Laydee Requires Assistance!

[Lexxy_703]

i know that normally towards the end of the month can be a good time to go car shopping - but does this still apply in August when all those new Sept 1st reg cars are waiting in the wings?!

we've sort of decided we were going to wait until xmas time & have a look around again, but the Merc CLK Cabrio 280/350 or SLK 280/350 are at the top of our shopping list.

but, i was having a mooch around the nearly new mercs and, unfortunately, fell in love!

a stunner of a CLK, 07 reg with 4k on the clock.

i don't know what to do now??? :shutit: i'm considering going to our local Merc dealer this afternoon to see if i can test drive a similar car then trying to persuade hubby to go & see my dream car over the weekend...a woman with a plan is a dangerous creature!

[Rikos]

Mercedes!!!!!!

You should hold your head in shame :shutit:

Why not get an SC rather than a shabby merc that will fall to bits after the first speed bump!

[WylieCoyote]

Buying a used car is always a good idea around the time a new registration comes out - particularly if you buy in the few weeks after the new regs come out - dealers have a lot more trouble shifting cars then I'm told.

The CLK is a much better car than the Lexus SC - I know it's a Merc, built by Germans, dealers are little Hitlers and all have attended the Simon Cowell school of customer service but it is mechanically a better car, and the SC is damn ugly in my opinion (I know I can talk being fat with crappy hair!) and I every time I see, sit in or drive an SC, I always get out feeling disappointed.

I'd say that it would make a good buy, you didn't mention how much though. It would be a shame to swap a Lexus (with excellent reliability, build quality and customer service) for a Mercedes (built on a budget of 25p because Mercedes have spent all their money paying for all their sales and service staff to have rudeness and patronising lessons) but as long as you're happy with it that's all that matters.

Keith :)

[Parthiban]

I don't really know, but I would've thought buying a used car now would be good as they're unlikely to be getting in as many sales of used cars as new cars at this time of year - only thing I'm unsure of is whether or not they'd actually care about used cars if there are so many new ones being sold.......

The only thing I do know is that they'll probably be getting a load of new '57' demos, so they'll want to get rid of their '07' ones (if the car you're looking at is ex-demo)

At the end of the day, see how much of a deal they'll offer, and if you're happy with it, take it!!

With regard to Mercedes, they may have lost their way, but their newer cars are much better - our CLS has been perfect since we bought it, and the dealers (while not up to Lexus standards) have not been bad at all.........

[WylieCoyote]

It's all down to personal experiences and perception. Parthiban's got a good point actually, there'll be a lot of 57 plates pre-reg cars coming along soon. May be worth waiting a month or so? Having said that, the last time I suggested a woman with a plan to wait a couple of months, the next thing I knew, I woke up in an ambulance :)

[Steve ( West Mids )]

Thing to do is see if they will offer you a deal on it now, then say you may not get the money through for a couple of months and see what he says. Look for the body language as well. It's probably a 50-50 now, he will want a sale for this months target but will have a heap load of cars to dispose of next month. Offer do the deal now and wait for September and see if he makes it better for you.

[Lexxy_703]

Rikos - no shame in the new Mercs, after all, i had considered the new 3 series vert until i read some horror stories! quickly changed my mind on that one...

we'd love to stay with Lex but the only choices we'd consider are the IS-F or perhaps the new SC (due spring 08?) - being realistic, both are gonna be too pricey brand new - perhaps a year old one of either at some point in the future :winky:

Wylie - have to agree on the current SC, i love it when i've driven it BUT i just couldn't have one on the drive! just too far from my view of beauty i'm afraid.

this stunner of a CLK is £39k, a quick look at the spec shows £££'s worth of extras & i think it's a fair 'start' price for negotiation!

Parthiban - interesting . a 57 demo would definitely be something to consider.

i think this particular car has grabbed me as it's an usual colour, ie not silver of black! both look lovely, but i just don't want silver or black - a female thing perhaps?

here she is

thanks for the input guys

[Rikos]

Nice colour! Must admit blue car's are the best

Just another quick question ... is that you in your avatar???? :D

[Lexxy_703]

Nice colour! Must admit blue car's are the best

Just another quick question ... is that you in your avatar???? :D

errr, of course it is

i wish! i am working hard to get a body like that, a 'little' way to go just yet tho! if you really want to see my mug, check my profile, there is a teeny piccie attached :winky:

[WylieCoyote]

How much are they selling it for? That's a gorgeous car. I'd be most tempted myself :)

EDIT - bit dim - just read the £39k. Now that's a lot. I'd say that's well overpriced for what is a used car. A new CLK 280 Avantgarde retails at just over £35. The used price if far too much. Mercedes I see haven't lost their touch :)

If it was £28-30k or around there, maybe but I wouldn't touch it at that price. Your decision though :) Just remember that with a brand new car, the second you drive it off the forecourt you instantly lose between 13 and 20% of its value. It would seem they're almost trying to pass it off as a new car - but it's not, it's a 6 month old used car which you're paying £4000 more than for a brand new one. Seems daft to me. Don't let what I say put you off though, if you want it, I'm sure you'll be very happy with it :)

[Bobski]

I guess they will say, "but its fully loaded with all extras"....funny how when we PX cars they say"Well I'm sorry bu they don't add any value to the vehicle"

Haggle them down.........!! Its still a 2nd hand car.

