RE: You Know You Want To: Mercedes E55 AMG (W210)

RE: You Know You Want To: Mercedes E55 AMG (W210)

Wednesday 17th October 2012

You Know You Want To: Mercedes E55 AMG (W210)

A thirsty V8, dodgy rep and unfashionable looks all add up to classifieds temptation in the case of the pre-supercharged E55...



Maybe it was the autumnal sunshine. But E55 AMG wagon I walked past yesterday en route to the station stopped me in my tracks. And this, the least fashionable W210 (S210, if you're being REALLY nerdy) version.

Ungainly googly-eyed looks. No supercharger and 'only' 354hp. But just as potentially ruinous as the much more exciting supercharged successor. And yet this one looked just fabulous; obviously well cared for, classic 'disc' style AMG five-spokes tastefully dual toned and the whole thing exuding understated, low-slung menace. This on top of catching the fag-end of a conversation the other day that someone had recently scored one for a couple of grand.

£4K at the pricey end? Really?
£4K at the pricey end? Really?
Hi-ho, hi-ho, it's off to the classifieds I go...

Does the mythical 5.5-litre V8 AMG for close to shed money really exist?

Er, no, not right now at least. But having been distracted by a rather nice looking W124 E500 (I shall return to this I think...) I did find a few for around the five grand mark. Which equates to more than one litre engine capacity per £1,000 spent, a good benchmark when browsing the more tempting reaches of the classifieds I feel.

The £5K onesare temptingly priced but both have been, ah, tweaked visually. There's a nice one full of reassuring language in the ad about low miles, four new Goodyear tyres and a full history but that's up at £6.5K.

Two-tone leather livens things  up a bit
Two-tone leather livens things up a bit
But how about this one for just a smidge under four grand? This works out for a very favourable litres per £ ratio and, perhaps with a bit of haggling, could even be yours for 100hp per £1,000. It's a clean looking pre-facelift car in a smart, discreet colour and though nobody could pretend it'd be a cheap car to run it's a tempting prospect. OK, it's got the blockier pre-facelift bodykit but against that the two-tone leather looks good and it's not been obviously tampered with.

These old-school AMGs are, admittedly, lack the supercharged lunacy of those from the post-SL55 era though the engine is essentially the same unit. Auto only counts against them in the eyes of some too but the power band on these things is huge and expansive and the W210 a more nimble beast than its size might suggest. Making progress in an AMG of this era is about discreetly administered speed, the whole package perhaps not as driver focused as the equivalent with an M badge but wonderfully balanced and, as a package, brimming with confidence and assurance.

No beauty but bang per buck quota healthy
No beauty but bang per buck quota healthy
Sure, as discussed recently in SOTW, the 210-series E-Class was not a pinnacle of Mercedes build quality. But this one's got a 5.5-litre V8, not a rattly old diesel. And, tempered with industrial strength 'what if' denial, potentially something of a bargain. Not quite the two grand bargain that inspired this train of thought. But still pretty damned tempting.

 

 



MERCEDES E55 AMG
Price:
£3,950
Why you should: Potential for 100hp per £1,000 bragging rights, nobody would know it from a 230 Kompressor on fancy wheels, great for racking up Nectar points
Why you shouldn't: If it goes wrong things could get very pricey very quickly, nobody (but your bank manager and local filling station) would know it from a 230 Kompressor on fancy wheels

See the original advert here.

 

Author
Discussion

JamStar

Original Poster:

48 posts

221 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
That estate looks fantastic! First post on the thread honours :-)

Ellieb10

63 posts

152 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
They make a lovely noise. A dealer started one of these and a C43 up inside the showroom for me when I went with a mate who was buying an AUC 2.3-16 in 2000. Wanted one ever since. However I'd probably go for an Alpina B10 V8 for similar money if I wanted to up my gas bill as the handling on the Alpina's a bit better.

jimmy_mac

7 posts

243 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
I remember a period magazine test (Top Gear if memory serves) that pitted this E55 against its contemporaries the XJR and A8 in appalling Scottish weather. I remember period me wanting all 3 but lusting after the E55 the most. A very cool car.

devnull

3,745 posts

156 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
Fantastic cars, some serious want there. Engines are simple enough to work on. Unfortunately it's all about the rust on these, as with other E Classes of this era.

chiefski26

815 posts

200 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
Amazing value for money if you can find a decent one.

TORQ

188 posts

228 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
devnull said:
Fantastic cars, some serious want there. Engines are simple enough to work on. Unfortunately it's all about the rust on these, as with other E Classes of this era.
I thought exactly the same as I followed on on Monday morning.

