Tell us about your Mercedes - whats your favorite/least favorite things about it? - PeachParts Mercedes-Benz Forum

skybound · #36 03-13-2008, 02:53 AM

I currently own 2 Mercedes, a 1994 E320 and 1999 SL500.

The E320 Likes:
1. Very solid and great handling car.
2. Very quiet ride.
3. Great power and acceleration.
4. Excellent paint finish, it still looks new even after 14 years.
5. The climate control sytem.
6. The quality of the interior.

The E320 dislikes:
1. The crappy original wiring harness that cost me $860 to replace.
2. The poor design of the head gasket (which I just changed)
3. The crappy plastic tanks on the radiator that break at the water outlet neck (yes I changed the radiator too.)

Now for the 1999 SL500

Likes:
1. Wow, a fun car to drive, like a dream (yes a dream come true for me)
2. A great looking car.
3. Lots of power.
4. Qualitly interior and exterior.
5. The stereo sounds great.
6. The wind blocker when the top is down, almost like you are not in a convertible.
7. More safety features than you can think of.

Dislikes:
1. The rear plastic window that has a small crack.
2. The center console compartment that is tough to open.
3. The crappy (non-xenon) headlights, I think these are the worst headlights I have ever encountered on any car.
Overall though, my SL500 is one great car.

Even though Mercedes is definitely exspensive to maintain, I have done all repairs myself with the help of a good friend who happens to be a mechanic. Even though many prefer the older (pre-chrysler/benz) models I have to say maintenance wise my SL500 has been a really good car with no surprises other than failure of the speakers in the doors. I have a 1998 Ranger with 210K and no major repairs at all (other than brakes, shocks, belts, hoses, and belt tensioner all parts are orignal). Even though reliability wise the Mercedes is not as reliable as my Ford, it in no was compares in comfort, style, interior quality or handling as either of my 2 Benz's, after driving the Ford and gettin in to the either of the Benz's my first thought are always "Wow this feels so much better than my Ford".
I thinks of it like this, anything of quality costs more money than you would prefer to spend and takes money to maintain as well. If you want a low maintenance and low frills buy a Ford Ranger or a Toyota, if you want a truly luxurious machine and that is a true pleasure to drive, buy a Benz.