Tell me why I don't want an S600!

[jlee]

How much would he drive it is the question. A few thousand miles a year and it will probably be pretty good if it has been well maintained.

I would try to find one with relatively low mileage and complete maintenance history and only keep it for a few years. Be prepared for some hefty maintenance bills though if anything goes wrong.

I found one in CO with 48k on it for $15k. It's a tough call, I figure if it checks out well at 110k, it's likely been taken care of...while something at 48k might have a few things waiting to fail.

 

[skyking]

found a 2001 with 70K on if for 12,500
Now you have me looking

 

[jlee]

If you want the biturbo V12, look for 2003-2006. I believe 2002 and earlier was a n/a V12. Still 400hp, but not ~500hp/600tq.

 

[skyking]

same search got a 04 CL55 supercharged AMG for 13.7K

 

[skyking]

found another NA, a 1997 with bulletproof glass :shooter:

 

[jlee]

https://newjersey.craigslist.org/cto/5081599638.html

Hmm.

 

[halik]

So, I still want one.

Research says the drivetrain is pretty damn solid, with the exception of the coil packs (2x $850). The biggest headache is the Active Body Control suspension...while apparently quite incredible, it likes to leak. If you maintain it well, flush the fluid regularly, etc, it's supposed to be decent. BUT...how many people flush their suspension fluid every 20k miles? I'm guessing not many.

They're so cheap!

Apparently you can get the individual coils for about 100something bucks a piece and just replace as needed. The ABC system is apparently a total hit or miss; can you flush, pressurize and diagnose it DIY? I don't recall having an MBenz diag on my laptop.

I've put 20K miles on my S8 over the last year and half (at 103K now); so far lost one air shock last winter, no other unexpected maintenance.

 

[halik]

found another NA, a 1997 with bulletproof glass :shooter:

I bet it's not bullet proof, but rather has the two pane glass for sound deadening. S class Guard cars are unbelievably rare.

Any thoughts on 760iL? We've had a 70K mile one on our craigslist for a while now, ~$13K

 

[JMapleton]

Great idea if you can fix it yourself. Terrible idea if you can't.

 

[JMapleton]

I bet it's not bullet proof, but rather has the two pane glass for sound deadening. S class Guard cars are unbelievably rare.

Any thoughts on 760iL? We've had a 70K mile one on our craigslist for a while now, ~$13K

Most bullet proofed Benzes are done by 3rd party companies, unlike the factory "Guard" ones. The 3rd party ones can do it better I assume.

 

[yhelothar]

Leasing a brand new one with $15k downpayment would cost $2800/mo. So if the maintenance and repairs cost less than $1500/mo, it might be an ok deal depending how much time it takes you to work on the repairs and how much you value your amenities of the new model.

http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w220-s-class/1579422-2004-s600-just-hit-100-000-a.html

One guy reports that he has his S600 running at 142k miles with little work beyond the typical coil packs, ABC, charge cooler pump, and ignition coils.

So given if you bought the one with 48k miles for $15,000, sounds like you could get about 8 years/100,000 miles out of that car for about $10-20k of maintenance at a generous estimate. Sounds like a decent deal to me considering you're really handy with the work.

 

[halik]

Most bullet proofed Benzes are done by 3rd party companies, unlike the factory "Guard" ones. The 3rd party ones can do it better I assume.

A ton of people confuse the stock double pane windows with "bulletproof glass". The Guard version windows are like 3 in thick:

vs

 

[skyking]

Here is one all tricked out, 135K miles:
http://eastoregon.craigslist.org/ctd/5142579745.html

Here is a 2002 tt with a check engine light for 7K
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/5106085767.html

I can check that one out for you if you are serious.

 

[jlee]

Here is one all tricked out, 135K miles:
http://eastoregon.craigslist.org/ctd/5142579745.html

Here is a 2002 tt with a check engine light for 7K
http://seattle.craigslist.org/see/cto/5106085767.html

I can check that one out for you if you are serious.

Not quite yet. It's good to see them running around with 130k+, though. The one with the CEL might just have to be cleared, as he's already replaced the coil pack (but didn't say he went back to the dealer to have the code cleared).

That AMG exhaust...mm.

 

[thomsbrain]

Am I the only one expecting to see a Honda S600 roadster in this thread? And then extremely disappointed to see this instead?

 

[jlee]

Am I the only one expecting to see a Honda S600 roadster in this thread? And then extremely disappointed to see this instead?

If you're extremely disappointed to see a twin turbo V12 pushing 700ft-lbs with a tune, you should avoid my threads.

 

[Insomniator]

Boat of a car with an automatic... who cares how much power it has. Also wouldn't want to deal with repairs on a 15 year old $100k + benz.

 

[halik]

Did they make any v12 without the ABC system?

 

[Zargon]

Boat of a car with an automatic... who cares how much power it has. Also wouldn't want to deal with repairs on a 15 year old $100k + benz.

:'(

 

[rommelrommel]

Did they make any v12 without the ABC system?

Way back they did, but no bi-turbo's I believe.

 

[JulesMaximus]

Am I the only one expecting to see a Honda S600 roadster in this thread? And then extremely disappointed to see this instead?

Not me. The Mercedes-Benz S600 is a hell of a sleeper... and a hell of a lot of car for the money.

 

[skyking]

Like to share one with somebody. I could not justify it as a 3rd or 4th car ( don't ask )
but sharing the fixed cost, it would be nice to have for the road trip. Mileage be damned, it would be very relaxing.

 

[JMapleton]

A ton of people confuse the stock double pane windows with "bulletproof glass". The Guard version windows are like 3 in thick:

I'm 100 percent aware. BMW made (or still makes) a similar model for their 7 series. I personally would go with a 3rd party company that specializes in that work instead of using their stock models.

 

[skyking]

Unfortunately, that ad disappeared shortly after my post. I am fairly certain it was indeed bulletproof and not the double pane option, the doors were air-operated.

 

[SearchMaster]

As I recall, Car and Driver did a short article several years ago about "best value in used cars". They used a guy's S600 as one example. It was a younger guy, he had just bought it and immediately had to put a couple grand in to it for something, but they commented that even if you had to put a thousand or two into it yearly, you were getting a car that was 10x the price just a few years ago and was an amazing value.

If your goal is something like with your CTS, I say go for it. At worst, you might lose a relatively small amount of money but it's already eaten all its depreciation. At best, you're a freakin' baller for a couple of years and it's only cost you a lot of gas money.