gzanf92

Question for anyone who owns / has owned a MB E320 or the like with higher miles.

I purchased a 2003 E320 with 89K miles on it from a local Mercedes dealer. Seems to be maintained well but I am curious what to expect when it comes to upcoming routine maintenance. I believe the spark plugs have been changed at 75k. The dealer changed the oil, installed a new air filter, new brakes, rotors, tires and a newer battery.

For some reason I am thinking the alternator is starting to go bad as I have noticed the headlights will dim slightly when I turn on/off the air or use the heated seats. From what I've been told there really is no way to know when an alternator will fail, it typically will just go unexpectedly. Is it in my best interest to have a new alternator put in? Will this be very expensive?

What else can I do to ensure the vehicle will continue to run like it should?

Also, what is up with all the noises the vehicle makes? I can't figure out why I hear (for lack of a better word) a grinding noise sometimes when I put the vehicle in park and just before I turn it off. Additionally, it makes a noise whenever I unlock the vehicle, I assume that must be something to do with the security system??

I am quickly learning that the 2003 E-class was one of the worst models for reliability….I'm really hoping this is not always the case because I do really enjoy the vehicle.

Any comments/help is appreciated!

Dexion

It was... alot of things have been fixed now though.

The grinding noise is the SBC system, it does that alot. As soon as you unlock the car the security system is deactivated, as soon as you open the door, it makes alot of clicks/sounds its all system checks.

paulv

gzanf92,

Which battery did they replace? There's a second battery under the hood which is backup power for the braking SBC system. These tend to need replacing as all they do is sit and discharge/recharge and are never cycled.

Another thing to do is to start the car and let it warm up and then turn on the AC full blast and watch the tensioner pulley on the serpentine belt system -- if you can see the tensioner oscillating, it's time to replace it with the belt and the idler pulley.

Regards,
paul...

KEY08

Welcome to the world of the noisy E-Class If it isn't making lots of noise then something is wrong or about to go wrong.

gzanf92

Paul,

Thanks for the info. I did not know there are two batteries for the vehicle. The one located in the trunk is the one I found and it seems pretty new.

Can you tell me where I can find the second battery under the hood? Also, do you know of any way to tell the year of the battery? The car was from Connecticut (now in Minnesota) and I really have no way of finding out if it was recently replaced.

Thanks!

wampa

It's called the Auxillary battery and helps power the electronics. Usually you get an error when you're having voltage issues



These two threads should help out

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...-workshop.html

https://mbworld.org/forums/e-class-w...x-battery.html