High miles car question on 600

I have always heard that it's not nescessarily bad to buy a high miles newer car as it would have had fewer cold starts and freeway miles are the easiest.

This 600 has been on ebay at least 2 times before:

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eBayISAPI.dll?ViewItem&item=2443731744&category=6336

What do the technical folks think here.

1) would you buy thhis car?

2) why and why not?

3) if yes, what would you check first and foremost.

4) what can be expected from this engine in terms of life?

Thnks for your opinions?

Jari.

PS. I am contemplating what year and miles to get in on.
I would love to have a 600 some time soon.

[neileg]

High miles are OK if the maintenance has been done. I've read this listing a couple of times and I don't see any mention of the service history. Why not?

[TX76513]

My first question would be to ask the seller why it's been posted 2 x before - what happened or is the buyer seeing something upon personal review. Make sure you look at Carfax and ask about rust especially the underside where there are no pictures. Remember where the car is located.
Nice cars and I will have one of these one day

[y2kimmel]

Check this out first - on this car it's about a 4 Grand repair. I wouldn't buy a V12 without a serious pre-purchase inspection by a mechanic who knows a lot about V-12s.

This looks like a used car dealer that's selling ($149 documentation fee gives it away). If he's unable to move a car that looks that good, there's probably a good reason.

Although - high mileage does scare many people off.

Bottom Line - it's not worth an e-bay buy unless you can inspect it thoroughly.

I bought my E420 long-distance and had 2 separate shops inspect it (one that the buyer recommended, and one that I found at random in the yellow pages). It checked out and the car is great. Even with the inspection - the evaporator died about 2 months after buying it. I'm glad I talked the guy way down in price now.

Regards,
Troy
1995 E420

[blackmercedes]

The V-12 engine is bullet-proof and will last twice that mileage, easily, if it's been cared for.

However, the W140 car has it's own list that is long of things that wil eat your bank account. Things like AC evaporators, hydraulics, electrics, etc. The V-12 engine bay is crowded, and even simple tasks mean huge labour bills and expensive parts.

This car will probably eat thousands of dollars a year in routine maintenance and repairs. Keep in mind the original MSRP, and the buyer profile. MB never thought for one second about "economy" when bringing that car to market.

If you have the budget, a W140 S600 is a real treat!

[LV202]

I bet that's and amazing car to drive. I wonder what kind of MPG it gets?

The below exerpt is from an article on slmarket.com
(http://www.slmarket.com/touring.htm)

"During this morning stretch of relaxed 35 to 65 M.P.H. driving, the 600 turned in 231/2 M.P.G. Incredible for a 390hp, 6 liter, V12. Credit the automatic engine retardation (cams and electronics) on deceleration. Branson's street system is so poorly designed that we got our worst M.P.G. plodding through its NYC-type traffic: 151/2 M.P.G. Overall for 3,700 miles: 17.9 M.P.G. Do you know of any 6+ liter, gasoline powered car that can beat these numbers?"


This is one of the reasons I want it!

Jari

[Mr. BILL]

I wouldn't worry about the miles. The history of the car is more important. I've had better luck with hi-mile Benz's than lower mile ones, but I know what to look for in a 123,124 & 126.

The only thing I know about 140 chassis is the can be real money pits. You need to look beyond the purchase price and figure at least $2-3K a year in maintainance. If you can handle that, it's an AWSOME car. Do a search on 140 chassis.

Or you could see if you can get a deal on a used Space Shuttle, they're cheaper to maintain and less complicated

Good luck

[LV202]

What kind of maintainance does a V-12 require ? How much different would it be than a v-8? Is it just because the parts are so expensive?

[OneBadViper]

I would not touch it with a 10 foot pole UNLESS you have very deep pockets! Trust me, I KNOW!