Why does the most prestigious luxury car brand (that's accessible to the average person) depreciate so quickly?

Why does the most prestigious luxury car brand (that's accessible to the average person) depreciate so quickly?

Ummm.. they don't.

Also that's not their logo.

Not only are they overpriced to begin with but also the supply of these cars is absolutely immense

The supply far exceeds demand so the price drives down to meet demand

It's science

I never realized that I want a G-wagon with a twingo front.

Jews.

Funny, just yesterday i was in a 20 year old Mercedes with 432000 kilometers on it that still has the original transmission and engine.

Easy. People that can afford them brand new buy them immediately and when the newest generation comes, they upgrade to the newest generation and the previous generations flood the used market and drive the prices down.

Well isn't it pretty much agreed upon that old Mercs and BMW's were fairly solid? I think he's more referring to newer German cars though that are designed to fall apart after warranty expires.

Old BMWs and Mercs can continue on to a million kms. There's a reason why old Mercs are so popular in the shittiest parts of Africa.

I don't get how the new ones are so shit compared to those old ones. It is as if they are doing backwards innovation. I hope that someone in their leadership will realise this and stop ruining the otherwise really fine brand.

Luxury cars are more expensive new because of some sort of luxury factor which includes things like quality, styling, features, etc but once a car is used it loses that luxury factor as someones ass has been in the driver seat. On top of that, the new features become outdated as new technologies are coming out and everything that makes the car luxurious is gone. Now you have two old used cars with the same features and maybe slightly different build quality except one cost 3xs as much to repair for even the smallest of damages. A car is only worth as much as someone is willing to pay for it and nobody is wanting to pay a lot of money for a used "luxury car"

It's because latest and greatest is what people buy, the cars of yesterday don't matter since they can't keep bringing in money. Luxury cars aren't the only ones pulling this either.

This guy gets it, it's all about their status symbol status degrading really fast

Yes it was

Because they're steaming piles of shit. Only lease one new and make sure the dealer takes it back when the lease is over, because you never want to to see it again once it's up. And never ever buy one used.

Nah, it's all those bell and whistles? They start to break. A used luxury car after a while, half the stuff doesn't work anymore. And those Mercs are infamous for their overengineered climate control systems that fail to keep you cool in the summer and warm in the winter.

because rich people aren't going to buy 5 year old luxury cars, they buy new
the market for used luxury is immigrants and poorfags trying to look rich

1/10

because the only people who want used American luxury steal it rather than buy it

There's no prestige in a used mercedes.

However, the value plateaus out after a while of 'regular' use, from where it takes a leap after they're licensed and plated up for use as taxis. From there, it has nowhere to go but down as they're driven into the ground by a succession of illegal immigrants renting them from the person holding the license.

because its fucking trash

Easy
No one wants to own one out of warranty

cant believe that nobodys mentioned the real reason.

out of warranty maintenance/repair cost

any1 with a brain will sell the car as soon as warranty is up, and the car is not desirable without it. it has nothing to do with rich people not wanting a 3 year old car.

Because a new Honda Accord has 99.99% of the features a 5 year old S class has. So the used S has to be so much cheaper to pick it instead of a brand new car under warranty, that doesn't cost a second mortgage to fix.

It's only exclusive until everyone else has heated massaging seats, built in touch screen navigation, rear & side cameras, phone integration, remote start, trunk that opens & closes by itself, etc........ And it only takes a few years for the exotic "gotta have it" features to show up in the family sedan.

Not overpriced, really, for what you get. I'd gladly pay the premium over a loud, uncomfortable, generic Asian shitbox.

It's a perception problem. People who've never owned one look at surveys and think they'll break all the time, which isn't true. So they don't value them in the market. Depreciation has alot less to do with the car than it does with people's perception of the car. There are exceptions - pissed off previous owners, etc. but it's mostly true...for every car maker.

I hear that German cars aren't reliable, and yet a German car has never stranded me on the side of the road...and every other car make I've owned has. A German car has never grenaded on me and been worthless, but others have. A German car dealership has never once lost my business because they suck, but pretty much every other maker has.

The way people talk in here and other places, no car they've EVER owned has been in the shop, but a Mercedes Benz flies apart at 50,000.1 miles.

Bullshit.

I daily drive a 35 year old Mercedes Benz with less miles, but it's completely original.

Hums right along, and costs peanuts to maintain because I'm not a retard that can't take care of my own car.

By the way, if anyone here doesn't or can't change your own oil, hand in your man card...

I lost my shit when I saw the "xbox 360" plate

As a mechanic, ALL cars break. Everyone knows this. The problem is the cost to repair your merc will be 5x as much as a nissan or toyota. Fancy night vision and air suspension fails? Guess how much that will be to fix. People don't buy them because they are shit crammed with so much stuff that WILL go wrong and it WILL be expensive to repair. Parts and labor hours can be insane on luxury Germans. I've never been stranded by my nissans and I've owned about 10. I was never stranded in my Isuzu. So your German car anecdotal shit is useless. Also
>insurance

>man card
Go away 1995 old man. Changing and disposing of oil is much more of a PITA that it's worth. I work on my car all the time, but for petty shit, I let mexicans do it for $40 while I stand there and watch. Protip: they pay less for oil since they get it in bulk, so just let them do it for the same price it would cost you.

