Looking at a Mercedes Wagon

I am looking for some advice from the highly esteemed peanut gallery.

Discovered today that the head gaskets are going on my wife's 98 DeVille which I now know is the achilles heel for this generation of Northstar engines. Cost to repair is a lot more than the car is worth so we are planning to trade it hopefully before it completely blows it's stack.

That being said, we need something that my wife can haul the kids around in that she can actually handle keeping in mind that she is about 5 ft. with her heels on. Large suv's are out of the question. We both agree that we don't want a minivan. Obviously wagon is a good solution. She hasn't quite come to appreciate the Colony Park enough to drive it daily although I guess I shouldn't complain too much because she will at least ride in it which is better than I've heard some other guys have it around here.

Coming home today we saw a Mercedes wagon in traffic and she mentioned that she liked it. I really do not have any experience with imports other than I know they are expensive to repair. I have heard though that the cars will last a long time with upkeep. I found a 2002 E-class wagon on autotrader that I am thinking of looking at. The car is white which we both love. 70,000 miles. Sunroof, leather, tons of bells and whistles. Asking price is just under 10 grand. In doing a bit of nosing around the internet I have read that these sometimes experience "electrical glitches" but that the engine and powertrain are solid. Would anyone care to chime in??

Link to the wagon posting:

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...e=used&listingTypes=used&searchRadius=75&mmt=[MB[][]]&listingId=352536958&Log=0

 

http://www.autotrader.com/cars-for-...rchRadius=75&showcaseListingId=345240757&mmt=[MB[][]]&listingId=352536958&Log=0


trying the link again

not sure why the link says the car has been removed. when I go back to search in auto trader the ad is still there. Anyway...it's clean. white with gray leather interior.

 

Mercedes mechanical quality went WAY down with the advent of Lexus and Infinity. They built to price, but had the image to draw in folks while seriously undercutting the price of the Mercedes. To stay competitive, Mercedes ended up 'dumbing down' the engineering of their cars. They are not what they once were. Don't get me wrong, mechanically they are still very good cars, but they are complex and not bullet proof. That said, the bane of ANY European automobile is BOSCH! All the German car companies use Bosch electrics, and frankly after Ma's experiences with Arthur, and other people I know, I would sooner deal with Lucas! Starting with the 88 or so model year, Bosch started multiplexing the wiring harness. The entire system relies on feed back to function. Aftermarket parts can cause the entire car to behave as though possessed.

One word of caution: This generation of E-Class has two major issues: The alcohol in North American gas deteriorates the seals on the sending units, two of them, on the gas tank. Because the tank straddles the differential, it is a $2,000 repair, and the new parts will eventually leak. Google it. Interesting reading. Mercedes has been fighting the NTHA over a recall for years. On top of that, these E-Class wagons have brake by wire. ALL of them were pulled of the road for a period of time while Bosch 'fixed' the programming that was preventing the system from working. They seem to have the problem fixed, but frankly, I would not trust it with my life.

 

I'm not going to pretend to know anything about this generation of Mercedes (or any other generation for that matter). I tend to shy away from used former high end (mostly import) cars. Even if you can do the work yourself (you didn't mention how mechanically inclined you are) the parts can be expensive and hard to find. I'm not talking about brakes and spark plugs. I'm talking about things like PCM's, ECM's transmissions, etc. The thing is with parts like that you might prefer to try to find a good used part, but the used part pool size will be quite a bit smaller than more common cars and it seems the people selling the parts always know that and price accordingly.

I had a friend with an early 00's Jaguar. Trying to find even a blower motor was an expensive chore. Trying to find a good used PCM was even moreso. Fortunately he traded it in. Unfortunately he traded it in for another Jaguar.

I might tend to stick with something a little more common and less expensive (when new) especially for battle as a daily driver. If it was a nice weather Sunday cruiser or the like where you can afford to have it sit while your new alternator is shipped in then I might say go for it.

How big of a car are you looking for? How many kids do you have?

 

Just to give you some positive vibes for these cars:

I have been driving cabs in Europe for a number of years and we had e-class only. The 02's were just about to be exported to Africa because when I started this job they were all little over 4 years old and all were about to touch 300K miles. But one of the wagons stayed, an '02 Kombi (wagon).

All the guys were very fond about the new '03 design but those had quite some small issues. Nevertheless these cars are very, very strong. The cab company didn't care much for maintenance and they just kept going. Of course they were always used in their first three years so that helps. The common problems I know of were malfunctions in the dashboard electronics. The engines and trannys are very strong, but important to mention is that these were diesel powered. All I hear about the gasoline engines is that they are just as realiable but not so commonly used here bigger then the 2,4L V6.

The '02 wagon had an engine swap at 350.000miles. After this the car was used as a school bus across the country for disabled kids. The second engine lasted untill I last saw the car with 400+Kmiles, together the wagon had ran 750.000miles.
I didnt get to see the wagon you are looking at but just look out for rust spots on the tailgate and rear wheel arch areas, but they will be noticeable on a white car.

