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Mercedes-Benz E-Class Sedans
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Comments
Car had only 14K mi. and was a local car sold originally by the MB dealer. This car also had the SPORT pkg. which was a $4100 extra when new.
Also dealer had new Michelin Pilots mounted on the 17" wheels.
To make a long story short the car listed for $54000 new.
Everything taken into consideration I feel that the price was good when all the above includes 5 1/2 yrs of warranty. There is not a dent or scratch on the black/black. Of course the E2 pkg was on it as well as CD changer.
Summing it all up: This is the EXACT car I was looking for. Color,equipment,& spt pkg.
By the way this is my 17th MB.
I'm extremely envious of greasykid1 because I'm looking for nearly the same car (except w/o the sport option) and most dealers around here for the last month haven't had anything even close to the one he bought. They have some 2000's w/50K+ miles and they have some 2002's for well over the $40K mark even with 35K miles!! Hell it took me 4 months to find my used 96, so I guess I'll have to go through this search again..! Rats!
Or... maybe I should move to NC.. I've wanted to move to NC or SC anyway!!
Also I did a lot of research on E Bay for preowned 320. I zeroed in on the "BUT IT NOW" prices because this is the price that a dealer would take--not a bid. Got a pretty good idea what similar cars were selling for. Also used this as a bagaining chip when I negotiated for price.
I am in NC & my dealer had several E320's on his lot---Preowned.
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/automobiles/index.html?adxnnl=1&- adxnnlx=1078584454-kK1na3IuK0MEhdwdi/lVcQ
http://www.nytimes.com/pages/automobiles/index.html?adxnnl=1&- adxnnlx=1078584454-kK1na3IuK0MEhdwdi/lVcQ
Also, what's the reliability hit on a 4matic?
Thanks for any advice/help!
BTW I also drive a new E500 yesterday. I found the steering too light for my tastes same with new S class. Given the depreciation that the 210's have taken I like them better.
Mark
Mark156
Wife got it to a driveway, had it towed to the dealer. After 2 days they pronouced it fixed, the problem was:
Running 93 octane fuel lead to too much gas being unburned by poor combustion. unburned gas went into crankcase adding to level trigger light. Low temperatures(under 40) prevent 93 octane fuel from burning efficiently, clogging injectors--or so the story went.
Anyway, the wife showed up to pick it up and the check engine light promptly came on--so much for the fix. They kept the car and gave us a ML 350.
The car has 64K on it and has been a good car to drive except an A/C system which needed 4 fixes to get right and numerous electrical failures--Fuel tank sending unit, oil level sensor, fuel pump to name a few.
Would appreciate your views on the perils of using 93 octane gas in the winter.
OBTW, anybody have a feel for the cost for a conplete brake job--rotors and pads?
Thanks.
I suggest that you ask for a regional supervisor to have a look-see on your car.
Best Regards,
Shipo
The expalanation goes that unburned gas kept getting fed into the converter which eventually cooked it. Not sure if both are gone but atleast one is done; can you imagine what that would have cost out of warranty?
The service guy left a length description on my voicmail on how the octane additive screwed things up--I will type it out on the site after I transcibe it. I'm still stunned by the explanation; if gas was truely getting buy the ring and values to the point of diluting the oil and plugging the converter, you'd think my gas mileage would be down--it's not, 27-29 highway during the winter.
Also, doesn't the oil sensor have some way of determining the quality of the oil and letting you know it's time to change the oil?
Finally, with all this going on and the potential for a big out of warranty repair bill lurking with the next call from the service advisor, I checked in peddling the car either in trade or an outright sale to an MB dealer. A Honda and an MB dealer both offered about $18K; the sticker was $54k 4 years ago and the car is in very nice shape. I must have laughed out loud when i heard the number because the Honda guy became very quiet. If this number holds up, it looks like I'll be driving this puppy until the motor goes.
when I asked what I could do to help avoid this, the service guy said to use 87 octane gas when the temp was under 40F and 92 octane when above. I didn't get into the question of was this the low temp or high temp of the day:)
The supposed issue is that lower temperatures prevent the high octane gas from atomizing correctly, letting gas go unburned and getting into the oil and converter.
I guess that could be possible but if this were the case, wouldn't this be widespread and MB would issue a technical bulletin on this? I asked and MB has not issued a TB on this problem.
I keep getting the feeling that this isn't the last time this problem will come up.
I have no experience with other MB dealers so I have nothing to compare them to.
Since I purchased the car there and we're out of warranty, I don't have much leverage with the dealer other than hoping they'll do the right thing to avoid loosing a customer.
Were there any newspaper articles about this?
Doing a google search on 'spongy substance in gas tanks' didn't produce any thing like what your dealer told you.
