Veik

Hi,
I am considering this car, can anyone chime in as what existing problems I should watch out for with this year/model?

Its one owner, clean carfax.

http://www.mercedesbenzofchantilly.c...d-9121878.html

Priced right or should I haggle?

Thanks

RichardM98

You should always haggle!

If it's right in every way, ask to take it to an independent mech for inspection. Anything uncovered can be used to bargain for the price. I would also try to get some sort of 'drive line' warranty. It you just want a W210 I would try to find one with a V6. Better mileage and less maintenance issues.

Have you ever owned a black car? If so, disregard. If not, beware they are very difficult to keep clean and are like a pizza oven inside after sitting in the sun for a while. But they look great under the lights when kept clean.

E320User

I would definitely make sure that you get the service records and check for any rust on the car. W210's rust easily and when its there, its difficult and costly to get rid of. Check the transmission as those are expensive to fix, check for the spring perches as those we're recalled in some areas and calling MB and giving them the VIN to check if the car has had any recalls fulfilled (the door sills are also one of the recalls to check as well as the harmonic balancer).
CPS, and MAF issues which are not so bad and not too expensive to DIY but they can cause a lot of stress if they make you stranded.
Check if the car has all the keys (2 keys and 1 valet) and also as well as the original owners manual it comes with and car mats if your really hardcore.
Oh and pull the sun visor down and check the mirror flaps and see if any of the plastic has broken off..
Features on the car that is desirable is - Sunroof, headlamp washers, rear sunshade, bose stereo system upgrade with 10 speakers, and HID lights.

Overall the model year your looking at is pre face-lift. 2000 - 2002 is the post face-lifted which mercedes benz improved a lot of safety features in the car. 115k miles is not so bad (185k km's) but for 6668 I think its a little pricey and you could try haggling it down. If the car is really in mint condition, has all the service records and has good features then I guess 6k would be a pretty fair price.

Veik

I test drove it last night. It was a trade in or so they say.

Body is in good condition, but rubber around trunk lid and other areas is really dry and starting to flake

Headlights need major polishing - dealer will not do that.
Brake pads are a bit low as well, so replacement is coming up soon, probably within a year.

Interior is fine.

I offered them $5200 OTD and they countered that at $6000 but not OTD.
With taxes and their fees that would put me into the $6700 range.

They have or offer no record on it.
Carfax shows a number of trips to local MB dealer to check electrical system.

With that in mind - I walked.

Search continues

E320User

Good choice, with a car of 115k miles knowing what work has been done to the vehicle as preventative maintenance is key so you don't have any unexpected troubles along the way. Good luck and keep us informed!

Veik

Thats pretty a story with 99.9% of the dealers.
They show you the carmax. Well thats not good enough.

Question - can MB dealer service dept. pull up ALL service records by VIN?

(Sort of like Lexus does)

E320User

Sorry I'm not 100% sure, there's only one Mercedes Benz dealership in my city so if anyone took their cars there to get serviced then it's in their record.
But when I called the MB dealership and gave them my vin they were able to give me some records/services performed on my car a few years back in Montreal, Quebec so they may have some info on the car as long as its done at MB only...

RichardM98

Yes

FraKctured

Good call--too old, too many miles, too many unknowns and they want close to $7000 for it?

I've shopped some E classes over the last few years in the 3-4 year old range, and found the dealers to be completely inflexible. I watched the E-Classes come in to my dealer (and 2 other dealerships within 100 miles) during the last 9 months and was surprised at how quickly they have moved them. Some were sold within a matter of weeks. I guess standard E-Classes (non AMG/E55 E63) are in big demand in that age range, but for one that is 14 years old, seems like you should be able to get a better deal and better information on the car.