Generation division

[05 LS8]

dunndarryn,

Don't get discouraged and let people convince you Mercedes benz is not reliable. Actually C class specifically is one of the most reliable.
Have one in the driveway....

Other than the fact, it's one of the most wanted models out there, they are beautiful cars.
Go for it!

 

[dunndarryn]

dunndarryn,

Don't get discouraged and let people convince you Mercedes benz is not reliable. Actually C class specifically is one of the most reliable.
Have one in the driveway....

Other than the fact, it's one of the most wanted models out there, they are beautiful cars.
Go for it!

Thanks, I appreciate that! Mercedes are built like champs and have met very few people (who own them) who are unsatisfied with them or have anything bad to say about them. I'm going to keep looking and (try) to get one if I can. Being I'm only about to be 18, I have no credit, so financing won't be easy.

 

[lincoln_zero]

Thanks, I appreciate that! Mercedes are built like champs and have met very few people (who own them) who are unsatisfied with them or have anything bad to say about them. I'm going to keep looking and (try) to get one if I can. Being I'm only about to be 18, I have no credit, so financing won't be easy.

I have a friend who pays for Consumer Reports. - its statistics are the people who own the vehicles.

Anyways Mercs have some of the WORST rated vehicles in consumer reports. As well, SAAB (who is now out of business) which makes the 9-3, and A LOT of GM SUV's got bad ratings too. Not to mention Chrysler LMAO Who should be joining Saab right now given their Rep in this book >_> Stupid Fiat for buying them

For the Record, the overall ratings on the LS for years goes:: Worst to best::

2000 - worst
2003
2001
2004
2002
2005
2006 - best

This was last time I checked it. The rating could change the older a vehicle gets, depending on how many more people claim problems and on what.

Consumer reports is worth checking out. You will cringe when you see the "high end Mercedes" with black circles next to them (black is bad, Red is good) and even BMW has a few.

Luxury Vehicles made by Infinity (Nissan), Lexus (Toyota), and believe it or not, New Lincolns like the MKS and MKZ have great ratings!

 

[dunndarryn]

I have a friend who pays for consumer reports. Im not one to go buy that, - its statistics are the people who own the vehicles.

Anyways Mercs have some of the WORST rated vehicles in consumer reports. As well, SAAB (who is now out of business) which makes the 9-3, and A LOT of GM SUV's got bad ratings too. Not to mention Chrysler LMAO Who should be with Saab right now given their Rep in this book >_> Stupid Fiat for buying them

For the Record, the overall ratings on the LS for years goes:: Worst to best::

2000 - worst
2003
2001
2004
2002
2005
2006 - best

This was last time I checked it. The rating could change the older a vehicle gets, depending on how many more people claim problems and on what.

Consumer reports is worth checking out. You will cringe when you see the "high end Mercedes" with black circles next to them (black is bad, Red is good) and even BMW has a few.

Luxury Vehicles made by Infinity (Nissan), Lexus (Toyota), and believe it or not, New Lincolns like the MKS and MKZ have great ratings!

I have a 2000 LS, go figure, the worst. Lol. Mercedes isn't a car you keep forever, I'm sure (in due time) things go bad and it's very expensive. If you can invest in a Mercedes, you can invest in a new one 4 years later.

If you properly maintain a Mercedes, it will last you. They're great cars. BMWs (The 7 Series is one of my favorite cars) have a lot of issues, which is why I'm probably not taking that route.

I also love Lexus, and those will last forever, because they're Toyota's so I haven't ruled out Lexus and although I don't know much about Infinity, I like those a lot too! I haven't written anything in stone yet, just weighing my options. Thanks for all the advice!

 

[05 LS8]

When i think of Mercedes, the first thing that pops into my head is quality.

It would be a little tough to get a loan if you don't have a history of borrowing and paying it back. It would also depend on the amount you sign up for.

You can always ask a family member to sign and you make the payments, it's an option i guess.

To conclude my statement, people do "profile" as you stated - especially when a lot of money is involved. Successful businessmen, millionaires get where they get, because they have standards that are very high. So, if you pull up with a Honda, they automatically going to say he has no standards or they are not high enough, whether you do or not. Cars are extensions of our personalities and there is no hiding that.

