axekick7

Hey folks! I have a 2003 E55 Amg in my sights, and wanted to pop on here to ask if anyone has any pointers on getting started.

Anything in particular that I should keep an eye out for (common probs) when I go to check out and test drive the car? Any way to tell if the current or previous owners beat the crap out of it and are just trying to dump it off before having to fix a ton of expensive stuff?

Its a silver 2003 with 75k on it. I'm not yet sure if it has navigation or not. From the pics, it looks completely stock. No ghetto fabulous rims or anything. Guy is asking 19,500. Feelings on price?

Any help would be really great, I'm currently driving an Infiniti G35 coupe, and really don't know too much about the world of Mercedes.

outrun

You will hear that the 03-04 are not as good as the 05-06. I have an 04 with 22,000 on it. Bought it with 20,000 a few months ago for 28,000.

Personally I would pass on a 75k car. These cars are expensive to maintain and nothing sucks more than buying a car and having to dump in a bunch of money right away on maintenance stuff.

markpetersonii

Price seems a tad high. At least from what I've seen...

moosejaw

03s didnt come with Naviagtion unless it was added by the owner which is pretty common.
Ask for the maintenance done to the car?
Some problems areas
Airmatic Suspension
Replaced Crank Position Sensor?
Any problems with Fuel leaking into the cabin (check to see if the gas tank is full)

Id go for an 05 and up
First year had too many problems.

Cylinder Head

iTrader: (1)

Definitely wait until you can afford an '05. The '03's are the most problematic of the bunch. 75k miles means things are about to break in short order.

axekick7

Wow, great feedback! I had some concern with buying a 75k car... I suppose for the right price it would be something to jump on, but from what I hear, 19,500 isn't it.
Any suggestions on what I should offer? I really only plan on owning the vehicle for a year or so before moving on to my next car... My income should be greatly increasing during that time, which would allow me to make a purchase on something newer.

Would an offer of 18,000 be insulting to the seller?

JarZ

I wouldn't worry about insulting anyone. It's an offer. It they don't like it, they'll tell you and you can move on.

Personally, I don't think 75k is anything to be scared of. Maintenance on the car means far more than miles. You can find beat up cars that have 20k and mint examples at 100k. There's no "rule".

Best of luck.

dr_brains510

I bought my 03 E55 in January 2010 w/ 55K miles for $21,000 w/ extended warranty.

axekick7

wow, 55k with warranty for $21,000? That sounds like a great deal! I've done some research, and can't find anything like that listed at all.... Hopefully this seller will be willing to negotiate.

220S

It's luck of the draw. It could be a good specimen or a bad one. The 2003s are riskier but there can still be good samples out there. But just realize that repairs are extraordinarily high on these cars. And even if you're a DIYer, parts are very high. Plus you need access to SDS to diagnose many issues that crop up. If your income will be better next year as you say, then why not just wait? If you end up with a bad car and can't afford to fix it properly then you can potentially lose a lot of $$ trying to dump it.

As for price offers, the worst thing a seller can say is no. But don't get lured into low prices just to get yourself into an E55. Like the saying goes: "a cheap Mercedes is the most expensive car you'll ever own." Do a full ppi with compression test and leak down. Do all your homework on the car. Again, even if you plan on short term ownership you still risk possibly getting stuck with a repair that's too expensive to be worth fixing, given the car's actual market value (which will keep dropping.)

vaaliant

+1 on waiting. These cars depreciate pretty fast so you should be able to find a decent 2005 if you wait another year. Just because its a 20k car now doesn't mean it has the maintenance costs of a 20k car. Save your money for potential repairs or third party warranty coverage.

axekick7

Well perhaps the best advice is to wait at least until Spring... My current car will have even more equity in it when I sell it, and it will put an 04-05 model year within reach.

danlnyc

not much to say here, everybody is right.

I would wait for the 05+ with lower mileage.