Is there an E55 pricing bubble going on?
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Car free at the moment
Is there an E55 pricing bubble going on?
Curious on the opinions of the gang - is there a bit of an E55 pricing bubble out there? I'm seeing a bunch of low-ish mileage '06 E55 cars coming out of the woodwork at prices that are, well, kinda stupid.
Allow me to present exhibit 1: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MB-Ce...item48418d712e This is priced higher than my old car cost in Jan. 2009- a CPO 2006 w/19K miles.
Anyone have recent auction data? How much are dealers paying for these things?
Oh well, with the markets gyrating and the economy in the doldrums, it can't last, prices will come down to earth sooner or later.
Allow me to present exhibit 1: http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/MB-Ce...item48418d712e This is priced higher than my old car cost in Jan. 2009- a CPO 2006 w/19K miles.
Anyone have recent auction data? How much are dealers paying for these things?
Oh well, with the markets gyrating and the economy in the doldrums, it can't last, prices will come down to earth sooner or later.
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From: Socal, Chino
E55 2006 / CLS55 / S450 / Jag XKR2011
Used car price is very stable now. Not many people looking for new cars since economic is really bad. Supply and demand, a lot of Demand on used car. Plus, a lot of people stop buying car or upgrade, just keep the old one. Therefore less supply in the used car. I really hope this economic get better soon....... at least I am happy that my E55 is not so cheap now !
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From: The Granite State
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You picked the most expensive E55 on eBay for your example.... at a dealer too.
Mileage is pretty low on it, and it's pretty well appointed (I didn't see Pano) but it's got a lot of the other desireable options.
-G
Mileage is pretty low on it, and it's pretty well appointed (I didn't see Pano) but it's got a lot of the other desireable options.
-G
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From: Seattle
'19 E63S, ‘16 CLS63 RIP, '09 E63 Gone, '06 M5 Gone, '97 Supra TT Gone
Used car price is very stable now. Not many people looking for new cars since economic is really bad. Supply and demand, a lot of Demand on used car. Plus, a lot of people stop buying car or upgrade, just keep the old one. Therefore less supply in the used car. I really hope this economic get better soon....... at least I am happy that my E55 is not so cheap now !
http://jalopnik.com/5829445/used-lux...iant-stock-buy
Used car prices are actually going up!
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From: Seattle
'19 E63S, ‘16 CLS63 RIP, '09 E63 Gone, '06 M5 Gone, '97 Supra TT Gone
Funny thing is members here are their own worst enemy. Every time someone posts a price on a car that isn't bargain basement it's all "That's too expensive!! I spent $5k less on mine!" Congrats, you're chopping your own resale price down.
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I got offered 32K for my 2005 and I didn't take it. I was making money on it but I just couldn't be happy with anything I could replace it with for the money so I didn't sell it.
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2003 E55 AMG
I couldn't agree more! I'm shopping for an E55 myself and everyone (including forum members) are trying to get more than retail for their E55 (with a warranty that is about to expire).
Please don't misunderstand me, I'm all for you guys trying to keep the value of these cars high. However, most banks/CU (at least my credit union) are only willing to loan up to NADA retail. Plus you have to factor in another ~$3,500 for an extended warranty, plus TT&L (Texas tax is 6.25%). This is just not realistic for potential buyers who are financing.
It's not only this board, but Ebay, autotrader, etc...
From what I've seen, the car will sit for sale on this forum for over 3-4 months, go through numerous thousand dollar price drops until someone finally picks it up for 80% of the original asking price.
Maybe I'm just frustrated that there are no good "deals" out there, maybe E55 owners think they can get $28k for a 2004 un-warrantied E55, or maybe these are extremely overpriced.
Please don't misunderstand me, I'm all for you guys trying to keep the value of these cars high. However, most banks/CU (at least my credit union) are only willing to loan up to NADA retail. Plus you have to factor in another ~$3,500 for an extended warranty, plus TT&L (Texas tax is 6.25%). This is just not realistic for potential buyers who are financing.
It's not only this board, but Ebay, autotrader, etc...
