Thanks for all the input. I've found a 2004 S55 with 116k locally that I'm going to take a look at...as someone else pointed out, to me it's worth a few thousand more (asking $10,900) for the jump in power.
I've definitely read about the horror stories with ABC, some people swear that preventative maintenance is the key with a system flush every 30k miles or so...who knows. I found a link to a rebuild kit (
here) for the pump itself, as well as warrantied rebuilt OEM struts (
here). $90 is a lot to pay for a baggie of o-rings, and the rebuilt struts are by no means cheap either, but at the very least I know that I have an option other than the dealership. I feel like I could replace these parts on my own, although I'd have to get someone else to run STAR diagnostics/recalibration after doing so. Has anyone here done any ABC work themselves? If (or when?) something goes wrong, how realistic is fixing this system on my own?
Pelican has rotors at $210/ea for the fronts and ~$100/ea for the rears. I'll definitely look at how much life they have left in them.
All my cars are slow (I DD a 72 220D
), and lately I've been craving the modern creature comforts that newer cars have. I'd never considered one of these in the past because I had assumed they would be out of reach, but this would give me something quick and comfortable in one fell swoop.
Gatorblue, a friend linking me that exact article is exactly what started me down this path
Sadly, the AMG cars seem a little more involved than the standard S500 and below.