I'm at 4 years & counting with my current bmw. Must sound like heresy here, but I sort of bond with cars I really like/are not giving me problems (knock wood). You know, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" theory.
Also I'm still doing penance for some of my previous splurging over the past 15 years. In backwards order (pre-my current 5-series): '98 Range Rover (you want to talk depreciation? & repairs? Still, I miss it), E24 bmw M6 (still can't believe I sold it; long story, owned for 10 years), Saab (pre GM) Turbo (I loved pre-GM Saabs, owned it for 10 years), & before that, for 6 mo., a Passat (Yech).
The $10K I spent in repairs & depreciation on the RR owning it for a year was by far the worst record of the bunch; & definitely gave me a "more conservative attitude" towards car buying......
My last car purchase was 6 months ago but was terribly unsatisfying since it was for my daughter. I rode in the ION this past weekend and noticed that she only has 3500 miles on it. I suppose the good news is that when the car is paid off she'll only have 35K on the clock (assuming she averages 7K a year).
but I sort of bond with cars I really like/are not giving me problems (knock wood). You know, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" theory.
Funny, that's how I'm feeling about the L300. We've owned it four years now and with only a couple of exceptions (brakes, BCM) it's been remarkably trouble free. Can't see trading it in on anything else at the moment, especially with only another year's worth of payments to go. It will probably turn 55K on this tank of gas.
No, mine has 90k miles on it right now. Yeah, hopefully it is something minor. I checked on some websites about MB problems, and it seems like a common thing in those cars.
Well, hopefully you got it cheap enough to where you can fix it if need be, and still be ahead. That's how I justified buying the warranty on my new beast.
I took the E55 to the selling dealer today to have the wheels polished. The guy who does ther work had some kind of mechanical issues, so I won't get the car back til tomorrow. So they gave me a loaner - an 07 ES330. A supercamry indeed. It's very well finished and the materials are nice - the dash is a huge swath of soft-touch material. The seatbacks are nice, but the cushion seems too short. Some of the controls are weird...I am so used to MB, I had to think about the stalk light controls, and the foot action to release the parking brake. I do like the keyless start though. Also, I have the seat all the way back and low, and I barely have enough headroom. I'm only 6'1".
is that the style where you step on it to engage and step on it to disengage? We had that on our Honda Pilot and that was a small detail I really disliked. It also concerns me ... not that I've ever had to do this in real life, but we were taught in driver's ed how to stop a car using the ebrake in an emergency where your regular brakes go out. Obviously, that is not possible with this setup. Has it gotten to the point where such a situation would NEVER come up? (heck, i don't know if it ever did come up, but since they taught it, I kind of assumed I'd need to know how to do it someday.)
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Yep, that's the setup. I never thought of it in terms of the emergency stop. I was just annoyed that it embarrassed me when I thought I was releasing the brake, and I popped the hood! Then I remembered some cars do it differently. I also had a hard time with the windshield wipers in the dark too...stalk on the left that you move to activate. Weird. The headlights are also on a stalk. There's also more engine noise than I expected...but it does ride softly.
Oh yeah, I said ES330...it's an ES350, the new style.
Indeed. It was like being in a cocoon...marginal visibility and isolation from road surfaces. I can't say the engine and transmission were invisible though.
I'm glad to have my car back...bigger windows and actual feedback when I make a move. I also don't have to move my head under the sunroof to get some headroom.
How is the visibility? The spare tire seems to cover quite a bit of the already-small rear window. Visibility is one of the gripes I have about a lot of cars like the FJ Cruiser and Magnum. I guess you can get used to it.
The visibility is pretty bad out of the back. It does have fairly large side mirrors which help.
The engine in the 07 has been bumped up to 3.7 liters. It now has 242 horsepower. Definitely not fast, but I got a manual transmission, so it feels just about the same as the Envoy. Good thing I'm not looking to race anybody.
So it turns out I have a leak somehwere in the power steering in my C240. :sick:
I "rented" my car out to my co-worker during the week, and when it was returned, the car had no power steering at all.
My mechanic had a quick look and added some power steering fluid, which got rid of my noise, but this morning I saw the driveway being all rainbowy, so I figured some of the fluid leaked out.
I guess in the car business we're used to that. WE regularly swap each other's cars if we need them. HE let me have his G35 coupe before, and now he needed the Benz cause his family was in town for a couple of days.
Not a problem with me. To me it's just a car, that's why I let my fiancee drive it a bit too.