Sorry, but this sounds like a new high in the art of dealer baloney.
The car was to be delivered today but my wife got a call late in the day saying it was misfiring so they were going to hold on it it for a bit longer.
This problem seems to be taking on a life of itself; it seems clear that the dealer can't diagnose the problem and their solution reveals just how little they know.
The heck of it is, I'm not sure where to go with this. I've lost faith in the dealer and I don't have anyone else to take the car to. It doesn't sound like MBUSA would be of any help but I'll try them if we hit a wall on the fix. The dealership owner is the final guy I will talk to on this if they mechanics can't figure it out.
I don't want to sell the car to a private buyer because I don't want an irrate stranger coming after me. That $18K offer from the Honda dealer is sounding better all the time.
Keep in mind too that my Lexus stickered for close to $8k more than my E.
http://www.bomengen.com/gm/sts/STS_1_web.jpg
http://www.bomengen.com/gm/sts/STS_2_web.jpg
http://www.bomengen.com/gm/sts/STS_4_web.jpg
http://www.bomengen.com/gm/sts/STS_3_web.jpg
http://www.bomengen.com/gm/sts/STS_6_web.jpg
Supposedly BMW ED prices are not negotiable, but thanks to info from www.eurobuyers.com, I was able to find dealers willing to go as low as $1,200 over the ED invoice (another $2-3k below the standard ED full price). Unfortunately, I'm not very interested in the 5 series redesign and am interested in the new E320 CDI.
Now I may be in the market for my first new MB, the lease is about up on my 01 X5 and I'm thinking about a new E Class diesel - anyone here interested in the new E Class CDI?
If you feel the overriding need to force your opinion on others, you can go over to the Sedans, Comparisons - Sedan vs. Sedan and start your own discussion called something like "The New Cadillac STS vs. THE WORLD"
Best Regards,
Shipo
I'm glad to see that you did create a discussion on the Comparisons board which is there specifically for that purpose. (I left you a message there just now.)
With this, let's drop the personal comments. We're here to talk about the E-Class and not each other.
Thanks.
I have never been as much of a fan of the sporting side of the E class (i.e. E430/500 or E55), being more of a fan of the (former) 5-series with a manual transmission. But if I ever wanted to justify a $50k sedan on financial prudence, teh E320 CDI is probably as good as it gets.
I have confirmed that the car is available through European Delivery at 7% off MSRP.
With only 6,000 of these coming to the States how many do we think will be here with less than $8000 - $10,000 in options
He indicated that this vehicle would list for roughly $51,500 as a E320 gas. In the past (1998/99), the E300 TD was about $2k less than the E320 gas. I'd be happy if the new one was even $1k less.
I should know more in 7-10 days. I've already tentatively put my name on a late April order date for late July pick up in Germany. The car I would want would list at roughly $54.5k in gas version (premium package, upgraded leather (required by premium), xenon lights & metallic paint).
P.S. Everyone: My dealer also sells Acuras, and when asked, does not think the Mercedes DVD navigation system is even worth the relatively inexpensive $1,200 it lists for. Claims it is difficult to use, has too small of a screen and is three+ generations behind the 8" screen, completely voice activated system in the new TL. Comments please.
Footie, without the premium package (bagging nav system), and going instead with just a sunroof, entertainment package, xenons and metallic, I think I may be able to get the price under $50k via the 7% European delivery discount.
P.S. footie: I did manage to find prices on Mercedes European website that show the base price of the E320CDI is the equivalent of about $1,200 less than the E320 gas. We'll see if that holds true for the US version.
Putting them next to each other illustrates that Cadillac is really not ‘inferior’. And judging from the XLR’s pricing, I do not think the STS will be very far off from the E in price.
That being said, MB obviously has a huge head start in this market in terms of established reputation, but in 10 years, that might not be the case if Cadillac and Lexus maintain their momentum. As it is Cadillac is ranked higher in quality than either MB or BMW, and that is a good start.
I bought an 03 Jetta TDI (Diesel) wagon last year as a kind of beater mainly to see what a modern diesel is like to live with on a daily basis. Bottom line this little TDI has turned me into a huge fan of diesels. Now I'm ready to ditch my X5 for an E Class diesel - preferably a wagon.
I am a bit biased towards the E320 CDI only because it carries the reputation of past Mercedes diesels that seem to last forever. I'm sure the E500 would be more sporting, but if it's sport I'm going after, I'd go with a 545i 6-speed over the E500, even in spite of my dislike for the new 5-series aesthetics.
My Jetta diesel wagon feels like it has a V6 under the hood in everyday driving, all that low end torque is amazing - and it's an automatic. It's an increadable long distance cruiser as well, it's capable of comfortably cruising at 100 and returns close to 40 MPG in everyday, mostly in-town driving.