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Thanks for your reply. Sorry not completely understanding. Are you saying the E550 is better quality? Or worse quality? Thanks!
Glad to hear the M272 takes the cake with the least amount of problems. What about the balance shaft issue? During what years was that a problem? is the balance shaft issue specific to the m272?
Quality should be very similar between the 350 and 550. Not sure what he means either. The 550 will come with leather as standard and in earlier years of the W212 they came with Airmatic as the standard suspension. Some small minor differences including brake systems, etc. but no difference in build quality. The 550 may contain more options than a 350 just because buyers would generally load them up.
Where are you at with a budget?, which I know has already been asked.
Thanks for your reply. Sorry not completely understanding. Are you saying the E550 is better quality? Or worse quality? Thanks!
Glad to hear the M272 takes the cake with the least amount of problems. What about the balance shaft issue? During what years was that a problem? is the balance shaft issue specific to the m272?
I don't see how a W212 E550 or E350 are any different in build quality... as far as M272 balance shaft issue, that's not a W212 problem which started production end of 2010 (MY 11). The balance shaft issues ended around 2008, affecting at least the prior W211 chassis.
Well of course the general consensus here might be M276, but on most of the highest mileage threads and Facebook posts, the m272 takes the cake with the least amount of problems. Sure, the M276 has more power and fuel efficiency, but that wasn't the question. Can't go wrong with either of them anyways.
As far as the seats go, if you're older I can see that as a concern. For younger people, it's no issue. And, as far as "bad visibility with the B pillar" I'm not sure if you've moved your seat *all the way back* because I do not have that issue, nor do I have a problem fitting anyone under 18 behind me. Obviously the E class has more leg room, that's the point. But if it's one person driving the car most of the time, who cares.
As far as quality/materials I'm gonna disagree, and here I am in the w212 forum ready to take heat, but from c300 to e350 it was not a big difference at all in quality to me. Now, E550, yes, very much so, and I can't say for E400's, but my CLS for example is a significant step up in quality.
As far as the crash test goes, I'm not going to look it up, but we all drive a Mercedes here which has great crash scores all round. Obviously the E is bigger (which doesn't necessarily mean better in accidents, yes, I get your example) but either way it's much improved over the w203.
Originally Posted by KEY08
Quality should be very similar between the 350 and 550. Not sure what he means either. The 550 will come with leather as standard and in earlier years of the W212 they came with Airmatic as the standard suspension. Some small minor differences including brake systems, etc. but no difference in build quality. The 550 may contain more options than a 350 just because buyers would generally load them up.
Where are you at with a budget?, which I know has already been asked.
Thanks for the info! Budget is around $6000 - $9000.
We sure got lucky with the wrecked 06 e320. Had 300,000 miles on in it when we bought it 2 yrs ago. Paid $2500 for it. Put about $1,000 into it. Mostly maintenance and minor things I was able to replace myself. water pump, control arm, ball joints, trans service (conductor plate), engine mounts etc. What a damn good car. Obviously well maintained, perfect interior etc. Only minor thing was metal plating peeling off the inside door opener handle. Daughter loved it. Outstanding power, fuel economy, performance, handling etc etc. She said it was one of the few cars that didn't hurt her back on long highway drives. Maybe a rare find i dont know. I would beg to find another MB as reliable and solid as that e320
Last edited by ironforger; 03-08-2021 at 12:39 PM.
E550 is not inherently better quality than E350. E550s are generally ordered by customers selecting a heavier option content. Leather seats, etc. Build quality is the same, option content is different, on average. Same across all MB models.
The M272 has been on the road longer than the M276, nearly twice as many years. No statement can reliably be made about longevity between the two engines. What can be stated is whether or not either has known “serious” issues at low to moderate mileage. The M272 has the balance shaft which to my understanding was not corrected by MB. The M276 had chain tensioner problems in early builds, and this has since been resolved by MB and a clean point exists for this problem.
Both engines are susceptible to oil in the harness from cam position sensors and cam magnets. The M272 has a pigtail remedy. The M276 may have a clean point after 2016 or 2017, this is an evolving story.
E550 is not inherently better quality than E350. E550s are generally ordered by customers selecting a heavier option content. Leather seats, etc. Build quality is the same, option content is different, on average. Same across all MB models.
The M272 has been on the road longer than the M276, nearly twice as many years. No statement can reliably be made about longevity between the two engines. What can be stated is whether or not either has known “serious” issues at low to moderate mileage. The M272 has the balance shaft which to my understanding was not corrected by MB. The M276 had chain tensioner problems in early builds, and this has since been resolved by MB and a clean point exists for this problem.
Both engines are susceptible to oil in the harness from cam position sensors and cam magnets. The M272 has a pigtail remedy. The M276 may have a clean point after 2016 or 2017, this is an evolving story.
thanks for the info. As for the chain tensioner, what years should be avoided? At what poin / what model yeart was the chain tensioner issue resolved on the M276?
