I would give the Lexus some serious consideration.......your friends as well as other ones available in your price range (in case there is a sweet buy out there for perhaps lower milage & different color etc). The milage factor is neither here or there.......milage dosen't mean a whole lot as long as the car was maintained properly & not abused. I just got my 01' (last year of that body style) a month ago & am extremely happy with the car, the Lexus clubs I belong to have been very helpful with advice, help & suggestions. I look forward to many years of reliable service with my car & so far parts have been fairly reasonable & service easy to perform. Good Luck & sorry to hear about your Mercedes.

 

woops, sorry everyone, this was suppose to go as a reply to another thread......had a brain cramp lol. This post can be deleted.