Hey everyone,

I’m seriously considering trading my 2017 E300 for a 2018 W213 E63S, and I’d really appreciate advice from actual owners, especially higher-mileage owners.

My current E300 already has around 250,000 km, and the E63S I’m looking at also has around 250,000 km (155k miles), so part of me feels like it’s a good opportunity to move into a much better car for similar mileage.

The seller claims the car has been regularly serviced and has paperwork/history available. According to him, the car currently has no major issues.

This has honestly been my dream car for years, but at the same time I’m trying to be realistic financially and mechanically before making the jump. I also would not drive the car daily, probably only around 2–3 times per week.

I’d really appreciate honest feedback from owners who have:

• owned high-mileage W213 E63S cars
• crossed 200k+ km / 120k+ miles
• dealt with major repairs
• or regretted / loved ownership at higher mileage

Main questions:

1. At around 250k km, what major repairs should I realistically expect?
2. Has anyone here reached similar mileage with the original engine/transmission?
3. How common are oil separator / rear main seal issues really?
4. What repairs became the most expensive for you?
5. What should I absolutely inspect before buying?
6. Would you personally buy a well-maintained E63S at this mileage?
7. Do you think it’s worth trading from an E300 with the same mileage, or is this financially a bad idea long term?
8. Are there specific warning signs during test drive or cold start?

Would appreciate any honest advice from long-term owners. Thanks!

 

I don't own an E63, but a C63 coupe. More my vibe, but either way not even close to that kind of mileage and TBH I wouldn't do it personally. Not many with that kind of mileage around here from what I remember. I let others answer your individual questions, but the RMS issue is fairly common and expensive. Some owners have had it happen more than once on their car. There's a thread/database where some are recording it. It's a pretty long list from what I remember. It's more of a when than if question. It affects the M177 LS2 engine, which is what's in the E63. It has a redesigned oil separator, which seems to be the main culprit. There's also been a settlement recently which may or may not entitle people for reimbursement related to this issue. Haven't really looked into it, because the C63 has the M177 LS1 and apart from a couple of outliers it doesn't seem to suffer from this issue.

Just in general, going from an E300 to an E63 or other AMG 63 is entering a different world. Maintenance costs will be higher. Parts cost more, because they are designed for higher performance. Brakes last a fraction of what they last in an E300 and are expensive to replace if you don't source your own parts. Dealerships charge north of $5000 just for a brake job. Does this particular car have the steel brakes or the carbon ceramic brakes. The latter last much longer as far as the rotors are concerned. Supposedly can last for up to 100k miles, but then you are looking at about $10k to replace them. You will also go through tires at a much higher rate than with an E300. There's a saying that goes like this: "Gotta pay to play". And AMGs are the kind of cars that require deep pockets if you wanna own one. Obviously driving it less means things last longer in terms of time, but just to give you an idea. I'm on the third set of brakes with my 2019 C63 at ~40k miles. I don't pay dealer prices for brakes, though, as I source my own parts, but a set only lasts about 16k miles for me. Front tires is a big wear item on these cars as well due to the aggressive camber setup. I get at best 8k miles. Rear tires last around 12k miles, that's with RWD.

I'm not saying all this to scare you away, but if you've never owned a performance car, you might be in for a surprise, especially since you seem to wanna do this on a budget. Wrong car if you are on a budget, and expect at best around 11 mpg around town. Just my 2 cents

 

Really appreciate you taking the time to break all of that down, I do get what you’re saying, about parts and the reality of brakes, tyres, and general running costs being on a completely different level compared to an E300. And that’s actually something I’m trying to be realistic about before jumping in, not going into it blindly or thinking it’s just a slightly faster version of my current car.
Because my current E300 already has around the same mileage, part of my thinking is: if I’m already at 250k km anyway, does it make sense to move into the E63S while accepting the higher running costs, or do you think the risk still outweighs it financially no matter what?

For my situation, I wouldn’t be using it as a daily (more like a few times a week), and I wouldn’t be relying on dealership servicing either, I have access to a local AMG specialist who handles pricing and maintenance much more reasonably, and the car I’m looking at has steel brakes, not ceramics.

But I wanted to ask you something directly based on your experience: if the car is well maintained and inspected properly (PPI, no hidden issues, good service history), do you think the long-term ownership risk is still significantly worse than the benefits of moving from an E300 into an E63S at the same mileage?
Or in your experience, does the performance jump simply never justify the increased complexity and cost once the car is already high mileage?

Also regarding your point on being “in for a surprise” was that more from a cost shock perspective, or reliability unpredictability at higher mileage specifically?

 

A couple of things here. Buying an AMG is never a rational decision. Nobody needs one of these cars to get from A to B, so this is always an emotional decision. Buying an AMG means you are buying an experience and not just a car. So it comes down to whether it's worth it to you. The cost and everything. With higher mileage come problems and unless the car had been driven by a grandma, you have to assume that somebody who buys an AMG drives it harder than they would drive a Toyota Camry. Do you know the complete history of the car and how it was driven? Was it ever tracked? Did any of the previous owners use Race Start and how often? Did they drift it in Drift Mode? Things like that.

From a technical perspective, this car has a very different transmission, too. Your E300 has a torque converter, the E63 has what's known as a multi clutch transmission. It has a computer controlled clutch between the engine and transmission. This makes it less smooth driving around. So combined with a firmer suspension, it isn't just the cost, but the livability with the car as well. For example the least enjoyable type of driving with my C63 is low speed around town driving. These cars are made for the open road and higher speeds. If you have the opportunity to drive it like that, then it's great. I understand you are not going to daily it, but what kind of driving are you going to do? I use mine for what it is, a grand tourer and weekend fun car. I head up to the canyons around here to rip up deserted canyon roads and take it on road trips. For the more mundane driving and errands I have my wife's hatchback.

So what I meant by surprise is all that and of course the cost. There are many people who end up complaining about the comfort of an E63 for their type of driving. Then on top of that comes the increased likelihood of things breaking given the mileage of the car. These things are higher strung than a regular commuter car. Given the mileage and the age, this car has been driven a lot. It's done roughly 20k miles annually, so this I guess was a commuter. I have a theory on when these are used primarily for commuting. I suspect they become more prone to the oil separator clogging, because the engine is rarely flogged to blow out the gunk. There are a lot of expensive components in this drivetrain. The engine is expensive, the transmission is unique and this car also has an electronic locking rear differential. All these wear and replacing any of them if it ever comes to that will be very expensive, so it really has to be worth it to you. If you want to experience an AMG, I would go for one with a lot less miles.

Hope this somewhat answers your questions.

 

And another thing, it's not uncommon for people to bend and crack their wheels on bad roads due to the combination of firm suspension and low profile tires. You have to look where you drive. Drive around potholes and not through them or you may regret it.