Thanks!
E550 is not inherently better quality than E350. E550s are generally ordered by customers selecting a heavier option content. Leather seats, etc. Build quality is the same, option content is different, on average. Same across all MB models.
The M272 has been on the road longer than the M276, nearly twice as many years. No statement can reliably be made about longevity between the two engines. What can be stated is whether or not either has known “serious” issues at low to moderate mileage. The M272 has the balance shaft which to my understanding was not corrected by MB. The M276 had chain tensioner problems in early builds, and this has since been resolved by MB and a clean point exists for this problem.
Both engines are susceptible to oil in the harness from cam position sensors and cam magnets. The M272 has a pigtail remedy. The M276 may have a clean point after 2016 or 2017, this is an evolving story.
What's the basis for this? MB documented a range of engine S/Ns which were/could be affected by the flawed parts and those were cars in the 2004-2008 range. I've never heard or seen a documented case regarding the W212 with M272.
What does still affect the latter W212s with M272 is the tumble flap mechanism on the intake manifold gumming up and breaking with time. In addition to the oil migration into the engine harness as you mentioned.
Thanks for the info! Budget is around $6000 - $9000.
We sure got lucky with the wrecked 06 e320. Had 300,000 miles on in it when we bought it 2 yrs ago. Paid $2500 for it. Put about $1,000 into it. Mostly maintenance and minor things I was able to replace myself. water pump, control arm, ball joints, trans service (conductor plate), engine mounts etc. What a damn good car. Obviously well maintained, perfect interior etc. Only minor thing was metal plating peeling off the inside door opener handle. Daughter loved it. Outstanding power, fuel economy, performance, handling etc etc. She said it was one of the few cars that didn't hurt her back on long highway drives. Maybe a rare find i dont know. I would beg to find another MB as reliable and solid as that e320
6-9k is going to be tough for even an E350, likely only an early model... I think 10-15 is more reasonable and closer to 20 for a late, late model.
Between the E550 and E350, my thing wasn't about *build quality* it was about *material quality.*
The E350 and C300 are pretty darn close as far as materials go. Dash is same, MBTex is same, vinyl is same, etc. The E550 has leather wrapped dash, stitched trims, just even take a look at the door panels. These are things that his daughter probably won't care about though, so C300 to E350 isn't gonna matter, they're both made in Stuttgart. If this was a W205 sedan vs coupe situation, where sedans are made in Alabama and Coupes are made in Germany, well, that's different.
I think we've complicated this as is. Just stick to 2012+ anything for max reliability, 4matic you don't need to look for unless you really need it, and overall just make the usual checks. These cars are very easy to work on and not expensive to maintain otherwise.
We haven't seen balanced shaft problems after 08 so they are clear on w212 or w204
6-9k is going to be tough for even an E350, likely only an early model... I think 10-15 is more reasonable and closer to 20 for a late, late model.
I paid $33K for my 2016 E350 in March, 2018, with 17,000 miles. Carfax trade-in value for it today with 29,000 miles is $25,000. Although I have no desire to sell it.
I bought the E350 because 302hp was plenty for me. I had no need for the E550's V8, leather (I actually prefer MBTex), and panoroof. I bought the E350 for long term ownership, so purposely avoided the complication of the 4-matic. Finally, I wanted to avoid the airmatic suspension like the plague.
I am more than convinced the E350 and E550 have exactly the same build quality.
Yes, the budget will require very early cars or those with very high miles, but it seems you are okay with high mileage cars since the W211 had 300,000.
Thanks for the info! Budget is around $6000 - $9000.
...
phew. They say there is nothing as expensive as a cheap Mercedes. Except maybe an airplane. or boat ("hole in water you pour money into").
the problem is, even if they were very well maintained when relatively new, as cars get older, maintenance has a tendency to get deferred, and too much deferred maintenance can result in major headaches for a new owner. this is especially true for 2-3 owner cars, but also true for single owner garage queens.
Last edited by Left Coast Geek; 03-08-2021 at 03:02 PM.
facebook and craigslist can be full of scams. while I've bought quite a few vehicles via craigslist in the past, I've also seen a lot of sketchy 'deals' where it turns out the pictures were cribbed off the internet, and the seller has a sob story usually involving a overseas military deployment or similar.
facebook and craigslist can be full of scams. while I've bought quite a few vehicles via craigslist in the past, I've also seen a lot of sketchy 'deals' where it turns out the pictures were cribbed off the internet, and the seller has a sob story usually involving a overseas military deployment or similar.
Yes but it's a scam only if you can't see it in person and need it shipped. Always go see it in person. I bought my 2011 in another state. Drove over there to check it out and the vin number he gave me matched up to the car.
