I'm considering buying a 2001 E320 Wagon. It starts fine, but the cabin fans cut off, and ABS / ESP malfunction lights come on *BUT* if you wiggle / nudge the key the fans come back on.

I test drove the car and while driving the fans stopped working and the cruise control would not work. I wiggled / nudged the key and the fans started working again as did the cruise control ... but a few miles down the road the fans cut off again (happened 2-3 times in 40 miles). I had to fiddle around with the key while driving (not exactly safe) to get things to come back on.

The key has a new battery.

What is the most likely cause / remedy for this?

Cost to fix?

My mechanic said the ignition switch likely needs to be replaced, that it's a dealer only service, and it's in the $900-$1000 ballpark - is that correct?

The seller says he suspects it's probably just that some connection needs to be cleaned.

Thanks so much for any / all help!

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Current Vehicles: 2001 Mercedes E320 Wagon | 1979 Mercedes 220D | 1995 Volvo 850 Turbo Wagon | 1993 Volvo 240 Wagon

Your mechanic is accurate.

Thanks so much BWhitmore.

I really like the car and I want to buy it, but I can't afford the purchase price plus a $1,000 repair. Is there any chance this could be another issue / cheaper fix?

It has 265,000 mile on it, and it's throwing all of these codes:
https://www.dropbox.com/s/0mksp6p2djyo7r3/MB%20E320%20Codes.jpg

My mechanic says many of these may be related to the intermittent power being received by the ignition switch. He feels certain all of the cylinder misfires would be resolved by changing the spark plugs.

The mechanic also said that there is a chance that, even after changing the ignition switch out, some of those codes ABS, CAN etc. may be ECU related and cost significant $$ to resolve. Does all of that sound correct too?

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Current Vehicles: 2001 Mercedes E320 Wagon | 1979 Mercedes 220D | 1995 Volvo 850 Turbo Wagon | 1993 Volvo 240 Wagon

Your mechanic is giving you good information. One lesson I have learned is when a seller of a car says " it is a simple fix" , why didn't the seller make the simple fix before attempting to sell the car?

The key switch module has gone bad and can only be changed from MB, the other bit on it is that is a "theft deterent part" meaning you have to first prove your ownership then pay in full before the part is shipped.

It is then joined to the car forever.

The misfire codes can be simple plugs to blocked cats or even a bad MAF sensor.

This car looks like its one of "Mercedes are good for 1 million miles without maintenance" cars.

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2012 BMW X5 (Beef + Granite suspension model)

1995 E300D - The original humming machine (consumed by Flood 2017)
2000 E320 - The evolution (consumed by flood 2017)