I Need Some Advice
Thread Starter
Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 103
Likes: 0
2005 C230
I Need Some Advice
Alright,
I've been researching both BMW and MBZ. So far, on a site called autospies.com, I found a lot of info on MBZ. Supposedly, mercedes is thinking of taking away their free maintenance program which, from what i read, basically only covers oil changes. Also, there have been a lot of posts from customers saying that the new mercedes have had a lot of problems and that they're cars, if fixed, are not fixed with new parts. Is this true? Is a company actually thinking of doing this. If so, i will definitely not buy a mercedes. I'll go buy a BMW since they're warranty covers everything and I havent found nearly as many unhappy clients. To tell you the truth I was looking forward to buy a benz but they're reputation for giving good service and reliable cars has begun to decline. I still like the look of the MBZ a lot more but if thats all these cars offer, then I'm sorry to say that I will have to pass on the benz and go with either a lexus or a beamer. I would really appreciate any advice. Please tell me how much you love your benz or tell me that you're disappointed and why. What problems have some of you experienced? If you had the chance to do it again, would you have purchased a benz?
I've been researching both BMW and MBZ. So far, on a site called autospies.com, I found a lot of info on MBZ. Supposedly, mercedes is thinking of taking away their free maintenance program which, from what i read, basically only covers oil changes. Also, there have been a lot of posts from customers saying that the new mercedes have had a lot of problems and that they're cars, if fixed, are not fixed with new parts. Is this true? Is a company actually thinking of doing this. If so, i will definitely not buy a mercedes. I'll go buy a BMW since they're warranty covers everything and I havent found nearly as many unhappy clients. To tell you the truth I was looking forward to buy a benz but they're reputation for giving good service and reliable cars has begun to decline. I still like the look of the MBZ a lot more but if thats all these cars offer, then I'm sorry to say that I will have to pass on the benz and go with either a lexus or a beamer. I would really appreciate any advice. Please tell me how much you love your benz or tell me that you're disappointed and why. What problems have some of you experienced? If you had the chance to do it again, would you have purchased a benz?
Last edited by coconutpolito; Apr 3, 2004 at 03:19 AM.
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: socal
2004 e320 wagon
i have a 2004 e320. it now has 500 miles on the odometer, and it's been in the shop once for an a/c problem. somehow, the driver side a/c didn't have enough refrigerant, so the passenger side was always cold to make up for the driver side. anyway, they added refrigerant and checked for leaks and it seems to work fine. otherwise, i really like the technology--i have the active suspension--and the interior, and it seems very solidly constructed. yes, i would buy it again.
in fairness to MB, the 2005s have a 5 year warranty to make up for the loss of free maintenance. haven't heard about *pre-owned* parts used for repair. before buying, i did consider MB reliability. if consumer reports is any indication, bmw probably is no more reliable than mb. if reliability is your main concern, then lexus is the hands-down choice. i don't want to sound like an MB supporter, but 2005 e-class should have fewer problems than a completely new model like the 2003. before passing judgement on e-class, you might want to compare number of complaints from 2003 owners with 2004 owners, to see if there's a trend toward greater reliability. i went for MB in spite of questionable reliability, but hedged my bet by getting an extended warranty--5 years instead of four, but 100,000 miles instead of the standard 50,000.
in fairness to MB, the 2005s have a 5 year warranty to make up for the loss of free maintenance. haven't heard about *pre-owned* parts used for repair. before buying, i did consider MB reliability. if consumer reports is any indication, bmw probably is no more reliable than mb. if reliability is your main concern, then lexus is the hands-down choice. i don't want to sound like an MB supporter, but 2005 e-class should have fewer problems than a completely new model like the 2003. before passing judgement on e-class, you might want to compare number of complaints from 2003 owners with 2004 owners, to see if there's a trend toward greater reliability. i went for MB in spite of questionable reliability, but hedged my bet by getting an extended warranty--5 years instead of four, but 100,000 miles instead of the standard 50,000.
Almost a Member!
