Are E55's really that bad out of warranty?
 

I hear a lot of people talk about them like they're ticking timebombs as soon as their warranties expire. Many people say they would NEVER own one out of warranty. I understand that they are expensive to work on, but their motors are pretty solid and MB builds some of the best automatic trannys in the industry.

Are they really that bad to own without a warranty? How reliable are they once the miles start piling up? I know a lot of it is how well the car is taken care of etc, but I'm just talking in general here.

For the person that depends on the E55 as a daily driver and has a budget, but has no shop, no tools, no mechanical skills and no other vehicle.You will find them in line for a warranty, and that is a good thing.

I am cursed with the DIY affliction. My car might get 3K a year (toy status) when things break, I view it as an opportunity to upgrade (ya hear that IC pump) I really don't care for the MB service, firstly I have found few SA that know what the 4ell they are talking about, and I hate not knowing who is working on my car, and not being allowed to see what is going on. So glad my 4 year free maintenance is over!
That is why I specifically went with an after market warranty, any ASE shop (C2, RennTech,VRP) can do work on the car, Should I do the work the parts only are covered and that is fine by me.

I think these cars hold up quite well considering the level of performance they are capable of. We have many board members with 70K+ miles and really not too many problems.

I'm at 62k with no warranty and have not had any problems to speak of. Since the warranty expired, I've had to buy a door lock cap and an AMG seat logo, both of which broke in the past few months, but I'll take that. I've owned the car since it had 6k miles and it has been very reliable and has given me no reason to consider an aftermarket warranty. I put on 25-30k miles per year so I figured I'd pass the mileage mark on the warranty before really getting to use it.

That said, I don't know if I'd buy one that was already out of warranty if I didn't know the car really well.

I don't believe they are that bad at all...as long as you know the history of the car and can make sure it has been well taken care of.

However, the repairs on the car are very expensive compared to any domestic model vehicle. I know the warranty work on my car has probably been around $2-3K easy (I/C Pump, Supercharger Clutch Pack, Few Panels of Interior wood that got scratched/cracked, Alignment bolts).

The big scare is a supercharger replacement ($8K) or total engine replacement ($45K) while not in warranty...which is why I have an extended to 100K miles.

I definitely agree...you can roll the dice with ANY car after warranty. If it's a DD then you have not to just worry about the engine mechanicals, but also electrical systems. On any German car that could be costly...but if you get to a worse case scenario and you don't have a warranty then it is always better to NOT go back to the dealership for the repair.

You can shop around for prices on parts and service and you WILL always beat the service department at your local MB dealership. If you find a independent MB ASE shop that has a good reputation more times than not you will get better service and quality than a MB shop...

If I didn't have a 2004 that had the free maintenance, I wouldn't even go back to them for the regular maintenance.