How Can You Tell The Difference?
 

How can you tell the difference between the Mercedes Benz S600, S500, & S430 beside the emblem from the outside?

engine..................... if im not mistaken the s600 is a v12 supercharged...

the s500 is a v8 supercharged
the s430 i dunno i imagine is a normal aspirated v8

PS. 300th post!!! WUT!!!!

engine noise :)
rims usually, most people keep thier stock rims
more aggresive front facia... but mabey im mistaken with amg body-kit
how often you seen one... obviously, a s600 is more rare :-P
the s600 also has a big V12 badge thats easy to read
im not a merc expert :?

I'm almost sure the 600 has the V12 badge on the side :) as said by nthfinity.. but I think I saw pics w/o it...

Yea beside the V12 emblem & rims, anything else? Of course I can tell the difference by looking underneath the hood. How about the exhaust? All the S-class has dual exhaust? Or is it only the S600 has it?

The S500 has a supercharger? Really? I never know that. I thought the S500 & S430 has a naturally aspirated V8 engine and the S600 has a twin turbocharged V12 engine but I don't know, I could be wrong.

No the S500 has a NA V8, the 430 a smaller V8, still NA, and yes the V12 is twin turboed

As for exhaust: the 430 has no visible ones and I think the same goes for the 500, no? While the 600 has the double one.. but today I saw a CL500 and it had the double exhaust like the S600 so now I'm not that sure about the S500.. maybe you can choose it on the option list?

i think the 430 is a short wheelbase(well not short but shorter) compared to the S600...i was just looking at the mbusa.com pics and there are no diff in front spoiler, but there is a small v12 badge at the front door seam where it meets the body cladding. thats ur tip off. and rims too... u just have to "feel" a model....sometimes u can almost feel that its a 600 before u see the badge.....
S430
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_4_main.jpg

da 600
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_8_main.jpg

s55 AMG
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_5_main.jpg
(rims and twin pipe dual exhaust tip u off this aint ur granddaddys benzski :D )

What about interior features? Any difference between the S600, S500, & S430?

600
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_7_main.jpg
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_9_main.jpg
55 AMG
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_6_main.jpg
430
http://www.mbusa.com/media/images/ma...dan_2_main.jpg

Cool, that was pretty detailed. Thanks for the info. I guess they have almost pretty much the same stuff inside out except for the engine, I guess.

No , the size is the same , you can get S600 and S600L wich is the longer one , i guess in the us you only get S600L

The rims are different , the S600 has V12 emblem , the V8 S430 has bigger rims , and so on

that is why i hate porsche and mercedes. They are wayy too similar one after the other. Always the same.

I'm thinking about getting a used 2000 model of S-class and I was just wondering what is the difference between the three S-class here in the U.S. I doubt that I can afford the S600 even though a used one. I guess the S430 is good enough for me.

What's the engine horsepower anyway for the S430?

good luck man, ull have a preatty nice luxury car :) ........... and no offense but gezz, u can find most of this stuff on the internet by just typing s430 hp

http://www.familycar.com/RoadTests/MercedesS500/
http://www.canadiandriver.com/testdrives/00s-class.htm
http://www.canadiandriver.com/articles/tw/03sclass.htm
http://auto.consumerguide.com/auto/u...ex.cfm/id/2461
All you need to know about the s-class - DCX media site

btw, have u also considered the 2003 E-class? (i think it is around the same price as the 2000 S430)

Yea, I thought about an E-class and 2003 E-class is still cost more than a used 2000 S-Class around here.

Don't get a used S600. The 2000 one is the older naturally aspirated V12, and it does not make much power for how friggin huge it is. That engine seemed like it was more to just say you've got a V12 while the newer one packs a big punch like it should.

Well, if I do decide 100& sure about getting an S-class, I'm not really looking for a high power car. I want something nice, comfortable, & luxurious.

Oh, so the twin turbocharged V12 is a new engine for the S600?

Yes. The engine is basically a detuned version of the engine MB developed to go in the Maybach. Only more recent 600s have it.

Oh I see. Twin turbocharged V12 sounds pretty bad ass though. I wouldn't expect that to be in the luxury sedan like S600.

Tire size hehehe...not that you'd probably notice a difference...and I believe that the S500 and S430 run the same rolling stock. As for the S600 there are two versions, one turbocharged (the most recent iteration) and one NA (the one slightly before they came out with the Turbo engine obviously)

:edit:
I see the engine thing has already been covered, nevermind then hehe.

Go for the 500. The 430 sedans tend to have less options on them. Also, go newer than a 2000 if you can. I used to work at a benz dealer and those 2000 cars had LOTS of problems with Command systems going bad, which are $$$$$$$ to fix or replace if you're out of warranty. Another nice advantage of the 2001 and later cars is that the Mercedes handheld phone that integrates with voice dialing and more in the Command system is a digital V60 or StarTac instead of the 2000, which still used an analog phone.

Yea, that is pretty much the only thing that still making me think if I should get a Benz or not for daily use. The mainyenance and repair cost can be very expensive.

I notieced that the S500 and S600 sit just a bit lower than the S430 and the S350..

That's one advantage of going to a benz dealer and getting a Starmark car. They offer pretty comprehensive warranty coverage on their certified used cars, its well worth the extra money they charge. Or, if you find a nice one somewhere else, buy a good warranty to go with it. It should pay for itself on the first major repair.

Yea, that's true. Getting one with Starmark warranty is something I'm also considering.

Why is the 600 turbocharged? I thought Mercedes only used superchargers. At least the smaller engines are supercharged if they're not NA.

Any opinions or rumours out there?

It just makes a lot more sense on a V12 to twin turbocharge it as opposed to supercharging it. Mercedes' superchargers fit on top of the engine (you know, the thing that people joke looks like a wafflemaker) which would need to be very large for a V12 engine of theirs. It would make the engine that much taller (negatively affecting a desire for lower center of gravity), and it would cost a lot. Two turbochargers, one on each side for each bank of cylinders, just works better. I guess they could have gone with twin centrifugal superchargers to stay with their SC mindset, but a setup like that isn't as good, and I don't know of any recent car using twin superchargers (there haven't been many at all).

Isn't Mercedes Benz trying to make their cars to be more fuel efficient now? Isn't that the reason that now Mercedes Benz is using a SOHC 3 valves per cylinder design instead of the DOHC 4 valves per cylinder?