strider-g3

When I look on repairpal, there's 3 pages of issues listed for the 2009. I thought the 2009s were all sorted out? Is this list blowing things out of proportion? I'd like to buy one as a daily driver. 4Matic of course given I'm in the North.
I sold my 2004 S430 4M with 215,000KM. It had already been switched over to normal suspension.
My other option is a 2007 E550 4Matic. Not sure if the V8s are more reliable or the V6s? Would love some feedback.

Repairpal lists the same list of issues with the 2007 E550... these lists are the only thing stopping me from going forward with one of the two. I only imagine these are more reliable than my first choice the 2010-2011 S550 4Matic.
https://repairpal.com/2009-mercedes-benz-e350/problems
https://repairpal.com/2007-mercedes-benz-e550/problems

E350 has 160,000km - private sale $9000 CAD
E550 has 185,000km - dealer sale $9500 CAD (Aftermarket Warranty is available)

Both are clean cars, no accidents

juanmor40

Are these prices US$ or CDN$? For CDN$, and @100K Miles, the price become interesting. Personal opinion here, a decently maintained W211 from the 2008/2009 years with a clean underhood (no oil leaks, stain, rust) is a bullet proof car; HOWEVER, a 100K miles car requires some tender and loving care to continue providing a robust ride day after day.

Since sellers are not 100% reliable, first things: change ALL fluids, i.e. brake fluids, engine oil, transmission oil, differential oil --> @$1000 already if you are not doing it yourself.
Scan the car before buying and expect to find a few faults: intake manifold is the most common, and the fix is @$1000.

Has the oil breather, or PCV valve been changed?

strider-g3

Hi thanks for the reply. The prices are in CAD as I'm in Canada. Sorry I edited the post.
I wont be able to do much myself as I am not experienced and rather not screw things up
Can't the codes be deleted easily? What scanner is best for these cars?
I'll find out if breather, or PCV valve has been done. Is this common on both V6 and V8s?

lkchris

It’s by design that life of brake pads is same as life of rotors.

cetialpha5

The V8 is worse than the V6. The E550 had airmatic which was about 1k per corner at the dealer, but Arnott are cheaper but not as cheap as shocks/struts which were in the E350. The E550 is also a gas guzzler but then so is the E350 although not as bad. The list isn't too bad, you won't encounter all of them, I've had a few of them, but so far I still haven't had to do the camshaft or crankshaft sensors yet. The major one is probably the intake manifold. Those can go in the 80-140k mile range. There are many scanners out there, a cheap one that can do all the codes would be an Autel AP200. Also the 7 speed transmission can have a bad conductor plate but you don't need to remove the transmission to replace it and it's a few hundred dollars. The 5 speed in the 4matic is better, usually the transmission connector goes and you can just replace that instead of the conductor plate. And the oil separator/breather cover has the same issues on both engines. There are a bunch of other items like thermostat, tensioner/pulleys, motor mounts, etc., but many of them are basically maintenance issues. Make sure you check for rust on any car. I've had the some muffler brackets and clamps rusted off and the steering rack bracket rusted out and had to replace/weld them back on. Still driving my 2008 though, over 130k miles.


https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/mer...tor-2035400053

https://www.fcpeuro.com/products/mer...kit-oem-515810

strider-g3

Thank you
I will skip on the V8s if the engines are not reliable and focus on a 2009 E350
I forgot to mention the E550 has already had the suspension replaced by MB dealer. its no longer airmatic (thats what the seller is telling me)
I have owned the 2004 S430 4Matic which had arnott suspension. It was good but nothing close to OEM

cetialpha5

The E550 does have a few nicer features like real leather as standard and heated/cooled drivers seats. You don't get cooled seats on the E350 and real leather was an extra cost option that usually wasn't there, MB-tex was standard on the E350. The major knock is the airmatic, engine wise, they're basically the same engine family so the same issue with the V6 as the V8. Although maybe the intake manifold is a little bit more than the V6 as you have 8 instead of 6. An E550 would probably cost more than an E350 though and they're not as easy to find. If the airmatic got replaced with a spring setup, then it would be about the same as an E350 replacement cost wise and should be a while before that's needed. One thing I never liked about airmatic is that when it fails, you're stuck and need to fix it right away but with a spring/strut setup, you typically have time to just buy the parts and do it when it's convenient.

dvenneman

I’ve owned a 2007 E350 W211 - bought it at 105000 miles had it until 250,000 - I owned the car for 8 years. I paid 18000 and out 13000 into it not including many many weekends.

when you do the math, almost no car will cost less than 4K US per year. So buy something new and enjoy the maintenance free or maintenance light years.

e350forme

the v6 is bullet proof but I had to get oil pan resealed at 130k]
'
2009 is best year IMO, almost 10 years after they designed it

drchpeteros

2009 e350 4matic wagon, 135K miles

Another issue to look out for is the rear diff. I'm not sure if this is an issue with the sedans but I understand I'm not the only one who had this issue with a wagon. Mine started whining around 85-90K mi. I had it rebuilt at 96K and it's been fine since. That can be expensive because the dealer just puts in a whole new (probably rebuilt) diff. The wanted 6K if I remember correctly. I found a guy in NY (Little Bear AUto Alignment) who kinda specializes in this and he did it for 1500.