Joined: Dec 2003
Posts: 25
Likes: 0
From: TX USA
My current 2004 E320 has been a nightmare. Problems include the infamous "radio static" issue (remedied with a software update), a failed dashboard (replaced), a failed command unit (replaced), intermittent NAV problems (ongoing) and now the transmission is giving me problems. Since its purchase in November, the car spent roughly 20% of the time in the shop. No way I would recommend one of these cars to anyone.
I am not sure I would consider a BMW again. My previous ownership experience was pretty good - not great. I will probably try one of the new Lexus models next year.
I am not sure I would consider a BMW again. My previous ownership experience was pretty good - not great. I will probably try one of the new Lexus models next year.
Super Member
Joined: Oct 2002
Posts: 926
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From: VA
03 E320, sport package, moon roof, sound upgrade, brilliant silver, charcoal leather, heated seats..
Get out of here and go to Lexus. Do not look back. If you were to get a lemon or near-lemon MB or BMW you will freak. As everyone knows, every Lexus is rock solid reliable and problem free. Autospies is unbiased, as are nearly all car information sites and magazines. A search on any type of car problem on this site will yield hundreds of disgruntled, dissatisfied and dissappointed customers. Still, nearly all will say they will buy MB again, go figure. MB dealerships, by and large, based on the experieces reported on this site, are run by crooks, and their service facilities are run by incompetent, inept, uninformed monkeys without a clue. There are reports of customers returning their cars constantly for the same problem, never fixed to satisfaction....and MB techs claiming some problems are actually intended, German engineered features, like pulling to the right. Some dealerships are labeled by forum members as evil, some evil dealerships clone themselves. Is there a good MB dealership/service facility in the USA? Maybe, but it is not likely to be near you. Lexus, on the other hand, is widely reported as having only satisfied customers. I recall a report of one unsatisfied Lexus customer, however. Once Lexus management discovered the error the customer and the customer's family wanted for nothing. 
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 424
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From: Ohio
ML-350, Maserati Quattroporte
This is my 3rd mercedes. Even if they drop included service this should not change your opinion. At 1st I was put off by the decision but in rethinking the issue, now I'm ok. Basically the mercedes is serviced every 10000 miles. So you drop a few extra dollars over the car's life but it comes back in a longer warrenty. What is more important is that this change will not effect keeping your car in great shape. I have used 2 dealers and they are both professional. Any thing, and I really mean everything that goes wrong will be fixed or replaced. With my prior BMW,Saab and now my Volvo I pay for stupid incidentals like a new headlight bulb or wipers etc. With MB they have allways replaced any part I've asked them to. Even interior wood with defects from my abuse have been replaced. To make a long story short, although no dealer is perfect, MB are the best I've delt with by far. The 03' E has problems that have been improved but in general it's allways covered.
Junior Member
Joined: Feb 2004
Posts: 44
Likes: 2
From: Vegas Baby!!
2016 AMG C63 S
This is my first Mercedes and I could not be happier. I have had a few problems such as the radio static but everything has been fixed to my satisfaction. I bought my 2004 E320 at Fletcher Jones in Las Vegas and they have been great. They diagnosed a radio problem that I didnt even know I had and replaced the radio. That day they had washed the car and somehow threw off the alignment. I brought it back the next day and they gave me a rental car upgrade since all their loner cars were spoken for. While they had my car they did a full diagnostic on the whole car and found that there was a small problem with the air conditioner. They fixed that right away as well. It is nice to have a service department that is finding and fixing things that I did not even know were a problem.
I think you will find that with a car like this that has a large amount of technology built into it there will sometimes be problems. Having a good dealership to deal with makes those problems seem much smaller. I would recommend Mercedes Benz to anyone that has the means to aquire one. I have read different things on the internet regarding quality and it looks like it is gettting better and better. I even read that Mercedes Benz is trippleing its electrical engineering staff to increase the reliablity of its electronics. I think this says a lot about the direction that Mercedes Benz is taking in the future.
When the new SLK350 comes out I will be buying one of those as well. Based on my current experience I am now a Mercedes customer for life. There are definately other great cars out there but for me Mercedes has the whole package.
Good luck with whatever your choice my be. The truly important thing is that you are happy with whatever you chose to drive.
