- Joined
- Nov 6, 2007
- Messages
- 12,859
- Location
- North Oxfordshire
- Car
- His - Denim Blue A220 AMG Line Premium / Hers - Obsidian Black R172 SLK55
I thought some members who wonder about the cost of owning and running an AMG V8 may find it useful to have some real-world numbers for reference, so here goes.
Background
I bought my 2015 facelift E63 Biturbo at 10 months old as an ex-dem car, with just over 800 miles on the odo and ran it for 3 years and 6 weeks, covering 40,600 miles. As part of the deal it had two years servicing included, and was obviously under warranty until it hit 3 years old. I paid for the service (at a main dealer) during the third year of my ownership. Soon after I purchased the car, I had a Quaife ATB diff. fitted and COMAND in Lightwater retrofitted a reversing camera. The only other non-consumable costs were the insurance excess on one windscreen stone chip repair, and two (yes, two!) windscreen replacements.
Reliability
With the exception of the start/stop system that worked only when it felt like it, the car was 100% reliable. Not one fault during my ownership.
Running Costs
The car was run almost exclusively on Momentum 99, with the occasional fill of Shell V-Power Nitro+ when I needed fuel and no Momentum was available. I’m light on brakes, so only the rear pads were replaced during my period of ownership.
In the table below, the Non-Service Parts line includes the Quaife Diff., the Reverse Camera Retrofit and the windscreen replacement excesses. The Consumables line covers oil top-ups between services and wiper blade replacements. Everything else is self-explanatory.
Clearly the stand-out item is depreciation, which dwarfs the rest of the running costs, with fuel – the bit that everyone thinks of – the next largest at just over a third of the depreciation cost.
On a TCO basis, it cost almost £1.07 per mile (
) which makes very little sense for a daily driver, but as for value for money, it made me smile every time I drove it and I’ll miss the feel good factor that it brought, the relaxed luxury when I needed it and the sheer drama when I wanted it.
Was it worth it? You bet. Every last penny
Background
I bought my 2015 facelift E63 Biturbo at 10 months old as an ex-dem car, with just over 800 miles on the odo and ran it for 3 years and 6 weeks, covering 40,600 miles. As part of the deal it had two years servicing included, and was obviously under warranty until it hit 3 years old. I paid for the service (at a main dealer) during the third year of my ownership. Soon after I purchased the car, I had a Quaife ATB diff. fitted and COMAND in Lightwater retrofitted a reversing camera. The only other non-consumable costs were the insurance excess on one windscreen stone chip repair, and two (yes, two!) windscreen replacements.
Reliability
With the exception of the start/stop system that worked only when it felt like it, the car was 100% reliable. Not one fault during my ownership.
Running Costs
The car was run almost exclusively on Momentum 99, with the occasional fill of Shell V-Power Nitro+ when I needed fuel and no Momentum was available. I’m light on brakes, so only the rear pads were replaced during my period of ownership.
In the table below, the Non-Service Parts line includes the Quaife Diff., the Reverse Camera Retrofit and the windscreen replacement excesses. The Consumables line covers oil top-ups between services and wiper blade replacements. Everything else is self-explanatory.
Clearly the stand-out item is depreciation, which dwarfs the rest of the running costs, with fuel – the bit that everyone thinks of – the next largest at just over a third of the depreciation cost.
On a TCO basis, it cost almost £1.07 per mile (
) which makes very little sense for a daily driver, but as for value for money, it made me smile every time I drove it and I’ll miss the feel good factor that it brought, the relaxed luxury when I needed it and the sheer drama when I wanted it.Was it worth it? You bet. Every last penny