As for the steering, I hope it's something small too. Don't feel like shelling out $1000 to replace a power steering pump or something.
I had to have the steering box in the fintail resealed several years ago. The whole job was like $350 at an independent shop. I know that doesn't really relate to a car that is 40 years newer, but I can't imagine it being tons different. Have you found a good mechanic for it yet? Knowing a good specialist can be the key to running one of these cars affordably. The dealer will charge highway robbery prices....larger jobs can literally be 50% cheaper at an independent, and the work is often even better.
You're not the only one, lol. I don't like to let even my husband drive my truck. The kids get read the rules before they get in the truck, course that stems from the time I found gum on the leather seat of the Titan. I told them if they do that in the Ram they will be riding in the back of the truck!
A friend of hubby's has an 06 F-350 Lariat, fully loaded, was a beautiful truck until his kids got in it. Now the back seat has marker and crayon all over it, coffee/soda spilled on the carpet, its just trashed. I think the truck has about 15k on it and is a year old. I think he said he financed $51k on it (full msrp) and his kids have aided in its rapid depreciation. His wife had a 2000 Mercedes E-class wagon 4Matic, was a nice car but the kids destroyed it, it had big scratches and scrapes from them hitting it with their toys and such, interior was trashed. She traded it recently for a Kia Rio.....go figure, lol. :sick:
I would disown my children if they did things like that! My daughter helped order my truck and since she wanted black she now helps wash it too!
I dread thinking what my truck will look like when we get back from Washington after driving 5200 miles round trip. *shudder* Gonna take me a week to get it clean again, poor thing.
That's one reason I am not fond of the idea of having kids. I wouldn't be able to keep a nice car! Your friend with the Rio figured it out...get something that you won't cry if it is damaged.
Around the time I was born my mother bought a car she really liked, a new white-on-white T-bird. With a couple of kids, the car was very well worn when she got rid of it ca. 1983. I cringe at the thought of kids in my cars.
I deal with a Polish mechanic (I'm Polish too) here at Honda, and he's always straight up with me, and can diagnose things without me having to have to pay for it.
He knows European cars very well as he worked on them back in Poland, and he drives a mid 90s 5 series wagon and a 96 E320.
And since I get half price on labour, and can get him to do almost any repair, it works out for me quite well as I can leave the car here while I'm working, and go into the shop when it's up on the hoist and have a look for myself.
And as much as I like cars, I don't mind sharing them with others. I'm probably more possesive of with my brochure and magazines collection.
It is a car business thing. I was just as OCD as you with my own personel vehicles before I got into the car business.
Now I don't even have my own car. In the past two or so years I have had like 50 or 60 demos. Some just for a day or so and some for a few weeks or months.
It looks like for now I am stuck with my current deme though as I can't sell it. Before I would get a new demo whenver I sold my old one and I was rolling out of cars on a regular basis. I can't sell this one cause it has too many miles so I just got to drive it till it pops.
That's one reason I am not fond of the idea of having kids. I wouldn't be able to keep a nice car!
Not really true, my kids have learned to respect my truck and they know there will be hell to pay if they don't. I'm training them to be as obsessive as I am, lol. I tell them if they feel the need to trash a truck go mess with the 97 Ford, that truck is beyond help, we don't even bother to wash it or clean the interior anymore.
I had a friend get in my truck a couple weeks ago, he was riding in the back seat, first thing out of his mouth was "your kids don't get to ride in here do they?" I said sure they do, all the time. He was impressed by how clean the truck is.
I take excellent care of my truck, even the Titan after 56k miles and 2 trips across the US it was still in really good shape on the inside. Exterior I don't have much control over, rock chips, scrapes, stuff that other people do to it, well, that just happens.
My black Ram right now has 4 rock chips on the hood, a chip in the windshield, and a lovely broken foglight, all thanks to DOT's obsession with putting rocks down on the hwy in the winter. Not to mention a few scratches thanks to some darn ravens that seem to have a thing against my truck, drives me nuts too, especially when they feel the need to poop on it. I wash it regularly, then add in a clay bar treatment and wax a few times a year, 'bout the best I can do for a black truck. I also removed the factory floor mats and put them in my closet, I have a full set of Husky Liners, MUCH better to keep junk off the light grey carpet.
No animals in my truck either, can't imagine what a dog would do to light grey leather........ :surprise: .
Oh, then your repair won't be too bad. Even a steering box reseal or pump shouldn't hit a grand. I think....
