OMG, now I'm frightened
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Newbie
Joined: Jan 2003
Posts: 11
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From: Florida
84 500 SEC
OMG, now I'm frightened
I drive a 84 500 SEC, I thought it was time for a newer car and have been looking into the C36 and C43, I think I missed out on a 98 C43 with 82k miles (bit high, thats what scared me) for 23k.
Anyway you've all just frightened me to death. I've just read all the problems they have down below? Are these cars that bad?, my 84 gives me no trouble at all, I'd be buying a mid 90's car with a car payment expecting not to put much money in at all, never mind big money? Are there problems with the C43 also?
Now I'm really confused as what to do. I have a 88 944 Turbo S also that gives me no problems either, I can keep telling myself the 84 wont go on forever, but maybe it will compared to the newer ones?
Dont make me buy a Beemer now
Anyway you've all just frightened me to death. I've just read all the problems they have down below? Are these cars that bad?, my 84 gives me no trouble at all, I'd be buying a mid 90's car with a car payment expecting not to put much money in at all, never mind big money? Are there problems with the C43 also?
Now I'm really confused as what to do. I have a 88 944 Turbo S also that gives me no problems either, I can keep telling myself the 84 wont go on forever, but maybe it will compared to the newer ones?
Dont make me buy a Beemer now
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From: San Francisco, CA
1996 C36 AMG, 1995 Volvo 850 Turbowagon
honestly...our 96 c36 doesn't have that many problems...actually, there has only been one. but that's our fault. we don't drive it much...maybe once eery two weeks. only got 23k miles on it.
the only problem was the inside of the fuel tank was a little messed up (i forgot whether it was the fuel level sensors corroded or something else). what happened was since we didn't drive it much, the fuel must've either gone "stale" and some stuff accumulated at the bottom of the tank or it was sitting on a fairly empty tank too long and some moisture seeped in and corroded stuff...
if u get c36, go for 97, has 5 speed auto instead of 4 speed.
if u prefer v8, go for c43
the only problem was the inside of the fuel tank was a little messed up (i forgot whether it was the fuel level sensors corroded or something else). what happened was since we didn't drive it much, the fuel must've either gone "stale" and some stuff accumulated at the bottom of the tank or it was sitting on a fairly empty tank too long and some moisture seeped in and corroded stuff...
if u get c36, go for 97, has 5 speed auto instead of 4 speed.
if u prefer v8, go for c43
Thread Starter
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Joined: Jan 2003
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From: Florida
84 500 SEC
well with 23k
miles I would expect a car that cost over $50k wouldnt have any problems with it at all.
It doesnt seem to be a case of **** owners either being picky, wiring harness corrosion, common on volvos ( i thought they'd got to the bottom of those problems in the late 80's) and differential leaks etc are pretty big problems to me.
Standards havent gone downhill that much since the merger have they?
I see people have some big money cars on here and I guess money, or value for money isnt too much of a concern to some over the big HP draws and a AMG badge? But if i'm gonna buy a Mercedes for 25- 35k even used I'd expect it to go for quite a while without the big problems I read about below. My 84 is solid as a rock, power, performance and comfort, I dunno, I guess it might be me, stuck in the 80's? Are they making cars that break easier now?
It doesnt seem to be a case of **** owners either being picky, wiring harness corrosion, common on volvos ( i thought they'd got to the bottom of those problems in the late 80's) and differential leaks etc are pretty big problems to me.
Standards havent gone downhill that much since the merger have they?
I see people have some big money cars on here and I guess money, or value for money isnt too much of a concern to some over the big HP draws and a AMG badge? But if i'm gonna buy a Mercedes for 25- 35k even used I'd expect it to go for quite a while without the big problems I read about below. My 84 is solid as a rock, power, performance and comfort, I dunno, I guess it might be me, stuck in the 80's? Are they making cars that break easier now?
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Joined: Dec 2002
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From: Columbia,SC
2017 GLE 350 Wifey, 2005 C55 AMG
I bought my 43 with30,000 mi onit and put 14000 in less than a year. 90% city miles and havent had any problem yet ,still runnin like a champ. Shreds tires though need new ones badly, but that just excuse to get rims!!! Every vechicle is bound to have unforseen problems at some point in its lifetime, its just a matter of how you manage the vehicle and how you drive it. Whether you lay heaters at every light or you drive it once every 2 weeks you eventually will put money into it
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From: San Francisco, CA
1996 C36 AMG, 1995 Volvo 850 Turbowagon
no..the w202 amg car was essentially built b4 the merger with chrysler, so there shouldn't be much connection. it's still german engineering. glad u had ur 500sec for almost 20 years. we had a 77 300 diesel (no turbo) that lasted forever. the paint was thick as hell and stood up well against time (thank you mercury) even tho it was milk chocolate brown. sold it to a guy just a few years back who took it to the country-side and put in a new mb engine. still running. those things were awesome, trucks,cars, motorcycles, people would run into us and nothing happened due to the fat shock absorbers in the bumpers. only problem was a screaming timing belt and one ac malfunction (think it was refrigerant/coolant ran out).
