Did I pull a GON, buying this Mercedes S-class?
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Yeah, that was working at the auto parts store in Vallejo. They'd come in with 22s on their 10 year old Euro car but were so broke they had to steal the motor oil for it.
Can I ask how it drives? It looks like a nice car but by now you would know if you scored a great deal.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
I believe that model S class does not have air suspension.... IIRC it had hydrophilic suspension. Very very pricey and challenging to service MB hydrophilic suspension.
If it's 95 outside and you have the windows down......
You might break even.
You might break even.
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I just drove it 1/2 mile in the auction lot so can't give an evaluation until bringing it back next week. Seems to ride fine, better that I would expect with 25 series rubber. A/C blows cold, Distronic Plus inop message displayed. AMG exhaust has a nice snarl. Steering wheel wear is the only cosmetic issue I noticed.
If it is an actual AMG model, it likely has Active Body Control. Hydraulic suspension.
Pneumatic struts (Mercedes calls them Airmatic) are cheap compared with ABC.
ABC struts run about $1,500 each. So, $6,000 for a set. $1,600 for each valve block*. There are two. About $1,200 for a pump. Three accumulators. One pulse damper. They all run about $250 each and they are maintenance items.
Takes 20 liters of CHF-11s to bleed and flush the system after a pump replacement.
There are about a dozen hoses in the system. None of which last. They run between $250 and $400 each*.
If you wanted to completely rebuild the ABC system, it would run you a little over $10,000 in parts in about the same in labor. On the V-12 cars, the spark plug coils are about $1400 apiece.
In general, a new S class owner is better off, saving their money for the inevitable first repair. But there are a lot of cars out there where the first thing a new S class owner chose to do is dress up the car and show it off.
Then, when the car needs a repair, they’re broke, they scream and yell at the dealer, because the repair is several thousand dollars, and then they sell it on eBay, or trade it in, or auction it off.
You have to be very, very careful buying a used S class.
*Valve blocks can be disassembled, cleaned, and rebuilt with new spacers and o rings. Cost about $25 for o rings. Lots of labor. A dealer won’t do it, but it works. Hoses can be rebuilt by a hydraulic shop for about $75 each. Again, not a dealer option, but works.
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Yes. So this car has the “Airmatic” suspension.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Your car is a S550 with (fake) AMG badging.... Not a AMG V12. The interior pics you posted didn't reflect what is typically found in a V12 AMG Mercedes.
The very first thing you might want to do is clean out the area under the hood where you see leaves. That is a water into interior choke point waiting to happen. Do both sides, and also there will be a spot in the middle of the cowl you will wante to remove leaves and debris from ASAP.
The very first thing you might want to do is clean out the area under the hood where you see leaves. That is a water into interior choke point waiting to happen. Do both sides, and also there will be a spot in the middle of the cowl you will wante to remove leaves and debris from ASAP.
AMG sport package with the factory body kit. Somebody just put the emblem on.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Yes, the car you purchased is a S550. The "AMG sport package" is simply cosmetic. A buyer pulling off the S550 factory badging and putting on the AMG badging is something one can read into when trying to understand the prior owner's mentality....
Your financial risk on this purchase went down significantly with the car being a S550, when compared to a 2013 S class AMG.
Worth driving it until it breaks now then decide if it's worth fixing. MB can be very reliable or very high maintenance and you won't know until you try it.
You're going to have to enlighten me on what that's supposed to mean.Notorious B.I.G. on the screen. You can read into the prior owner's mentality pretty easily.
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Hermann
Site Donor 2023
Notorious B.I.G. IIRC is a Gangsta' Rapper. Make the connection to the flashy M-B.
Yeah, the connection I'm making doesn't sound too kosher in his thought process if you get what I'm saying.
GON
$150 Site Donor 2025
Best wishes with the s class. They are awesome cars. Hope you keep this one for yourself. Life is short.Notorious B.I.G. on the screen. You can read into the prior owner's mentality pretty easily.
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