The REAL cost of ownership

malcolm E53 AMG

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I was going to add this to the depreciation thread but decided that it deserved its own as it covers a complete breakdown of ownership costs.

The car: 2000 X Plate E320CDi Avantgarde Estate in Brilliant Silver, current mileage 80K

Spec: Leather, sunroof, 7 seats, climate and 6 CD player

Purchase price December 2004: £16990

Cost breakdown of 8 years ownership:
£2800 Insurance
£1440 Tax
£1600 Paintwork
£6500 Servicing (inc parts), MoTs and Tyres
£6875 Fuel costs based on 44000 miles
£16995 purchase cost

Total £36210

-£3000 Residual value

£33210 divided by mileage of 44000 = 75p per mile

As I intend to keep the car for a further 5 years the projections for this are:
£1750 Insurance
£900 Tax
£3000 Servicing (inc parts), MoTs and Tyres
£5000 Fuel costs based on 25000 miles
£2000 Depreciation

Total £12650

£12650 divided by mileage of 25000 = 50p per mile

In conclusion the total cost of 13 years of ownership and 69000 miles is:
£45680

Cost per annum:
£3450

Cost per day:
£9.46

Cost per mile:
65p per mile

These are fairly accurate figures with future assumptions based on previous experience.

Would i do the same again - YES:):)

OH! Forgot to mention that the car should be worth around £1000 at the end of this time
 
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peterwhayward

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Nicely done. Not a huge cost when you break it all down, and not to overlook the pleasure that most of us get from driving our cars.:)
 

Mic

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Cheap.....because you have done the cost effective thing of buying a car 4yrs. old car and then keeping it for 8yrs. to date......good for you.

Excellent value.

Mic
 

Ricardo_e220

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Well I have has mine just over 12 months and 33000 miles and has cost £9983 incl tax, servicing, fuel, tyres and pcp payment

89 miles average per day, fuel is 15.7ppm, 39.94mpg according to my app... I'm not sad enough to work that out...

It's not bad really for a big estate car
 

clk208

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I was going to add this to the depreciation thread but decided that it deserved its own as it covers a complete breakdown of ownership costs.

The car: 2000 X Plate E320CDi Avantgarde Estate in Brilliant Silver

Spec: Leather, sunroof, 7 seats, climate and 6 CD player

Purchase price December 2004: £16990

Cost breakdown of 8 years ownership:
£2800 Insurance
£1440 Tax
£1600 Paintwork
£6500 Servicing (inc parts), MoTs and Tyres
£6875 Fuel costs based on 44000 miles
£16995 purchase cost

Total £36210

-£3000 Residual value

£33210 divided by mileage of 44000 = 75p per mile

As I intend to keep the car for a further 5 years the projections for this are:
£1750 Insurance
£900 Tax
£3000 Servicing (inc parts), MoTs and Tyres
£5000 Fuel costs based on 25000 miles
£2000 Depreciation

Total £12650

£12650 divided by mileage of 25000 = 50p per mile

In conclusion the total cost of 13 years of ownership and 69000 miles is:
£45680

Cost per annum:
£3450

Cost per day:
£9.46

Cost per mile:
65p per mile

These are fairly accurate figures with future assumptions based on previous experience.

Would i do the same again - YES:):)

OH! Forgot to mention that the car should be worth around £1000 at the end of this time


Certainly a saving over new. My W208 320 of the same vintage worked out somewhat cheaper than this over the 6 years I owned it from 2006-2012, mostly down to a bargain purchase price (was a steal at the time) and around £1000 repairs/servicing off the top of my head over the period.

Don't have the other figures to hand but I should sit down and work it out.
 
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Mic

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By comparison.......my SL over 9yrs. from new (I have used a factor of 4%/yr. for inflation) has cost me about £1.39/mile

A diary of SL500 WDB2304752F062185

I had, for many years, been an admirer of the Mercedes Benz SLs and in years past I had owned two W123s and two W126s so I have owned two of the marques very best models. In 2001 I had become aware of the introduction of the R230 with the folding hard top similar in concept to that of the R170. I did some reading and determined that it was time for me to become an SL owner which proved to be something of a waiting game. I did not want to pay a premium and I did not want an ‘’import’’ so 31 October 2001 I penned my formal order for an SL500, the only variant on offer at the time, with MB Oxford. I was advised of a three years waiting list.
I maintained close contact with MB Oxford and by May of 2003 I was asked to finalize the specification of my car because it was expected to be built in September of that year, which was about a year sooner than originally advised.
I chose Brilliant Silver coachwork, Alpaca Grey interior with Black Ash wood. Extras chosen were Comfort seats, Dynamic seats, Parktronic and Bose Sound.
Not an extra but I also chose ‘’Factory Collect’’ which I recommend to anyone fortunate enough to be buying a new Mercedes Benz.
September eventually came and MrsB and I were transported to the Park Hotel (a worthwhile £50.00 upgrade for the two of us) in Bremen 17 September 2003.

