Wow! you people on this forum are fantastic. Thank you for all the replies. I found out that the ML320 I was looking at, after checking the CARFAX, had been in an accident....no thanks on that one. I am now looking at one that is a 2001 ML320 with 117K miles for 6,995. After looking at similar vehicles with similar miles I feel that this one is a bit overpriced, but I will have to check how it rides.
I am so excited that I found this site you people are great. Thank you so much. I don't feel so quite alone in my car search now.

The tech forum is a better place to search.... and ask questions

We tend to go off tangent around here with politics & religion...

...and black dogs...

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"Senior Luna, your sense of humor is still loco... but we love it, anyway." -rickymay ____ "Your sense of humor is still loco... " -MBeige ____ "Señor Luna, your sense of humor is quite järjetön" -Delibes

1982 300SD -- 211k, Texas car, tranny issues ____ 1979 240D 4-speed 234k -- turbo and tuned IP, third world taxi hot rod

2 Samuel 12:13: "David said to Nathan, “I have sinned against the Lord.” And Nathan said to David, “The Lord also has put away your sin; you shall not die."

Hi Azura, I too, am a female and bought my 2001 ml320 without any help at the dealership. I bought mine in 2008 with 101,000 mi. The couple who owned it before me really only used it to drive from phx to sedona(about 360mi round trip),2x's/wk,other than that, they took very good care of car. I LOVED everything about my mercedes for the 1st year,but then I needed to replace my brakes-a big $850 The next year I had no real problems. two yrs into owning it, I had to get my radiator worked on-another chunk of change$375. The 3rd yr, my alarm wouldnt set,still doesnt, my tail lt goes out constantly,my brake lt in back window stays illuminated all the time, my drivers side window wont roll down,passengers side wont roll up,cruise control doesnt work, had to replace a sensor in the engine,only $60. last week I had to replace my battery,which AAA did, it starts but now my bas/esp light stays on all the time and I cant pass emmissions for the 1st time in my life,due to theMIL status ''no voltage'" and the OBD connector integrity failed. I dont know if this is due to my battery being replaced or what but I know I cannot pay the dealership to run a bunch of tests just to charge me thru the roof and it still not run. Just read up on the common issues on the forums here and see what other ppl have to say. Seems as if 100's of ml320 owners have similar issues. Luckily, the people on the forum are great with advice and tips that can really save you a lot of time, money and frustration. Good luck whatever you choose to buy!

Are you skipping one because its has an accident on the vehicle history report or a salvage title.

Really hope you're not avoiding cars over a possible very minor accident. Those carfax commercials are really hyping things up.

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

It's not hype when the asking prices are the lowest because of accident damage.

My example:
Check out AutoTrader dot com's 2011 E350 Blutec sedans - leading the low-miles along with the low-price pack of dealers is Off Lease Only in I believe Orlando, FL, or South FL. area - Carfax reported accident cars will not bring the larger dollars. The buyer has no way of knowing how extensive the damage/painting work, etc. has been done to a bona-fide accident car. It's not hype......a wrecked car brings less money used. I sure don't want one myself, but that's just me.

No way of knowing? Of course there is! The ML320CDI I'm selling was in an accident. The passenger door and fender had been painted. The fender was never removed or replaced so it must have been very minor. Its priced $2000 below the next cheapest in the country because I hate sitting on things, not because of the accident. I have a very hard time moving anything priced over $10,000 for some reason.

My current E320 driver had an accident on the history report. The left rear quarter was painted and the door blended to match. They were able to save the rear quarter, so no big deal there. The accident I had 2 hours after purchasing it was much worse and it was never reported... no accident on the history report.

My SL had a fender replaced due to a parking lot hit, and a door repainted for the same reason. Doubt that's on the history report too.

You can argue that a car worth less because it shows an accident on the history report, but its laughable to avoid 10+ year old cars because of a reported accident. There's a good chance in its lifetime something has happened to it. Even your E300 with over the top, immaculate care had a run in with the garage, if I recall correctly.

Its very easy to look at the frame in the front of a ML to see if its been twisted and put back together. Same with the core supports and fender wells. You can do this kind of serious damage without a police report, and it will remain an accident free car.

Keep in mind it appears we are working with a lower budget. I hate to see someone avoid the right car of the wrong reason, or take too much stock in a overhyped report.

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1985 500SL Euro w/ AMG bits 130k
1984 300SD Turbodiesel 192k
1980 240D Stick China 188k
2001 CLK55 AMG 101k
2007 S600 Biturbo 149k Overheated Project, IT'S ALIVE!!!

Yes, my E300 did have an accident. The PDR dent-repair fixing of it was subbed out by my indy, so I have no idea whether it made it to Carfax. If it did? Fine. Them's the breaks. Were I shopping ANY car with a Carfax history of accident/wreck, IF I still wanted the car, I would expect it priced way under what a non-accident Carfax would sell for. In my case, I gave the car away, so there was no Qs or scrutiny.

My example (IIRC) was of an 18K miled, 2011 E350 Bluetec sedan, for $32K from a firm named; 'OFF LEASE ONLY' in Florida, on AutoTrader. The red flag of a Carfax accident reported, made me instantly dismiss it from consideration. The problem is, that if I didn't see the damage done to the car - ANY accident reported to Carfax car - then forgive me, but I don't believe what any stranger or dealer is telling me about the car's extent of damage. Their incentive to sell me the car is so great, that what they are telling me cannot be relied on as the truth.

FWIW, if you'll keep any of those cars enough years in the sun and salt, you'll notice a breakdown of color and resistance to road chemicals with steady use. A repainted, or new, repainted fender is not as durable as the factory fender and paint. At least that was our experience with a '77 240D that had it's lft frnt fender replaced and repainted after an 18-wheeler trailer wiped it out at some diesel pumps damaging it.

I've had a 1999 ML320 owned since new. Overall it's a very good mid size SUV. Vehicle has 174K miles on it.

Over the last couple of weeks I have had to do some work on it. If I were not able to get parts at wholesale from dealer and do work myself the vehicle would probably not worth fixing.

New water pump, new idler pulley, new tensioner with pulley, new belt, new radiator hoses, new battery, new intake manifold, 2 new diverter valves, new egr valve, new motor mounts.

Vehicle sounds and drives like new.

If you get an ML just remember they are like anything else, when they get used they will eventually have parts wear out.

You gave the car away? Wow, I guess the hyperbole filled ads when you were trying to peddle it for 15 large with no mention of above mentioned accident were just for ****s and grins right?

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"I was a dirty bird, Carol's not grungey - she's *****in" John Milner....American Graffiti

Hmmm...

Those ML series were consistently ranked among the worst Mercedes for reliability in consumer reports annual used car reliability surveys. Two friends had multiple problems with theirs (a '99 ML 320 and '00 ML 430) including harmonic balancers, auto-locks, power-steering cooler hoses, O2 sensors, Cat-converters breaking off and finally, total failure of the ABS-Stability control system. RUN AWAY!

Happy Motoring, Mark

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DrDKW