The interiors are bit oldfashioned compared to the 03 e-class, they had much better seats but werent as roomy as the 02 model. The c-class is even more tighter inside so maybe a good second option for your wife..?

Good luck

 

At this point we have a six year old and four year old and there will hopefully be another one on the way in the very immediate future. One of the things we specifically liked about the e-class is that is does have a flip up third row seat in the back. We have a guy here in town that only works on higher end imports, Mercedes in particular. Pretty much everyone who owns one within a 50 mile radius comes to him. I think I might try to stop in and chat with him during my lunch hour today and try to size things up a bit more. I am not even sure at this point the car is still available. Haven't spoken to the dealer since it was after closing time when I saw the ad yesterday. Thanks to everyone for all the input so far.

 

I am not an expert by any means but I researched Mercedes (specifically Diesels) and came to the conclusion that I would not consider anything after the early eighties due to an apparent nose dive in quality at that time. Seems to line up with What MikeT says.

That said a lot of companies took a dive around that time. For example I wouldn't consider a Volvo after the 240 series (with the possible exception of the 740 but would want to check it very closely).

mike

 

Lots of misinformation here.
A failure of the brake by wire system doesn't cause a complete brake failure, rather more like a booster failure on your 30 MPG Ford.
Anyone who takes a 15 yr old car to the MB dealer for service deserves to shell out $2k but in the real world dropping the tanks shouldn't cost near as much, if ever needed.
The "bane" of these cars is rust, not Robt. Bosch(a patently ridiculous comment by Mike) so that is what you should be vigilant for.
A friend has one from new, that miraculously escaped being "pulled from the road" with well over 200k on only reasonable care. It serves him very well. I am patiently in line for it when he tires of it.
Like any complicated car it can be VERY costly to repair but reasonable to maintain so the later is always preferred.
For a do it yourselfer who understands them and has good parts sources these are a bargain. For someone who goes to the MB dealer for all service they cost more to keep than the new equivalent. A trustworthy independent mechanic can be a happy medium.
I have personal experience with the prior chassis, the W124 which is an absolute rock of a car but getting very hard to find now in good nick. Given the choice in equal condition I'd select the older chassis, which is also not without faults but all are addressable as are the ones with the W210.

EDIT; I also have experience(mostly as a repairer) with Cadillacs similar to yours. THE MB is a VERY different car, in my opinion it makes the Caddy look like a booger. The driving experience is European, no one finger steering and some actual feedback from the road, the antithesis of what a 90's Cadillac is about, so it will feel foreign at first but you likely will grow accustomed and not go back to a wrong wheel drive sled anytime. If you need to deal with winter conditions be sure to invest in a set of dedicated snow tires, this is de rigueur. Complaints about poor snow traction in front engine rear drive cars are by unprepared fools without the skill set to maneuver.

 

Spoke with the dealership today. The car is still available. Claims that the car is in pristine condition with no mechanical defects or rust. It is being sold at a reputable Volvo dealership. Wife and I are planning to make the hour drive tomorrow after work to check it out and see what the story is in person.

In the meantime I spoke with a friend at work today who had an e-class sedan of the same vintage for several years. I found out we do have an "independent" garage in town that specializes in high end imports. My friend said that this garage has been open for decades and the owner is an honest guy.

My wife only puts about 5,000 miles a year on her car since the school she teaches at is less than 2 miles from our house. If we do get in a position where we have to wait for a part, we still have the Colony Park and Escalade so no one would be stranded without a vehicle.

After walking around a few car lots last night and looking at the new and nearly new vehicles I was very discouraged. Everything looks the same, quality sucks, and prices are ridiculous. I almost fell over when I saw the 37k window sticker on a new Town and Country. I figure that even if we have to sink a few bucks into an older car, we will still be way ahead of the game in the long run. I will post an update after we check it out tomorrow.

 

I am not very fond of the front end styling on those but otherwise it looks very nice and it seems like your situation is nearly ideal for it. Interior looks fabulous.

mike

 

It is a sharp looking wagon, but you mentioned the 4 letter word.... "Dealer". They are going to tell you exactly what you want to hear about the car.....





Hope you get/find what you are looking for

 

That is a great looking wagon.
However I am confused. Why does a school teacher with 2 1/2 kids and only 2 miles to go to work need a third large vehicle?

 

Really Cat.....how many cars do you have??

The Escalade is needed to tow my 30' Coachmen camper. The Colony Park is my toy.

 

I was snooping around on the Mercedes Benz forum. Nothing over there really scared me away, but some good food for thought...

I think I would spend a couple of hundred to take it to the local independent mechanic and have it gone through if we like it. I've been pouring over the CarFax and found something I'm not pleased with. The original owner up through 2009 was "corporate". Maint. was done at MB dealer several times a year. However, there is no evidence of any maint. records on CarFax since the 2nd owner took possession 4 years ago/30,000 miles ago. For this reason, me thinks the inspection would be worth it. Or maybe we should go back to the drawing board....

I've bought Town Cars in less than a half hour before....maybe it's time to venture back from the land of the unknown. If only I could convince the wife to drive a whale Roadmaster. Heck I might even try to find her a wood delete. Bang head here