S Class - Dad Tank II

S Class - Dad Tank II

Author
Discussion

Alex_225

Original Poster:

6,632 posts

207 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Back in 2016 I bought an E320 for picking up/dropping off my eldest daughter, it's a 250 miles round trip that I do four times a month. It's been a fantastic car and ability to 'waft' has become a pretty top criteria for a daily car.

So after nearly 4 years and over 40,000 miles it was time to look for something else and settled on an S Class so went on the hunt for one.

I'd considered the S350 CDI but the 320 models have pretty much the same engine and I'm quite partial to the tail lights on the pre-facelift, also give or take the same engine. So here is my newly acquired S320. It has a 230bhp/420lbs-ft 3.0 V6 diesel engine and 66k on the clock. I didn't have much of a list of extras as these are nicely spec'd as standard but I did want the memory seat package and preferably optional wheels, anything else was a plus. This has the memory seats, optional 19" AMG wheels and a sunroof, £5k on top of the original £60k price tag.

First stop after picking up was the local Shell for £120 worth of V-Power diesel.



I haven't cleaned the car on the outside yet but will give it a decent hand polish and protection for now. Proper detail in the spring.







I did manage to get to work on the interior which is just lovely. Cleaned all the plastics with Chemical Guys Inner Clean, good stuff if you're on the look out for an interior detailer. Gave the plastics a shine up with Autoglym Rubber & Vinyl Care.



I gave the leather a clean with Dr Leather spray and the driver seat bolsters some Gliptone Liquid Leather Conditioner.





I believe the 'leather' is actually Artico so artificial but noticeably softer than that in my E Class. In fact all of the seats are just softer and comfier but in turn the leather is stretched more, comes up nice though.





The Commmand system is pretty cool. Oddly you can turn that screen towards the driver, centre it or towards the passenger. A lot of engineering for not much purpose but hey why not.













No need for a gear stick. This has taken some getting used to!



Managed to get under the bonnet to give the engine bay a clean up too.





So for £7,500 that's quite a lot of car.

I have a few other plans for it, new mats going in today, de-badge the boot and give it a proper once over. I'll be getting the wheels refurbished in the long run. I will also have it re-mapped once I'm confident it's mechanically sound. That will take the power up to 280bhp but 480lbs-ft of torque so about the same as my CLS63.

dave_s13

13,862 posts

275 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That's proper lovely that.

Looks brand new!

Ph1listine

1,376 posts

106 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That's so smart, massive torque with a remap. Bet it'll crack 40 mpg on a run also. Anything to look out for on these such as suspension and brake pumps?

MrC986

3,554 posts

197 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
What a nice looking car. With a dateless registration on it would be difficult to age & as per your previous form looks in good condition, low miles & a lot of car for the £s.

RC1807

12,920 posts

174 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Lovely car, OP.

On the gearstick, I drove a new E Coupé yesterday, and it's the same for 2020 models!

Summit_Detailing

1,995 posts

199 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Excellent choice...enjoy.

Cheers,

Chris

Mr_s81

14 posts

60 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
This is tremendous! A crazy amount of car for the money. Looks in fabulous condition and a great barge for wafting about in.

Straff99

132 posts

178 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
A lovely car in great condition, for a cracking price but....

What's "Pelvis on fire"....?

SteveR1979

599 posts

147 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Straff99 said:
A lovely car in great condition, for a cracking price but....

What's "Pelvis on fire"....?
Maybe he has and STD

ruggedscotty

5,782 posts

215 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=SCV_JKftZok

shut your eyes and your transported to an S class.... magic...

Jag_NE

3,091 posts

106 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That still looks really fresh, hard to believe it’s 12 years old. If you do another 40k over 4 years I see you getting a big chunk of that 7.5k back. Here’s hoping for no big bills!

g3org3y

20,962 posts

197 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Looks lovely, congrats. cool Does not look like a 7.5k car.

What's the bork potential on these? I'd have thought the diesel V6 is quite robust (and not especially exotic as shared through the range). Any of that active suspension malarkey?

TR4man

5,312 posts

180 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That interior looks so lovely. Such wonderful place to waft along that I’m surprised it has such a low mileage.

lewisf182

2,130 posts

194 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That looks lovely and box fresh. You do seem to find great examples of these mercs! Really makes me want one.

Alex_225

Original Poster:

6,632 posts

207 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Thanks for all the kind words, it's certainly in good condition and more so now I've had a chance to give it a once over looks even better.

I gave the outside a proper going over, nothing too heavy going as the weather was a bit unpredictable but started with giving the wheels a de-iron with Autoglym Magma.



No too bad considering.



I then gave the outside a proper wash. Hit it with Citrus Pre-Wash to begin with, rinsed and then washed with Dodo Juice Basics of Bling shampoo and the usual two buckets. Went over the car with Autoglym Super Resin Polish, it's old school but always does the trick. Then a coat of Britemax Extreme Elements sealant which should keep it protected until the spring.



Looking round the bodywork more closely, it's really very good for it's age. There's a weird little touch up on the rear bumper but nothing I'd worry about and what was probably a stone chip touched in on the front bumper. That's really it.















I also fitted the rubber mats which I'd ordered, not the most glamorous but perfect for day to day use and really hard wearing.



Gave the windows some glass treatment as well, this stuff is an excellent rain repellent.



It's only a really small one but couldn't resist the obligatory sticket.



There is one niggle which I need to get the garage to sort out. It's come up with an error that the ABS and ESP were unavailable twice but it has gone off. Hopefully nothing major but not worried about that as the garage will sort assuming it doesn't stay off.

0a

23,956 posts

200 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
That looks very smart. I am considering a petrol engined one of these for my next car (and at similar money).

How do you find the drove? Ie ride quality, noise suppression etc? I guess they are pretty good!

Geekman

2,887 posts

152 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Looks great: these are such good value now. I don't want to be a harbinger of doom, but have you had the air suspension checked? The back of the car looks to be sitting very low in the 2nd and 4th pictures.

F1GTRUeno

6,512 posts

224 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Has it been lowered?

The shot on the gravel from the rear makes it look like the suspension has been slammed.

I agree with the other comments that it's hard to believe it's 12 years old. It's better looking than the current S-Class inside and out IMO.

Alex_225

Original Poster:

6,632 posts

207 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
I had thought the same about the suspension and did wonder if it had been lowered. It rises up fine and it rides perfectly. Also both sides sit exactly the same so I'm not convinced it's a leaking air bag.

0a said:
That looks very smart. I am considering a petrol engined one of these for my next car (and at similar money).

How do you find the drove? Ie ride quality, noise suppression etc? I guess they are pretty good!
Extremely good. I've come from a W211 E320 which I always thought was comfortable and quiet but this is a different league. My other half has a 2009 CLS and this still beats that hands down for comfort and that's far from a bad car for a long drive.

Geekman

2,887 posts

152 months

Sunday 2nd February 2020
quotequote all
Both sides will often sit exactly the same even if there’s only a leak on one side as the system levels the car to compensate. I would definitely get it checked as a leak in an airbag / valve block will overwork the compressor, causing premature failure. Sometimes leaks can be in an air line / valve block which aren’t expensive to fix smile