>accessible to the average person

There's your answer. Anything accessible will never be prestigious.

They're not shit, at all. They're complicated, like most new cars.

Example: on an 30 year old Mercedes-Benz SEL, the self leveling suspension is a problem area, always has been, from new. It's complicated, and at the time was bleeding edge stuff. Now, it's not rocket surgery, but if it's not maintained, it breaks. The car can be driven with it broken, no problem...but it's not optimal.

New cars are rolling computers, and Mercedes-Benz cars are full of gadgetry...that's what passes for luxury these days. So when the gadgets break or computers crap out, the car needs repair. It's still driveavle, most of the time, but it's not optimal.

Surveys and other online rankings look at "issues" without weighing them for severity, most of the time. That widget in your Mercedes that doesn't massage your left butt cheek? Same weight as the honda transmission that flew apart. Now...are those the same? Nope...

Full disclosure: I do love Mercedes-Benz cars...owned many. They're frustrating sometimes, with the small stuff, but I've never ever been let down by one in 32 years.

Comparing a Honda Accord to an S-class because both have shiny buttons is patently stupid and would only come out of the mouth of someone who hasn't spend any time in an S-class.

Hondas have their place - cheap, relatively reliable transportation - but the S-Class is worlds beyond in power, comfort, features, and general every other metric you can use on a car.

And the S-classes that I've owned have never broken down, never left me stranded, and never cost me more than a couple of thousand to repair (AC compressor failed, spiked a computer module)

Cars break...all of them....all makes and models. And they're all stupid expensive to repair out of warranty. Priced a Nissan/Infiniti transmission? I have....thousands. Same with the AC And transmission on an Acura. Same with the transmission on a Ford. Same with the engine on a Lexus. All cars I've owned that have broken to the point of being junk while my S-classes zipped right along.

idk my VW shit the bed pretty quick

Honda's are pushing 10 years old each and have never been in the shop besides the power steering recall on the van and reg services

This whole thread is "anecdotes" from people who've never owned, maintained, or even driven a german car, and the personal attacks belong on /b/

Night vision never kept me from driving my car. Lexus engine eating itself did however leave my family on the side of the road. Everyone's got anecdotes...including you.

Parts for Mercedes ARE expensive if it's a dealer only part, for sure. But labor at a dealership after warranty is up is nuts for any maker.

Find a good indy - you're a mechanic, maybe you're an Indy - and you save 10-50 percent on labor. Better yet, people could learn to wrench on their own car.

I've had a Honda, too...good car, for what it was...but it was one of the ones in the 2000s, along with about 1.5 million others, with the terrible transmissions.

Every maker has their Achilles heel. Hondas were transmissions for a long time. Mercedes are the gadgets. VW...well...it's a VW. XD

VWs are sincerely so fun to drive. You just don't get to enjoy that experience too long before it fucks you over.

I'm getting a corolla next. I just need an appliance for the commute.

It's cheaper to go to the dealer than it is to do at home. 5 quarts and a filter for $25 bucks, plus every 5th one is free and I can watch TV and have a free soda pop or coffee. Or if I want to do it while at work they pick it up and drop it off for me for an additional $5 surcharge.

You dumb kid, keep telling yourself your so manly. My time and comfort is more valuable to me.

Don't ask, just enjoy the good deals.

>tfw you'll never own an S65 AMG
Why even live bros

The nightmare of any industry is a product that lasts forever

Old Toyota breaks: The part can be found in any of the same model Toyota, probably even most other Toyotas of the same era.

Old Merc/Bimmer breaks: Part was unique to that exact car. Costs more than you paid for the car.

>be me
>be Mexican
>make $20 an hour doing oil changes on Nazi cars
>the oil costs us about $6 through bulk ordering
>same oil costs $22 at Walmart
>filter costs $12 at Autozone
>We charge $90 for what would cost user $36 and 20 minutes to do himself
>user has to drop off his car wait around for up to 3 hours
>user is out $54 and has wasted precious hours of his time sitting in a waiting room
>user proceeds to think he is wise in his financial decisions
>3 hours of his life and $54 dollars he will never again see
>user never questions if it was worth the wait and expense even as Shrek 2 automatically loops on the CRT display in the waiting room for a second time

Thanks for the money I guess but was it worth it?

Taking my car to a garage for an oil change barely costs more than if I were to do it myself. I also don't know why your shop takes 3 fucking hours to change someone's oil.

Lazy

inb4 they put the wrong or shitty oil into your car
inb4 they don't change the oil at all

I'm the guy you responded to. You're right, my first car was an 86 190E 2.3-16 and it never stranded me, not even close. In the end it was me that let the car down. But that was back in 86, when quality was still #1 at MB. Today's models are passable at best

...

the kind of people that can afford a new high end luxury car probably makes more than $56 an hour

So what I wanna know is would a 2004ish SL55 with around 100k miles be a reasonably reliable car to buy?

This is a good thing. The last 5 cars I have bought have all been 2-3 year old MB with warranty for about 50% of the new price.
Me current DD is a 2002 CLK I bought for $6800 with 53K miles. Perfect condition/all books and records.