Thinking of buying an S class

[Brian T]

Thanks for that. Should have been more specific with my question, would that be Thatcham 1 or 2?
I never understand how insurers work. My E class is a lower group than the Saab 95 2.3LPT I had previously, yet was a slightly higher premium.
I just rang my insurer to get a feel for the insurance premium change for when I find an S class. I quoted two registration numbers off of Autotrader from the upper and lower price range I'm looking at. A 51 plate S320CDI with a quoted value of £3000 is a higher premium than a 55 plate with a £5000 value. For the purpose of this exercise, we assumed Thatcham 1 for both cars.
I think the 55 plate quoted is the last of the 5 speeds, and the 51 is the pre face lift. Anybody have any idea if there are differences in these year groups that would explain this anomaly?

 

[st4]

I don't know but iirc both are thatcham 1.

Don't worry so much about insurance, get the best one your money can buy, that's your real insurance policy.

 

[Brian T]

Other than cosmetic differences, what changed with the facelift (2002?).
Does the tiptronic option cause any problems?
I think I'm narrowing things down to 03-05, and a larger budget, but I'm not excluding anything.

 

[Cardinal Biggles]

Indeed that is the way it is,,,,I sit there in my CL looking down at all the riff raff in their CLS's and other lowly models

Fightin' talk eh! Step outside wiv yer 'andbag and we'll see about that.........

 

[BillyBoy]

One thing I forgot to mention, if you go for a 220, get the facelift version (approx 04 onwards as they are more refined and have things like airmatic and widescreen satnav as standard. Also make absolutely sure you get one with Xenons as one of the few issues with this car ot that the standard halogens are pathetic to the point of being dangerous at night (see many posts on this subject on the forums)

HTH,
Bill

 

[BillyBoy]

Sorry, and the facelift will have galvanised body so much less chance of rust.

 

[rf065]

Sorry, and the facelift will have galvanised body so much less chance of rust.

There are many MB's out there that are galvanised and are still rusting. The newest I've seen was on a 2008 car.

Russ

 

[Brian T]

Good point about the headlights. The ones on my E class are pathetic, even after polishing the glass (plastic).

 

[Brian T]

Is there any year that the xenons were a standard fitment? Or were they an option?

 

[tode]

They are standard now, but not sure from which date. 2006?

 

[The Swede]

An S Class is like a wedding - everything cost twice as much as it would normally. However you don't care!

Get one - it will probably cost a lot to run, but every time you drive it, whether it is to the local shop or 300 miles up the motorway, you will feel special sat behind the wheel, and feel a cut above all the other road users. It's not called an S Class for nothing and the 220 iz a fabulous car

Absolute bullocks. The parts cost the same as for any Merc. Obviously, if more complex solutions are used, you'll have a more expensive part. Same goes with brakes, tyres, etc which wear more as the car is heavier.

So will it be more expensive to run? Yes, but only a bit if you buy a reasonable engined car. Insurance is actually well cheaper on an S320 than on an E320...

Just stay away from the AMG's. The prices of parts are hideously expensive here (esp brakes) and the engines (at least the M156) are not reliable.

 

[BillyBoy]

IIRC it was 2010 and on the 221 that Xenons finally became a standard fitment. They were never standard on the 220 in the UK.

 

[LTD]

Thanks for the comments. Spoke to a couple of traders and it would seem that the petrol V8s were invariably specified with many extra options. This appears to somewhat negate the potential lower second hand prices due to the higher fuel consumption. On that basis the diesel makes more sense to me.

I have an S500. 136k miles on the clock.

It is bio-degrading and I intend to have the rust and paint attended to in due course.

Why should I keep it ?

It's got a luscious V8 engine that I love to drive everywhere, a cabin that is refined and is 'the place to be' and more room than a cheap motel.

Do I worry about the 20-25mpg ? Not a jot. I have a car that sits at 30mph like a magic carpet, a car that can cruise all day at speeds most other cars would start eating their own drivetrains and, if needed, can drop a 0-60 well under 7 seconds and keep disappearing into the horizon without a moment's hesitation.

... and it makes me SMILE

 

[st4]

Sell it and buy a C class estate.

 

[Brian T]

I have an S500. 136k miles on the clock.

It is bio-degrading and I intend to have the rust and paint attended to in due course.

Why should I keep it ?

It's got a luscious V8 engine that I love to drive everywhere, a cabin that is refined and is 'the place to be' and more room than a cheap motel.

Do I worry about the 20-25mpg ? Not a jot. I have a car that sits at 30mph like a magic carpet, a car that can cruise all day at speeds most other cars would start eating their own drivetrains and, if needed, can drop a 0-60 well under 7 seconds and keep disappearing into the horizon without a moment's hesitation.

... and it makes me SMILE

Hmm..it is tempting, but if I can't afford to run it.....

 

[Brian T]

Still doing my homework. Am i correct in deducing that all of the W220 320CDIs had the IL6 648 engine?

 

[st4]

Still doing my homework. Am i correct in deducing that all of the W220 320CDIs had the IL6 648 engine?

Yes. The W221 moved to the newer 642 engine thats err, troublesome potentially.

 

[Brian T]

Looking at the performance specs on Autotrader, it would appear that the 03-05 320cdi has slightly different power and fuel economy figures. Was there a change in the engine management or drive ratios on the facelift cars? Or is this just inaccurate info?
Is the built in sat nav any good? I assume it was state of the art in it's day, but can it be re configured for current roads and traffic updates. And speed cameras?

 

[st4]

Might be a tad more powerful, not sure.

Some 648 engines meet EU4 requirements, really late ones do, others meet EU3 requirements.

Not sure COMAND can be adapted to take speed camera databases, but there are a lot of non OEM gadgets to sort that out...

 

[Brian T]

Thank you, that makes sense with the emissions changes.
So is there some sort of software upgrade for the sat nav (maybe from MB), that keeps it current as far as new road building is concerned? Does it have street level mapping for most of Europe, or is it market specific?