It does burn oil and I can't find out how / where. No drips. I changed the Oil breather and there was only a few drops in there, nothing in the MAS area. I sometimes burn a quart between oil changes (10K mi), sometime less.

Other isues Ive had:
-Replaced rear airsprings at 120K
-jumping front door lock (minor annoyance)
-Replaced bushings on from control arms
-rusted broken exhaust hangers (hitting a speed bump doing 35 didn't help)
-torn cv boots which I'm working on now.

CAREFUL HERE. When mine tore recently I was told by 2 MB dealers that the axle assembly for front right and left are currently on "backorder" (my favorite term next to "sustainable"), and will not be available for 6 moths - 2 years!!! I'm told that the aftermarket axles cause vibration and many fail in a year or so.

Check those cv boots out, especially the inners as they are difficult to replace. The outers are not difficult to replace, and I've done both myself as I kinda had to since the axle was not available. Even if it was it's close to a 1K part on the left. I currently have 2 threads on this with some good input from others and will update the second on the inner boot when I get a chance..

cetialpha5

Did you change the oil separator under the breather cover? Both of those need replacing, not just the oil breather. Oil pan gasket can also leak, but it'd leak into the plastic cover so you wouldn't see any drips. I assume you've already checked the oil cooler gasket next to the oil filter and the 3 plugs in the back of the engine.

drchpeteros

Yes, I replaced the separator under the breather cover (left threaded screw) plus the hose that comes off of that, all 3 plugs and the piece on the left side of the engine with it's hose ( not sure what to call that). All pieces came as a kit from FCP Euro.

Oil cooler gasket looks fine with no drips on the serpentine belt below which I changed out as routine maintenance.

Wouldn't that much oil eventually drip out from under the plastic cover? Nothing on the ground at home or at work and I park in the same spot every day

cetialpha5

Well drop the pan cover and see if it's coming from there. Mine has a small leak from there too. Maybe it flies out when you accelerate and then it just sits there when parked.

drchpeteros

Good point. I'll be dropping it soon as I'm going to replace the right front axle.

dvenneman

chances are the oil cooler is leaking and it ls burning off and/or you have valve leaks and are blowing it out the tailpipe.

drchpeteros

I admit to being an amateur at this so I need to ask, how would I go about figuring that out? Is the" oil cooler" the thing right next to the oil filter where the coolant goes thru? No drippage from there, so valves? How do I figure that out or is it something a mechanic has to do?

cetialpha5

Yes, the oil cooler gaskets are right next to the oil filter. The valves is a guess, you don't normally do those as it's a big job. Probably something like doing a head gasket, take off the cylinder head to get at the valves. You just keep driving it til the whole thing dies as it's usually not worth the cost.

drchpeteros

Then I'll drive it 'til it dies, or I do, whichever comes first.

Ty

dvenneman

1) if you measure your oil and make sure it is full, and you see no leaks anywhere, and you check it after a 1,000 and you have less oil you are burning oil. The question is how much. The main place for this excess oil burn is at the valves (top of the engine) and piston rings (bottom of the engine) usually you can tell if the valve cover is leaking.

2) Oil Cooler - yes - very hard to see it leaking. It leaks down from behind and oil burns off.

drchpeteros

I'll take a closer look at the valve cover. And maybe I should just change out the oil cooler gasket. It can't hurt, plus it's cheap and doesn't look too difficult .

dvenneman

I recommend replacing the entire unit. It is very cheap to just do the gasket but it you will have to find a way to glue the gasket in place and if you mess up you are repeating a lot of work. It’s a pretty easy job when you are just swapping out units.

cetialpha5

Did both gaskets not too long ago. It just fits into place, no need to bother with a new unit and both gaskets were in the $10 range.

ET2000

Hey, I've just rebooted my cv axle on the driver side (the inner boot) at a shop, but they put a clamp on it instead of like bending the metal part. Think it will hold?

e350forme

dont worry the aftermarket ones are fine and cheap. if one goes bad i bet next one will be better.

I always used the "oetiker" style clamps for cv boot repair, (Same ones you mention). Time will tell right?

drchpeteros

Yes, time will tell. There must be a reason MB did it the way they did on the inner boot but I can't figure it out. I recently did both ends of my driver's side axle and inner boot was a PITA due to the crimping / bending down of the metal flange. I got it done though. Pics attached. I have read that the aftermarket axles are junk and cause vibration but I have no experience, so I hope I'm wrong because the MB axles are NOT available according to 2 MB dealers I spoke to and are on backorder. Will NOT be available for 6 - 24 months I was told. SO. I fixed my own. Now on to the right-side axle which I did find at FCP Euro where they had a MB axle in the warehouse. Again, MB told me the axle is not available.