Hi - I've recently purchased a 2003 E320 Sport from a local auto-broker. The car is a 1-owner, off lease vehicle with only 26K miles on it. After I bought the car, I found this site (http://www.mercedes-benz-usa.com/e_class.php) that documents all kinds of problems with their W211 E320 - especially the 2003 model. Having read all these complaints - i'm kicking myself for not having the done the research before i bought the car as those complaints are scaring me - especially all of the reports of problems with the brakes.

After 1 week of ownership, i've already started to notice that 1) the car pulls to the right, 2) when i'm driving very slow (e.g. in a parking lot) the car seems to make a low grinding sound, and 3) when i release the brakes after the traffic light turns green, the brakes feels like it doesn't fully disengage right away - i can hear and feel this slight vibration....

Poll - are the complaints found over the internet about their W211 aberrations - or are you guys also seeing the same issues? I'm hoping to hear there are people out there who have owned the W211 for a few years now and have not had any problems. My last car was a 2000 BMW 3-series and after 5 1/2 years and over 100K miles on it - i've not had any problems other than regularly scheduled maintenance. Hopefully this will be the case with my "new" W211....

 

Welcome to the forum.

Yes, MY03 had issues. A good place to start would be right here on this forum. There are a lot of good threads/posts dealing with issues. One way to avoid waiting would be to try the search feature above; try MY03 or something similar for a search term.

 

I have a 2004 and other than having the engine replacement due to some a-hole dumping his cargo on me and a ignitor put in for the bi-xeons, no problems really to speak of. 2003 I believe was a troubled year for some owners but not all. Plenty of information if you do a search through the threads

 

As a former owner of an early '03 - I wish you luck. Mine seemed like it was a beta-test model. Nothing earthshattering but lots of little annoying stuff.

I would not own an '03 without a warranty (and one that covered electronics specifically since I think that electronics are *excluded* from coverage on some policies)

my .02

 

First and foremost, best of luck.

Familiarize yourself with relevant recalls:https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w211/145960-w211-recalls.html


W211 issues:

Transmission (7-speed):
Bulletin P-B-27.60/61d JUN06 Rough Shift Quality – addresses any mechanical causes and performs shift adaptations.

Transmission (5-speed):
P-B-27.55/50f MAR06 Harsh engagement possibly followed by droning/buzzing noises during acceleration (1200 – 2500 rpm). This may be caused incomplete adaptation of the torque converter, the transmission EGS ECU software, or glycol contamination of the automatic transmission fluid.

Common Airmatic suspension problems:
(1) P-B-32.22/15 MAR03 Low ride height at one or more suspension points after the vehicle has been parked at cold temperatures – the affected air strut is replaced.
(2) P-B-32.22/32 AUG05 Sporadic knocking / rumbling noise from front left of vehicle when driving over rough roads – the compressor bracket is replaced.

MBUSA modifications:
(1) P-B-42.10/48 JUL04 Increased wear rear brake pads (part # A004420 44 20).
(2) P-B-42.10/51e FEB06 Squealing or grinding noise from the front brakes, even when the brakes are not applied – replace pressure retaining springs, piston damper, pads.
(3) P-B-82.30/366b JAN06 Windshield wipers chattering / noisy – replace wiper blades and wiper arms need to be adjusted to windshield angle (tool W211 589 02 21 00).
(4) P-B-82.62/387 SEPT04 Poor sound quality in Harman/Kardon Logic 7 Surround Sound – replace Audio Gateway and update software.
(5) P-B-33.15/16a JAN06 Steering wheel twitch (side to side during slow speed braking) – replace torque strut bushings (part # A211 333 11 14).
(6) P-B-82.62/499 MAR06 AM Radio interference – remove wiring to left, front brake wear sensor (eliminated).
(7) Drifts right: Install left & right “Camber/Caster Bolt Kits” including new alignment to correct for road crown.

Playing mp3s:
As long as the vehicle has COMAND the dealer simply needs to update the software. That it to say for early production 03 the vehicles were equipped with a cassette player in the head unit and optional CD changer. I believe these vehicles cannot be modified however I’m not certain. For later 03 vehicles equipped with a head unit that has a single CD (COMAND) rather than a cassette player it can be made to play mp3s by updating the head unit software.

 

Congrats on the purchase. I've got a twin, but with about 2k miles less and never a lease vehicle. Bought it with 14k miles from the original owner, it was a highway car to go between primary and secondary residence.

So far I've had no major issues. Just a few minor ones that were all resolved under warranty. No regrets from me. I hope your 4yr warranty doesn't expire very soon, if so get it extended. I would never own one of these without warranty. Spend the next few days reading this forum, it's got a lot of good information and some very intelligent people contributing.

 

Thanks everyone for your input - i've got an appointment scheduled with my local dealer (Smythe European on Stevens Creek - any locals and comments on this dealership?) for next Tues - we'll see how that goes. The car was manufactured in 2/03 - so i'm not too sure how many months of warranty it has left....i guess i'll find out on Tues. Given all the issues - have most of the owners purchased the extended warranty? If so - what should I expect to pay for an extended warranty? Thanks in advance for advice!

 

You are still under warranty until at least 2/07, probably more likely mid 07. It's 4 years from the date it was sold, the 2003's sold in late 2002 are now starting to come out of warranty if they haven't already done it with 50k+ miles. Do a search on extended warranty, it's been discussed many times on here. You have free maintenance on your car until the warranty is up, make sure you get it checked out and if you have any concerns have the dealer fix them. You shouldn't have to spend a penny on the car except for maybe brakes and tires for now. Even oil changes are covered on the 2003's.