I recently purchased a 1989 300E with 101K miles. About a week ago i started hearing a little clicking sound coming from the car. I thought the sound was coming from the front of the car but then realized it was coming from the back. I went out yesterday and noticed the back left rim had a brownish rust like stain around the openings. The sound kind of matches the the speed when driving (the faster i go the faster the clicking). Also, when backing up there's a slight knock sound that only happens once and sometimes when making a left turn.

I took the car to the shop today. The mechanic said it looks and sounds like the emergency brake. also, he mentioned i shouldnt drive it until its fixed. Wants to charge $157 to put it on the lift and look at it?

What do you guys think?

Find another garage to start with. At one hundred and fifty plus just to have a look I doubt you would want this persons final repair bill. It would take a good mechanic less than five minutes to examine this issue. He has spotted you as a walking mark or chicken to pluck.

I doubt it is the emergency brake but could be. More likely a cv joint on the way out. Or a destroyed rear wheel bearing perhaps. The bearing is less likely by the way.

Did you question the total indicated milage before purchasing this car? The stain you see has nothing to do with the emergency brake I believe as well. The car should be repaired sooner than later. If the cv joint comes apart you will need a tow truck.

Once he mentioned 157$ to look at the car i had already decided i wansnt going back there.

What do you mean when asking if i questioned the total indicated mileage before purchasing the car?

Whats an acceptable price for a mechanic to diagnose the issue?

The mercedes benz dealership only charges $120 for the first hour. And all the starbucks you can drink. Even a loaner if you ask for it.


Take it to the dealer for an oil change, and if its the first time you bring it there, they are obligated to inspect the car front to back.

Some of their diagosis are just bogus, but they are really thorough.

__________________
Eugene

10 E63 AMG
93 300te 4matic
07 BMW X3
14 Ford F-150 Fx2

Benji, how many wheels does this car have?

Seems a little low milage wise for the problem you describe other than a defective rear cv boot leaking out the lubricant. I never ever trust the odometers on mercedes benz.

Take you body serial number to any dealer and ask for a printout. This details anytime the car was in the mercedes dealers service department anywhere. This should be free but ask first.

Just installing new additional lubricant will do sometimes. Particuarily if yours is gone. You remove the clamp on the inside of the boot and using something like a turkey baster squirt some heavy 80-90 weight oil in. Install a new screw clamp and try it out. The boot that protects the cv joint must be intact. They can split with age letting the lubricant run out.

The printout also lets you know what services where preformed in the mercedes dealer network since new. Plus the milage at those times. .

Many odometers are tampered with to retain resale value. The practice is less now but still out there. It is more important when the car is newer of course to display low milage.

Certainly your odometer could be accurate. It is just nice to know it is. If it turns out you need a rear axle side there is no real issue with sourcing it at a junkyard.

Cars are not scrapped because a cv joint has gone bad and new yours is pretty expensive. I doubt there are any chinese aftermarket ones made for your car either. They are cheap but best avoided anyways. They are available for certain mercedes up till 1985 at least.

How many nuts does your mom have?

#ThatIsAll

***

Thanks, I will check them out tomorrow.

***

Thanks for responding Barry. I'll be heading to the dealership tomorrow will get this printout while I'm there. Really appreciate it.

I want to know how much he wants to charge you to take the lift back DOWN, afterwards.

__________________
1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

I had the same year w124 300E. I spent a couple of grand fixing it up and it was my daily driver until my teenager took it away from me. It served me well then it served her well. Later I gave it to a grad student from the Czech Republic, who could not have been happier to receive a car with over 300K. A great ride and dependable as anything I ever owned. Ran fast and tight on the interstate, too!