PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum - View Single Post

rmasteller · #6 12-12-2003, 09:32 PM

Galt,

That makes a lot more sense and I agree now that you understand what you want. All the cars mentioned have good power, comfort, and are relatively quite at highway speeds.

My only concerns would be your odds of getting an actual low maintenance car with over 150,000 miles on it. In order to have any chance at finding a quailty car that was not neglected by a previous owner, it will be a must to have accurate documentation on all regular service as well as the repairs. Even if you do find a well cared for car, regardless of brand, it could still require major repair costs for "normal" high milage wear. Things like suspension components, transmissions, major engine components, axles, and more can fail at high milage. My father-in-law had a 1992 Acura Legend he bought brand new. After 9 years and 130,000 miles the transmission was going. It would cost about $3,000 to replace, almost as much as the car was worth. He sold the car and got a new 2001 Lexus ES300.

If you go this route, just be prepared to have a very high priced repair once in a while. Anything major on a luxury brand will be very expensive. I just had a power steering pump replaced on my E420 under Starmark warranty. It cost me $0, but would have cost $705 for parts & labor, and that's with a remanufactured pump.

Perhaps you should take the same care in finding a well cared for Camery or Accord with a V6 engine for $6,000 and plan on spending the other $3,000 on it in the first 2 years. Not as classy, but a good performer that's well built, comfortable, and quiet.