From what I've seen, the car will sit for sale on this forum for over 3-4 months, go through numerous thousand dollar price drops until someone finally picks it up for 80% of the original asking price.
Maybe I'm just frustrated that there are no good "deals" out there, maybe E55 owners think they can get $28k for a 2004 un-warrantied E55, or maybe these are extremely overpriced.
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Car free at the moment
I'm not seeing any clear concensus from the gang on whether prices are up a bunch or not.
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From: Queen Creek AZ
2004 E55 AMG
I'm just happy that I paid $30K for my 2004 E55 with only 23K miles on it from a single owner in Flordia who drove it less than 5K miles a year. Bought it almost 2 years ago now.
I'm looking like I was a genious now!
Alex
I'm looking like I was a genious now!
Alex
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From: The Granite State
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Yes, of course I did. My point being, when was the last time anyone paid $40K for any E55 sedan? A year ago this car would have been worth $35K at best. It does look like a nice car. I like the color, but my intuition is that it would be much harder to sell than a black, silver, or white car.
I'm not seeing any clear concensus from the gang on whether prices are up a bunch or not.
I'm not seeing any clear concensus from the gang on whether prices are up a bunch or not.
I guess I'm just missing your point...
eBay isn't exactly the way to find "economical" prices, nor is shopping at a dealership. They can ask for $40K if they want..... but I doubt there's going to be a bidding war on it. If you want to use eBay to check prices, it would be wise to use the "Completed Auctions" filter. At least that way you can see what real buyers actually paid (Auctions that ended with reserve met, or a Buy-It-Now).... and can ignore all the overpriced stuff that ended with 0 bids.
Perhaps a more subtle point, is that a 40,000 mile E55 in 2006 actually IS harder to find than it was a year ago.... were talking about a car that is now 6 model years old and would have to have logged less than 6700 miles/year. That's a pretty rare beast...and every year that goes by will make it harder to find cars with odometers in the 30K or 40K range.
-G
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From: Socal, Chino
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Thread Starter
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Car free at the moment
I guess I'm just missing your point...
eBay isn't exactly the way to find "economical" prices, nor is shopping at a dealership. They can ask for $40K if they want..... but I doubt there's going to be a bidding war on it. If you want to use eBay to check prices, it would be wise to use the "Completed Auctions" filter. At least that way you can see what real buyers actually paid (Auctions that ended with reserve met, or a Buy-It-Now).... and can ignore all the overpriced stuff that ended with 0 bids.
Perhaps a more subtle point, is that a 40,000 mile E55 in 2006 actually IS harder to find than it was a year ago.... were talking about a car that is now 6 model years old and would have to have logged less than 6700 miles/year. That's a pretty rare beast...and every year that goes by will make it harder to find cars with odometers in the 30K or 40K range.
-G
eBay isn't exactly the way to find "economical" prices, nor is shopping at a dealership. They can ask for $40K if they want..... but I doubt there's going to be a bidding war on it. If you want to use eBay to check prices, it would be wise to use the "Completed Auctions" filter. At least that way you can see what real buyers actually paid (Auctions that ended with reserve met, or a Buy-It-Now).... and can ignore all the overpriced stuff that ended with 0 bids.
Perhaps a more subtle point, is that a 40,000 mile E55 in 2006 actually IS harder to find than it was a year ago.... were talking about a car that is now 6 model years old and would have to have logged less than 6700 miles/year. That's a pretty rare beast...and every year that goes by will make it harder to find cars with odometers in the 30K or 40K range.
-G
You make a good point regarding the availability of sub-40K mile cars. However, I think that is offset by the fact these are not collector cars, and their value declines over time regardless of mileage. So I am surprised by what appears to be an increase in asking prices.
I find my opinion somewhat reinforced by the previous poster who observed that asking prices are above loan value, hence buyers using credit cannot purchase the cars. To me, this would indicate that sellers are overly optimistic regarding the value of their cars.
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Yes, we definately have failure to communicate here...let me rechoose my words. It has been a long time since I have seen anyone, even a dealer, even ask $40K for an E55. What they will actually sell it for, I don't know; I'm not negotiating with them.