18 September 2003

We were collected by taxi after breakfast and taken to the MB Bremen facility where we were treated to a film about how the cars were built followed by a guided tour of the production line which excluded the paint shop as is always the case on production line tours. Health and safety in conjunction with the need for laboratory type conditions I think. The most noticeable thing about the SL line was the lack of people compared with the BMW mini line, Jaguar XF line and not surprisingly the Morgan production ‘’line’’. The only people working on the SL line were the occasional quality controller and the operatives putting in the wiring looms which were tasks too awkward for robots. This was a fascinating insight into how the car I was about to collect is put together…….everything is JIT.
The hand over hall is a huge ‘’cathedral’’ of a place capable of absorbing very many cars and the whole process is pure theatre. We were afforded luncheon which was on the first floor allowing us to look down over those before us being ‘’handed’’ their new cars (not all collections were SLs but a seemingly full range of models, many made elsewhere, presumably ordered by locals) whilst we waited for our car to be driven into the ‘’cathedral’’ and our names called. I was shown how everything worked and glazed over with information overload, I was given the keys and invited to drive out of the ‘’cathedral’’ into industrial Bremen; which I did with considerable caution.

23 September 2003

I took the car to MB Oxford for its formal PDI, to have a lifetime Tracker fitted and have the car registered with UK plates; the car on collection comes with temporary German plates. We had spent the intervening time holidaying in Holland, Belgium and France.



01 March 2005 (11115 miles)

A new off side front fog lamp supplied and fitted by MB Oxford in addition to some work on easing out a minor dent on the bonnet by Ultimate Dents. £274.37

This followed an interaction with a deer the consequences of which could have been much worse.

06 May 2005 (13657 miles)

‘A’ service, MB Oxford £267.92

16 May 2006 (20600 miles)

New brake pads all round, MB Oxford £355.39

15 September 2006 (26425 miles)

‘B’ service and MOT, MB Oxford £674.24

25 September 2007 (32943 miles)

MOT, MB Oxford £50.35

08 July 2008 (39041 miles)

‘A’ service including recommended time and mileage related items, MB Oxford £1620.03…..ouch

23 September 2008 (40322 miles)

MOT, MB Oxford £53.10

15 September 2009 (49345 miles)

MOT, MB Oxford £54.00

October 2009

The car started to sound like a can of nails which was clearly the result of the catalytic converters having ‘’broken up’’ in the middle silencers which I discovered, after doing some research, was a known failing. After only six years and 50k miles I felt very strongly that not only should this not have happened but that MB should rectify the situation either foc or with a substantial financial contribution.
MB Oxford did not want to support my case to the point of wanting to charge me £120 to confirm my diagnosis (2mins. in the car park would have done it) and repeatedly reminding me that the car was out of warranty…..thanks but no thanks. After a fruitless exchange of correspondence with MB customer ‘’services’’ I was left with MB’s solution of a replacement exhaust system supplied and fitted at my expense in the sum of about £1850, or finding an alternative, which was leaving me somewhat disillusioned with the MB commitment to accepting responsibility for the manufacturing failings of their product.

20 November 2009

I had the middle silencers c/w catalytic converters removed and replaced with stainless steel pipes by Longlife in the sum of £185.00.

The car sounds better than ever and standard MOT emissions testing equipment is not sufficiently sensitive to record that the ‘’mid box’’ catalytic converters have been removed.

