mleonard422

Hello all,


I'd like to start by saying Im am happy to join the ranks and am excited to engage with the community.


I recently purchased a 2014 E350 4MATIC (Luxury Version), black with tan interior and just over 50k miles. One owner. Clean CarFax. The price was good/fair. However, although I did do some research online regarding its overall reliability (Consumer Reports and US News), I did not take the time to actually try to talk to people and get their opinion and advice. I would like to keep this car for a very long time if I am able because I do really like the appearance of the vehicle.


So I have a couple questions. I encourage anyone to give me their two cents. I am looking for advice to navigate MB ownership as I do not have tons of cash for costly repairs but am genuinely interested in learning about my car and maintaining it as best I can in order to avoid bigger issues down the line. (I tried to find other threads that answered my questions but what having a hard time so feel free to link me to any relevant threads!)


1. What is the general consensus regarding the reliability of the post-facelift W212 E-Class? More specifically, the E350 w/ M276 engine and the 7-speed transmission?


2. The ride on my car is strange and I am having trouble diagnosing what could be wrong. I noticed it early on. The car drives like silk over on flat roads at low to intermediate speeds and handling seems fine and the car does not make any strange noises. However, the car feels pretty rough when driving over bumps above like 20mph. Sometimes, depending on the severity, I can feel the jolt of through the steering wheel. In addition, when going over 60 or 70mph the car does not feel like the German cruiser these cars are meant to be. At these speeds, the steering wheel doesn't shake and really only vibrates ever so slightly, but when I'm on the highway and go over some road imperfections, it really feels like a crashing feeling in the car. It doesn't feel wobbly at all, I wouldn't even use the word unstable. It just doesn't feel as planted as it should. In addition, having owned a BMW previously and driven other Mercedes Benz I know that going 80mph on the highway is easy and you barely notice how quick you're going whereas I start to feel and notice when I am going over 60/70mph. It doesn't feel like I am just cruising, it feels like I need to be cautious because a small bump on the highway could cause a rough jolt to the car and the steering wheel. But again, when I am driving at lower speeds, the car is EXTREMELY smooth and even when going over bumps the car feels solid. There is not squeaking or rattling. However, at silky, comforting feeling goes away if I cruise over road imperfections at a regular speed.


What could this be? I took it to an authorized MD dealer to have a pre-purchase inspection and the car looked over and they said everything looked up to snuff. It was something that has been there from the beginning, I just didn't really notice it at first. I checked the air in the tires and it's actually on the lower end. I would love any advice. I hope it's not an incredibly expensive repair. I can't decide whether the technician did not notice anything wrong is a good thing or a bad thing. I assume they look at the shocks and the control arms during a PPI? Is it possible it's something smaller within the suspension or a larger issue?


3. I've seen this one a lot but I occasionally have some rough shifts 4-3 or 3-4. This seems to be a common issue but is there a fix to it? Is it something that I can live with or is this causing damage to my transmission in general?


Looking forward to any and all advice! Sorry for the novel. Any advice would be greatly appreciated.


Thanks!!

thefisch

In regards to #2, I would take a long look at the shock absorbers. Have them check for signs of leaks. Also, go over speed bumps at low speed and see how the car handles them. Go slow and see how each axle acts as they take the speed bump and rebound.

pb39374

for #2 you can try getting the engine mounts checked.

KEY08

Welcome! These W212 models are quite reliable, but some repairs can try your patience and wallet. Did you purchase as a CPO by chance?
With the low miles you shouldn’t have too many issues to deal with, but I concur on checking the engine and transmission mounts. These can transmit noise into the cabin once they collapse. They are hydraulic and do a great job of noise isolation until they fail. It’s possible they were overlooked during your inspection.
These cars are designed to go 140mph all day in the Autobahn with no drama and your car is not properly complying with that state right now.

Mud

I suggest getting a good scantool that can help diagnose any driveanility issues. But you need one that can access the vehicle modules, not just a generic obd2. I suggest the icarsoft v2.0 for MB or the Autel MD808 Pro (can access multi-vehicle modules). I also just got a GTC505 ignition analyzer that's amazing, helped to track down intermittent no-CEL miss in our truck. I'm retired and considered the moderate investment in diagnostic tools to be worth it vs shop costs.

Suspension crash at higher speeds over minimal bumps usually indicates inability to dampen sudden impacts. First stop is to really look at all suspension and steering components and bushings/linkages and to pry on them a bit to gauge if excessive play. Then check struts and shocks, including strut mounts. Problem there is that it's tough to gauge their condition unless something obvious like oil leakage. I sometimes wonder about the thoroughness of PPI, seems like a lot of it is visual. That's ok but in some cases maybe more hands-on is needed.

I believe you can reset your transmission shift characteristics, there's a simple procedure to do this. I don't have it handy but readily found on the internet. I would also suggest a fluid and filter change so you have a baseline for your maintenance. I'm typically a second owner of low mile vehicles, let the first owner take the bigger depreciation hit, but I inspect carefully and then go through all fluids, filters, brakes (if needed) etc so I know where that baseline us for my comfort level.

IMO these cars are pretty much like others, with maintenance they can provide good service. But like any other brand, dependability can vary car to car. Some here have 200k+ cars that are golden, others have transmissions and engines replaced under 50k miles. But with reasonable DIY skills and forum/ internet info, you should be able to enjoy your car for many miles.