Thread: buying a merc

Mercedes are elegant, reliable and well engineered motor vehicles with a passionate following.
I am biased. I have a 1965 300SE fintail.
From discussions I have overheard, the more modern ones do suffer from electrical issues (probably no more than other marques) that can be expensive. The bottom end of the motor, however, is virtually bullet proof. I am constantly seeing excellent examples with high mileage still going strong.
They do not hold their value though. I am constantly seeing excellent w126 mercedes (mid 1980's) "S" class for around $5k. But then, my mid 1990's Calais is worth nothing.
If you like it, buy it. They are an excellent car to drive and the dealer support is extensive (at a price).
When you buy it, join the MBCCV. I'm surprised how many Mercedes owners also own Range Rovers and/or Land Rovers.
regards
Mick

My mum against my advice bought a c class new around 2001 and the prices they now try to charge for servicing and replacing parts are horrendous. To the point that the price the dealer was asking to replace and repair the rotors, discs and repair brake system was going to cost as much as the car was worth. Before anyone says it , I know , I have told her to stop going to the dealer and go to an independant specialist but can only advise!
Go and have a look on the aus merc forum and see what they have to say about that model.
Mercedes World Australia: Forum for the Mercedes Benz Owner Enthusiast Mercedes-Benz Classifieds Information Bulletin Board - Powered by vBulletin
and heres another page with all the links you could want to look up info:
Mercedes-Benz Club of NSW incorporated

Personally if I was looking for a german car around that price i would go either an Audi as they have dropped a great deal and you can get an 04-5 A6 with all wheel drive(quattro) for around the same as an 02 6cyl E-class.
And if you want to look for a few models besides drive and carpoint try this mob: Home Page

From what I have read/ heard the older models up to the mid 90's where better built and then around the time of the a class things started to slip so the quality was not as good.

Would you be happy with an earlier one, such as a 97/98 model?

The W210 with an e230 (4 cyl) engine is nearly indestructible. They had the good old 4 speed autos from the W124.

The e320's (6 cyl) from 97 onwards had the 'new' 5 speed auto which gave a lot of problems,a nd the early examples had head gasket problems.

From the late 90's Merc quality was a joke. Cost cutting all round and it shows on these year model cars.

Early 90's cars (which are prob not what you are looking at) had biodegradable wiring, so they could be recycled. Trouble was, it biodegraded after 4 or 5 years. This affects ANY eary 90's Merc. They had it sorted by 1996 and went to a new supplier/formula or something.

Hope that enlightens you a little!

Cheers
David

My Dad has an E270 (about 2000 model, 5 cylinder turbo diesel).

While it returns excellent fuel economy, often in the region of 5 litres per hundred kilometres, the service and repair costs are quite high.

It recently had an alternator replacement at a price that I would never have even thought about paying.
It also has a few niggling electrical faults. Sometimes you have to thump the end of the dash to get the high beam headlights working and on a few occasions it has gone into limp home mode.

Dad is thinking about selling it along with his 100 Series Landcruiser to replace the pair with a RRS.

I've not owned the E class, but driven one many times back in the UK, and as a driving experience it was great.
We've currently got a Mercedes ML (W163) as the family car, and love it. It's not known as one of the most reliable Mercs ever produced, but it feels solid, goes like hot snot, and is damned comfortable.

The BIG downside is the cost of parts here. We had problems with the central locking on one door and the tailgate. Mercedes dealer quote to replace? $1700. Actual cost to fix? $80 from a UK wreckers including shipping and 3 hours spinning some spanners.

If you're creative about where you get servicing and repairs done, you'll love it.

Ray, my dad bought himself a 2001 CLK320 early last year and its an absolute joy to drive and ride in .I'd be happy to own one as a daily driver .

Like all the over-complex Euro "luxury" cars, they have very poor resale value once they hit the 7-10 year mark. Major reason is the need for expensive servicing and parts. Simply put, the buyers who can now afford to buy an older one, can't afford to maintain one. Speaking from the point of view of a former used car dealer, jiggers like these become very difficult to sell once they age. Commonly even bomb dealers don't want them unless they can price them under the point where a dealer has to give warranty.

Worst example I can think of was the first BMW V12. New cost $265,000. At five years $10,000. At ten years virtually unsaleable. The RR P38 owners know what I mean. I have seen P38's that cost over $100,000 new go through auctions at $7,000-$10,000 at eight years old. You can still get $4,000-$5,000 wholesale for a clean Falcodore at that point.

Chuck Norris could kill a w146, but no-one else could.
IMHO the s600 was the last of the great mercs, but huge. I would truly almost swap the disco for one. I think the last was in 1999 before the good engineering stopped and the response to japanes competition started. I had heard they also radically changed the way they engineered and tested them, relying much more on computer simulation than real world testing. W140 s500s are also bullet proof (not, however, chuck norris proof) and you could probably pick up either at around the same price as the w210 your looking at which were (Im sorry) woeful. The E series were a fantastic lineage but around this model, as Jeremy Clarkson stated, began leaving bits of themselves on the motorway.
Get the w146, s600. For example
1994 MERCEDES S600 W140 Cars For Sale in VIC - carsales.com.au - carsales.com.au
altho better ones exist at that money