I'm going to be honest then and say do not get a MB...lol Don't get me wrong I love these cars. However there is a reason you don't see a ton of older German cars on the road after a certain point. Yes you will still see them out there but the cost to keep them going is going to be significant compared to others.


If it was between reliability between a MB and the wife's Toyota, I'm choosing the Toyota. Sorry. I'm not trying to be a douche either. I love our w211 and the things I've done to it. Truly is a beautiful fun car to drive. But would I expect 200k miles out of it? I don' t know. I will note that our w209 had 146k miles on it with minor to little things done but I also feel the w209 chasis is better than the w211 (quality wise). Hell I have almost 180k on my 16 year old Ranger which is my daily and those things are pretty bullet proof and easy to work on.


When I think of a daily car that needs to go long distances I think something that isn't too expensive and most importantly something that isn't going to break the bank as I'm driving it.


One has to also realize that when they buy a used car even though it's cheaper you are still maintaining what the original price of the car was. My friend just bought a very nice used Gallardo at $142k, he's realizing that certain things are not at the $142k price he paid but at the original maintaining cost of a $220k+ car...lol


-Nigel

Add low end torque that beats AMG engines with 2 more cylinders and topped off with 35 mpg. :zoom:
Even modern gasoline engines can make 3-400k miles, try to sell one with such mileage.
Diesel with 300k miles sells in instant when priced right.

In California you still see tons of W123, W126, W124 used as daily drives.
In the city I used to live - stopping at Safeway parking lot would find at least 3, often 7 MB older than 20 years.
Than on not rare occasions you could see pristine 40-50 years old model.

Nigel, thanks for your unbiased feedback. Question for everyone - what if I find a 2009 with 50-70K miles / (or 100K with service details), instead of the 126K miles car in question. What's a 5-10 yrs life (repairs) expectancy on that?

Thanks!

No one really knows, M272 was a somewhat new engine that showed up on the E class in 2006. But in general, I think cars are typically good for at least 150-200k, I think once you hit that 150-200k range, you'll start running into expensive problems, probably not engine related, but could be anything from transmission, differential to anything else and once the bills start to pile up, you may decide to get rid of it. If you're a DIY type of guy or have a good indy that's cheap, you can keep it going longer, if you're just using the dealer, you'll probably dump it quicker.

My 2007 E350 has 168K miles on it. I have been very diligent about its maintenance, particularly engine and drive train. It has had its issues (balance shaft, conductor plate) that I certainly didn't see coming, but with those behind me. I hope to keep the car a good while longer-until I am not comfortable taking it out on a trip out of town. I am not to that point yet-not at all. If and when it ever breaks down on me on the road, however, I expect I will get there quickly, though...

I have looked at getting a newer car. But mine is still reliable in my book. The day will come, of course, but this is not that day.