 

[dunndarryn]

When i think of Mercedes, the first thing that pops into my head is quality.

It would be a little tough to get a loan if you don't have a history of borrowing and paying it back. It would also depend on the amount you sign up for.

You can always ask a family member to sign and you make the payments, it's an option i guess.

To conclude my statement, people do "profile" as you stated - especially when a lot of money is involved. Successful businessmen, millionaires get where they get, because they have standards that are very high. So, if you pull up with a Honda, they automatically going to say he has no standards or they are not high enough, whether you do or not. Cars are extensions of our personalities and there is no hiding that.

Exactly! Glad someone is on the same page as me. Especially in high end real estate, it's all about the image. Palm Beach is a very prestigious area with very VERY successful business people. I don't have a problem with Honda's or cars of that nature, but they aren't "me". I like luxury sedans that show I have accomplished something. A multi-millionaire client won't take well to being chauffeured in a Honda Civic when they can chauffeur themselves in a Rolls.

 

[05 LS8]

I have a friend who pays for Consumer Reports. - its statistics are the people who own the vehicles.

Anyways Mercs have some of the WORST rated vehicles in consumer reports. As well, SAAB (who is now out of business) which makes the 9-3, and A LOT of GM SUV's got bad ratings too. Not to mention Chrysler LMAO Who should be joining Saab right now given their Rep in this book >_> Stupid Fiat for buying them

For the Record, the overall ratings on the LS for years goes:: Worst to best::

2000 - worst
2003
2001
2004
2002
2005
2006 - best

This was last time I checked it. The rating could change the older a vehicle gets, depending on how many more people claim problems and on what.

Consumer reports is worth checking out. You will cringe when you see the "high end Mercedes" with black circles next to them (black is bad, Red is good) and even BMW has a few.

Luxury Vehicles made by Infinity (Nissan), Lexus (Toyota), and believe it or not, New Lincolns like the MKS and MKZ have great ratings!

Don't believe that stuff. You know who Consumer Reports is? The member on the forums that just got a MKS. You going to take his word on how good the LS is?

According to this http://www.madisonjaguar.com/JD-Powers-Rating-Jaguar.html Mercedes is more reliable than a Nissan. I guess OPs clients would find themselves looking at flashing lights on the cluster of a Nissan rather than a Mercedes.

 

[joegr]

When i think of Mercedes, the first thing that pops into my head is quality....

Yeah, but they took a bit of a quality hit when they owned Chrysler and let Chrysler show them how to make cars cheaper.

 

[BlackLS06]

Yeah, but they took a bit of a quality hit when they owned Chrysler and let Chrysler show them how to make cars cheaper.

Isnt the LX platform very similar to the E-Class?

 

[joegr]

Isnt the LX platform very similar to the E-Class?

Not sure. I think that the Crossfire Was really a Mercedes module.

 

[BlackLS06]

Not sure. I think that the Crossfire Was really a Mercedes module.

Looked it up.

Says it borrows the front suspension and other components from the S-Class.

 

[reaper76]

smart move... go from one car your unable to work on and fix, to a far more complicated car to work on or fix...

not to knock you at all, but nothing wrong with buying a car thats easy to maintain... If I would have just bought a Honda when I was in school, I would have saved so much money and trouble...

All high end (or Luxury) cars will be difficult to maintain the older they get... Dont trade these problems for another set

Preach the gospel brother! Amen:

 

[reaper76]

The LS was way ahead of it's time, no doubt about it. I don't mean to sound like I'm taking any credit away from the car. A Lincoln is a car that you should own for 4-5 years, and get a new one. Luxury cars aren't meant to be 2nd hand cars, in my opinion. They're too much trouble. My LS has features that some 2012 cars STILL don't have and if I had a 2000 Kia POS, it'd be in the junk yard by now, not my daily driver. So the LS is definitely a great car, I just have a sour taste in my mouth about Lincoln after all my troubles.

