jahummer

Well after years of good service, I have traded in my LS for a new Mercedes S430.

Already missing my old car.

Anyhow, thanks to everyone here for your help and info in the past and I'll still be around.

Jayson

What made you go with the S430 instead of a new LS?

Man, those S-class owners on MBworld.org are ruthless. I was thumbing through some older threads last week and found one where this guy was getting dogged hard from all angles. This new S-class owner went into the S55 forum and started posting about how to bump horsepower. One guy told him to basically dump his S430 since he "can't afford" to get a decent engine in his S-class and to go and buy the E55. Then, he'd be allowed to post in their thread again.

Jeez, what a bunch of ******! What do you think of the S430 so far? 275 horsepower seems great to me, but other S-class owners were trying to tell this "new join" that the 430 engine should never have made it past the E series and that it's better to get a "stripped" (nice choice of word for a $80k car) S500 than a decked out 430.

E55AMG

Don't mind those guys. I'd say a significant plurality of members on that board are under 20, and of those, another significant fraction don't even have licenses. Most of them are raving about Mercedes based upon their parents' acquisitions. So don't be too surprised to see such immaturity. Once they start paying for their own cars (as I started to many years ago ... and man does it suck ) they'll change their tune.

lexguynj

That's a good point, sometimes there are people that will never be satisfied. The S430 is such a beautiful car, I can't even understand why those people look down on it, because it's not a AMG or top of the line.

There is always someone out there that thinks they have the best and looks down on anything below what they have to feed their ego. The reality check is that those people live their lives based on material wealth and status, which makes them ironically poorer as a human being.

The funny thing that you mentioned are some are rich kids that just drive their parents rides around all the time. What a joke!

jahummer

Well, when the LS430 was anounced, I preordered one (2 years ago). AS much as I liked the improvements, I felt the new design was too bulky for my tastes. So I waited for the new Q45. Again a much better car than the previous generation but still not "it" for me.

Well the warranty on my LS was going to be up this Feb 2003 so I began my car shopping.

I settled on the S430 over the S500 mainly because I could get fully loaded every option 430 for the same money as a bare 500.
And other than the badge, the power boost was insignificant IMHO.

jahummer

BTW, I'm not sure if it is appropriate here but I am selling off parts from my LS if anyone needs accessories.

Thanks.

retrodrive

Don't disapperar man. Benz forums are not too bad. Nothing like here though

zxlr8

what accessories do you have?

SQ-LS

Hhahahaahah!!!!

Hey Jahummer, I didn't know that was you I emailed questions some stuff.
Stick around, we always like peoples opinions on other cars besides ours.

jahummer

Glad to know I am appreciated. This forum is a lot better than mbworld.org andyhow

Lexozz

Hey I bet when the LS500 drops you'll really come back.....lol Good Luck!!

jahummer

Well, it will be interesting for you guys to note that my S430 has been in the shop for 2 days now to fix a few problems such as a window that goes up and down on its own, steering wheel goes up and down on its own, A/C problem, airmatic problem, etc.

I still find the S430 to be a superior drive than the Lexus products e.g. I never feel the Benz shift gears like I always found ALL of the Lexus products, quieter, smoother ride, no body roll or movement during braking or accelerating.

seanl

Hi JA. I hope Tampa is treating you ok (sounds like it is), I finally got the opportunity to relocate back to the 'other' Bay Area, Northern California.

While I agree with you that the new MB S-Class might be a superior driving experience over the Lex LS, the Germans still haven't figured out how to design electrical systems yet.....so the irony is that it's kinda hard to drive a car that's in the shop all the time. Sorry to hear that your car is in the shop already. Unfortunately, I am NOT surprised.

Everyone I know that has a newer MB has electrical problems. Seats, windows, sunroofs, etc. I guess you gotta take the good (driving experience) with the bad (frequent visits to the dealer).

I am surprised that you state the new S-Class is quieter than the LS. Not many cars are.

I noticed that you got rid of your LS400 b/c it was coming out of warranty.....any reason in particular that you didn't want to own the Lexus out of warranty? I'm just curious. The LS build quality IMO is far superior to MB's (and BMW). If you didn't want to own the LS out of warranty, for sure you don't want to own a MB out of warranty (same goes for BMW).

I have no worries owning my '97 LS400 out of warranty, I am now at almost 74K miles and have no plans on giving up my car, it's comfortable, reliable, and I own it outright. It certainly doesn't yield the same driving experience as your MB S-430 or my favorite, the last gen BMW 740iL, (def. not as sexy) but I'm ok with that as at this point in time I'm looking at total cost of ownership.

Best Regards and Good Luck with your new MB, they're beautiful cars.

jahummer

Hi Sean

Good to hear from you as always.

I just posted on mbworld.org that while I find the Benz to be a superior driving experience, Japan has the Germans beat when it comes to electronics.

I am already thinking of trading it in if this becomes an issue for me. At least the delear gives me an E class as a loaner.

Take care.

jahummer

Well, parts are expensive and I had some pretty expensive problems fixed under warranty. The last time I let the warranty expire, I ended up with a $12000.00 repair bill on a Q45a (suspension and ECU) so I vowed never to let that happen again.

If I keep the benz, I will not let it go out of warranty.