I don't even know anyone personally here who would want to borrow any of my literature. When I bring a vintage magazine to work to read, they look at me like I am crazy
If I leased a car or something, I guess I could feel that way. Demoing a car would certainly prevent any attachment. I guess when I purchase, I feel like I could be in for the long haul, so I want the car to be as perfect as possible.
Maybe I get my ways from my parents, but in reverse. Although they always took mechanical care of their cars, they rarely kept them clean or cared about the bodywork or interior. As I got older, that kind of bugged me. I remember when I was little, my dad would wash his car like twice a year. It seemed normal then. I can't imagine doing that now. I don't freak out over rock chips or an occasional small ding, but trashed interiors and scrapes/dull paint get to me. I also obsess over wheel scrapes and cleanliness. A condition of sale on my new car was having the wheel lips polished (and they did a fine job)...MBs also have a bad tendency to dirty the front wheels very quickly, so that annoys me.
The biggest problem I have with lending out my car is that when you lend someone else your car, you're also lending them your car insurance. Even if they have their own car insurance, your policy generally goes with your car and whomever you let drive it.
Current Demo which I will have till it dies it looks like...
2001 Subaru Forrester.
Its not so bad fairly comfortable good on gas and holds lots of stuff.
More importantly it can get to my house in snow because of the AWD. No 2wd car is going to get up my driveway in the snow.
Earlier this week I picked up one of my clients Supercharged Range Rover from his farm in NY so I left my subaru at his place and drove the Range Rover back.
While they were working on his Range Rover I drove an Acura TSX for a couple of days which was nice. Then I drove his Supercharged range Rover home one night so I would have a shorter trip to his farm.
He only lives about 45 minutes from my house but he is almost an hour and a half from the dealership.
Until we head to Washington to pick up our new (used) horse trailer. I'm not looking forward to the trip down or back, but it will be nice to have a decent horse trailer for the first time. Usually I just pick up some 15 year old 2-horse that needs work, this time we went big and bought a nice 4-horse that doesn't have issues.
By the time we get back my nearly 6 month old truck will have 17k+ miles on it. Its got just over 12k on it now.
Techincaly it is a DFL(Demo For Life). So you drive it till it pops.
I did ask for it though as the Discovery I was driving could not fit in my new garage since it is about 7 feet tall. Also when I only lived five minutes from work I didn't mind the 13 mpg but now that I live 30-40 minutes from work 13 mpg was not going to cut it.
Good for you, setting rules/limits re: your nice stuff!
My ex-live-in-G/F & her Psychotic Cat proceeded to destroy my house, nice furniture, etc. as soon as they moved in. I mean seriously, urine on new places every day or 2, scratches on furniture, etc. Oh, & Poop in the Attic (Sounds like the name of a new rock group). It was an un-winnable argument (for me), & guess who the jerk was, for wanting to have a normal household?
Fortunately, neither she, nor her cat, destroyed either of my nice cars.
The people with kid-destroyed 06 F-350 Lariats & M-B wagons.....I grew up as a kid in the (19) 50's & 60's......that sort of thing would have lasted about 30 seconds with my parents or grandparents.....
Good for you, setting rules/limits re: your nice stuff!
My ex-live-in-G/F & her Psychotic Cat proceeded to destroy my house, nice furniture, etc. as soon as they moved in. I mean seriously, urine on new places every day or 2, scratches on furniture, etc. Oh, & Poop in the Attic (Sounds like the name of a new rock group). It was an un-winnable argument (for me), & guess who the jerk was, for wanting to have a normal household?
Fortunately, neither she, nor her cat, destroyed either of my nice cars.
The people with kid-destroyed 06 F-350 Lariats & M-B wagons.....I grew up as a kid in the (19) 50's & 60's......that sort of thing would have lasted about 30 seconds with my parents or grandparents.....
If my cats did that my husband would hang them. I have 3 cats and if you don't see them you certainly don't know they are here. My son keeps the cats' litter boxes very clean.
As for kids destroying vehicles, my parents never cared if we trashed a car. Then again they drove 20+ year old vehicles that were already on the way to the junkyard.
I wouldn't put up with my kids doing damage to a vehicle for a second and they know that. They also know that nobody cares what goes on with the 97 Ford since its beyond help as far as cleaning it up. Its so bad that when the dog threw up in it I just laughed, lol. That's the only truck the dog gets to ride in. The 06 Rams are off limits to the dog and to the kids doing anything with crayons, markers, or food to them.
