Car-nundrum

[Patrick Spaceman]

As mentioned elsewhere, my brother-in-law unfortunately died from an aggressive cancer, and his sister and myself pretty much inherited his debt. We're working through his superannuation and various insurances, but as it seems all of his worldly possessions will be sold including a half a dozen guitars and an Omega Speedmaster Moonwatch, to pay all of his debt.

Which brings me to his car....a 2008 6.3lt AMG C63 Mercedes, a car Jeremy Clarkson described as "an axe murderer with headlights".....I myself have a 2016 Premium WRX, it's great to drive there's no money owing on it and it's fun to drive in the rain. I've driven the AMG and it rearranged my face, and it sounds.....absolutely sublime. His Dad is in his 90's and said there's no way he'd drive it, but would be sad if it was sold (he's a career Mercedes man) as it's been in the family for over ten years.

So i'm seriously considering selling my WRX, paying the difference into his debt and hanging onto it (I also did spend eleven grand on repairs on it for him, while in hospital - steering related). I did a bit of research and the C63's are sought after beasts and i'd have to be an idiot for not taking the opportunity to hang onto it. My WRX is a fantastic drive, but the C63 is on another level....

Since both WRX's and Mercedes are all over the world, what are your thoughts? which way would you go? Japanese road hugging cruise missile or German made and engineered flying battering ram?

(car was built in Bremen - Germany according to it's VIN number).

 

[stockish]

Its a tough call, torque pulling you into another dimension in a straight line is fun, but going sideways through a forest in an AWD steel casket just gets the blood pumping.

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

Its a tough call, torque pulling you into another dimension in a straight line is fun, but going sideways through a forest in an AWD steel casket just gets the blood pumping.

Yeah, certainly a tough call. We have backroads on some hills here which are always fun for both AWD's and V8's, and i've driven both types through there, AWD is fun but the V8's sound great in the hills. I'm gravitating heavily for the C63, my WRX isn't an STI (still a sweet ride), but the C63 is approaching the last of the great V8 Merc's and it seems, looking to be a classic car in the next 10-15 years.

 

[Deroth]

The true TEST answer:

Why not both?

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

The true TEST answer:

Why not both?

Would be nice, but we were left with an absolute mountain of debt...so one has to go. His parents thought it was about $40k debt, they just about choked when we told them, get to a quarter million and keep going...

 

[Thalstan]

First off, my condolences on your brother-in-law’s passing.

While Merc’s may not be a Buy More Warranty car, it’s still 13 years old vs 5 for your WRX. As an AMG it will be expensive as hell to repair what goes wrong with it.

Also, what was a “monster” then is now much more commonplace now.

I would probably keep what you have.

 

[Reebourne]

The true TEST answer:

Why not both?

The True True test answer Sell both buy this:

Its Test colour approved, all electric, and immune to speeding tickets.

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

First off, my condolences on your brother-in-law’s passing.

While Merc’s may not be a Buy More Warranty car, it’s still 13 years old vs 5 for your WRX. As an AMG it will be expensive as hell to repair what goes wrong with it.

Also, what was a “monster” then is now much more commonplace now.

I would probably keep what you have.

Thankyou Thalstan
Yeah expensive....when the dude from the workshop dropped it off, he handed me the keys and the invoice in an envelope then started walking to the front gate for his ride back. He got halfway there when I opened and read the invoice..."JESUS FUCKING CHRIST".....his pace doubled and he was gone.....haha..

Also "if" I decided to keep it, it would spend most of it's life in the garage, doing what it's doing at the moment.....not much. It "may" appreciate a little, after it depreciates some more. I also did not know that the AMG technician who assembles the engine also attaches a plate to the engine with their name, I thought that was pretty cool.

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

The True True test answer Sell both buy this:
View attachment 21030

Its Test colour approved, all electric, and immune to speeding tickets.

With personalized plates "Aurora"

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

Apparently the engine assembled in Affalterbach (Outside Stuttgart), and fitted to the chassis in Bremen (Northern Germany). A nice touch having the dude who assembled the engine get to throw an identifying plate on there. I saw another pic with this guy's name on a car eight years older, and another six or seven years younger. So the good news was he was past his probationary period when he slapped this one together.

 

[Thalstan]

Out of curiosity, what kind of guitars?

 

[Cugino83]

First I'm sorry for your family loss: even if that kind of hillness should prepare your for this, is never easy to take it.

About the cars: EVERY AMG engines cames with the plate with the name of the tecnician that build tthe engine, is like a "quality mark" that stand for the idea (all to be verified) that the engine has been assemble with great care and attention instead of just came out of a production line.

