krispl

I agree with that....generally...there is more to it,,,,,,such as worn out suspension at higher mileage, leaking gaskets and etc. for an average Joe this would cost a fortune to have fixed on a car like that but for guys like you or me who do maintenance myself it's totally different story....

GS4_Fiend

iTrader: (22)

I agree. This thread is more like a rant.

SoCal Cyco

iTrader: (20)

mb's, audi's, bmw's and porsche's are all super expensive to work on. PERIOD. that is why the have german/european specific mechanic shops. honda, acura, toyota and lexus's are relative far cheaper to work on. just my $.02 though

vwynn

iTrader: (4)

serious note.. interesting find.

Chin

iTrader: (34)

The generalizations are killing me. I love AMG vehicles in particular and Mercedes in general, but the reliability just isnt there. I mean its ridiculous some of the things I see on Mercedes vehicles that have me scratching my head... Sealed tranmission, no dipstick (you have to purchase a dipstick tool), radiators that leaked internally so coolant was mixing with tranny fluid, air suspension issues, brake by wire nonsense, assorted electrical issues, needing star diagnostic software to do anything on your vehicle... I could go on for days. But when they are working, they are absolutely beautiful cars.

All cars have problems, German cars just have more expensive problems... And I would definitely not call them reliable...

NEbiker10

iTrader: (1)

Define Cheap....Cheap is doing a full brake job under 150 bucks. Cheap is doing a tune up under 300.00 Cheap is not spending 80 on an oil change. owning a sl65 is no where close to the same cost of a 2gs lexus.


I agree that people have a skewed interpretation of high mileage, mainstream media has created a notion that everyone needs a new car every year and if your car has more than 60k its junk. As far as I am concerned 130k is low miles, any car costing 50k or higher should last well beyond 200k if a crappy crown vic taxi can hit 400k.

What was the point of this thread other than rant and show off

LexusAMG

I placed the thread in the wrong place obviously. Sorry....

Yes the more the cars are bought the better deal we get on the used end of it...l am not refering to buying all high mileage cars ...I am refering to buying a much better car for the same money as a lower mileage car which is an inferior model or lowly model and much lower original MSRP over the much more expensive original MSRP car which now sits at a bargain price based on miles.....

CHIN----??? Huh. My GS430 has a sealed transmission And you need a scan tool to note the level...much more complicated then a screen on my AMG saying oil ok for engine oil... And the CL65 has a tranny dipstick...
YOU should of bought that CL65 on eBay ...u would own a piece of automotive history and engineering for pennies on the dollar....a 2005 AMG is one of the toughest cars on the planet...even the new 2012 AMG C63 can't take a new biturbo 8 because it has too inferior of a chassis to handle the torque.
A cl65 world record holder has over 1200 lbs of torque on a non modified chassis and suspension...incredible car
Which very few know a damn thing about.....

Cheap defined
Oil changed on Cl65 $110.00. Holds 12 quarts. Required atleast every 10k miles
Oil changed on my GS430 $30.00 holds 5.5 Required every 3000 miles
Difference $0.00
GS430 300hp. 0-60 in 6 seconds
CL65 610 RWHP 0-60 in 2.8 seconds traction limited
Brakes GS430 all 4 installed including labor and turning rotors $250.00
Brakes on Cl65 all 4- $190.00 8 piston calipers in front and 6 in rear...including (takes 30 min all 4 wheels) labor ---rotors good for up to 3 pad changes...made of a one piece block of metal...strong as ****
CL65. PRICELESS .... I would pay $300 for an oil change if I had to... It's still $580 less then a F430 and the CL65 runs circles around it on the street


It's called THE BEST BANG FOR YOUR BUCK
2005 AMG $200k supercar with 100k miles $35k present cost ...faster then zo6 or LP640....rarer then Veryon
2010 ISF with 15k miles for $50k
I would take the CL65 ****
2009 M6 20k miles. $60k
I would take the Cl65 ***
2003 GS430. 170k miles $7500
Or 2009 IS350 $32k
I would take the GS430 proudly
This is with a no relation to money. Meaning all cars can be bought without being on a certain budget

I HAVE OWNED ALL THE CARS above mentioned. My CL65 I still kept.
My GS430 I will keep forever as well

Yes I had the tranny rebuilt with a set of Renntech clutches by a Mercedes mechanic for $2300. Your 600 you were trying to buy would hit 200k miles easy. I have owned many many AMG's and never bought an extended warranty and never once spent more in all the cars I have owned to amount to the cost of a warranty.I know exactly what a warranty costs for any car....