Not to brag, buy my 6 month old Ram diesel has 36,000 miles! Not one issue at all.
Wow, someone who drives more than me!! Actually I haven't been driving as much as I usually do, plus we have 2 6 month old Rams, so the mileage gets split between them. Right now mine has 12k on it and hubby's will turn 12k today most likely. So add them up and that's 24k in 6 months, lol. Well, then add in the 5k we've put on the 97 Ford in that time......
I don't ever remember thrashing anything growing up. We were taught the value of things adn that we had to take care of it. I still have a lot of hand me downs from my folks from when we were growing up (mostly furniture but a car as well). The family car had vinyl seats that were easy to wipe up from spills and had kind of disposable seat covers in the summers so our butts didn't burn. I haven't had in issue in my life yet where anything (spouse/child/animal) disrespected my things.
Sounds like the cat of my lady friend... Likes to scratch and bite, destroyed a mattress and some carpet (hers, not mine), but she swears it's a good cat... I don't have a problem with that so long as it doesn't come near my house!
The family with the trashed MB Wagon and the '06 Lariat they went 51K into hock for and then trashed, shouldn't blame their kids. They should just look in the mirror at the lack of responsibility, fiscal and otherwise, in their lives.
I have been used to buying 1 new car every year for about a decade now, sometimes two, but this year, I blew my old records away, with 4 car purchases in one calendar year - an 02 Lexus, an O5 Lexus, an 06 Mariner and an 06 Explorer - the sickness has advanced significantly, and I could be beyond hope. Do you think?
The family with the trashed MB Wagon and the '06 Lariat they went 51K into hock for and then trashed, shouldn't blame their kids. They should just look in the mirror at the lack of responsibility, fiscal and otherwise, in their lives.
I completely agree. Whenever we are over there I guard my truck like a mother bear, they have come VERY close to clobbering it with toys. I refuse to let them ride in my vehicle, ANY of my vehicles, well, except for maybe the old Ford, kinda hard to hurt that thing.
Our kids are very careful about the vehicles, so much so that my daughter managed to hold out until we got the truck stopped tonight and she could get out and uh, lose dinner. She was so worried about messing up Daddy's truck, lol. :sick:
"How do you like the C240 vs. the Honda you traded?"
I am curious about that too. I was doing a google search tonight for a specific Mercedes Benz dealer in my area (but not my local one) and instead of getting the dealer I was looking for, I got a massive consumer complaints page about the C-class cars, including some of the last models of the sport coupe as well as the current sedan. There were just pages and pages of people with problems with their C-class cars, including a number who specifically mentioned trading out of a Honda and praying to their deity of choice to give them a way to go back to Honda and never darken Mercedes' door again. It was a depressing read.
I was looking the other night at a 2000 E320 4Matic wagon, 78K miles, white, advertised by a local dealer (not the MB dealer) for $16K, and I was thinking it might be fun to take it for a whirl. But of course, it would have no warranty at all. Maybe not such a fun whirl, huh? :-/
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
That's kind of my thinking on trading a Honda for a C-class. I just looked at the Consumer Reports repair records on the C-Class--it's very depressing. Actually the repair records are very depressing for all the Benz models they rate. (Of course, there are people on this board with M-B's who don't seem to have a lot of trouble with them.....)
Yeah, people who defend their destructive pets are hard to figure. It's like "anything goes, no limits". Usually makes me wonder about the judgement of the owner.
Actually I'm an animal lover, esp. w/cats. In my experience 99%+ of cats are very clean, & fastidious about using their litter boxes, etc. But my ex G/F's Psycho Cat I mentioned not only urinated on everything, but attacked the other pets, & actually sent the ex G/F to the emergency room once. Didn't faze her a bit. (Sorry if I'm grossing people out).
Someone mentioned that that cat Was like "something out of a Stephen King novel".....scary.
but it's not as satisfying to drive a demo because it's not your car. You can't tint the windows, put nicer rims on it, or anything to personalize it. It's just a car that you have access to.
With that said, I am thoroughly enjoying it and it has definitely slowed down our CCB ways. We have had the Accord for 2 1/2 years with no immediate plans to get rid of it. 53,000 miles and still drives and looks like new.
My current demo is a 03 TL Type-S. Gorgeous car. Pearl White w/ tan leather. NAV. 27k. It has a lot of the accessories like the underbody spoilers, wood-grain accents, and fog lights. If I wanted an automatic sedan this one would be high on my list even though it's the previous body style.