About what car to keep well, that depend on several factor.
Running and mantenance cost like @Thalstan pointed out could increase, not only considering the age of the car but also its brand and not being that common.... still if you ddon't use it that much it could be a neglettable difference.

On the other hand there is the market value: if you'll be able to find the right buyer that AMG will be wort the same if not more then your WRX especially if keeped prestine, but otherwise market value could be less the a 2016 car...

I'll be frankly: if i'll be closer I'll love to take you apart of the AMG, but australia to EU is a bit to far away.... plus you guys drive on teh worng side of the road down there.
That option putted aside considering that your main reason for selling on of those is to get some cahs to payout part of the debt, I'll look for some price quotation out there, do some math on the estimate keeping cost, and then sell the one that will bring you more cash back.
I think is a shit solution especially considering the sentimental attachment one could have, but in this case crude math could be the best long term solution, just be aware not ot rush the sell: most of the time that will be the worst idea and provide you with a worst deal.

 

[GPcustoms]

Im very sorry for you families loss..Cancer is far to common and hurts everyone around it. I can relate with your heart and soul about the car in an unusual perspective of my own.
Although we all want to be responsible we are also creatures of passion and cars do indeed bring out the animal in us all.

I myself also had a cancer journey and tried to keep my obligations on a cash and carry mindset so I didn't have any debt to leave behind for my wife and family to deal with. At least that was the plan up until this year when the wife reminded me of why we live for our tomorrows,....And she is right to remind me that life should be like a wild crazy dirt bike sliding in sideways and hopping off to exclaim"That was a hell of a ride"

Sounds like your Brother in law was a cool soul and lived for some passionate tomorrows and with that being said its a decision thats going to come from deep inside you. Personally I went nuts and bought the wife a maserati ghibli and a new gr supra for myself.....No one knows when or how our ticket comes due but its a wonderful story to know the man had a wonderful family there along his journey. Wish you and your family many happy memories and good fortune no matter which path you take at the fork in the road

 

[Lorddarthvik]

I see car, I click, yaaay...

Oh.
Sorry for your loss!

Tldr. : choose the one that makes you smile more. That's it.


It is a really tough question indeed!
Both cars are timebombs engine wise, so that makes little difference imo. As you are down under (unless it's just your VPN), I'd assume the supply of WRX-s will still be higher then the AMGs, so it might be wiser to keep the AMG to sell later?
Here it's the opposite. While generally any premium German or fun performance Japanese car went up 1.5-2x in price over the last year, as there so few Subarus around (death by rust and no one wants to pay for a new one when it costs as much as a decent German premium car), their price hiked more and will keep rising. Badly kept AMG's are rather cheap in comparison as ppl could afford to buy em but were unwilling to pay to keep em properly serviced.

Some questions to ask yourself if you want to overthink it:
- are you a sensible fun guy or a crazy fun type of guy?
- can you truly afford the AMG? Even if you don't use it, you will need to change oil and tires at least, as those are perishable items. Yes, engine oil should be changed 1-2years max in such a car regardless of mileage, and it will cost a fortune. Ofc you can keep to the manufacturers numbers for oil change if you surely want to blow it up, it's up to you...
Also it will eat those rear tires real fast and they ain't the cheap type, or at least you should go premium unless you wanna surely spin off the road and die, which is up to you as well ofc... And that's not counting all the "little" stuff that will go wrong as it is not a new car, like abs sensors and window switches and such..
- even if you can afford the upkeep, do you want to?
- does the AMG have enough of things like cupholders or boot space, things that you grew accustomed to and don't wanna let go?

Ah fuck it, just keep the AMG if you can lol
I know I would... (probably, never had the chance to drive a c63, only much slower versions)

Personally I love Subarus, I've driven a few for weeks at a time, 555 edition and old jdm sti included, but never had to suffer through owning one for years. Awesome fun cars which can be sensible as well for a great price.
I'd take the merc still, cos omfg that torque! Also rwd and luxury.. Yeah, I'd go with that cos I'm a sucker for that stuff. To hell with safety and insurance costs...
I just couldn't afford it but that's besides the point.
Anyways, in the EU I would bet on the Subaru retaining it's value more (becoming more rare and less of a gas guzzler) , but over there, I dunno, afaik you have a better supply of them still so maybe the merc will come out on top.

Anyways, I wouldn't consider either car as an investment. Too much upkeep on the AMG that will eat deeply into any profits, WRX is not an Sti...

