Mercedes S-Class W222 (2013-2020) used buyer’s guide: the bargain S-Class and its traps

The Mercedes S-Class W222 used buyer’s guide question is no longer about whether you can afford a former £90,000-plus flagship, but whether you can afford to run one. Clean 2014 to 2020 cars now sit at roughly £18,000 to £35,000, yet the air suspension, electronics and brakes still cost flagship money. Our verdict: buy a facelift S350d or S400d with unbroken Mercedes-Benz history, and treat the repair bills, not the purchase price, as the real risk.

Why a £90k flagship now costs estate-car money

The sixth-generation S-Class (chassis code W222, built 2013 to 2020) launched at well over £70,000 and climbed past £90,000 with options. Today the depreciation has already landed. A current CarGurus scan shows 118 W222 cars listed in the UK from £9,995 to £69,999, with most clean standard saloons sitting between £15,000 and £42,000 (CarGurus inventory, checked 1 June 2026). For a tidy 60,000 to 80,000-mile S350d with history, budget £18,000 to £35,000. That is the bargain: a car that once cost as much as a house deposit, now priced like a mid-spec family estate. The trap is that the running costs never read the memo.

Which engine to buy, and which to leave

For most UK buyers the diesels are the sweet spot. The pre-facelift S350d uses the OM642 3.0-litre V6; the 2017 facelift switched to the OM656 3.0-litre straight-six in the S350d and S400d, which is smoother and cleaner. Either returns a real 35 to 40mpg, remarkable for a two-tonne limousine. The petrols are the S500 (4.7-litre M278 twin-turbo V8 pre-facelift) and the post-facelift S560 (4.0-litre M176 V8), both effortless but thirsty. The S500e plug-in hybrid pairs a V6 with a small battery and suits low-mileage, charge-at-home owners only. The S63 and S65 AMG cars are spectacular but carry AMG-only running costs. Our pick for value and durability is a facelift S350d.

Pre-facelift versus the 2017 update

The 2017 facelift is the one to target where budget allows. Mercedes revised the headlights, grille and bumpers, but the meaningful changes are mechanical: the new OM656 straight-six diesel, the M256 mild-hybrid petrol six with a 48-volt electrical system, the M176 V8, and the move from the 7G-Tronic to the 9G-Tronic gearbox. The cabin gained twin 12.3-inch screens as standard. A pre-facelift 2014 to 2016 car is cheaper and still hugely capable, but you trade the newer engines and the wider-screen interior. If you are comparing executive saloons more broadly, our Mercedes E-Class W213 vs Audi A6 C8 used comparison sets out where the smaller car makes more financial sense.

Air suspension: the bill that defines the car

Every W222 rides on air. Standard cars use Airmatic; higher specs and AMGs can carry Magic Body Control, which adds a camera-fed active system. The good news is the ride. The bad news is the failure cost. Air struts leak with age and let the car sag overnight, and a single replacement front strut commonly runs past £1,000 per corner before labour, with Magic Body Control components dearer again. PistonHeads owner threads put a full suspension refresh into four figures fast. On a £20,000 car, one neglected corner can wipe out the saving over a conventionally sprung rival. Insist the car sits level and rises evenly on start-up during any viewing; a slow riser is a negotiating point, not a deal-breaker, but price the repair in.

Diesel specifics: OM642, OM656 and AdBlue

The pre-facelift OM642 V6 is a known quantity: durable, but watch for oil leaks from the O-ring seals and the turbo oil-feed pipe, and budget for the usual diesel ancillaries at higher mileage. The facelift OM656 straight-six is the better engine, cleaner and quieter, but it is more tightly emissions-managed. Both use AdBlue, so factor in top-ups and the occasional sensor or injector fault. What Car flags an automatic-gearbox issue on diesel W222 cars where heat from the exhaust can damage the transmission wiring harness and drop the car into neutral while driving, an item that forms part of a DVSA recall. Confirm the recall work has been done before you buy.

Electronics, COMAND and the 48-volt cars

The W222 carries over 100 electric motors and a dense web of control units, so electrical faults dominate the later-life complaint list. Owners report COMAND infotainment freezes and navigation glitches, seat and massage-motor failures, and battery-related start-stop niggles. The 2017 facelift petrol cars added a 48-volt mild-hybrid system, which is reliable in service but adds another subsystem a buyer must see working. DVSA also lists a W222 recall covering incorrectly fitted front-passenger airbag components. Treat any car with warning lights as a car with an open chequebook: every electronic feature, from the soft-close doors to the rear-seat controls, should be demonstrated working before money changes hands.

Running costs: tyres, brakes, insurance and tax

Flagship running costs survive the depreciation. Big alloys mean premium rubber: quality tyres for a W222 commonly land at £200 to £390 each, and the car wears four. Brakes are large and not cheap. Insurance sits high; most W222 variants fall in the upper insurance groups, with the AMG cars at or near group 50, so price the insurance before you commit. Road tax on cars first registered from April 2017 follows the standard flat rate plus the expensive-car supplement that applied to a car listed over £40,000 when new, which most W222s were. Service costs at a Mercedes main dealer are flagship-tier; a good independent specialist softens the blow without voiding sensible warranty cover. For a fuller view of how a premium German car behaves at higher miles, see our Mercedes GLE W167 used buyer’s guide.

Checks to run before you pay a deposit

A W222 lives or dies on its paperwork and its pre-purchase inspection. Run these before any deposit:

• Demand full Mercedes-Benz main-dealer or recognised independent specialist history; a thin or patchy book on this car is a walk-away.
• Test the air suspension cold: the car should sit level, rise evenly and hold height. Price in any sag or slow riser.
• Check every recall is closed on the DVSA vehicle recall lookup, including the transmission wiring-harness and airbag items.
• Review the full GOV.UK MOT history for advisories on suspension, tyres and corrosion.
• Demonstrate all electronics: COMAND, screens, massage and memory seats, soft-close doors, cameras and (on facelift petrols) the 48-volt system.
• Prefer a Mercedes-Benz Approved Used car or budget for a third-party warranty; read what suspension and electronics cover is actually included.
• Cross-check the price against live listings on Auto Trader’s S-Class inventory and Honest John owner reviews.

Our take

The Mercedes S-Class W222 used buyer’s guide verdict is simple: this is one of the great value cars in Britain, provided you buy with your eyes open. The depreciation has already happened, so the price is genuinely a bargain; the repairs are where a careless buyer gets hurt. Our strongest buy is a 2017-on facelift S350d or S400d with unbroken Mercedes history, a level-sitting air suspension and a clean DVSA recall record, ideally as an Approved Used car. We would pay more for boring, complete paperwork and less for big AMG wheels, Magic Body Control or a tempting high-mileage petrol V8. Walk away from any W222 with warning lights, a sagging corner or a vague service story, however cheap. The car that costs the least to buy is rarely the one that costs the least to own, and on this flagship that gap is wide. Budget for ownership, not just purchase, and the W222 rewards you.

Related reading on CDE

• Mercedes E-Class W213 used buyer’s guide 2026: the diesel, the trap and the checks
• Mercedes GLE W167 (2019-2024) used buyer’s guide: best engine, year and what to skip
• Mercedes E-Class W213 vs Audi A6 C8 used at £25-35k: which executive saloon wins in 2026