As for the pet issue, we have two cats but you wouldn't know it. They are declawed and they hide from company. They go potty where they are supposed to and aren't destructive. As for the kid issue, our son leaves lots of toys in the car, but he doesn't really eat anything other than french fries in the car so they stay pretty clean.
Well I had the Benz for just over a month, and so far I'm loving it. I like all the little creature comforts, and it's hard to compare it to the Civic I had before that. I love the looks of it, the way it drives, and just the overall feel of it. :shades:
I am paying double for gas compared to the Civic I had, cause this takes premium gas and it's a V6.
One thing with luxury cars is that it takes a little more money in upkeep to drive them. My Civic was almost new, this one has about 90k miles on it, and even though it's a Benz I have to be prepared that something might go on it.
Case in point the power steering leak that I have now. Yes it's a bit frustrating, but I can deal with it. :sick:
I saw that MB complaints page as well on the internet (looks very much like an official MB web site but it isn't), and I did read some complaints. I can understand some complaints, but others, like burnt out lightbulbs should be non isuues. I had three light bulbs burn out on me so far, but then again there's about 23 light bulbs on the car. I would be a bit choked too if this would be a brand new car, but thankfully I don't think I will ever be upside down on it because I picked it up for so cheap. I'd be more worried if this would be an S Class and I'd be paying $1000/month, AND have problems with it. :lemon: In addition some of the complaints on some of the pages seem like they're written by the same person. Case in point, one page has complaints about SL500s, and half of the entries in there have horrible grammar and spelling. I don't think anyone who drives such a car would have problems with their english.
If you do a search you can pretty much find similar complaint pages on almost all luxury cars including BMWs and Jags. It's hard to find a prefect trouble free unique car nowadays unless you want to drive appliances like Toyotas or Hondas (well Hondas are more fun appliances).
Driving a Benz is like having a high maintenance girlfriend. She may look hot, and turn heads, but leave you paying along the way. :shades:
And life is all aboput different experiences, so a little adventure with cars doesn't hurt.
Driving a Benz is like having a high maintenance girlfriend.
Yeah, my Range Rover was like that. And my E24 bmw, but really only once it got to maybe 10 years old, & then partly because I was having trouble finding a top-notch indie repair shop to replace the suspension, etc.
If they're beautiful, & you dig them/it/her, it can be worth it. At least for a while.....I guess for me, bmw's are what I "know", or think I know, from owning a couple, & reading the Roundel, etc. for many years, so I tend to gravitate to bmw's. The Land Rover Obsession was a bit hard to get over tho, even after owning one that was in the shop a lot. I might be tempted again if I lived really close to a good indie L-R mechanic, owned 2 cars, & felt adventurous.
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I'm at 4 years & counting with my current bmw. Must sound like heresy here, but I sort of bond with cars I really like/are not giving me problems (knock wood). You know, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" theory.
Also I'm still doing penance for some of my previous splurging over the past 15 years. In backwards order (pre-my current 5-series): '98 Range Rover (you want to talk depreciation? & repairs? Still, I miss it), E24 bmw M6 (still can't believe I sold it; long story, owned for 10 years), Saab (pre GM) Turbo (I loved pre-GM Saabs, owned it for 10 years), & before that, for 6 mo., a Passat (Yech).
The $10K I spent in repairs & depreciation on the RR owning it for a year was by far the worst record of the bunch; & definitely gave me a "more conservative attitude" towards car buying......
My last car purchase was 6 months ago but was terribly unsatisfying since it was for my daughter. I rode in the ION this past weekend and noticed that she only has 3500 miles on it. I suppose the good news is that when the car is paid off she'll only have 35K on the clock (assuming she averages 7K a year).
but I sort of bond with cars I really like/are not giving me problems (knock wood). You know, the "if it ain't broke, don't fix it" theory.
Funny, that's how I'm feeling about the L300. We've owned it four years now and with only a couple of exceptions (brakes, BCM) it's been remarkably trouble free. Can't see trading it in on anything else at the moment, especially with only another year's worth of payments to go. It will probably turn 55K on this tank of gas.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
'11 GMC Sierra 1500; '98 Alfa 156 2.0TS; '08 Maser QP; '67 Coronet R/T; '13 Fiat 500c; '20 S90 T6; '22 MB Sprinter 2500 4x4 diesel; '97 Suzuki R Wagon; '96 Opel Astra; '11 Mini Cooper S
Oh yeah, I said ES330...it's an ES350, the new style.