12 January 2010 (51968 miles)

Replacement of the starting and main batteries, Star Motor Services £306.68

22 January 2010 (52039 miles)

Replace under trays, front apron and aerial following an unscheduled ‘’off piste’’ excursion to the verge after encountering ‘’black ice’’. Star Motor Services £1246.44

01 March 2010

MB Oxford take the car to Liam Kenny, their approved body work specialists, to ‘’deal with’’ the corrosion around the wheel arches. I am very dispirited about the need for this work and disillusioned to learn that corrosion repair work is only ever done under the 30yrs. warranty after the instigation of litigation proceedings (allegedly). The 30yrs. corrosion warranty is not honoured willingly it would seem. Corrosion repair work is done under the ‘’banner’’ of goodwill when MB’s self imposed criteria are met including an 8yrs. maximum age limit on the car.
It took an extensive exchange of correspondence to extract a three years, as opposed to two years, warranty for the corrosion repair work, which was done at MB’s expense, even though, had my Contract been direct with Liam Kenny I would have automatically got a ‘’lifetime’’ warranty from Liam Kenny (I did not explore what ‘’lifetime’’ means).

05 March 2010 (52886 miles)

MB Oxford collected the car from Liam Kenny and carried out a ‘B’ service £1004.98……ouch again.

25 August 2010 (58337 miles)

SRS fault fixed, fault code reset and MOT, Ian Horne Motor Repairs £111.38

22 September 2010

Another SRS fault fixed, Ian Horne Motor Repairs £44.06



18 November 2010 (60647 miles)

Supply and fit new ABC pump, Star Motor Services £1241.86

04 January 2011 (61744 miles)

Replace front brake pads, Star Motor Services £119.12

08 September 2011 (68872 miles)

MOT, Star Motor Services £56.70

13 December 2011 (71448 miles)

Service, ‘A’ or ‘B’ whatever needs doing, Star Motor Services £322.22

21 July 2012 (77877 miles)

I clumsily dropped my TomTom on to the screen of the Comand Unit which determined the beginning of the end for a Comand Unit so yesteryear that I was preferring to use a TomTom for satellite navigation (and the fixed camera data base).

17 August 2012 (78800 miles)

The Comand Unit was replaced with an Alpine INA-W910R which is a neat compact integrated unit which is system expandable. Fundamentally it is a radio and music centre iphone integrated with an upgradeable Europe wide satellite navigation system and fixed camera data base. Supplied and fitted by Oxford Car Audio £1771.99

29 August 2012 (79187 miles)

MOT, Star Motor Services £56.70



DIY

I do not often do DIY….. but….. I did re-seal the ‘’boot’’ seals below the rear window and at the bottom of the C pillars using black CT1. I did this as a necessary preventative measure because these seals are known to fail on the earlier R230s. I also fitted Mini gutter trim using black CT1 to the wheel arches to delay the inevitable recurrence of corrosion.

Tyres and Wheels

Summer tyres to the rear have averaged 16350 miles and to the front 25000 miles giving an average life for summer tyres of about 19500 miles. The last time I actually bought summer tyres was 18 May 2009 supplied and fitted in the sum of £171.35 each.
I bought a used set of wheels (original Homans all as the wheels supplied with the car) for £250 which came with an average of about 11500 miles of usable rubber on each wheel. Arguably I bought more than £250 worth of rubber and got free wheels. These wheels are to be the SL’s ‘’summer’’ wheels.
The car’s original wheels are being used with winter tyres which were purchased 25 November 2011 in the sum of £960.00 supplied and fitted. The winter tyres did 2000 miles before the wheels were swapped back in March 2012.

Tyres are costing about 4.5 ppm in ‘’today’s money’’.

Despite the campaign by MB to promote the sale and use of winter tyres MB Oxford could not get me tyres and assured me that winter tyres in my required size, 255/45R17 98V, were not manufactured…….for goodness sakes.


Total Running Costs to 31 March 2012 (73323 miles)

In today’s buying power of the GBP I calculate that each and every mile (including RFL, insurance and fuel at an average of 21.08mpg) that I have driven the car, all leisure and pleasure, it has cost me £1.39 of which £0.89 is attributable to depreciation.
In order to maximize the dilution of the cost of the depreciation I need to keep the car indefinitely….. which was always my intention.
At the present rate of usage the car will have done 400000 miles by the time I am 100yrs. of age so it is now a straight competition between me and my car as to which one of us first reaches the point of being beyond economic repair.

In terms of what it delivers this car is cheap to run (cheap being a relative term when considering the cost of running a motor car)……it is beautiful, it is a roadster, it is a coupe, it is fun to drive, it is comfortable, it is a Grand Tourer second none and the M113 engine is expected to be indestructible……what is not to love about it.

