Hello all,
I have heard mixed reviews of this car. I know it is no million mile car but the reason we are even looking at a newer car is to get something we wont have to sink money into and have working a/c for years to come. The back of my mind says older benzes are better all around (and would probably make more sense) but my wife seems to love this car and I'm just doing my homework. I have heard about the spring mount and the rust deal. Aside from that what am I looking at in maintenance on a yearly basis?

thanks a ton,
opossum

__________________
German autos!!!
'67 250se coupe
'89 190e 2.6
'05 BMW x5
'59 0319 diesel Omnibus.
Italian bikes!!!
'64 Lambretta Special 185 hot rod scooter
'66 Lambretta SX200
'59 Lambretta 250 race bike
'70 Lambretta GP200
'77 860gt ducati
'66 ducati monza

500,000 miles is quite rare for the 'old' diesels, one million mile cars are, well, one in a million!

Ah, but you WILL have to sink money into any car you buy. You will put money into an older car to restore it, and into a newer care to keep it from getting run down in the first place!

Working A/C for years to come? All A/C systems keep working with repair/replacement of failed components.

I bet a lot of W210 owners would not trade for a W123 or W124 or W126.

The spring mount(s) can be replaced. Rust has occurred on all cars, and it depends more on where you drive it.

My impression of the W210 is that is another good M-B car, and quite good as a diesel. Even the dreaded glow plug replacement has been DIY accomplished.

Enjoy whatever you and your wife choose, and I hope she lets you drive it!

Best Regards,
Jim

Don't bet on it!

Now, what's it's problem??

No "new" problems.. I just think the 123, 124, 140 and 126 cars are superior in quality and attention to detail than the 210 cars.. they drive like a real "MB" and have an unmistakable feel to them, not the case with a 210, IMO.

Funny you mention the W140. It came around at about the same time as the W210. Interesting comparison on quality and attention to detail.

Wonder what they will look like in 10 years?

They've already gone to *****.. goto your local MB dealer and drive a new E-Class. The 140 started production in 1992 when quality, attention to detail and engineering were not put on the back burner to cost.

Lexus however, really has it right. The 1990 LS400 was an engineering marvel with stunning quality and attention to detail.. I can still say the same about a 2005 LS430.

It's tough to base an opinion on the experiences from owning a car which was bought with nearly a quarter of a million miles on it. I have to keep reminding people that it was not that long ago that 100K was condsidered virtually unachievable by most cars. Why do you think the 1970's cars only had 5 digits on their odometers? The idea that you would be able to drive a car over 200K was unheard of back then, but today we complain about how troublesome cars are when they have in excess of 200K on them!

My W210, though I have only owned it for about 5 months has been a pleasure to drive. It jets right up to 80 MPH on the highway and goes well over 100 without even a shudder or vibration. I've done lots of PM to it and just had a small problem with an intermittent no-start condition which was solved by replacement of a $30 relay. Even a MAF sensor failure had no perceptable effect on the way the car ran except the annoyance of the CEL light coming on.

Now I could wrant and rave about having two components fail in 5 months, but putting it into perspective - the fact that I bought the car with 115K on it at 7 years of age and paid about 30% of its new cost I am willing to accept these minor issues. If I get to 230K with mine I think it will be a great testimonial to the way the cars were made. I am fortunate in that I can do much of the work myself, and that which I cannot do I can at least supervise with the knowledge gleaned from 30 years of being a shadetree mechanic.

Will it be more troublesome than a new car? Yes, but I can't say there is a new car I would rather own or drive (except maybe the E320CDI ). In the long run it will not cost me nearly what it cost the first owners to put the first 115K on it. In depreciation alone it cost them over $30,000. In 5 months I have spent $150 on parts for the 2 required repairs and about 10X that on PM - an investment in the future as I see it.

__________________
Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz

$1500. spent on PM?

Could you elaborate on what you consider PM?

This amount seems to be too high to be strictly PM.

You sure we are not speaking of "prior owners neglected repairs"??

From the other replies sounds like a W210? (in UK you could still get W124 wagon in '96 not sure of US).

Personally I'd look a couple of years old and get a W124 which will last a lot longer body wise (especially in a wet climate - where are you?) than a slightly newer W210. Engines will be same OM606 and that has been known to do 1M miles if serviced routinely and you avoid accidents for that long!

good luck, service history v.important whichever.

K

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Keith

1995 E300D auto Wagon

thanks guys,
This progressed really quick and it looks like we are ending up with a w202..the '95 c220. No diesel for me. but we still have 50,000 mi on the warranty Anyway, I'm still on the diesel hunt for myself (though not right away) and will probably end up with a 240d someday soon.

__________________
German autos!!!
'67 250se coupe
'89 190e 2.6
'05 BMW x5
'59 0319 diesel Omnibus.
Italian bikes!!!
'64 Lambretta Special 185 hot rod scooter
'66 Lambretta SX200
'59 Lambretta 250 race bike
'70 Lambretta GP200
'77 860gt ducati
'66 ducati monza

Any car in the world can be pushed to 1 million miles (with enough time, money and effort). I think it would take less of all three to get there with a diesel Benz. I'm not sure if I've found a car yet that I would like to drive for a million miles. After a couple hundred thousand I'll probably be ready for something different. But at the same time I haven't thought about getting another daily driver in a long time. This car works fine and it's comfortable. The 2005 CDIs aren't selling for $10K yet, so I'm fine where I am now, unless of course an inexpensive e300d turbo comes along.

In terms of the 96 E300s I think they are nice cars, but if I were going to the 210 body style I'd look for one of the turbo cars (98-99) but they are more expensive.

OK, let's switch this weekend! NJ isn't too far away!

The PM included replacement of the glow plugs, cleaning the intake, replacing all filters and fluids (including tranny, coolant and brake), plastic fuel supply and braided return lines as well as the o-ring on the shutoff valve, fixing a couple of minor leaks (transmission at electronic interface and oil at level sensor gasket), 4 new tires (OK, these were not strictly PM but the old michelins on it were dry-rotted from age). Using all MB brand parts and fluids and doing some myself and some by a couple of independant shops totalled just under $1500 ($1050 without the 4 tires). Parts alone were about 50% of the $1050 and the rest was labor at the Indies.

I guess you could categorize any of these as preventive maintenance or prior owner's neglect in the case of the leaks - though in his defense the leaks were not evident because the belly pans caught them.

For example, the glow plugs I consider to be PM as they were working fine but according to the maintenance history were the originals (7 years old) and how much longer would they last (especially in COLD NH)? MB GP's are $30 a piece - so there's $180 right there.

The tranny service and leak repair was $300 - but it would have cost me $100+ to do it myself plus I would have had to buy the dipstick measurer tool for another $70 or so - so I elected to have it done "professionally".

And today, I just had a new windshield installed and got rid of one which was well sandlblasted with three stone holes in it!

__________________
Marty D.

2013 C300 4Matic
1984 BMW 733i
2013 Lincoln MKz