LOL, I bet that was a odd experience
Rocky
I'm glad to have my car back...bigger windows and actual feedback when I make a move. I also don't have to move my head under the sunroof to get some headroom.
Rocky
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Does the '07 have a better motor than the '06 I5 or was the Colorado to powerful and efficient for you?
The engine in the 07 has been bumped up to 3.7 liters. It now has 242 horsepower. Definitely not fast, but I got a manual transmission, so it feels just about the same as the Envoy. Good thing I'm not looking to race anybody.
I "rented" my car out to my co-worker during the week, and when it was returned, the car had no power steering at all.
My mechanic had a quick look and added some power steering fluid, which got rid of my noise, but this morning I saw the driveway being all rainbowy, so I figured some of the fluid leaked out.
I'll have it checked out after Christmas.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
If it is a seal failure, it will be several hundred, but maybe under a thousand.
I'd never let a coworker rent ou my car! I am sometimes uneasy having them ride in my car!
Not a problem with me. To me it's just a car, that's why I let my fiancee drive it a bit too.
As for the steering, I hope it's something small too. Don't feel like shelling out $1000 to replace a power steering pump or something.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
I had to have the steering box in the fintail resealed several years ago. The whole job was like $350 at an independent shop. I know that doesn't really relate to a car that is 40 years newer, but I can't imagine it being tons different. Have you found a good mechanic for it yet? Knowing a good specialist can be the key to running one of these cars affordably. The dealer will charge highway robbery prices....larger jobs can literally be 50% cheaper at an independent, and the work is often even better.
You're not the only one, lol. I don't like to let even my husband drive my truck. The kids get read the rules before they get in the truck, course that stems from the time I found gum on the leather seat of the Titan. I told them if they do that in the Ram they will be riding in the back of the truck!
A friend of hubby's has an 06 F-350 Lariat, fully loaded, was a beautiful truck until his kids got in it. Now the back seat has marker and crayon all over it, coffee/soda spilled on the carpet, its just trashed. I think the truck has about 15k on it and is a year old. I think he said he financed $51k on it (full msrp) and his kids have aided in its rapid depreciation. His wife had a 2000 Mercedes E-class wagon 4Matic, was a nice car but the kids destroyed it, it had big scratches and scrapes from them hitting it with their toys and such, interior was trashed. She traded it recently for a Kia Rio.....go figure, lol. :sick:
I would disown my children if they did things like that! My daughter helped order my truck and since she wanted black she now helps wash it too!
I dread thinking what my truck will look like when we get back from Washington after driving 5200 miles round trip. *shudder* Gonna take me a week to get it clean again, poor thing.
Around the time I was born my mother bought a car she really liked, a new white-on-white T-bird. With a couple of kids, the car was very well worn when she got rid of it ca. 1983. I cringe at the thought of kids in my cars.
He knows European cars very well as he worked on them back in Poland, and he drives a mid 90s 5 series wagon and a 96 E320.
And since I get half price on labour, and can get him to do almost any repair, it works out for me quite well as I can leave the car here while I'm working, and go into the shop when it's up on the hoist and have a look for myself.
And as much as I like cars, I don't mind sharing them with others. I'm probably more possesive of with my brochure and magazines collection.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Now I don't even have my own car. In the past two or so years I have had like 50 or 60 demos. Some just for a day or so and some for a few weeks or months.
It looks like for now I am stuck with my current deme though as I can't sell it. Before I would get a new demo whenver I sold my old one and I was rolling out of cars on a regular basis. I can't sell this one cause it has too many miles so I just got to drive it till it pops.
Not really true, my kids have learned to respect my truck and they know there will be hell to pay if they don't. I'm training them to be as obsessive as I am, lol.
I had a friend get in my truck a couple weeks ago, he was riding in the back seat, first thing out of his mouth was "your kids don't get to ride in here do they?" I said sure they do, all the time. He was impressed by how clean the truck is.
I take excellent care of my truck, even the Titan after 56k miles and 2 trips across the US it was still in really good shape on the inside. Exterior I don't have much control over, rock chips, scrapes, stuff that other people do to it, well, that just happens.