Superb engine/ big want, minus the rusty wings. All of them will have had work done on the wings & arches at some point. Chrysler's influence to thank?

Dr G

15,159 posts

241 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
I offered 2k for an early saloon with miles as a part exchange earlier this year...

kambites

67,461 posts

220 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
Certainly a lot of engine for not much money.

How simple are these engines electronically? If one could find a rusty donor, it would make an interesting engine for something like a Cobra replica - I'd imagine it'd sound pretty special through short side-pipes. smile

Wolands Advocate

2,493 posts

215 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
That W124 E500 has been on sale at that dealer for ever and a day - I think he was originally asking £13,950 for it.

Lovely cars (and I had one that I bought from the very same dealer) but they are a complete b*tch to sell on (in this country at any rate) as there isn't a big market for them.

The W/S210 version just isn't quite as appealing even at those cheap prices. Never a looker, inside or out, and maybe it's just me but that two-tone interior is horrible!

deltashad

6,731 posts

196 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
A leaking automatic gearbox electrics plug can affect gear changes.
Instrumentation can lose pixels.
Self levelling shockers on the estate are pricey
Corrosion on doors, wings, sunroof and boot.
Tyres are pricey.

£2-3k for saloon with 100k+ miles with little or no history.
£3-5k for saloon or estate, usable with some rust.
£5-7k Decent condition with solid history.
£7-9k No rust, tidy interior, full history and under 50k miles.

They are superbly reliable and the main issue is fuel costs.
The estates don't come up for sale very often and command a premium.

Q car indeed.



jakesmith

9,461 posts

170 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
These cars are for the original owners to keep & run into the ground, buying one used carries too much risk of work needing to be done worth more than the car. Besides which who would honestly pick that blunt rusty nail over an e39 M5

tomoleeds

770 posts

185 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
only thing is with a 5 litre car costing £4k you could put more than the asking price in fuel in a year so the maths dont add up. if you can afford £100 a week in fuel would you be looking at buying a newer more expensive car.

Garlick

40,601 posts

239 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
Staple barge thread fodder this. Some are dirt cheap, question is whether you're brave enough...

stuart-b

3,643 posts

225 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
jakesmith said:
These cars are for the original owners to keep & run into the ground, buying one used carries too much risk of work needing to be done worth more than the car. Besides which who would honestly pick that blunt rusty nail over an e39 M5
You mean over a rusty E39 M5? See other thread about E39 rust...

excel monkey

4,544 posts

226 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
tomoleeds said:
only thing is with a 5 litre car costing £4k you could put more than the asking price in fuel in a year so the maths dont add up. if you can afford £100 a week in fuel would you be looking at buying a newer more expensive car.
Your £100 a week assumes average mileage. The fuel is not such a big deal if you only use the car occasionally. These cars often end up as part of an enthusiast's fleet, where they only do a few thousand miles a year as the kids/dogs/DIY car.

Dr Interceptor

7,743 posts

195 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
TORQ said:
devnull said:
Fantastic cars, some serious want there. Engines are simple enough to work on. Unfortunately it's all about the rust on these, as with other E Classes of this era.
I thought exactly the same as I followed on on Monday morning.

Superb engine/ big want, minus the rusty wings. All of them will have had work done on the wings & arches at some point. Chrysler's influence to thank?
Sorry to drone on about this... but they don't all rust.

In the foreground is our E430 Estate, in Gold, with the big AMG wheels. Owned by the family since it was 18 months old, now with 148k on the clock. No rust.



Granted some did, but not all of them.

It is a fantastic car - ours might not be the 55 AMG, or even the 500, but even the 430 engine delivers entertaining performance, and is surprising economical on a good run smile

CYMR0

3,940 posts

199 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
£5k gets you a W220 E500 though... Surprisingly little in it in performance (0-60 in 5.9 for both, but the E500 is 50 bhp down on a 2002 car).

crispian22

963 posts

191 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
I had the estate version a few years back,no problems whatsoever in 2 years hard use.one of the few cars I regret selling.debadged it was a proper sleeper.

theJT

313 posts

184 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
I can't believe how cheap early AMG's are these days. With high mileage C43's in the 2.5k area I'm having to sit down on my wallet very, very hard to stop myself from buying one...

Nors

1,291 posts

154 months

Wednesday 17th October 2012
quotequote all
I quite like it, and not as 'ugly' as suggested.

However, on the subject of rust, it never ceases to amaze me why Merc & BMW have never followed Audi/Vw etc and galvanised their cars????