E500 As Daily Driver

[Michael K]

My search is on. Thanks to everyone for your thoughts. It took me six and twelve months to find the right 202 and 124, respectivly. Wish me luck. I'll keep you all posted.

I'm considering purchasing a 1994 E500 and wanted to ask to hear from folks who use one as a daily driver.

How comfortable and economical is the E500 in daily use? Is 15,000 miles per year a bad idea (10% city/70% suburbs/20% highway)? Relative to the W124.104, how does the car feel in normal, utilitarian use?

Is my $5,500 estimated annual upkeep budget way off the mark?

$500/year for lubes at 3,000 miles
$1000/year for tires
$3,000/year for A to C services (trusted independent)
$1,000/year for miscellaneous

Knowing that life is too short, I don't think I can resist parking this classic in my garage.

Thanks in advance for any feedback.

The car will do just fine with day to day use, but it is like a Wolf in Sheep's clothing, when you need the Wolf... it's there.

I think your projected maintenance cost are a little high, but only if you are getting a E500 that may be run down to begin with, or if the Wiring Harness has not been replaced or the ASR Light is constantly on. If the car needs initial repairs the annual cost will go down with time as this model is not as weak as some might expect, especially considering the performance it can deliver.

Many of the issues brought up on this board are in keeping a rare factory hotrod in Primo shape as it should be, I bet there are few 500E's / E500's out there that are run-down but I would imagine this is not the usual case, after all these models are approaching 10 years which is pretty remarkable.

Live a little and get it, you will not be disappointed. Just check with some of the archives on "500E" and view the newer owners reactions if you are still unsure in getting one.

Good Luck and let us know what happens...

[-fad]

Hi Michael-

I am lucky to own both a '94 E500 (37.9k) and a '94 E320 Coupe (96k). Although both of these are exclusively used for my weekend excursions, here's my experience:

>the E500 seating is a bit firmer and more supportive vs. the E320 luxo seating; I used to think that the E320 was more comfortable in extended use, now I believe the opposite (after about a year of owning & driving the E500)

>re: utilitarian use impressions- the E500 feels: tight, powerful, and under utilized in daily driving...its also naturally smooth, stealth, and very luxo, ...and although it provides all these- it also provides a sense that there's something very special going on

> re: economics, the E500 uses more gas (V8 vs. I6- but mostly because its easy to drive enthusiastically with the V8), if one uses an E500 sedately- naturally economy is highest

>the E320 offers more purer luxo transportation and very economical gas mileage, while the E500 offers a more active and purer enthusiast driving session; both have been very very trouble free (suggest purchasing a Starmark car so you can avoid some of the repair risk for the first three years of ownership).

fyi- Rusnak Pasadena (Ed Keller)- fact authorized sales, has a pristine '94 E500 w/ 18" AMG's and 49k on the odo, asking price in $49k (w/ 1yr Starmark warranty).

good luck
-fad

[mbsteve]

I think Ross is on the mark. it is a fantastic daily driver and very dependable. Your costs look high to me, but a good pre-purchase inspection will tell you lots, negotiate the repairs, and prepare for one of life's great experiences.

As he mentions numerous of us here are anal retentaive about these machines and keep them factory fresh and original (or add a litlle extra ). Check the threads for pre-purchase inspections and you will learn even more aobut what makes these cars so unique and what to watch out for.

Greetings Michael,


I recently bought a 1991 500e and even tough I don't know about long-term running costs issues yet (did 5000km in it in 4 1/2 years), I can tell you that the previous owner of my car, which ran it from new until 116'000km - approximately 72K miles - spent just a bit more than your annual figure on the WHOLE history of the car. Total comes to 9677.20 CHF which at a 1.68 USD/CHF rate would equate to an approximative 5800 dollars, and that includes pretty much everything, tires, oil, pads etc.. except gas, of course. I average 16 to 21 mpg depending on my driving.

But hey, you live in the US, I pay a bit less for a quart than what you pay for a gallon of premium unleaded, and yet I don't complain. I definitely don't drive as much as you do in a year because my daily commute to work is only about 12 miles, but I believe that considering what you get when you buy a E500, the low mpg figure doesn't even come into the equation...

What you'll get is a an extremely capable performance sedan, refined, amazingly confortable once you realise just how amazing the handling is, how much you can press on into corners without any noticeable body roll...This car is a sports car, enthusiasts who can tell one apart from the other w124 models look at this car with the same eyes as for a Porsche or Ferrari. It's a hand-built, four-door porsche, and this is why I believe running costs for this car as a whole are incredibly easy on the wallet.

