I just traded one of my motorcycles for a 2000 E430 Sport with 129,xxxk miles. This is my first mercedes, and i am a life long japanese car/motorcycle owner (4 motorcycles, 8 honda cars, never had a single issue) I am the second owner of the car. Original owner was in the navy and it sat around for 3 years until it came out of retirement in october 2011. Anyways, i bought it and it drives excellent, interior looks NEW, as in, brand spankin new, there is no wear anywhere, i was really impressed. I had not done much research on the W210 before i bought it, i treated it like a regular car. So i bought it and 2 days later (yesterday) i found that there is an exhaust leak, no big deal, its probably the cat. Then i found that the fan regulator is bad, again, no big deal. Just have to find out if i have the new or old style regulator. THEN! when i got in yesterday, i get the dreaded "ABS/ESP/BAS Visit Workshop" warnings. i was just at 130k miles so i decided to reset the service interval and see if that would do it until i could check it out further. they went off then came back on. Brake lights all work, everything works fine. Where should i start? the battery maybe? im not afraid to take things apart and work on them, being a computer and car/motorcycle nerd.

here are some pictures of the beast in question

Hi and Congratulations on your 'new' car -

There will undoubtebly be a few things to sort out but I think you'll find it's worth it. These cars are built really well. If you do your own maintenance the cost of operation is quite reasonable. You car's computer is a little fussy about voltage. It is looking for at least 12v and may give a false error messages. One clue is errors in the morning that pretty much go away during the day. A load test on the battery can rule that out as a issue. Another clue is loss of 'sync' on the sunroof and express window feature.

At 129K, some things to watch out for if not serviced recently are -

O2 Sensors (which can lead to cat replacement $$$)
MAF Sensor
Plugs
Transmission/Differential Service
Motor Mounts

Using Mobil 1 Synthetic 0W-40 and a polyester filter will ensure the maximum time between oil changes which saves money.

Feel free to post questions.

well my sunroof doesnt work but i have never opened a sunroof on any car ive ever owned and have no desire to. maybe if some kind of rare prehistoric eagle sat on the roof and i wanted a look at it i would slide open the door to take a look.

and i have a new development. the battery WAS in fact replaced last october...now one would think that would rule out battery but the warnings pop up after a day or more of not driving, then disappear after about a half hour of solid driving (if i shut the engine off then turn it back on) which points to the battery. im going to take it to interstate to test it, or maybe i should wait until i get the warnings again then go test voltage? could it be the alternator not charging it fast enough while driving?

Nice pickup man, im sure you will enjoy your merc they are well built cars and last for ever if you take good care of them. My father always said the w210 is built like a tank!!!

Very nice looking car. Looks equipped well too. Nice wheels and nice color.

I'm sure you will find that the Mercedes interior holds up much better than what you are used to in the other vehicles you have owned. The W210s are build very well IMO and I am sure that once you get the kinks worked out from it setting so long that it will be a great and enjoyable car.

If your battery was faulty or below a set voltage the car would not start.
If the alternator was faulty you would have the little battery warning glowing.
The fault you have showing is typical of a faulty brake switch and the brake lights can operate and still have the switch be bad.
See if you cruise control operates like it should,another clue to a faulty BLS.
Get one from the dealer. They seem to be the only ones carrying the oem version anymore.
You can test the battery with the climate control diagnostics or a multimeter if it still concerns you.

yes, my cruise control works fine, i will order a new brake switch tomorrow. i checked the battery yesterday and the positive terminal was loose, like i could just take it off by hand, i didnt have any tools with me, could that be causing anything?

and im confused about the blower fan regulator...i took a picture of mine, this is the new style right? if so, what should i order?

Yes, new style.

So I just need to buy the regular e class regulator? Not the s class and splice?

As mentioned earlier, the brake light switch will trigger the ABS BAS ESP Errors. I replaced mine once. I still get the errors once in a while, then it will stop for months. Its more of an annoyance then anything else. enjoy the car. its beautiful. I love mine and it's been incredibly reliable. Just back from a 1300 mile trip. Im closing in on 130k

I get the ABS/ESP/BAS Visit Workshop warning every once in a while. I have gotten this indication a couple of time a year for the last several years. If I shut the car off and restart it the indication goes away. About two years ago I replaced the brake switch but still get the indication just like before.

BLS is what this sounds like again, as oh lord mentioned. Remember, the battery much being showing full charge to actually start the car not just turn over. Heavily optioned cars have the black MB Gel battery which lasts 5-9 yrs on average and lightly optioned cars will have the standard case battery which is good for 4-7 yrs. Most wagons will have the black gel battery. All this depends on driving style and usage. if your drives are less than 30 minutes then the battery will be taxed more and not have sufficient time to fully recharge. BLS is an easy replacement and very easy DIY. Order the part from your dealer or our sponsor, MyMercedesParts.com and ask for Bob Rox. He is very helpful and has 35 yrs experience with these cars.