Originally Posted By: JHZR2
Originally Posted By: bobbob
I owned 2 Audis and they were good cars, I have driven some BMW's, also good. My question is about the Benz, do they drive better, perform better and are they a better
all around value than the same in their class? I am concerned about maintenance as I
am buying used. Thanks guys
Other than wear and tear items, most of the car that makes up my 91 318i has been super reliable. It is consuming some oil and has a ticking lifter, but it also has 165k miles. The suspension, interior, other electronics, etc. have all been great.
Ditto for my old w123 cars, which probably are the best cars ever built. Other than some silly age related issues like vacuum couplings getting old and leaky, there really hasnt been anything.
These cars ALL even have their full original radiators and hoses.
Fixed this quote a bit but I agree:
Originally Posted By: hattaresguy
They are better built and age better, also simpler to fix.
However like any late model high end car regardless of manufacture be careful when they are out of warranty.
If you stick to a basic E class or C class you should be OK if you get a good example and maintain it. .
MB has been the epitome of engineering, but as they move their cars to lower price points or with more fancy doodads with the intent of being excessively fancy rather than excessively engineered, then you lose confidence. When you start selling cars at a lease price point to the masses, then some elements may be compromised.
Don't edit my quotes thanks, my statement is correct I'd have zero heartburn buying a 2014 Honda Accord and driving it out of warranty for years, but a CLS63 AMG? NFW
Their is a reason say a CL65 AMG deprecates like yesterdays newspaper and oh say a Ferrar 458 or 9114S does not.
In the real world if you want to own for a decade you have to pick your models, also generally these cars make the best used purchases as well. The lease price point base E350 is exactly the car to get, or a base C class. The Magic Ride equipped S550 with the bi turbo V8, night vision and all the toys would not be a friendly car to own for a decade. Same with the CL hence the price drop, when the second owner starts getting $3k-$6k repair bills from the dealer they dump it. Oh and you pretty much have to use the dealer or a high end MB shop because they have the diagnostic computer systems!
Your talking about stuff that happened 30 years ago, I'm dealing with 2010+ models since I assume that OP wants something made this century. But I could be wrong.
If the OP is interested in classic MB's those models have their warts as well.