There's no way that you cannot find cheaper than 1000 dollars for four 16 inch tires in the US. I mean, you guys can make a phone call and have UPS deliver you a set of 21 inch wheels in 24 hours for almost nothing...., I can buy a pirelli tire down the street for less than 100 dollars, and Tire rack doesn't exist here...

Same thing goes for service. The most expensive service in the history of my car is 3000 CHF, 1800$, for new tires, pads, battery, all filters, plus the usual. The other services are around the 350$.

My car looks and drives like it's a third of its age, except for some very very minor niggles. I don't know what your budget is or what the car you're looking at is worth, but I bought mine for 13'000$ with 116'000 kms on it and I got 100'000$ (new car price in Switzerland in 1991) of Stuttgart's finest, and that doesn't devaluate!!!

Michael, I found myself with the same sort of hesitation than you do, but it's a Mercedes, and it just says it all about reliability issues

Just buy it, man, someone else might snap it up.

If you were to consider importing one from Europe, remember that the E500 limited are always available in Switzerland very easily.

I'm sure I'll read some good news soon about your new pride and joy.

Drive Safe!

[Mark Stetson]

I like to keep my car(s) running and looking in top shape. I bought my 500E intending to use it as a daily driver, and am headed for about 12,000 miles a year. My reasons for buying it were similar to yours. It crossed the 100,000 mile mark early in my ownership. The car does have a good maintenance history, with all dealer records since new. Unlike others' estimates, however, I spent well more than double your annual budget on my car since I bought it in March. That includes about 2.7K for new wheels and tires which were premium, not just maintenance: 17" EVO II rims and Bridgestone PP S03 tires. If you want to keep a high-mileage supercar in top shape, you will face some preventive maintenance choices: timing chain and engine wire harness being common replacements after 100K miles. Expect to pay around 2-3K just for those items. I also capitalized on my Starmark warranty to replace the transmission.

Some of my expenses can be put down to sorting out a used car in my first year of ownership, and hopefully my second year will cost less. I'm having a similar experience with a '96 Chevy Tahoe (102K miles) that I bought last year with no maintenance history, but now that it is sorted (no major items), it runs like new (except for the rattles). My wife's lower-mileage '93 300TE, on the other hand, was very economical last year - it cost about 2/3 of your estimate, including new tires. Regarding commuting (city/freeway) fuel economy, I get 12-13mpg in the Tahoe, 15-16 mpg in the 500E, and 16-18 mpg in the 300TE. Hardly relevant to your decision based on annual expenses.

Regarding 300E v. 500E, my driving experiences are based on both, including an '89 300E that we traded for the '93 300TE. My feelings are similar to -fad's description, except that I think for front seat passengers my wife's 300TE has more comfortable seating for long (6-8 hour) trips.

This car is a huge pleasure to own and drive. Commuting 40-50 miles/day is a lot of fun in the 500E! It is a true sleeper - very docile and smooth at low speeds, but supercar performance is always right there under the fast pedal. It's also a fine trip car. I wouldn't think of using it for ski trips, but there is a lot of pleasure to be had on those summer mountain roads and coastal highways. I don't think I could ever sell this car. Go buy yourself one!

I bought my '94 last March with 79K miles - I've had it almost a year. The car now has 104K miles. That's 25K miles in less than a year. My wife drives the car as a daily driver. The car is solid as a rock and looks awesome inside & out. Why would you not want to drive it every day. Stick it in the garage and pull out the economy car?!?

We put new tires on it to replace a cheap pair the PO had put on. I had all the fluids done at 90K and replaced the lines to the tranny cooler. Wasn't more than $500. I do my own oil changes and I've replaced a few parts here and there. The car had always gone to the dealer and had a complete service history. I need to bring it in for a leaking PS pump soon though. I think this is a weak part of the car as the PO had it resealed 3 times!

Unless you get an abused or non-maintained car I would say that your budget is too high. There will be expensive trips to the mechanic but not every year.

Bottom line: awesome car and I've been amazed with its durability. Buy one and drive it!

Randy
'94 E500

[need2speed]

I'll join the chorus and say the car is a perfect "daily driver" from all points of view.

Its stealthy but powerful...beware the unwary!

Its built like a tank (panzer?) without looking like a tank (SUV??).

As opposed to more exotic cars, like the Hammer and most Porsches, it was designed by the factory to BE a daily driver. With ASR and ABS and 2nd gear starts I can (and do) drive my car all winter

Don't treat it like a hangar queen, know what I mean?

Good luck,

[Michael]

Tough to beat as a daily driver-what more could you possibly want? I've been using mine as a daily driver for the last few days-gonna be tough getting back in the 300D