96 or 95 S500?
 

I have a 96 S-500 according to my documentation. However, when I've gone to buy replacement parts(light bulbs for instance), the parts that fit are 95 parts. Can someone give me guidance on when the 96's really became 96's and how I tell if I have a 95 or 96?

Thanks

model year
 

The 10th didget of your VIN determins the model year.The letter "T" in the 10th posistion designates a 1996 model. If it' an "S" then your car is a 1995
Bill

It's a 96 but
 

OK 10th digit is a T, but there must have been a change in production during that time. The vehicle production date reads 11/01/95, so that means an early 96?. Like I said, when you bring up 96 parts(such as fastlane) like rear shocks, the self leveling aren't listed. When you bring up 95's they are. I went to the mercedes parts dept at my local dealership and got a 95 back window brake light(it fit), because there was no listing for the 96 at any of the local stores or in the sylvania OEM catalog.


It's things like that that lead me to believe that the 95 to 96 year was a Hybrid year and has parts from both.