zoink

Posted a similar thread in ML forum but thought the traffic for dealer experts is a lot higher here

W/ my C55 leaving me in a day or two and my wife crying for a better car than '96 Nissan Maxima I guess I start another car search again.

Found a 3-month-old ML63 with all options (including distronic) and 1100 miles. MSRP was $97K. What do you think I should offer?

I believe E63 (the more popular one I believe) has been sold $7-11K off MSRP. Having said that, would $80K ($97K MSRP - $11K discount - $5-6K depreciation) be reasonable, too high or too low?

And for those who just got into a lease for a car w/ similar price, how much do you pay? I am considering leasing so I could better use the money somewhere else and want to feel how good it is to simply return the car vs. sell it on my own

BTW, I'm considering X5's and some wagons as well

Fikse

If this ML63 is at a Mercedes dealer you should be able to get a decent lease deal. Since the car has less than 3k miles Mercedes will usually calculate your residuals off of the orignal MSRP, but give you the car for much less (cap cost). This is how I got my C32 lease for around $550/month when they first came out.

The problem with the ML63 is that the residual is terrible, 54% after 3 years (10k miles per year), and the money factor is around 8% right now.

So even if you got it for $80k you're still looking at $1250/month + tax for 36 months and 10k miles per year....

juicee63

GET THE 63 WAGON omgoodness, the ultimate family rocketship, uh 76-84k on the ML 63 try to start at 76 and stop at 84

zoink

Thanks for the response.... w/o me telling what I'm thinking, the dealer only gave me $3K off MSRP

My sales person later called me... he didn't even dare to ask whether I want it or not. I told him if he could give me mid 70's, we could talk.

As for the residual, is it fixed by MBUSA or still negotiable? 54% ($52K residual) does sound a bit too much... but wonder whether that's what the market would be. Look at '05 E55 (which w/o a doubt is a more popular car)... they are only selling around mid to high 50's, which is around 60-65% off MSRP.

But I think the killer is the interest. 8.8% or MF 0.0037 is nuts! This translates to $16.5K for 3-year cost for finance

E63 wagon is another consideration... but not sure how much off MSRP I could get. I only consider this ML63 since I initially expected to be able to ****** it for mid 70's. So a high-powered car like 63's is completely unnecessary for my wife. That's why I'm also looking into E350 wagon. Man, I wish MB offered E550 wagon... that would be perfect.

So I'd guess I'd pass this ML63. I truly doubt the dealer would let it go for $75K

My search continues: E350 wagon, R350, X5 or 535xi wagon. Highest likelihood goes to X5 But I think I'll ****** whichever comes first at the right price w/ the right options.

BTW, came across several leasing websites (www.ezsourceleasing.com)... do you think I could get a better deal there?

juicee63

I think you could do really well on the R350. 2.9% for 72 months and or 489 month!!!

Fikse

heh, what a joke...... I think there are many more E63's sitting on the lots than ML63s which is why you'll see better rates and discounts on them...

CynCarvin32

I got a R350 with a 67k sticker for 367 a month WITH tax! R350's are good cars but they look a little funny. But for that price who really cares? I will drive that around and beat up for 27 months. That makes for a nice drive to work and park in the sun all day car.

zoink

Cyn,

That's a great deal.

Mind telling me where and how I could get that deal.

What's the term BTW?

I'm looking for $0 down (if possible, $0 inception fees or have the fees built in to the lease), 36-month, 15K miles / year.

Please let me know ASAP. I'm pretty close at pulling a trigger on BMW.

Thanks.

amgmike1

Zoink,

If you're considering a wagon, go with the E63 wagon! You will not regret it! I was thinking about SUVs before I bought mine and the beauty of it is it has all the performance of the E63 sedan plus the cargo capacity of a wagon. Plus it's pretty rare with something less than 50 in the country. In terms of SUVs though, you can't beat the ML63 so either way it's pretty sweet. Good luck in deciding.

enzom

They are giving those things away. I begged my wife to get one, but she thought they were the ugliest things on the road.

zoink

I could... but I think it's a bit too much for my wife... I have to "reset" the ECU every time after she drove the car for a while. Otherwise, the car doesn't feel fast... Plus, I have an E55 already... so I think it's quite redundant.

I'd pass on ML63.... I offered $75K and the dealer didn't budge an inch.

I wish I bought an E55 wagon.... so I don't need to look for a bigger car. She could drive the E and I could look for a fun car like 997TT.

Ironically, I am thinking of 335i. Did a test drive today.... was not really impressed w/ the power. It is quite fast... but I don't feel the turbo kick (it should be a good thing I suppose... no turbo lag) and somehow I somehow felt it was not a lot faster than 535xi wagon I tried

And it's certainly not as fast as C55.... regardless a lot of people claiming to be as fast as stock C55.

Since my wife prefers smaller car, depending on the price I could get, I think I likely pull a trigger on 335i, 535xi wagon or Q7... or R350 if my sales person gets back to me on time (he's on vacation for the past couple days ) or CynCarvin could tell me how to get a deal like his.

Wish me luck!

rich644

I like the wagons as well. Anyone know if they ever have any lease specials on the wagons? E63 /E55?

FASN8N

Quote:
Originally Posted by juicee63
I think you could do really well on the R350. 2.9% for 72 months and or 489 month!!!

They should be giving them away, just a glorified minivan with a MB badge on it.

lauer87

The R class is by no means a "glorified" mini-van. From your post it seems you think that they just redesigned the POS Town & Country and slapped the three pointed star on it. No No No, it might be the worst looking of the R, ML and GL, but it drives better because its lower to the ground. Plus which one would you rather be invovled in a accident in? Nuf Said

amgmike1

I haven't ever seen any lease specials on the e63 wagon I think because they don't bring enough of them into the country. It's typically a special order only vehicle and I was only able to buy mine off the dealer's lot because the guy who ordered it couldn't qualify for financing when it arrived so they had it in inventory. Unlike the e63 sedans which the dealer had alot more of and seemed to be giving decent discounts on, there was very little negotiating room on the wagon.

rich644

Nuts ! I have been wanting a wagon, but every time they have an e-class "dream lease" they always seem to exclude the wagon in the fine print.

I wanted my company to lease it as a company car but $1700/month is too much to justify.

thanks for the info

Fast55

It's worse, it's actually a re-badged Chrysler Pacifica.

zoink

Damn you guys....

I couldn't get a deal on the Q7.... so I move on to the next on the list.... 535xi or R-class. I got the deal on the R350.... but told the salesman that I'd make the decision when I've seen the 535xi I'm interested in next week.

So... we'll see. Lucky me... my wife doesn't mind driving R-class. But you guys got me thinking.... dammit.

zoink

OK guys.... let me ask you which one you'd choose....

535xi wagon vs. R350.
About the same price (give or take $1K) - both lease (same price & same length) and purchase price
535xi wagon is ever so slightly used
R350 is new
535xi wagon may be in possession 1-2 months
R350 will be in possession almost immediately

Which one would you pick? I think I know you guys' answers.... but let's see.

zoink

OK guys.... just pulled a trigger.

I finally chose to purchase instead of leasing

Got a 533 miles 3 weeks old 2008 535xi wagon - loaded (sport, premium, cold weather, pdc, nav, etc.) w/ $64,xxx MSRP for $53K. The only option it missed that I wanted was comfort access (BMW's keyless go ).

What do you think? I think it's a pretty good deal, huh?

Can't take the car home now as the guy is leasing and BMWFS hasn't received the title from DMV yet but put the deposit to secure the deal and prohibit the owner not to drive the car anymore.

Anyone has any experience buying a leased car? How fast is the entire transaction?