racerx91354

Purchased a 2008 e550 sedan in december 2011. 46k miles and was certified. But have nothing but issues.

Brakes were squeeking very badly. Dealer said it was normal. After 4 days of discussion with dealer. They had the service tech inspect. All rotors and pads had to be replaced. Then the drivers side headlight went out after 500 miles. I know wear and tear but a cpo should be pretty damn near flawless and inspected. They replaced. Usually both are replaced. Two weeks later passenger light went out. I replaced both myself.

racerx91354

Two days after purchasing the car the esp module/sensor in the steering wheel had to be replaced. I recently swapped the amber running lens to clear. There was water in both and had burn holes. When I took off the plastic under the bumper off it had silver paint, appeared to be overspray. The dealer hasn't done anything with the bumper stating that's how they paint and bumper has mismatch coloring of silver. What should be my next step?

jcat

hate to say it, but your next step should be learning how to inspect a pre-owned car before you buy it. CPO doesn't mean there won't be problems, it just means that the problems will be covered and you won't have to pay for them. If you replaced the lenses with aftermarket, you have nobody to blame but yourself and the maker of the lenses for the water and the burn marks are from the water shorting it out (you're lucky it didn't do worse)

Seems like you just got a rough one. I'd say lemon law it but you haven't had the same problem 3 times within 90 days to do so. Also, the dealer has fixed everything that's gone wrong.

Are you really that upset about the bumper? How did you not notice it until after buying the car and working on it? Did you not get a carfax/autocheck?

Not sure what kind of advice you're looking for, but my best advice is I hope you didn't pay too much for the car or I hope you're a patient person.

racerx91354

Regarding the lenses the oem were the ones with the burn/ melted holes. Carfax came with car and was clean and clear. Bumper wasn't noticeable until my face was right there. Paid 32k. Was certifed by southbay mercedes and sold at mercedes of oxnard. Just becoming a PITA. Will try writing a letter to mbusa and autonation( dealership owner)

jimbo1763

I am sorry you are unhappy. Is this your first Mercedes? I am on my first, and I have had a host of issues. I never, ever expected to have as many problems with a premier luxury car-but I did. In spite of all of them, though, I really like the car. My dealer has been pretty straight up. Service and repairs cost a lot of money, but I knew that going in.

Good for you for having the CPO warranty-you will continue to be glad you have it. I did not get an extended warranty when I bought mine used. I would if I had it to do over again.

Sometimes, stuff just happens, especially electrical stuff. I hope yours settles down and that you get to the point where you enjoy what you have bought.

racerx91354

I love the car. First benz but have other luxury cars before. Previous cpo's have near showroom clean. I just want to drive and enjoy. Thanks for letting me rant though.

jimbo1763

It's hard when you come in with a set of expectations and it is immediately clear your expectations were wrong.

Hang in there. At least issues are at the warranty's expense.

lkchris

Complaining about a burned out headlight bulb?

racerx91354

That's was just icing on the cake. But yes I complained since this was only 2 days after I bought it. And since I had multiple issues prior. Might be petty but it was the principle of the matter.

vettdvr

Normal headlight bulbs don't last in this car. Buy a set keep them in the car like I do. At 117,000 miles I have been through 5. Remember they are on ALL THE TIME.

What I have learned on my E500 is expect LOTS of repairs. Ball joints, ignition switch, door locks, batteries, brake wear, airmatic for a big one. Air springs and the list goes on. So don't be surprised when you find the reliability isn't up to your expectations CPO or new. Just check Car ratings to confirm the numbers for your mode. True Delta and others.

jcat

to be fair, your e500 is an 03, which is widely known to be the worst year as far as repairs are concerned. Any car you buy that is the first model year of a new model is likely to have many bugs/issues. My 06 e500 has been solid so far in the first 8 months of ownership and was even for the previous owner as evidenced by the repair history i got with the car when i bought it.

Sounds like the PO of this e550 was someone who likely leased it and just beat the hell out of it without maintaining it very well, at which point you can't blame the car. German cars, or any car for that matter, when properly maintained stand a significantly better chance of not having issues. It's just a fact of cars in general. When they do break, they do cost a lot more money to fix, but thats what the CPO is for, and that's why I put an extended warranty on mine when I bought it used and out of warranty. I'll admit there's nothing cheap about these cars, but when properly maintained they outlast just about any on the road.

vettdvr

SO ? MB has been around touting reliability. You mean they can't manufacture a 1st yr car? Not that much difference between 02 and 03. I had neighbor who dumped his 02 for same type of issues.

Check the records. Same issues went through 03-06. Besides "It's a Mercedes, you won't ever use the warranty due to reliability". Fortunately I bought one. I 'm just a customer who plunked over $60 G's for a car that I expected to be reliable.

In my, case, (as in the business world) year doesn't matter it is results that count. The MB has not lived up to the reliability. Check CR, True Delta nad others for 2003 - 2007.

Let the data speak.

This will be my last MB. I can get the same reliability for less $$. Perhaps that's why MB lost so much over the Model years for the E serice. Because is was soooooooo reliable.

Polar Bear

I have had a few issues here and there with mine, but it has all been smaller electronic items. No mechanical issues except one glow plug. I personally like the feel of the car as well as the safety so much that I don't think I would buy anything else. I can't afford a new one, but I am sure my next will be an MB of some sort.

jcat

just about ANY first year car when changing/redesigning models has it's flaw, it's not MB specific. Your 2003 is universally known to be the WORST e500 as far as issues and repairs are concerned, FACT not opinion. I owned a 2004 S60-R, first year car and had many issues. Owners that had 2005-2007 models were fine because they got the bugs out. Always always always good rule of thumb to NOT buy the first year of a new model. Has MB reliability come down over the years? Yes. But have they been more than diligent about safety issues and fixing things that shouldn't go bad? Yes they have.