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> Mercedes is a real car company with real engineers and a gold-standard reputation to maintain Totally agree with all your points against Tesla, but “gold-sta

> Mercedes is a real car company with real engineers and a gold-standard reputation to maintain Totally agree with all your points against Tesla, but “gold-standard reputation” for Mercedes? Based on what? They are consistently rated as one of the worse brands reliability wise (Tesla usually being worse, but still).

lcnPylGDnU4H9OF 4y ago
"Nothing's more expensive than a cheap Mercedes." Because they have a reputation of breaking down a lot, and a "cheap" Mercedes is still a Mercedes which is fixed using Mercedes-priced parts.
- SoftTalker 4y ago
  It's interesting. I only buy older used cars. Mercedes is a brand I have owned a couple of times. Outside of a few specific engines and models, they are mechanically very reliable and very solidly built. Moreover, especially the older cars, are quite easy to work on for a home mechanic. Parts are readily available and are not really more expensive than for any other car I've owned, which includes several other German as well as Japanese and American brands. If you are in that market, and stick with the older models that are proven to be reliable, they are pretty safe buys. Like any used car, a lot depends on the care given by the prior owner, but people who buy Mercedes cars new tend to have at least above-average income, and can afford to maintain them properly.
  - jacquesm 4y ago
    I've put well over a million km on Mercedes vehicles and not a single breakdown. That's anecdata, but compared with the other vehicles I've driven whose brands I will not mention their record for me at least has been outstanding. That said: the newer generation is not for me, I had a C-class with automatic emergency breaking try to murder me twice and I've sold it and gotten something much older without that kind of accessory.
    - lcnPylGDnU4H9OF 4y ago
      I've heard both sides, especially that the older models have been reliable. That phrase just seems to be particularly sticky (and that's what I understand it to mean). It makes me wonder on the point about maintenance.
      - jacquesm 4y ago
        Any car that you intend to drive for more than a few thousand miles will need maintenance. These are no different. But the engine design (chain, not belt for the timing) and the oil pump taken together are massive factors in ensuring that engines will last. I have a 25 year old SLK that I've passed on to other people several times now on the condition that when they stop using it they give it back and even though there are all kinds of smaller issues the engine runs like new.

lcnPylGDnU4H9OF 4y ago

"Nothing's more expensive than a cheap Mercedes." Because they have a reputation of breaking down a lot, and a "cheap" Mercedes is still a Mercedes which is fixed using Mercedes-priced parts.

SoftTalker 4y ago
It's interesting. I only buy older used cars. Mercedes is a brand I have owned a couple of times. Outside of a few specific engines and models, they are mechanically very reliable and very solidly built. Moreover, especially the older cars, are quite easy to work on for a home mechanic. Parts are readily available and are not really more expensive than for any other car I've owned, which includes several other German as well as Japanese and American brands. If you are in that market, and stick with the older models that are proven to be reliable, they are pretty safe buys. Like any used car, a lot depends on the care given by the prior owner, but people who buy Mercedes cars new tend to have at least above-average income, and can afford to maintain them properly.
- jacquesm 4y ago
  I've put well over a million km on Mercedes vehicles and not a single breakdown. That's anecdata, but compared with the other vehicles I've driven whose brands I will not mention their record for me at least has been outstanding. That said: the newer generation is not for me, I had a C-class with automatic emergency breaking try to murder me twice and I've sold it and gotten something much older without that kind of accessory.
  - lcnPylGDnU4H9OF 4y ago
    I've heard both sides, especially that the older models have been reliable. That phrase just seems to be particularly sticky (and that's what I understand it to mean). It makes me wonder on the point about maintenance.
    - jacquesm 4y ago
      Any car that you intend to drive for more than a few thousand miles will need maintenance. These are no different. But the engine design (chain, not belt for the timing) and the oil pump taken together are massive factors in ensuring that engines will last. I have a 25 year old SLK that I've passed on to other people several times now on the condition that when they stop using it they give it back and even though there are all kinds of smaller issues the engine runs like new.