I think you will find that with a car like this that has a large amount of technology built into it there will sometimes be problems. Having a good dealership to deal with makes those problems seem much smaller. I would recommend Mercedes Benz to anyone that has the means to aquire one. I have read different things on the internet regarding quality and it looks like it is gettting better and better. I even read that Mercedes Benz is trippleing its electrical engineering staff to increase the reliablity of its electronics. I think this says a lot about the direction that Mercedes Benz is taking in the future.
When the new SLK350 comes out I will be buying one of those as well. Based on my current experience I am now a Mercedes customer for life. There are definately other great cars out there but for me Mercedes has the whole package.
Good luck with whatever your choice my be. The truly important thing is that you are happy with whatever you chose to drive.
Super Member
Joined: Sep 2002
Posts: 636
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From: New Jersey, USA
W211 & Q7
coconutpolito,
if you buy it now, there is no difference. the new mb maintenance program starts end of this year for 2005 model. (mb only provides one free oil change -- 50 buck value and one free tire rotation -- another 50 buck value. (but who really needs this 100 dollar "free" maintenance, you can easily get 100 bucks off when you buy a car. another word, mb does "not" provide you a "free" maintence.)
I "guess" mbusa hedges fx rate risk to the end of this year after that mbusa has to absorb the price difference between eur and usd. if customers want to pay 3k more then mbusa can continue providing free maintenance within warranty (obviously everyone wats to pay less) so the best way for mb to sell the cars is keeping the price "same" (let customers buy cars first) then earning the money back later (maintenance).
both mb and bmw provide high quality cars and services. (I don't think lexus does better than mb or bmw does, of course, lexus has no choice trying to do it better in order to survive in the luxury car market.)
otto
if you buy it now, there is no difference. the new mb maintenance program starts end of this year for 2005 model. (mb only provides one free oil change -- 50 buck value and one free tire rotation -- another 50 buck value. (but who really needs this 100 dollar "free" maintenance, you can easily get 100 bucks off when you buy a car. another word, mb does "not" provide you a "free" maintence.)
I "guess" mbusa hedges fx rate risk to the end of this year after that mbusa has to absorb the price difference between eur and usd. if customers want to pay 3k more then mbusa can continue providing free maintenance within warranty (obviously everyone wats to pay less) so the best way for mb to sell the cars is keeping the price "same" (let customers buy cars first) then earning the money back later (maintenance).
both mb and bmw provide high quality cars and services. (I don't think lexus does better than mb or bmw does, of course, lexus has no choice trying to do it better in order to survive in the luxury car market.)
otto
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MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Dec 2002
Posts: 1,398
Likes: 7
if you read some internet boards, Lexus is not without problems. The new RX330 has transmission shift problems, various noises and driveshaft whines, etc. But I will say from reading those boards - Lexus fixes the problems VERY fast after they are found. Its not like reading this board, where the E which is late in the second model years still has problems with things like radio static. That's the main thing I take from reading this board - MB doesn't necessarily have more problems, but they don't seem to generate fixes fast enough for the ones that do develop, and dealer mechanics are then unable to fix customer cars.
Super Member
Joined: Mar 2003
Posts: 957
Likes: 1
was '03 E320 - now - '04 S4
In my area the Lexus and M-B ownership experience has been great. My M-B dealer has really tried to fix all the little irritating things that have popped up in the last year with my E320.
Free car washes and coffee at both dealerships too.
What's pretty impressive to me is how beautifully our Lexus is running after 12 years and 153K miles. It runs and looks fantastic.
If I end up keeping the W211 - I'm getting an extended warranty - period. All the electronic gizmos and gremlins with this car make me a little nervous.
It's just so perfect for freeway driving and it looks so good...
Free car washes and coffee at both dealerships too.
What's pretty impressive to me is how beautifully our Lexus is running after 12 years and 153K miles. It runs and looks fantastic.
If I end up keeping the W211 - I'm getting an extended warranty - period. All the electronic gizmos and gremlins with this car make me a little nervous.
It's just so perfect for freeway driving and it looks so good...