You make a good point regarding the availability of sub-40K mile cars. However, I think that is offset by the fact these are not collector cars, and their value declines over time regardless of mileage. So I am surprised by what appears to be an increase in asking prices.
I find my opinion somewhat reinforced by the previous poster who observed that asking prices are above loan value, hence buyers using credit cannot purchase the cars. To me, this would indicate that sellers are overly optimistic regarding the value of their cars.
You make a good point regarding the availability of sub-40K mile cars. However, I think that is offset by the fact these are not collector cars, and their value declines over time regardless of mileage. So I am surprised by what appears to be an increase in asking prices.
I find my opinion somewhat reinforced by the previous poster who observed that asking prices are above loan value, hence buyers using credit cannot purchase the cars. To me, this would indicate that sellers are overly optimistic regarding the value of their cars.
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From: North Carolina
2004 E55 AMG
I would never sell mine for what they're going for right now. Now way, no how. The maintenance really isn't that bad if you:
1: Do the work yourself(or have an independent shop you can take it to)
2: Source parts everywhere BUT the stealership.
C: Properly maintain the regular maintenance items/issues.
I looked at trade in value, and I can't even fathom giving anyone this much car for such a cheap price.
It boggles my mind.
1: Do the work yourself(or have an independent shop you can take it to)
2: Source parts everywhere BUT the stealership.
C: Properly maintain the regular maintenance items/issues.
I looked at trade in value, and I can't even fathom giving anyone this much car for such a cheap price.
It boggles my mind.
Last edited by Mantooth; Aug 11, 2011 at 06:32 PM.
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From: Caribbean/Florida/Colorado
E-ZGO 53hp., 1999 E 430 sport, 2004 E 55, 2008 Tahoe LTZ on 24"s
There have been a few 04s sell for over $28K in the past few months here in Florida, all clean lo mi standard $89,000 MSRP black E55s. The ones in Texas tend to have big miles, keep shopping you will find one that is right for you.
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From: Vancouver, BC
CLS55 AMG
also, people are comparing prices to 2008-2009 when cars were being sold far below market value simply because people could not afford them. i just bought a 2006 CLS55 with 40k miles on it for the same price I could get one in 2009... but I dont care because I got exactly what I wanted with low miles...
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From: Seattle
'19 E63S, ‘16 CLS63 RIP, '09 E63 Gone, '06 M5 Gone, '97 Supra TT Gone
also, people are comparing prices to 2008-2009 when cars were being sold far below market value simply because people could not afford them. i just bought a 2006 CLS55 with 40k miles on it for the same price I could get one in 2009... but I dont care because I got exactly what I wanted with low miles...
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g55
I just bought my E55 and paid a decent premium for it. I bought it for what I thought it was worth to me... Not a book, or an auction, or what other people may have thought it was "worth".
These cars are not collectables. They are toys and expendable assets. If it's worth it to you... Pay it.
These cars are not collectables. They are toys and expendable assets. If it's worth it to you... Pay it.
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From: The Granite State
.
I just bought my E55 and paid a decent premium for it. I bought it for what I thought it was worth to me... Not a book, or an auction, or what other people may have thought it was "worth".
These cars are not collectables. They are toys and expendable assets. If it's worth it to you... Pay it.
These cars are not collectables. They are toys and expendable assets. If it's worth it to you... Pay it.
Some people are willing to forgive missing options, or high mileage, or visible wear in exchange for a lower price... Others are not. I'm with dgkalis on this one. I wanted a car with very specific options (like almost ALL of them!), a specific color combination, and the lowest possible mileage I could find..... Once I found it, not surprisingly it came with a premium price tag.
Sometimes the right car comes along and "calls your bluff", either you step up and pay the price....or walk away and wait for the market to bring the price point down some more.
I can sympathize about the prices causing problems with financing...but then again, it may be a blessing in disguise. If a buyer has to rely on 100% financing to afford a used E55....it's probably too much of a financial stretch and will only get worse over time as repairs & maintenance start piling up.
-G