General

Anecdotal evidence suggests that after sales service by MB and their main dealer network is not as supportive as I believe a buyer of a new car should reasonably expect. The apparent indifference of MB Oxford led me to look elsewhere and find Star Motor Services at Caversham with whom I am very comfortable……they are almost a one hour drive from me but well worth the inconvenience……thank you MB Oxford.


Last updated 04 October 2012

Mic
 

peterwhayward

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Wow thats comprehensive.....I suppose it highlights the difference between buying new and buying second hand.
 
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Mic

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Wow thats comprehensive.....I suppose it highlights the difference between buying new and buying second hand.

Absolutely.......I also bought last year a 51 plate Volvo and an R registered CL which will both be much cheaper to run because of the relatively glacial depreciation.
I do my costings to 31 March (financial year end) so the costs for these two cars will become meaningful by then; when I will have run them for about 18mths. each.

Mic
 

st4

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Good post Mic, only thing not to love about your car is the affinity for rust. I know thats been sorted but a rusty car, especially as one as expensive as an SL must be maddening.
 

Mic

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Good post Mic, only thing not to love about your car is the affinity for rust. I know thats been sorted but a rusty car, especially as one as expensive as an SL must be maddening.

There is not really a rust problem beyond the rear wheel arches which is very controllable......if all that needs to be done is address this particular issue every six years or so I can and will live with it.
The next time it is done (at least 3yrs. from now, probably more) will be at my expense and as such I expect it will be a much more ''permanent'' job than the the cheapo effort afforded by MB.

Mic
 

syncropaddy

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I sat down and worked out how much my fleet cost and I wish I didnt!! Mrs Syncropaddy's W124 costs almost nothing over the last 3 years whereas the figures for my W126 are probably going to be the singlehanded downfall of the Euro ... :Oops:

Dont even mention the Syncro .....
 

television

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I will never log all the cost, as I really do not want to know for I can do nothing about it:D:D
 

peterwhayward

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I will never log all the cost, as I really do not want to know for I can do nothing about it:D:D

I agree, and even if i did I wouldnt put it in writing, in case my wife saw it and insisted on a more sensible 1cyl 12.5cc 80 to the gallon no fun no enjoyment vehicle.;)
 

television

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I agree, and even if i did I wouldnt put it in writing, in case my wife saw it and insisted on a more sensible 1cyl 12.5cc 80 to the gallon no fun no enjoyment vehicle.;)

I had a single cylinder baby caterpillar on tracks, it did not have much go in it,,, I do not think that you would have like that:(
 

peterwhayward

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I had a single cylinder baby caterpillar on tracks, it did not have much go in it,,, I do not think that you would have like that:(

Too right i wouldn't.:)......But then my first car was a Austin 1100 which was probably not any faster.:)
 

Devonian

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Really interesting write up Mic, Thanks for both taking the time and sharing.
Tim & I are both keeping exact records of all spending (including mileage and fuel) on our SL's so it will be interesting to see how the costs pan out over a couple of years.
 

paul hayward

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im too scared to do that:lol:..when its out of fuel i stop driving it..when i can i fill it up and drive it:lol:... thats about as far as i go:lol:...worth every single penny to drive such great cars..and even if it cost double what it does i would still do it ;)

i think i will draw the line at a 4.3 though:lol:
 

Gkinghorn

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It's my car , its my money , yes it isn't cheap to run but I don't care..the smile on my face whenever I drive it pays back the money in spades.. :D

If you have to worry about costs then there's no fun.....
 

lwbnick

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im too scared to do that:lol:..when its out of fuel i stop driving it..when i can i fill it up and drive it:lol:... thats about as far as i go:lol:...worth every single penny to drive such great cars..and even if it cost double what it does i would still do it ;)

i think i will draw the line at a 4.3 though:lol:

I once worked out how much I'd spent on takeaway pizzas, thousands!

Sometimes its best not to look at how much you've spent.
 

stevieb15

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In this kind of quantative analysis you always need to factor in the costs of the alternative before getting to the real cost of ownership.
You have to have a way of getting from A to B,unless you're happy to remain housebound.
So cost out taxis, rail, bus, bike, shoe leather, I'd guess for most of us running a car would then look quite a bargain.
 


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