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A lot of these car's depreciate quickly. You can pick up a 2-3 year old used entry level luxury car for about what a Honda accord or Nissan Altima sells for.
Don't assume everyone driving these luxury cars bought them brandy spanking new.
Just for comparison:
2015 Nissan Altima; MSRP of lowest model $23.5K
2015 Honda Accord: MSRP $22.1K
2011 Mercedes Benz C300 4-matic: Average selling price based on 5 min internet search of vehicles for sale $19-22K.
So same price virtually. Keep in mind these entry level luxury cars like Audi A4's, C-300 benzs, G35/G37 Infiniti's, Lexus IS, BMW 3-series, etc etc are really not as high end as some of the other models in the lineup. You don't see people driving Mercedes S550's around every day do you? But you see C300's everywhere...especially when used models could be had for the price of an Altima as shown above.
BTW, When I bought my Infiniti, it was less than 2 years old, factory warranty still with about 15K miles on it. My payment was $250ish a month for 4 years.
A lot of the luxury car drivers in my area are mid-20s to early-30s yuppies. Most live in small apartments but got to have a nice ride. Different priorities I suppose.
These same people gawk at the pricey repair bills for such cars. They don't realize that replacement 19 inch tires for their BMW is going to cost a pretty penny.
That is true, they do seem to be young. I would guess early 20's to late 20's. It seems like its mostly women also.
I drive a sleeper of a luxury vehicle - a full-size pickup truck.
A few years back I was loading a leased A4 full of 2x4's and tile at Home Depot. A fellow in a pick-up was astonished I would abuse such an expensive vehicle. The irony is that his pick-up cost more than the A4 and appeared much more stylish.
On my home from work the other day while I was stopped at a light I noticed that a lot of people were driving luxury cars. I saw tons of Bmw's, some Acura's, a couple of Audi's and the new Lincoln Navigator. Do you guys notice that or is it just me?
I live in South Florida the east coast home of the luxury vehicle.
I walk six blocks to work and every day I see at least five Bentlys or Rolls and sometimes Bugatti's.
These aren't the same ones every day either.
Nothing like a 1.5 million dollar car to make you think your own Mercedes is a POS.
Parts cost of these vehicles can be quite a bit higher which is why I personally don't bother with them. I'll take a Toyota or Honda.
Typically that applies to dealer service. You are gonna get raked over the coals no matter what vehicle you drive, but you'll get raked over them more if you have an Audi vs a Toyota. At least they give you free coffee at Audi.
But from a DIY perspective, I would have to say I beg to differ. I own an Infiniti, Mercedes and Ford. G/F has a Honda, Sis has a Nissan and parents have Subarus. I've done maintenance on the family cars for over a decade now. Routine stuff is pretty close to equal across the board. An oil change cost me $75 on the Benz (vs $300+ at dealer) but I only need to do it once a year or 10K miles. An oil change on my G/Fs Honda costs me $30ish, but I do 3x a year. So $75 vs $90...which one really costs more? Other service is pretty standard. Differential fluids are the same, so what it costs me to do on my Ford is the same as what it cost me on my Infiniti.
Parts, different story, but depends on what part you need to replace. I'm sure a steering rack on the Benz will be pricey, but in terms of routine wear and tear parts, it's not much difference. I installed a reman brake caliper on my Infiniti for $36 just this past weekend. Dealer part prices can be high, but there are a lot of parts wholesalers selling OEM parts for cheaper. Sometimes you get lucky and find the part you need, and sometimes you head to the dealer. But I've muttered "Is it made of gold" at some parts from all Makes.
I realize most people cannot DIY when it comes to car repairs, but it's important to note that the cost of repairs is usually associated with dealership labor rates and part markups. I've had my Benz almost 3 years now and think i'm into it for $150 in maintenance so far just doing it all myself.
Last edited by BostonMike7; 04-29-2015 at 01:21 PM..
You can lease a Lexus, MB, BMW, Acura, etc for around $300/month. That's less than what I was paying for my Civic (financing).
Just looked up local M-B dealers to see what their offers were.
2015 C300 sedan
$419* per month plus tax
36 month lease
$4,713* total due at signing
$3,499 capitalized cost reduction
10,000 miles per year
$300/month would require a big down payment.
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