NEbiker10

iTrader: (1)

So instead of buying a new honda accord you get this

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/1989-...item27c24e3551


Ballin

Or even one of these even cheaper

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/2004-...item19cca430bc

Hoovey689

iTrader: (16)

that's not fair to say. Completely subjective and your own opinion

LexusAMG

I like U NE. Yeah exactly. A **** load of more car then a common Honda

I would pass on the Bentley though and the CTS u chose but I would take them all day over a 2008 M35...lol

And choose between a 2006 S65 or a A8
And a 2009 CTS V instead... Again comparable in price to a 2012 loaded accord

LexusAMG

HOOVEY---- I don't like the torque of a M6 or M5 It is 350 @lbs. on a v10!!! It is not a cool car to drive... U have to constantly be on the gears.... No pedal... Torque moves cars not HP... And the interior is as comfortable as a park bench... Go drive a CL65 or NAPPA leather AMG and then come back and tell me u like driving the M more... Your butt will be grinning ear to ear thinking how u just spun tires on a luxury car at over 50 mph just by pressing the gas pedal...and u couldn't even hear them spin with the radio off...

And I love corvettes. But No way in hell a z06 over a CL65.....

A AMG is like a IRON fist in a velvet glove.

JeffTsai

iTrader: (1)

I don't know where you're getting your prices from lol. $180 for 8 piston Brembo pads on the AMG? Seriously, link me to your source so I can get some replacement Brembo pads for that cheap. I have the 6 piston Brembo GT kit and pads pricing is ridiculous. Also, in my experience with AMG cars, they tend to have a VERY aggressive pad compound so that the braking power is stronger and has a higher initial bite. The compromise is that you go through the rotors at every pad change. This is the same case as with the IS-F and the factory Brembo brakes and pretty much any other ultra high performance car out there with Brembo brakes. They only exception to this rule is cars with carbon ceramic rotors, which are a 2 piece rotor. Those last a LOOOONG time but are around $3-5k per rotor.

As for the transmission, all of the 2nd generation GS use the A650E transmission which is not sealed. They do have a dipstick to check the fluid level. The newer Lexus of 2006+ are usually of the "sealed type" where they don't have a dipstick. The Germans started this trend way back and the other manufacturers are copying this so that it makes it harder for 3rd party repair shops to change fluid. This way the company can make more money charging for transmission fluid services.

Where can you find a Benz AMG65 transmission for $2300? My friend has a E55AMG and is in need of a extra transmission to have on hand when his current one goes out. If you can seriously source any of the parts as cheap as you say and can get all the service done for the prices you state. Please let me know where you get the parts from and what shop you take it to. I can start sending the people I know with AMG cars over to those places. They are paying anywhere from 3-5x what you are quoting. You can really help them out if you can share some more info.

The main thing with German cars is this: If you can work on them yourself, then the maintenance and upkeep isn't too bad. If you have to take it to a shop to get worked on is when prices go through the roof. Have you worked on a Toyota before? It is leaps and bounds easier than working on any German car. I've had to change coolant lines on Audi S4 twin turbos before and I had to pull the engine out of the car to do it. That was also the procedure according to the service manual. So on other cars, what should of been a 1-2hr job actually was a 15-20hr on the Audi because of the motor pull required. Many cases of German cars needing to have the engine pulled or major amount of components removed to do very simple services. This is why the cost of repairing them is so high. If you can direct me to the shops that will work on these cars as cheap as you say it is, then please let me know and I'll forward the info to all the people that I know with the AMG and German performance cars.

jpvarghese

iTrader: (1)

I know some people can get attached to their cars, but MB's are some of the most expensive to maintain and unreliable cars on the road. This doesn't mean they are not great cars, but some of your posts are clear exaggerations. There is a direct correlation between resale and reliability. AMG Mercedes have some of the worst resale period. From my experience, they make fantastic engines and transmissions, but that's about it. The electrical gremlins, air suspension, frequent trips to the dealer become enough of a reason to never own one past the warranty period. It's gotten so bad that some 3rd party warranty companies are dropping this car under any plan.

Joeb427

iTrader: (1)

Same here.
I would never buy a high mileage vehicle.
Especially with a luxury badge.

DaveGS4

iTrader: (2)

https://www.clublexus.com/forums/6945958-post22.html

agreed. Op, use our classified forums for your FS threads once you are eligible, not the discussion forums