Well said.

A couple things here...

True AMG’s are two digit cars. (Mercedes has even muddied the waters on those now).

E550 AMG is not an AMG. It has the styling package and the badge. It does not have the hand built engine, or all of the upgrades that an AMG has, some specific to AMG’s only. It’s still a badass car, beautiful, and fun to drive, but it’s not a true AMG.

E55 AMG. This car wasn’t made in 2015, and if it was, it wasn’t available in the USA. It also would have been a wagon.

Back to the original post.

If you’re buying a newer Mercedes and cannot afford $1000 repairs, you may want to reconsider your purchase. The wheel on my 2017 E63 was more than $1000, just for the wheel.

Now to the scumbags that take advantage of people. Yeah, the guy that did this is a real shitbag and deserves a special place in hell. The guy buying this should have done as Rotndad said and had a qualified mechanic look at it.

Just as well, if you’re looking at buying a pre-owned Mercedes (or the like), it’s usually worth paying the extra to purchase from the dealership. The dealerships have a reputation to uphold and aren’t going to be selling broken jalopys.

Sucks for your customer. What a shitty thing to have happen.

Absolutely loved my 2017 E63 AMG. Most enjoyable, fully loaded, awesome car I have ever had. When I moved to where my job wasn’t going to pay anything close to what I made, I ditched that car like a bad prom date.

I still miss it almost everyday.

This message has been edited. Last edited by: Beancooker,

quote:

Originally posted by Boss1:
Sounds like he was in over his head at that point, vehicle purchasing-wise.

Definitely. It sounds like he made an emotional decision he wasn’t really able to handle financially.

Like others have mentioned, once an Audi, MB, BMW, etc. is out of warranty, maintenance is expensive.

I had an Audi A6. New brakes cost me $1,600 and had to be done at the dealer because my regular shop did not have the specialized equipment to do the work. The same month I ran over something that ruined a tire. I found out that I needed to replace all four tires because of the Audi Quattro drive system.

The next month I traded in the Audi for a Honda Accord.

Just how tolerant are those engines to being overheated a couple few times?
A radiator replacement may be the least of his problems.

I've been working at a truck dealership for the last 20 years.
People buy rigs across the states and fly in to pick them up sight unseen and are pissed that a rig with 750,000 miles needs a ton of work just to make it back home.
I get that they are pissed but who shells out that much money on something that's supposed to be a source of income without looking it over first?

Knowing what you are getting into goes a long way in not being disappointed.
I don't know about anyone else but for personal vehicles, or just about anything else for that matter that I'm interested in, I research it to the point of obsession at times.

Like my Land Cruiser.
I originally was on the hunt for an FJ60 and had already done my homework on it, was focused on that and I never buy the first one I find unless it's a barn find, which has never happened to me.

While looking at one the guy also had an FJ80 which caused my to start over and start researching and looking at those.
I picked up a 1991 FJ80 in good shape but with a "rod knock". I told the guy that it wasn't a rod knock but a clacky valve and they needed to be set. He said they were hydraulic lifters and didn't need to be set.
I said okay and drove it home stopping to get a valve cover gasket.
Got home, popped the hood and waited while it cooled down enough to touch.
Adjust the valves and found one way out. No more rod knock.

Just about all the ones that I looked at I left the owner a list of needed repairs and the cost to do it.
Most of which they didn't even know about.
I show up with a jack and stands to do my own inspections and check everything.

I go in with the expectation of needing to baseline any used rig.
Some things have been done by the previous owner but most have not.
Brakes.
Tires.
Cooling system.
Accy belts
Engine timing belts/chain.
Clutch and related if applicable.
Tune up.

Going in blind with nothing more than a daydream is going to be expensive and disappointing.

Two thoughts. One, the ops post is right on target. If buying a used BMW or MB, get it inspected by a reputable service tech. Even simple repairs on these vehicles are usually big money. And two, this is where you can really save a bunch if you're mechanically inclined, willing to learn, and not afraid of getting your hands dirty. If you can do all of your own maintenance and most of your own repairs, owning one of these fine German autos is far less cost burdensome.

quote:

Originally posted by CoolRich59:
Like others have mentioned, once an Audi, MB, BMW, etc. is out of warranty, maintenance is expensive.

Would you also consider VW to be a part of this group?

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:

quote:

Originally posted by CoolRich59:
Like others have mentioned, once an Audi, MB, BMW, etc. is out of warranty, maintenance is expensive.

Would you also consider VW to be a part of this group?

To a lesser extent than Audi, but I would put VW at a higher avg repair cost as compared to the equivalent Asian brand vehicle.

quote:

Originally posted by Edmond:

quote:

Originally posted by CoolRich59:
Like others have mentioned, once an Audi, MB, BMW, etc. is out of warranty, maintenance is expensive.

Would you also consider VW to be a part of this group?

Sorry, I don't know. I've only owned an Audi, but have heard similar things about MB and BMW.