My black Ram right now has 4 rock chips on the hood, a chip in the windshield, and a lovely broken foglight, all thanks to DOT's obsession with putting rocks down on the hwy in the winter. Not to mention a few scratches thanks to some darn ravens that seem to have a thing against my truck, drives me nuts too, especially when they feel the need to poop on it. I wash it regularly, then add in a clay bar treatment and wax a few times a year, 'bout the best I can do for a black truck. I also removed the factory floor mats and put them in my closet, I have a full set of Husky Liners, MUCH better to keep junk off the light grey carpet.
No animals in my truck either, can't imagine what a dog would do to light grey leather........ :surprise: .
I don't even know anyone personally here who would want to borrow any of my literature. When I bring a vintage magazine to work to read, they look at me like I am crazy
What's the current demo?
2001 Subaru Forrester.
Its not so bad fairly comfortable good on gas and holds lots of stuff.
More importantly it can get to my house in snow because of the AWD. No 2wd car is going to get up my driveway in the snow.
Earlier this week I picked up one of my clients Supercharged Range Rover from his farm in NY so I left my subaru at his place and drove the Range Rover back.
While they were working on his Range Rover I drove an Acura TSX for a couple of days which was nice. Then I drove his Supercharged range Rover home one night so I would have a shorter trip to his farm.
He only lives about 45 minutes from my house but he is almost an hour and a half from the dealership.
I wonder what I could demo as a MB dealer...not that I would want to be one here, the franchise in my area doen't give me any warm feelings.
2001 Subaru Forrester.
Not sure how to break this to you, but here goes. That's not a demo, it's a previously cherished automobile.
By the time we get back my nearly 6 month old truck will have 17k+ miles on it. Its got just over 12k on it now.
I did ask for it though as the Discovery I was driving could not fit in my new garage since it is about 7 feet tall. Also when I only lived five minutes from work I didn't mind the 13 mpg but now that I live 30-40 minutes from work 13 mpg was not going to cut it.
My ex-live-in-G/F & her Psychotic Cat proceeded to destroy my house, nice furniture, etc. as soon as they moved in. I mean seriously, urine on new places every day or 2, scratches on furniture, etc. Oh, & Poop in the Attic (Sounds like the name of a new rock group). It was an un-winnable argument (for me), & guess who the jerk was, for wanting to have a normal household?
Fortunately, neither she, nor her cat, destroyed either of my nice cars.
The people with kid-destroyed 06 F-350 Lariats & M-B wagons.....I grew up as a kid in the (19) 50's & 60's......that sort of thing would have lasted about 30 seconds with my parents or grandparents.....
Just curious, good luck with The Leak.
My ex-live-in-G/F & her Psychotic Cat proceeded to destroy my house, nice furniture, etc. as soon as they moved in. I mean seriously, urine on new places every day or 2, scratches on furniture, etc. Oh, & Poop in the Attic (Sounds like the name of a new rock group). It was an un-winnable argument (for me), & guess who the jerk was, for wanting to have a normal household?
Fortunately, neither she, nor her cat, destroyed either of my nice cars.
The people with kid-destroyed 06 F-350 Lariats & M-B wagons.....I grew up as a kid in the (19) 50's & 60's......that sort of thing would have lasted about 30 seconds with my parents or grandparents.....
If my cats did that my husband would hang them. I have 3 cats and if you don't see them you certainly don't know they are here. My son keeps the cats' litter boxes very clean.
As for kids destroying vehicles, my parents never cared if we trashed a car. Then again they drove 20+ year old vehicles that were already on the way to the junkyard.
I wouldn't put up with my kids doing damage to a vehicle for a second and they know that. They also know that nobody cares what goes on with the 97 Ford since its beyond help as far as cleaning it up. Its so bad that when the dog threw up in it I just laughed, lol.
Wow, someone who drives more than me!! Actually I haven't been driving as much as I usually do, plus we have 2 6 month old Rams, so the mileage gets split between them. Right now mine has 12k on it and hubby's will turn 12k today most likely. So add them up and that's 24k in 6 months, lol. Well, then add in the 5k we've put on the 97 Ford in that time......
The family car had vinyl seats that were easy to wipe up from spills and had kind of disposable seat covers in the summers so our butts didn't burn. I haven't had in issue in my life yet where anything (spouse/child/animal) disrespected my things.
I completely agree. Whenever we are over there I guard my truck like a mother bear, they have come VERY close to clobbering it with toys. I refuse to let them ride in my vehicle, ANY of my vehicles, well, except for maybe the old Ford, kinda hard to hurt that thing.