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: Feb 2002
Posts: 6,061
Likes: 326
From: 2000 ft over the FL coast in a B-17
Various
Doesn't maintenance also include the minor and major scheduled service visits? These things are not cheap. I would also imagine the V8's are more than the 6's and the kompressor 8's even more and the twin turbo 12's must be steep? See Noble's post below:
__________________
Noble C320
'03 C320 - Brilliant Silver/Charcoal - Euro Bi-Xenons, Brabus Sport Springs, Audio 10, etc...Service A and B would be ALOT more than 200 bucks. Try 400 for service A and maybe 600-800 for service B. Remember we are talking about Stealers here bro. You could probably do half the work yourself or take it to an independant shop for a fraction of the cost and take warranty items for dealers to take care of.
__________________
Noble C320
'03 C320 - Brilliant Silver/Charcoal - Euro Bi-Xenons, Brabus Sport Springs, Audio 10, etc...Service A and B would be ALOT more than 200 bucks. Try 400 for service A and maybe 600-800 for service B. Remember we are talking about Stealers here bro. You could probably do half the work yourself or take it to an independant shop for a fraction of the cost and take warranty items for dealers to take care of.
Last edited by RJC; Apr 4, 2004 at 06:34 PM.
Newbie
Joined: Apr 2004
Posts: 3
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I'm sorry if this is a repeat question, but I'm new to the site (and to MB)...can someone please tell me what the radio static problem is?
I have a 2004 E320 4Matic and I've noticed that in some areas some of my radio stations are not as clear as I would like them to be. However, for the most part, I don't get too much static.
Thank you!
I have a 2004 E320 4Matic and I've noticed that in some areas some of my radio stations are not as clear as I would like them to be. However, for the most part, I don't get too much static.
Thank you!
Newbie
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 24
Likes: 0
From: socal
2004 e320 wagon
Originally posted by mrod
I'm sorry if this is a repeat question, but I'm new to the site (and to MB)...can someone please tell me what the radio static problem is?
I have a 2004 E320 4Matic and I've noticed that in some areas some of my radio stations are not as clear as I would like them to be. However, for the most part, I don't get too much static.
Thank you!
I'm sorry if this is a repeat question, but I'm new to the site (and to MB)...can someone please tell me what the radio static problem is?
I have a 2004 E320 4Matic and I've noticed that in some areas some of my radio stations are not as clear as I would like them to be. However, for the most part, I don't get too much static.
Thank you!
MBWorld Fanatic!
Joined: May 2003
Posts: 1,348
Likes: 0
From: Northern NJ
2014 BMW 550i
mrod, you can look for a couple of threads called Static. This refers to a static situation that is not transiently related to your signal, just the COMAND system doing something weird, and giving you a loud static noise. This was not fixed on the 2004, either. What "should" fix it is the 43/03 update available from your dealer.
Senior Member
Joined: Mar 2004
Posts: 424
Likes: 0
From: Ohio
ML-350, Maserati Quattroporte
You don't sound like you have the "static" problem. It is a progressive hiss that blocks out sound. Other issues are car specific(my radio cut out). As posted elsewhere, I had the software update that fixed the static but had negative impact on audio quality. Dealer denies a relation for now. Non issue with newer w211's
Junior Member
Joined: Aug 2003
Posts: 67
Likes: 0
2016 E400 4-Matic Coupe, 2002 Chev 2500 HD Crew, 1983 Porsche 911SC,
hmmmm............
Drb...........
Perfect reply post. Couldn't have tongue and cheeked it better.
Coconutpolito...........
3 threads....just registered in March 30....all the same subject matter "should I buy a mb or bmw?"...all biased toward the propeller....Hmmmm.
Sounding a bit shillish to me... Heck of an entrance to mbworld if you ask me...Drb is right, leave now, don't look back. You'll probably look better in a Lexus anyway.
No offense meant, just calling it like I see it. My 2 cents.
Perfect reply post. Couldn't have tongue and cheeked it better.
Coconutpolito...........
3 threads....just registered in March 30....all the same subject matter "should I buy a mb or bmw?"...all biased toward the propeller....Hmmmm.
Sounding a bit shillish to me... Heck of an entrance to mbworld if you ask me...Drb is right, leave now, don't look back. You'll probably look better in a Lexus anyway.
No offense meant, just calling it like I see it. My 2 cents.
Last edited by 10000_lakes; Apr 6, 2004 at 10:36 PM.
