apl175

I'm *new* here and entertaining the thought of a Starmarked 99 E300 TD, but there are two things I need to ask about:

1. The service history shows one item that keeps cropping up every 10K miles or so - something to the effect of "Immersion Tube, Fuel Sender" - not sure if it was a repair or repair/replace - anyone know what this could be?

2. Can someone that has the MB factory Orthopaedic seats tell me what all the controls do for that do?

BTW, the dealer is asking for nearly $40K for this car with 50K miles, ESP, Heated Seats, CD Changer, Xenon lighting package, rain sensor, front orthopaedic seats, rear power sunshade, etc.

So I'm not sure if it's going to happen or not....depending on how far down to reality I can bring him - that recurring problem described above is making me nervous.

thanks

apl175

M Brabus

the controls of the seat inflate and deflate different parts/areas of the seat to your liking. i believe there are 2 of these air pockets on the back. 1 for the side bolsters and 1 on the front bottom by your thighs.

that price seems high and the mileage is not extremely low.

paomien

that problem you see popping up every so often is most probably the one a lot of W210 owners have experienced (including me), a bad fuel sender unit / sensor. The problem I had was when you filled the gas tank, drove until you had about 1/2 tank, it would drop to 0, and wouldn't come back up until you had a little less than a quarter tank left. I had the unit replaced 4 times (2 by one stealership, 1 at a mercedes-benz express service centre in toronto, canada, and the last time here on long island, they finally got it right, I guess).

It's really nothing to worry about.

Good luck! (btw, seems like they're charging you quite a bit of money for that car. For the same price you should be able to get an E430)

apl175

Thanks for the replies.

The dealer wouldn't go past the mid 30s on pricing, so I'm getting it at that and some change.

Interestingly, a E320 with less miles goes for about $26K, 4-matic E320s go for around $32K....all of the 1999 E300 Turbodiesels START at $34K and go up from there regardless of miles. Talk about supply and demand! Even the ebay auctions I see, have 1999 E300s going for $34K with around 45K miles.

DC really needs to looks at seeing if they can push some Tier-1 diesel cars through to the USA again - like VW does.

Not sure if I'll extend the Starmark warranty - I'm going to shop around a bit for 3rd party warranties and see if I can get better coverage.

BTW, I'm on Long Island too...

Air Marshall Eldritch

FWIW, I got in the habit of resetting my trip odo every time I fill up...in case the gas gauge dies again. On 2 different MBs, no less.

The Ortho seat actually has 2 air bladders in the back, 1 on each wing, and one more in the front of the seat. I never change it, so it is largely useless for me.

And get the starmark warranty. There is no aftermarket warranty on the planet that is better than the Starmark, unless you enjoy getting hassled for repairs authorizations.

Lightman

I love my '99 E300, good choice. That particular car has a lot of rare options, sounds like it's truly loaded. Congrats on a fine vehicle. They are holding their value better than the others because they were the last mb diesel imported, and will last longer than the average 320 or 430 by a good bit. Only about 2000 sold in '98 and '99.

apl175

Well, one week with the car - about 200 miles put on it, and guess what suddenyl stopped working....
The Fuel Guage! No doubt it is the "immersion tube, fuel sender" that I saw in the service history - being replaced numerous times.

Hopefully sensors like this are Starmarkable items....


Grrrrrrr