Slimklim

Hey There Merc Fans,

First of all I'm sure my questions could be easily answered by searching through the forums so I apologize for creating another thread full of basic questions, but I've stumbled across a car I'm considering buying much earlier than I expected to, and I was hoping some Merc experts could give me the short & skinny before I get myself in too deep. I can't really dedicate the entire day to crawling through the archives but I might jump on this car soon.


TL;DR: Considering swapping '09 GTI for '04 E500 4matic wagon with 105k miles. Not adverse to occasional wrenching but I don't want it to bleed me to death financially or make me live in the garage. What do?

Okay here's the deal. I'm currently daily driving a '09 VW GTI 2-door. I love the scrappy little thing, but I've since gotten a ~70lb dog that rides with me 4-5 times a week, and getting her loaded into the back of it is kind of a pain. I also have a '95 M3 project I'm planning on doing a headgasket replacement on this spring.

I have always had a thing for the W211, a buddy of mine used to have an E55 sedan that was just a mind blowing car, and I actually briefly considered an E500 when I was shopping for the VW.

Lately I've been dreaming that this fall I might get rid of the VW, swap it out for an E500 wagon, and do a few creature comfort/cosmetic modifications to make it my own. I'd have an extremely comfortable, powerful, practical daily driver that I could also take to a car meet and show off on the weekends.

So I'm cruising the web yesterday entertaining this dream, and I'll be damned if I don't find an '04 E500 4matic Wagon with 105,000 miles, in my favorite color combination, sitting on the lot where a good friend of mine sells cars for a solid price.

It's a consignment type sales lot, so I could easily pick this thing up and leave the VW with them to sell. However, I don't know Mercedes like I know BMW and VW, and my only hesitation is getting myself in over my head. I don't mind spinning some wrenches or forking out for the occasional repair if it means I get to have a unique and interesting car, but I also don't want my daily driver to steal ALL of my time and money away from my "project car."
Ok, here are some of my specific questions.

1.) What are the most common issues with E500s?
The general consensus I've heard is the engine and transmission and 4matic systems are "pretty solid" so long as they've been properly maintained. What you might have issues with is the airmatic suspension and the SBC brakes.
And yes, I will have a PPI done before I purchase the car to see if it has any secrets.

2.) In my experience in the BMW world, there's the $3,000 OEM repair option, and almost always a $199 workaround fix. For instance, on an old E39 540i we had, the ABS/Traction Control module fried, a new unit was several grand but I sent the bad one out to have it rebuilt for a couple hundred bucks. Are there similar tricks like that for the airmatic / SBC / other common fixes?

3.) My friend's company sells warranties through AUL. I'm usually a "bank the money and use it for repairs if something happens" kinda guy instead of buying a warranty, but with the potential cost of airmatic/SBC issues I'm wondering if a 12 or 24 mo extended warranty might be worth the additional cost. He's going to get me a quote later today, but I'd love to hear you guys weigh in.

4.) What's the most OEM looking head unit upgrade? I'd like to bring it into this decade but I don't like aftermarket head units that look out of place. Also as a shorter term solution, what's the cheapest way to plug an iphone into these cars? It has the HK Audio system if that's important.

5.)It seems pretty common to lower the airmatic suspension. I've seen people talking about lowering modules and lowering links. The module seems more expensive. Is one option better than the other? Does lowering it cause additional stress on the air struts?

Disclaimer: I have no desire to slam the car, just to eliminate the fender gap. I'd like to retain functionality of the ride height control and have a good amount of ground clearance at the highest setting, but a nice aggressive stance with minimal fender gap above the tire in the lowest setting.

6.) What are your most recommended mods and upgrades?Aside from the lowering links and head unit, the only things on my wish list are a set of 18" AMG wheels, mild window tint, a good paint detail, and maybe, just maybe, a set of electronic exhaust cutouts behind the first resonator, just because I have always wanted a car with a "loud switch."

Just for fun, this is what I'm envisioning.



7.) What do you wish you could tell yourself the day before you bought your Mercedes? That could be today for me.

8.) Should I?



I'm picking through the CarFax looking for major items now.

3/13 "Tire Replaced", I hope that means a whole set, because it looks like the last set it got was in 2007. I'll have to follow up on that.

10/12 "Hydraulic control unit replaced," along with "brake check" and fluid flush. Could that be the SBC unit?

1/11 Battery replaced, will probably need one soon

Front struts show up twice in 2008, possibly an issue with the airmatic? or maybe the customer just wanted to do one at a time.

Plutoe

I am not clear on points 1 thru 6 could you possible rephrase or clarify!!

Shadow5501

My $.01 -

1. Airmatic and SBC. Check with Arnott to insure they support this car. If so, you have an aftermarket solution for the airmatic struts. SBC, you are just going to have to suck it up and fix it if it breaks. Other common things are simple, e.g. resealing valve covers, replacing squeaky a/c blower motor, etc.

2. Not so much.

3. I would be surprised if you could warranty an 11-12 year old car. Self insuring makes the most sense if you can do some work yourself.

4. Dunno, I am OK with stock.

5. I like the suspension to actually suspend the car, so leave all mine at stock ride height.

2MERKS

YO! Your everywhere with what your trying to achieve? If your wallet can afford, then it's simple, if not then it's pretty simple. Beating yourself up will make your decision more harder.
"You can't say "Mercedes Benz" unless you have driven one!!