new cars have a bunch of sensors and technical stuff older cars simply didn't have. more things equals more things to break. but hey, it's been pretty good.
from the sound of it, u take fairly decent care of ur cars. so u shouldn't have to worry too much. just make sure u have the car checked urself by a separate dealer or indy shop.
new cars have a bunch of sensors and technical stuff older cars simply didn't have. more things equals more things to break. but hey, it's been pretty good.
from the sound of it, u take fairly decent care of ur cars. so u shouldn't have to worry too much. just make sure u have the car checked urself by a separate dealer or indy shop.
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From: Florida
84 500 SEC
I understand what you're saying about taking care of a car etc thats common sense, I've actually done very little to mine because basically I haven't had to. It's just that to me personally, when I think of Mercedes, it means the reliabilty of the Japanese cars plus added performance and longevityof the car and the resale. The type of car that doesn't $500 you to death cos you have payed that little bit extra.
I understand sensors here and there flickering on and off half the time and being wrong, but things like Timing chain, wiring harness, head gasket, warped cylinder head, ball joints, tie rod ends, engine/tranny mounts dont go bad for a long time on a Mercedes, no matter how hard you drive them(unless you are totally stupid and run with no oil or coolant!). I'm not ******* the brand as you know I have one, maybe the incidents below are isolated, I know a Mercedes can take hard driving. Maybe their cars are beat to death as until today in doing my research I've only read good things in reviews but its good to read what actual owners think. If they need to be babied then its good to know. The people below are not disgruntled owners with a vendetta it seems and actually still like the cars after all the trouble, i guess just dont buy one of theirs lol, after 6 years of one 8 cylinder Mercedes, I was ready to jump into a newer version in the C43 or try the C36, but now I'm not so sure. More research required I guess.
I understand sensors here and there flickering on and off half the time and being wrong, but things like Timing chain, wiring harness, head gasket, warped cylinder head, ball joints, tie rod ends, engine/tranny mounts dont go bad for a long time on a Mercedes, no matter how hard you drive them(unless you are totally stupid and run with no oil or coolant!). I'm not ******* the brand as you know I have one, maybe the incidents below are isolated, I know a Mercedes can take hard driving. Maybe their cars are beat to death as until today in doing my research I've only read good things in reviews but its good to read what actual owners think. If they need to be babied then its good to know. The people below are not disgruntled owners with a vendetta it seems and actually still like the cars after all the trouble, i guess just dont buy one of theirs lol, after 6 years of one 8 cylinder Mercedes, I was ready to jump into a newer version in the C43 or try the C36, but now I'm not so sure. More research required I guess.
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From: San Francisco, CA
1996 C36 AMG, 1995 Volvo 850 Turbowagon
the main items should not fail. i didn't read the other posts...i can't offer the info 
... that 500 sec is pretty darn nice. there r plenty of v8 amg offerings if u'd like. clk55, e55, c43.... if u feel c class is too small... or if u'd like to keep a coupe...i'd opt for the clk55 (ur 500 sec is a coupe right?). pretty nice.
... that 500 sec is pretty darn nice. there r plenty of v8 amg offerings if u'd like. clk55, e55, c43.... if u feel c class is too small... or if u'd like to keep a coupe...i'd opt for the clk55 (ur 500 sec is a coupe right?). pretty nice.
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Joined: Apr 2002
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From: Diamond Bar, CA
W206 PHEV AMG
the SEC is the s-class coupe. One of my favorite car. My dad use to have a 86 Midnight blue 300SEL. I just loved it.
if you are looking to buy a C36 or C43 avoid 95 C36s and 98 C43s. doesn't matter who makes the car, first yr cars are known to have problems. IMO 97 C36 or 99 C43 is the best buy for W202. Try to avoid high mileage cars too. 12k per yr is about average. You never know what will go wrong with higher mileage cars.
if you are looking to buy a C36 or C43 avoid 95 C36s and 98 C43s. doesn't matter who makes the car, first yr cars are known to have problems. IMO 97 C36 or 99 C43 is the best buy for W202. Try to avoid high mileage cars too. 12k per yr is about average. You never know what will go wrong with higher mileage cars.
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