(removed)

[thinksimple]

Thanks everyone, made a decision.

 

[dcg]

Dunno about the Volvo, but the rest seem like major money pits. Especially the S8. Big luxury cars getting up in years/miles are not what you're looking for if you want low maintenance costs.

 

[horndog]

You want something that won't be in the shop every month, that has maintenance costs circa a Saab, and you're looking at three different German cars with 80-100k miles on them that (I could be wrong on this one) probably haven't had warranties on them for years. Did I get that right? Are you that hard up for a status car?

 

[thinksimple]

Not looking for a status car, something with some get-up-and-go. I've been a fan of these cars for years, and I've finally worked my way into a position where I could enjoy one. I never said I wasn't expecting to put some money into it, but I'm sure one of these has proven to be more reliable in the long run (they've been on the road nearly 10 years, I'm sure someone must have owned one or knew someone who did). I was just looking for some opinions, not a dive into my motivations for making such a choice.

I've never owned a German car, so maybe I'm way off the mark, but I would assume that getting work done on a Saab or Volvo would be comparable to a BMW or Merc at an independent. Is that too much of an assumption to make?

 

[impolyt_one]

W210 E55 - good car, could be a money pit if it wasn't taken care of properly
S8 - same, both the Merc and the Audi are cool but outdated
330Xi - BMW cost and then some, by adding and AWD system that is not BMW's regular menu
S60R - cool sleeper car for Volvo fans, not a great car for people who don't want to spend too much on maintenance I'd imagine.

I can see what kind of car you want here, but you gotta factor in that insurance and maintenance on a rare imported $60,000 limited production performance car, not a $15,000 car, the cost of the parts and labor do not depreciate with the car's value.

 

[aleksandr]

I'd vote for the E55 W210. The W210 is a pretty solid build.

What do the service records look like? Has it been in the shop every other month, or relatively hassle free?

 

[artoftime]

Merc is fun, but an absolute bear for service/parts.
Audi v8 cars are great, but records are KEY - these 4.2's need timing belts at 90k miles and the entire nose comes off to get at it. 90k service is $$ too, but if you get one that's been done, they are a lot of car for the $. One model in particular is the 2000 A4 4.2 - has the nice S6 body and near S6 performance....usually under $10k

 

[zjpj83]

Audi just got next to last in Consumer Reports reliability.

 

[Night Owl]

Originally Posted by horndog

You want something that won't be in the shop every month, that has maintenance costs circa a Saab, and you're looking at three different German cars with 80-100k miles on them that (I could be wrong on this one) probably haven't had warranties on them for years. Did I get that right? Are you that hard up for a status car?

+1

only arab exchange students drive old german flagships aroun dhere with tht ******* durka durka music blasting

 

[thinksimple]

Originally Posted by Night Owl

+1

only arab exchange students drive old german flagships aroun dhere with tht ******* durka durka music blasting

I lol'ed.

Thanks for the input everyone!

 

[kwilkinson]

lol wtf.

This isn't B&S. You don't edit out the original post when the thread is over.

 

[Stazy]

Originally Posted by kwilkinson

lol wtf.

This isn't B&S. You don't edit out the original post when the thread is over.

+1. It's odd.

 

[merkur]

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