Dunn it has been said before so I will be as nice as possible. You bought a gen 1 for starters. Secondly your young and inexperienced and admitted to not being that mechanically inclined. All that said this was about the worst car you could have bought. Your "sour taste" isn't Lincoln's fault my opinion is that your car was not taken care to start with and then you couple that with the rest of this story and it is a recipe for disaster.you are going to run into this with any "luxury car" you buy on a 17 year old budget! I am on my second gen 1 Ls first one was totaled by a 17 year old driver ironically. Both cars had allot of little issues out of the gate but i fixed them all.My current 2000 looks and drives like new because the original owner took very good care of it and I continued that trend.As long as you can afford the repairs on the car and fix most of it yourself you'll be fine otherwise it's going to be long road for you. I think you would be better off buying a new Kia sportage with a 100,000 mile warranty until you can really afford the luxury you are wanting.

 

[dunndarryn]

Dunn it has been said before so I will be as nice as possible. You bought a gen 1 for starters. Secondly your young and inexperienced and admitted to not being that mechanically inclined. All that said this was about the worst car you could have bought. Your "sour taste" isn't Lincoln's fault my opinion is that your car was not taken care to start with and then you couple that with the rest of this story and it is a recipe for disaster.you are going to run into this with any "luxury car" you buy on a 17 year old budget! I am on my second gen 1 Ls first one was totaled by a 17 year old driver ironically. Both cars had allot of little issues out of the gate but i fixed them all.My current 2000 looks and drives like new because the original owner took very good care of it and I continued that trend.As long as you can afford the repairs on the car and fix most of it yourself you'll be fine otherwise it's going to be long road for you. I think you would be better off buying a new Kia sportage with a 100,000 mile warranty until you can really afford the luxury you are wanting.

My Gen. 1 was given to me when my mom got a new car. She bought it 2nd owner with 63k miles. So I didn't "pick" this car, it's the car I got but I made it work because at the time I was 15, working as a bagger at a grocery store, I couldn't afford to buy a car. Since then, I have been fortunate enough to have a successful online business & break my way into the real estate market, so my budget today isn't the same budget it used to be. Like I said above, a luxury car is mandatory in my industry. My next vehicle will not be an old worn out luxury car, it'll be a year or two used with low LOW miles so I don't run into problems. At 100-125k, I'll start looking for a new one. I respect everyone's opinion and advise but I'm not just a 17 year old wanting a Mercedes Benz so my friends will think I'm cool. A luxury car TO ME, is an investment necessary to further my career. I LOVE my LS, I really do. But the mileage is just so high, I don't think it can be considered "reliable"

 

[reaper76]

My Gen. 1 was given to me when my mom got a new car. She bought it 2nd owner with 63k miles. So I didn't "pick" this car, it's the car I got but I made it work because at the time I was 15, working as a bagger at a grocery store, I couldn't afford to buy a car. Since then, I have been fortunate enough to have a successful online business & break my way into the real estate market, so my budget today isn't the same budget it used to be. Like I said above, a luxury car is mandatory in my industry. My next vehicle will not be an old worn out luxury car, it'll be a year or two used with low LOW miles so I don't run into problems. At 100-125k, I'll start looking for a new one. I respect everyone's opinion and advise but I'm not just a 17 year old wanting a Mercedes Benz so my friends will think I'm cool. A luxury car TO ME, is an investment necessary to further my career. I LOVE my LS, I really do. But the mileage is just so high, I don't think it can be considered "reliable"

I wish you luck bud. My oldest son is just a year younger than you and he wanted a car like mine. I bought him a convertabile camaro! Cheap to work on and still a cool car.

 

[dunndarryn]

I wish you luck bud. My oldest son is just a year younger than you and he wanted a car like mine. I bought him a convertabile camaro! Cheap to work on and still a cool car.

Thanks reaper! Camaro is a very cool car!

 

[reaper76]

Thanks reaper! Camaro is a very cool car!