 

[Dirtbag_Leader]

In my mind this all boils down to one very important fact that you haven't yet mentioned. . . does the WRX have THREE pedals, or just two? The Merc is only a 2-pedal car, so if it's an apples-to-apples thing then I'd vote for the larger more powerful AMG. BUT even all that extra power and displacement doesn't make up for a 50% deficit of foot-controls IMO!!! #SaveTheManuals!!! :D

 

[Sky Captain]

German engineering. After owning BMWs, I've become a huge fan of Audi S models. I was driving a TTS before I decided to sell it and move across the county. It was a little rocket. Sorry to hear about your brother in law. I have a family member fighting cancer and its tough, especially knowing we lost another at age 58 to it. It makes one appreciate driving cool cars in a different way.

 

[Shadow Reaper]

Well, I know people won't like this answer but you did ask for our opinions.

I think Benz are all vastly over-rated cars. Yeah, that is a nice car but for that kind of price you could have a 2015 XKR-S Convertible and it will outperform both those Benz's by a very wide margin in virtually every way you compare them, from looks, to handling, to raw power, to throaty roar. The Jag costs much more to make, but they compete because people are willing to overpay for the Benz.

I think if you took half a day and drove an XKR-S, you would never want to drive a Benz again. Maybe I'm wrong, but can you manage that sort of challenge?

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

Im very sorry for you families loss..Cancer is far to common and hurts everyone around it. I can relate with your heart and soul about the car in an unusual perspective of my own.
Although we all want to be responsible we are also creatures of passion and cars do indeed bring out the animal in us all.

I myself also had a cancer journey and tried to keep my obligations on a cash and carry mindset so I didn't have any debt to leave behind for my wife and family to deal with. At least that was the plan up until this year when the wife reminded me of why we live for our tomorrows,....And she is right to remind me that life should be like a wild crazy dirt bike sliding in sideways and hopping off to exclaim"That was a hell of a ride"

Sounds like your Brother in law was a cool soul and lived for some passionate tomorrows and with that being said its a decision thats going to come from deep inside you. Personally I went nuts and bought the wife a maserati ghibli and a new gr supra for myself.....No one knows when or how our ticket comes due but its a wonderful story to know the man had a wonderful family there along his journey. Wish you and your family many happy memories and good fortune no matter which path you take at the fork in the road

Was a strange irony, for ten years his parents, my wife and I thought he had four friends in the whole world. Turns out he had hundreds of close friends who didn't even know each other! I had longer conversations with random people on a bus until seven weeks ago, we'd sit and talk for hours. My one regret was not being stuck with him in a lounge room ten years ago and having nothing better to do than talk.

Cancer's a bitch, my wife had it three years ago, and ended up becoming a state ambassador for one of the orgs, she went with him to every appointment to explain what was what, then I started going with him when he became too ill to move. Thankyou for the kind words, things at the moment are surreal.

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

Well, I know people won't like this answer but you did ask for our opinions.

I think Benz are all vastly over-rated cars. Yeah, that is a nice car but for that kind of price you could have a 2015 XKR-S Convertible and it will outperform both those Benz's by a very wide margin in virtually every way you compare them, from looks, to handling, to raw power, to throaty roar. The Jag costs much more to make, but they compete because people are willing to overpay for the Benz.

I think if you took half a day and drove an XKR-S, you would never want to drive a Benz again. Maybe I'm wrong, but can you manage that sort of challenge?

Ahh my wife's dream car, told her they remind me of a Mazda MX5 on steroids, nice car but I have to play the hand i'm dealt with...so it's the AMG or the WRX....I did feel a little more justified listening to Rammstein in the AMG haha.

 

[Patrick Spaceman]

German engineering. After owning BMWs, I've become a huge fan of Audi S models. I was driving a TTS before I decided to sell it and move across the county. It was a little rocket. Sorry to hear about your brother in law. I have a family member fighting cancer and its tough, especially knowing we lost another at age 58 to it. It makes one appreciate driving cool cars in a different way.

Love the RS4. I hope your family member is getting the best treatment possible, my bro-in-law was making good money but decided to "YOLO" and not have medical insurance. Thankfully Australia has a good system, the only cost to us in hospital was the parking. He was an odd duck, he lives next door to us, and in ten years I had never been in his house, never driven his car or really spoke a lot to him. Then suddenly i'm doing all three and making up for the last ten years in the space of several weeks.

Suffice to say we became friends and made driving the AMG a completely different experience and feelings towards the thing in general completely different at the end of his journey.