cool and probably won't depreciate but they're also lots older and may require costly refurb/repair to remain roadworthy - they no longer strike me as "daily driver" type cars, and I want something that's going to be there when called upon but not cost me a ******** to keep running.

So the E55. Love the appearance, and the newer aspect - less-aged parts, nicer creature comforts inside, etc.

I found a nice '02 and it has what appears to be every option, from navi to bumper-sensors, to heated and cooled seats, etc. Everything works, the thing has about 78k miles on it, and it's gorgeous. Prior owner changed out the orange side markers and also tinted the windows.

I think it would be great for my needs/wants, and I'm not scared of the options list - I don't want a bare-bones car. However, the seller's asking 17k for the thing, and that's after some negotiation. He's bottomed out there and I just can't pull the trigger. Am I nuts? I see a lot of these in that mileage range asking around 17-18k on cars and ebay but that doesn't say what they sell for.

Is this car worth 17k on the secondhand market at 78k miles, given it's mint and fully loaded? It still seems a bit high to me but I need some input and maybe some suggested approach to get a lower price.

Thanks to all of you for your advice and wisdom!

Strigoi

No way would I pay that much. Even at that mileage and being super clean I doubt I'd go over $13,000.

RustbucketRacer

I agree with Strigoi. ^^^

Dan04mcs

17k? yes too high.
But not over 13k?
Totally dependent on the area.

In Colorado finding a low mileage clean E55 in the 13k range was next to impossible.
I looked for a year and was actually finding wrecked and repaired ones for 13-15k.
Now if I wanted to buy one from Cali sight unseen, have it shipped back to Colorado then 13k was doable.
But wether i shipped it or drove it back cost me money and not being able to check it out in person bothered me.

My 02 E55 with 69k miles, all service records and 1 owner cost me 15k.
But I could see it, drive it, check out the service records and see for myself that it absolutely needed nothing.

I agree 17k is too much, but depending on your area, higher than 13k might be the average for low mileage, clean examples.

jmho........

Strigoi

There are always E55s for sale in the Bay Area, so the prices are lower. I didn't have any hits on mine after a week at $9,500ish.

Vander

I think it is worth 15. A good seller could get 12 for one with 120k miles.

Strigoi

It has nothing to do with being a good seller. There have been ones sitting on my local CL for under $8,000 that aren't selling. It's more about the market for the car than if someone is a good seller.

I paid $12,000 for mine when it had 91,000 miles on it well over 2 years ago.

amthatiam

I paid $15,000 for mine, it is loaded like the one you are looking at. had 65,000 on it when I bought it. I think what I paid was a bit high for this market, and, the car I bought had a color combination that I really wanted (obsidian black with charcoal/ruby interior) If you really like the car, get it and if you can do so for less than $15,000 go for it and don't look back, they are great cars. Just my $.55 cents worth.

Dan

Nocturnal-G

I'd buy it for 17k, mint condition of course. Keeping in mind maintenance can throw you back a few thousand... I think it's worth it.

Tall Giraffe

I looked at that White 55 in last year. GP (the Seller) would only go as low as $14,500. I loved that car because white and was the color I had been searching for intensely. Sometimes I wish I would of purchased that car because of the clean look and rarity.

Last week I purchased 2001 1 owner Silver with light gray /charcoal interior for just over $10K. It had 79K on the clock. Was it perfect? No the normal mechanical items (about $1500 in repairs at the indie) that I have read about on the forums were there to be fixed and it could use a thorough detail but for the price, I feel like it was well worth it.

Dan04mcs

Know what you mean.
I had set a budget of 13k but when I saw the condition and the color I had to have it.
It was the first white one I had found that was in almost perfect condition.
The tires were shot but I am OCD when it comes to tires so that didn't bother me.
I add that in to the cost of what I paid for the car.

I happily wrote that check