You bet

 

[Telco]

On the Mercedes, I think you should wait as well. You'd do better with something like a Lincoln Town Car right now because as you say, you're a realtor. A Mercedes C class is a tiny little thing, not suitable for carrying clients around. For the same money you can get a nice Town Car, which also oozes luxury for a third of the price. In a year or two, after you get a few big sales under your belt, then you can pick up the big Mercedes.

You also need to be considering insurance. At 18, you're going to pay through the nose for a newer German car, and you're going to need to carry a commercial policy due to carrying clients. A domestic luxury car will cost a lot less on insurance because they are considered Grannymobiles, they made a crapload of them, they're low cost to repair and are pretty safe.

Good luck, whatever you decide.

 

[dunndarryn]

On the Mercedes, I think you should wait as well. You'd do better with something like a Lincoln Town Car right now because as you say, you're a realtor. A Mercedes C class is a tiny little thing, not suitable for carrying clients around. For the same money you can get a nice Town Car, which also oozes luxury for a third of the price. In a year or two, after you get a few big sales under your belt, then you can pick up the big Mercedes.

You also need to be considering insurance. At 18, you're going to pay through the nose for a newer German car, and you're going to need to carry a commercial policy due to carrying clients. A domestic luxury car will cost a lot less on insurance because they are considered Grannymobiles, they made a crapload of them, they're low cost to repair and are pretty safe.

Good luck, whatever you decide.

Great advise, Telco! Thank you! I've looked at some Town Cars online, and like you said, they're grannymobiles. A town car wouldn't be my 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice but (like you said) it'd probably be a worthy investment. Maybe I can find a way to make it a little more "young" Thanks again!

 

[BlackLS06]

Theres a reason towncars are the most chauffeured vehicles in the nation.

 

[05 LS8]

Great advise, Telco! Thank you! I've looked at some Town Cars online, and like you said, they're grannymobiles. A town car wouldn't be my 1st, 2nd, or 3rd choice but (like you said) it'd probably be a worthy investment. Maybe I can find a way to make it a little more "young" Thanks again!

Definitely not a town car....very bad choice. You don't want to play a butler for your clients.

You are on right track. You have your imagination and goals - that's more important than knowledge as Albert Eistein said. So, just implement your original plan - C 300 with 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty and you are good money.

 

[dunndarryn]

Definitely not a town car....very bad choice. You don't want to play a butler for your clients.

You are on right track. You have your imagination and goals - that's more important than knowledge as Albert Eistein said. So, just implement your original plan - C 300 with 100,000 bumper to bumper warranty and you are good money.

They have a 100k bumper to bumper on the C-Class? I didn't know that. Makes it that much better!

 

[05 LS8]

Yep, as long as it's certified pre-owned. Usually says it adjacent to or below the advertisement.

 

[dunndarryn]

Yep, as long as it's certified pre-owned. Usually says it adjacent to or below the advertisement.

Awesome! That's very good to know. And as far as the "space issue" goes in the C-Class, I'll just sit like a grandma close to the steering wheel so my clients have space, lol! Like I said, whatever I buy will be a temporary car until I can afford an S-Class. But I have to start somewhere. 20k-22k sounds much better for a used C-Class than 60k-100k for a used S-Class on my budget, lol.

 

[lincoln_zero]

Don't believe that stuff. You know who Consumer Reports is? The member on the forums that just got a MKS. You going to take his word on how good the LS is?

According to this http://www.madisonjaguar.com/JD-Powers-Rating-Jaguar.html Mercedes is more reliable than a Nissan. I guess OPs clients would find themselves looking at flashing lights on the cluster of a Nissan rather than a Mercedes.

Your first point made me laugh He went thru a bad spout there...

Im not sure how JD power and associates gets their statistics, But I do know consumer Reports is very reputable. And They tell a different story For Jaguar and Mercedes. Keep in Mind, consumer Reports display's to the last 10 years.

A 2012 'initial quality study' is good for 2012, but what about 2017, how does this 2012 stack up 5 ears later? That's what consumer Reports is for. Unless you have heard of dishonesty on their behalf. Wouldn't surprise me the least if a manufacturer paid them in private, to make a model vehicle look good by falsifying the data. But I imagine if caught for such a thing, they would be in BIG trouble.