But, I think it's a great question - especially because I'm considering a Volvo for my next car.

Good post. Agreed!

I put $10k+ (refresh maintenance, not so much repairs) into a 22 year old $6k Mercedes. No regrets. If you want an older V8 MB, be prepared to feed it.

It's funny, I was talking to a coworker yesterday. A "Friend" of theres was selling a used car that piqued his interest. The friend mentioned that he wanted to not deal with listing it on craigslist or something like that, so was selling it cheap, about half of what it was worth.

He went and took a look as he wanted to get his wife a different car. The car looked good, but the friend was very resistant when my coworker wanted to take it to a mechanic to give it a once over. That made my coworker walk away from the deal. We were wondering what's wrong with the car...

That engine is probably cooked too.
And now swallowing coolant.

Just to clarify, I think him tearing up was more frustraion and/or rage at being screwed. Also, from our conversation he didn't have enough extra cash on hand to pay the $1k for the repairs but more the time to wait for the parts. I worked this weekend and saw a car transporter picking up the Benz from the hotel next door so he must have money as that shit aint cheap. How he managed to make the arrangements that quickkly is near miraculos. He walked over to thank me for helping him. He caught an Uber to fly home. So I don't think it was above his means he just needed to be back in time for work on Monday. He also thanked me for admitting that I was plenty capable of replacing the radiator and hoses but if it went beyond that I am out of my element with MB. I recommended European Autohaus, a local shop that specializes in European cars and specifically MB. I too am concerned about what unseen damage may have occured because of the overheat condition.

Anyway, I just wanted to let people know to pay for an inspection so you don't get screwed. It seems like common sense to a most of people but not to some. Hell, I had a customer bring their car in for engine noise. It turns out they thought the the 5.7 liter emblem on the engine cover was the oil capacity on a Tundra. Luckily, we drained the oil and filled it correctly and it didn't SEEM to have any issues.

Maybe I’ve been on the internet too long, but the guys story sounds fishy to me. You have the money to fly into a city and buy a used Mercedes, but don’t have a credit card that you can put $1k on? You barely saved up enough money to get this car, but rather than driving down to get it, which is usually cheaper, you fly? You have always wanted a Mercedes, but have no idea repairs on them are pricey? I dunno. It might be legit, but my bullshit sense is tingling. I believe Rotndad, but the customers story doesn’t sit right with me. I have personally flown to a different state to buy a car and drive it back. One of the FIRST things I did was come up with a plan B if the car died or the deal fell through.

That said, Rotndads advice is sound.

- Bret

quote:

Originally posted by sadlerbw:

That said, Rotndads advice is sound.

- Bret

Absolutely. The same came be said about people buying their *dream home* without getting it checked out by a competent home inspector.

As was mentioned by at least three previous replies, I would be very concerned that there would be head, cylinder block and/or head gasket damage given the scenario you have described. You would have to get it to hold coolant before you could run reliable tests for further damage. Probably great it was hauled away and you were not going to have to deal with it. That job could easily end up at 10k or more. Sorry for the guy!

My last Mercedes Benz diesel was a 1987 300D. I did own several older W123 series MB diesels which were a breeze to maintain with mail order filters and parts.

I seems that the newer Benz with more bells and whistles became a dealership maintenance only car.

At 125K miles the '87 began to dig into my wallet nearly every month and I eventually traded it for an Audi which was another big mistake in my life.

One day I woke up and bought a trouble free Honda.

A lot of light plane buyers are like that, barely afford the plane, maintenance and it has to be a licensed mechanic and airworthy parts, can't afford that!

quote:

Originally posted by Gene Hillman:
As was mentioned by at least three previous replies, I would be very concerned that there would be head, cylinder block and/or head gasket damage given the scenario you have described. You would have to get it to hold coolant before you could run reliable tests for further damage. Probably great it was hauled away and you were not going to have to deal with it. That job could easily end up at 10k or more. Sorry for the guy!

I agree about the potential head gasket/head/bock issues. I warned my customer of this possibility.

As far as me working on it, aint happening. The only supercharged V8 I plan to work on will be a big block chevy with an 871 supercharger.

quote:

Originally posted by CoolRich59:

quote:

Originally posted by sadlerbw:

That said, Rotndads advice is sound.

- Bret

Absolutely. The same came be said about people buying their *dream home* without getting it checked out by a competent home inspector.

Not to thread drift too far, but when you find a truly 'competent' home inspector please send me his contact info. I've dealt with several over time and each of them was a special kind of worthless. Write me a two page list of virtually irrelevant crap and totally miss both a huge wiring issue and a pair of joist leveling jacks under the house. Having grown up working construction and since continuing to learn most of the trades, I trust 'me' a lot more than I trust an inspector to uncover issues.

quote:

Originally posted by Rotndad:
As far as me working on it, aint happening. The only supercharged V8 I plan to work on will be a big block chevy with an 871 supercharger.

Holy! Don't stand in front of that 8-71 or it might just suck you in.