Any problems with Mercedes e500?

[Jim Bremner]

My Aunt is looking @ a 2005 Mercedes E500 right now.

Is there anything that I should look out for her on this car?

[the]

As used cars, they are good deals right now. With $4 gal. gas, the used V8s aren't selling for much more than the 6s.

An 05 should still be under factory warranty, and eligible for an extended warranty. She should consider that. Try warrantydirect.com for a quote. One electrical component failure could easily cost her the price of the warranty.

[Porsche-O-Phile]

Don't buy one without a warranty.

They're fine cars - haven't heard too many bad things about them. Just very expensive.

I'd try some of the M.B. forums for other, more specific input related to your year/model. Benzworld.org is a good one.

[Palum6o]

Originally Posted by Porsche-O-Phile

Don't buy one without a warranty.

They're fine cars - haven't heard too many bad things about them. Just very expensive.

I'd try some of the M.B. forums for other, more specific input related to your year/model. Benzworld.org is a good one.

+1 The E's are great. If they won't offer you a Starmark'd one, ask the SA which warranty company they like working with and add one to the overall cost of the car. They run around 3K and should take you up to 2012 or 100K miles

[HardDrive]

I have been looking at this a bit myself.

It appears that the release of the 06 model year marked a dramatic uptick in their quality ratings. It appears they got their electronics sorted for the 06 model year. I would be very wary owning a pre 06 without a warranty.

Instead of an 05 E500, perhaps take a look at an 06 E350. I think you would be pleasantly suprised by the power the 3.5 V6 makes.

[Palum6o]

I agree with that too, the V6 is no dog and does well on the highway - very smooth. I also wanted to recommend getting a VMI (vehicle maintenance inquiry) which the dealer can look up for you. I'd be curious if it had any oil burning issues, as I've heard some of them burn too much oil. With gas prices the way they are you may want to go with a 350. If I drive normally, I can get about 23mpg highway. With a lot of power on hand, you can't help but use it, especially on 95 in and out of New York.

[Jim Bremner]

I don't think that the car will see much in miles per year 7-10k miles a year so gass is not a big concern.

I was told that it should get 20ish mpg

[Z-man]

Originally Posted by Jim Bremner

I don't think that the car will see much in miles per year 7-10k miles a year so gass is not a big concern.

I was told that it should get 20ish mpg

Gas concerns notwithstanding, I would still look into the MY2006 and newer models for the reason stated above -- they fixed some of the electrical gremlins that year.

My $0.42,
-Z-man.