And for the record, the M272 had the balance shaft issue up to 2007, the 2008 models were fine which is why I got the 2008. Already did the intake manifold on my 2011, had over 130k, that seems to go anywhere from 80-140k, depends on how bad the oil separator/breather cover gets and allows oil into the intake instead of just the oil fumes. That gums up the intake flaps which means it's time for a new intake. From what I've been reading, the M276 is more reliable than the M272 because it doesn't have the intake manifold problem like the M272. Spark plugs are harder to change though, but that's much cheaper than an intake manifold. Everyone always says to avoid the 4matic, but they're very common up here and both of mine are 4matic with no issues. There aren't that many issues with them as people claim, just look for threads about it, there's just a few issues here and there. Not having it makes it more reliable but then you're spending more money on tires as you get the staggered wheel setup and the rear tires only last half as long as normal because you can't rotate them.
Well of course the general consensus here might be M276, but on most of the highest mileage threads and Facebook posts, the m272 takes the cake with the least amount of problems. Sure, the M276 has more power and fuel efficiency, but that wasn't the question. Can't go wrong with either of them anyways.
As far as the seats go, if you're older I can see that as a concern. For younger people, it's no issue. And, as far as "bad visibility with the B pillar" I'm not sure if you've moved your seat *all the way back* because I do not have that issue, nor do I have a problem fitting anyone under 18 behind me. Obviously the E class has more leg room, that's the point. But if it's one person driving the car most of the time, who cares.
As far as quality/materials I'm gonna disagree, and here I am in the w212 forum ready to take heat, but from c300 to e350 it was not a big difference at all in material quality to me. Now, E550, yes, very much so, and I can't say for E400's, but my CLS for example is a significant step up in quality.
As far as the crash test goes, I'm not going to look it up, but we all drive a Mercedes here which has great crash scores all round. Obviously the E is bigger (which doesn't necessarily mean better in accidents, yes, I get your example) but either way it's much improved over the w203.
2012 C Class scored poor on small overlap test which was an embarrassment for Mercedes given that a Honda Accord scored a good for the same year.
I've only ever bought ONE car sight unseen and thats my W212 2016 E350 wagon which was purchased as a CPO from a Mercedes dealer in another state and shipped to me. did massive amounts of due dilligence, I was firmly convinced this was the perfect car for us (after having car shopped for 6 months with my wife, test drove dozens and dozens of wildly varying cars trying to get her to narrow down what she wanted, many all day trips to remote norcal dealer lots, etc).
she just was locking up on the idea of spending close to $40k on something we'd never driven or seen in person. Finally I told her, ok, fine, I give up, I'll buy a 1991-ish Olds Custom Cruiser wagon (last of the big V8 RWD wagons), and pay a local custom car builder to drop a LT1 crate + 8 speed in it, all new leather, carpet, air adjustable suspension, and all new paint, nice sound system, etc etc, as a sleeper hotrod wagon, and budgeted it all out to about $30-40K. Her DAD had driven big old GM wagons in the 60s/70s when she was growing up, hah hah, and she wanted NOTHING to do with that concept (actually, I think it could have come out pretty nicely, except the local mechanic I had in mind has retired)... So I wrote up my idea as an email, complete with pictures of various used 1991ish Olds wagons, adn sent ti to her...
next morning she said pull the trigger on the E350. she never mentioned my Olds
Early morning on Christmas eve, meeting the delivery driver in the parking lot of a abandoned Sears near us.... inspecting for scratches (zero, none, zilch, car was LIKE NEW).
(and yes, behind it is her old 1994 280K mile E320 wagon that she's been driving for the past 10 years)
Last edited by Left Coast Geek; 03-08-2021 at 09:57 PM.
a early 2003 should have been a 7.3, it was mid model year 2003 they switched to the 6.0. so yeah, my MY2002 is a 7.3, the final version with the twin-shot injectors and no catalyst or EGR slow n steady as she goes, reliable as a brick as long as you keep up with the oil changes.
I had Mercedes E350 2013 4Matic bought 2016 with 43000 miles. At 121000 on 2/7/2019 front driveshaft broke after making sound for around 3 months. It broke catalytic converter and oxygen sensor. Actually it broke when mechanic drive tested it. Can we blame to shop? I don't we can right. So it fixed for around $2500. Then now at 172000 miles 4/10/2021 it left me stranded around 140 miles and cost me $500 for towing to home. The closest shop is 46 miles but it about to close on Sat and will open Monday. Geico tow is scam they claimed it cover up to 100 miles but only to close shop and didn't care if shop will close if more than that they only cover 20 miles. So lesson learned get AAA for around 100 per year for up to 200 miles with no condition.
Look like it common problem because I seen in youtube same problem E350 2013 4matic
03-08-2021, 12:16 PM
