gut46

Hi,

So I won't bore you the details but more or less I have a 2003 Mercedes Benz C230 Coupe which has 58k miles on it. Recently, I turned it on and I had a clunking sound that also misfired 2 and 4 and i brought it in to a mercedes mechanic. He says while he was diagnoising it, something let go and it gave out and everythiing in the engine kinda blew, and I need a new engine, the work on that is gonna be $7,000. I owe $8,000. The car is has a trade in of about $9,000 if it's fixed? What am i suppose to do? fix it then trade it? Just pay off the balance i owe and call the whole thing a loss? what can I do??!!! Is my car worth anything now? Does anyone want it? It doesn't run so what can i do with it?

mleskovar

Get a second opinion from an independent MB mechanic. Maybe put a motor in from a wrecked car?

C230 Sport Coup

Well I can think of a couple things, though not 'legal'.
Damn those pesky legalities!

holycaoAMG

Well, depending on the situation; how i see it is if you owe $8,000 and it costs $7,000 to fix it, its gonna be a $15,000 loss, but if you sell it for the est. $9,000 that leaves you with a loss of only $6,000. That is better than paying off the pos car for $8,000.

advans

I think you should find a used engine, there are a lot floating around! maybe find a used M112k engine!

clkwork

If you don't want to fix it try to find someone that would buy it as-is for 5-6k. Some DIY types jump on these projects.

valexv

i want parts off it....

look for used engine, gl

amanonfire

I was in this same situation. Car was worth $12K, used engine installed was $7K. I had ~80K miles on mine when I blew a hole in a piston.

I sucked it up and paid for the engine and have decided to drive the car into the ground to recoup the expense. The used engine had 25K miles on it, and included most parts (SC, TB, exhaust manifold/cat, ...).

If you consider that you'll get all your fluids flushed (oil, coolant), the SC can need maintenance at 100K miles ($300 parts, 4 hrs labor), the cat can need replacing at 100K miles ($1000 + 1 hr labor), ... you're basically paying for $2-3K of maintenance ahead of time and getting a few more years out of your car. Also, if you had the extended warranty, it costs $3K, so you're only out of pocket $4K.

So its more like a $4-5K expense... yet still sucks.

The downside if you'll have to swap in another M271... otherwise you may be out a lot in changing other parts (ECU, ...) to swap in a different engine.

alanchan

holy ****... this is really scary
I thought MB are world class auto maker and their cars should be as reliable as possible.
This will speed up my trade in process.
**** man, sorry to hear that.
good luck.

amanonfire

MB's used to be bullet-proof mechanically, the W203, and inparticular the M271 has been a real let down. I share your disappointment, I bought an MB expecting electrical problems, not mechanical.

I wouldn't touch a M271 for any price, its unfortunate I'm stuck with one and a very low resale market.

SeaCoupe

Okay, this post is beyond ridiculous....like k?

Ummm so i wuz like driving n me heard like a bing boom (lulz)...

alanchan

hey I have the M111 engine, 2002 C-class
is it worst than M271?

amanonfire

There's only a few things wrong with the M111, the most notable is:
leaking cam sensors

Aside from that, the 2002 had fuel pump problems, the panoramic roof would break if not lubed, bushings/endlinks were redesigned 3 times before getting them right, and they weren't rust proofed properly.

I'd keep a 2002, and wouldn't touch a 2003-2005.

alanchan

thank GOD, hope the M111 will last another 8 months without problem.

Glyn M Ruck

The M111 might be a bit crude but it's mechanically tough.

Regarding the original post. It "blew while being diagnosed" is simply not good enough. What is wrong with the engine? Cam chain let go? Dumbass turned the engine backwards?? Find this out first & cost of repair - otherwise you might only need a sub assembly or head which you can get from a breakers yard. Owing what you do you have to fix the thing even if you choose to sell it thereafter. My advice, subject to what "blew" is find an economical fix. You can't do this until you know what's wrong.