[Parthiban]

Looks a nice car, although I note it doesn't have COMAND - I agree now that we have it, it really isn't worth what it costs, but I think it's still a valuable resale tool........

Not sure if you've asked, but how much would that exact car cost if you were going to buy it brand new?

[Lexxy_703]

it's a bit mis-leading from the dealer info as he seems to have duplicated some extras, but i think the new price for the car would be around £41,235 (£36,730 basic plus 620 metallic, 575 bi-xenon lights, 605 parktronic & 1010 for the sports pack - he states nappa leather & a tracker too but i couldn't see a £ for those when i tried to configure the same car on the Merc site??)

so, perhaps if i said it should be £42k new - 6 months old for £39k??? doesn't seem too much of a fair price now i suppose, but like i said before, it's a 'starting' point at least!

p.s. i'd mistakenly thought 'on board computer' meant the comand sat nav, so thanks Parthiban for the nudge on that one! :D why they can't just call it sat nav, i don't know

[WylieCoyote]

The retail price for a top of the range brand new (Avantgarde) 280 is £37,635. The WhatCar? Target price (the discount to you realistically achieve) on the car brings it down to £35,523 - a ~5% discount, meaning you could drive a new, 57 plate with 0 miles on the clock off the forecourt for that price and be the only owner on the V5.

The discount should also apply to the extras therefore making the prices of them as follows: metallic £590, Xenon £546, parktronic £574, sports pack £950, leather £1211

Add the target price and the extras together and you get a total of £39394 on the road brand new. £39,000 used? I don't think so. Bear in mind you'll be the 2nd person on the V5 making the resale values suffer tremendously.

It's totally your decision and no one usually listens to what I say at home but the price they are charging is a daylight robbery. I'm not trying to influence you, I just don't like seeing people get ripped off. I'm just trying to make sure you have all the facts before you choose.

No decision is wrong as long as it's made with all the information and for the right reasons.

Good luck with the car :)

[Parthiban]

it's a bit mis-leading from the dealer info as he seems to have duplicated some extras, but i think the new price for the car would be around £41,235 (£36,730 basic plus 620 metallic, 575 bi-xenon lights, 605 parktronic & 1010 for the sports pack - he states nappa leather & a tracker too but i couldn't see a £ for those when i tried to configure the same car on the Merc site??)

so, perhaps if i said it should be £42k new - 6 months old for £39k??? doesn't seem too much of a fair price now i suppose, but like i said before, it's a 'starting' point at least!

p.s. i'd mistakenly thought 'on board computer' meant the comand sat nav, so thanks Parthiban for the nudge on that one! :D why they can't just call it sat nav, i don't know

No problem at all! :)

I'd personally think twice about buying a high end Merc without Comand if you're not planning to keep it forever as it will hurt its residuals.

Have they offered you any kind of deal so far? The CLK has been around for a while, so £39k for a 6 month old car that would cost £42k new is awful, nowhere near how much you should be able to get off for it. I'd assume you'd almost get that just haggling on a new one.

As an example, we bought our CLS right at launch when it was still highly desirable. We ended up buying new, but I did ring around a lot of dealers to see what I could get on an ex-demo, and they were offering great deals. The best one was for a 3 month old car, 4k miles, loads of extras (£56k list) but was offered it for £50k.

That's not a huge saving, which is why we went new, but right after launch cars like this are pretty expensive due to people preferring to pay a bit extra for a demo than battle with the long waiting lists for a new one.

I'm quite liking this one - also a director's car so would have been better looked after........

Linky

[Lexxy_703]

thanks for the replies guys :D

very good info from both of you & my head is now spinning! i definitely wouldn't pay £39k for the car i've seen, perhaps £35-36k? BUT, i think i've been put off as it's not got sat nav anyway... :shutit:

that's a nice looking car you've found there Parthiban - well spotted! is that search on the standard merc site as i don't think i've seen anything about 'directors' cars?

i think i do best having a proper look around on the net before we go looking/driving on sunday. at the moment, unless i spy something that gives me a huge buzz when i get in & drive it, i feel like i'd be changing the 300 just for the sake of it & would be better off keeping her & looking again after xmas.

decisions, decisions! oh well, at least the sun is shining :D

p.s. any thoughts on the new Audi A5? i've seen a couple of those recently & they look pretty drop dead gorgeous!

[Parthiban]

Yep just a standard search off the MB website, some of them say they're director's cars when you click on them - no special way to search for them or anything if that's what you were thinking :)

And yeah, the A5 is stunning!

[puresilk]

I dont know when is a good time buy!

Xmas cos most are broke after the spending!

Andf Sep or MArch cos of the new year registrations!

But whenever you do buy youll always find a better deal somewhere else at another time after with depreciation so just go and buy it now!