I hardly if ever lower the rear windows ... but ... I took my dog for a drive (yes I am a lazy old man) ... and figured she'd like the rear windows down ... and crunch, gnash, crash ... the rear left window would not go back up. Darn it .. I found a great DIY pictorial at http://www.benzworld.org/forums/w210-e-class/1226700-diy-pictorial-window-regulator-replacement.html

Then I called Phil and made sure I was ordering the right regulator ... got the aftermarket part for about $50 and paid for next day air ... ordered it at 2PM yesterday and got the part today at 10 AM ... great service. The OEM part from another supplier was more than twice as much ... and I just could see paying $127 for a frame, some wire and three sprockets.

Inspite of my stupidity (I riveted before attaching the slider and had to cut out the new rivets and start over) and my clumsiness ... I got the new part in by 2PM today. I was surprised at the cheapness of the OEM window regulator that failed, you would think MB would use better parts. Yes .. I ruined my crummy old rivet gun and had to buy a new one .. yes ... I had to make two runs to Home Depot ... to buy the new rivet gun ... and then the 3/16 in rivets cause I ran out of the rivets I ordered with the new regulator... BUT .. I got a job done! For a retired old guy ... the sense of accomplishment is a big deal! Total cost about $120 and about 6 hours labor ...a less clumsy guy could do it in 2 hours without any problem at all.

I've had a rash of problems. Five years ago the rear view mirror just felll apart ... literally split in two. I fixed it myself after learning how much MB wanted for a replacementt. Three years ago the MAF died ... easy fix but pricey. A couple of years ago the SRS light came on ... and the crash sensors had to be replaced. I went to the dealer for that ... they charged me $840 for two little black boxes and in the process blew three dash lights ... which I made them fix since they broke them. Oh BTW ... the dealer's mechanic left me his cigarrete ashes, part of his lunch and the old parts rattling around in the footwell for my enjoyment. After that lesson-learned I found a local MB mechanic and would never go back to the dealer ... for anything.

Last year the seat controls on the driver's side died ... I had that replaced by a great local MB mechanic that used to work for the local dealership.

Last month I had to have the instrument stalk replaced ... I had it done by the same local MB mechanic because I was recuperating from an illness - cost me $340.

There are some other little things that don't work like they did when the car was young, but I live with it. And ... I had a bad repaint when I bashed the front end into a post ... clumsiness again. The clear coat is peeling off the front bumper ... but I have come to terms on that ... it is what it is, life is not perfect.

A couple of weeks back I noticed a small oil leak ... there was a small bit of oil under the engine - mid motor, right side. I had the head gasket replaced under the extended warranty about 7 years ago ... and they typically do not releak in the 104 engines. But .. the oil is coming from somewhere. I've decided to let it leak ... and see how it goes. I have a spare valve cover gasket ... maybe I'll work myself up and change it ... or maybe not.

I figure the car has 69,000 easy miles now ... and its 13 years old ... gonna have some leaks and some problems. I drive it less and less and it barely gets 3000 miles a year nowadays. I drive my Miata most of the time if its not raining ... and I usually just jump on a 150cc scooter for short hops ... so ... yes, I wish the old Benz would have held up better ... but its still better than any US car I ever owned ... but not as good as the japanese cars I've owned. Oh well ... and so it goes ...when and if the old Benz dies ... I'll go buy a V6 Hyundai Sonata ... if it is anywhere as good (reliable, low maintenance, high quality) as the 2005 Hyundai Tucson that replaced my wife's 1998 ML320 ... I'll be a happy old man.