Our kids are very careful about the vehicles, so much so that my daughter managed to hold out until we got the truck stopped tonight and she could get out and uh, lose dinner. She was so worried about messing up Daddy's truck, lol. :sick:
I am curious about that too. I was doing a google search tonight for a specific Mercedes Benz dealer in my area (but not my local one) and instead of getting the dealer I was looking for, I got a massive consumer complaints page about the C-class cars, including some of the last models of the sport coupe as well as the current sedan. There were just pages and pages of people with problems with their C-class cars, including a number who specifically mentioned trading out of a Honda and praying to their deity of choice to give them a way to go back to Honda and never darken Mercedes' door again. It was a depressing read.
I was looking the other night at a 2000 E320 4Matic wagon, 78K miles, white, advertised by a local dealer (not the MB dealer) for $16K, and I was thinking it might be fun to take it for a whirl. But of course, it would have no warranty at all. Maybe not such a fun whirl, huh? :-/
2014 Mini Cooper (stick shift of course), 2016 Camry hybrid, 2009 Outback Sport 5-spd (keeping the stick alive)
Actually I'm an animal lover, esp. w/cats. In my experience 99%+ of cats are very clean, & fastidious about using their litter boxes, etc. But my ex G/F's Psycho Cat I mentioned not only urinated on everything, but attacked the other pets, & actually sent the ex G/F to the emergency room once. Didn't faze her a bit. (Sorry if I'm grossing people out).
Someone mentioned that that cat Was like "something out of a Stephen King novel".....scary.
With that said, I am thoroughly enjoying it and it has definitely slowed down our CCB ways. We have had the Accord for 2 1/2 years with no immediate plans to get rid of it. 53,000 miles and still drives and looks like new.
My current demo is a 03 TL Type-S. Gorgeous car. Pearl White w/ tan leather. NAV. 27k. It has a lot of the accessories like the underbody spoilers, wood-grain accents, and fog lights. If I wanted an automatic sedan this one would be high on my list even though it's the previous body style.
As for the pet issue, we have two cats but you wouldn't know it. They are declawed and they hide from company. They go potty where they are supposed to and aren't destructive. As for the kid issue, our son leaves lots of toys in the car, but he doesn't really eat anything other than french fries in the car so they stay pretty clean.
I am paying double for gas compared to the Civic I had, cause this takes premium gas and it's a V6.
One thing with luxury cars is that it takes a little more money in upkeep to drive them. My Civic was almost new, this one has about 90k miles on it, and even though it's a Benz I have to be prepared that something might go on it.
Case in point the power steering leak that I have now. Yes it's a bit frustrating, but I can deal with it. :sick:
I saw that MB complaints page as well on the internet (looks very much like an official MB web site but it isn't), and I did read some complaints. I can understand some complaints, but others, like burnt out lightbulbs should be non isuues. I had three light bulbs burn out on me so far, but then again there's about 23 light bulbs on the car. I would be a bit choked too if this would be a brand new car, but thankfully I don't think I will ever be upside down on it because I picked it up for so cheap. I'd be more worried if this would be an S Class and I'd be paying $1000/month, AND have problems with it. :lemon:
In addition some of the complaints on some of the pages seem like they're written by the same person. Case in point, one page has complaints about SL500s, and half of the entries in there have horrible grammar and spelling. I don't think anyone who drives such a car would have problems with their english.
If you do a search you can pretty much find similar complaint pages on almost all luxury cars including BMWs and Jags. It's hard to find a prefect trouble free unique car nowadays unless you want to drive appliances like Toyotas or Hondas (well Hondas are more fun appliances).
Driving a Benz is like having a high maintenance girlfriend. She may look hot, and turn heads, but leave you paying along the way. :shades:
And life is all aboput different experiences, so a little adventure with cars doesn't hurt.
2016 Audi A7 3.0T S Line, 2021 Subaru WRX
Yeah, my Range Rover was like that. And my E24 bmw, but really only once it got to maybe 10 years old, & then partly because I was having trouble finding a top-notch indie repair shop to replace the suspension, etc.
If they're beautiful, & you dig them/it/her, it can be worth it. At least for a while.....I guess for me, bmw's are what I "know", or think I know, from owning a couple, & reading the Roundel, etc. for many years, so I tend to gravitate to bmw's. The Land Rover Obsession was a bit hard to get over tho, even after owning one that was in the shop a lot. I might be tempted again if I lived really close to a good indie L-R mechanic, owned 2 cars, & felt adventurous.
Anyway, good luck with the Benz! Woody