2010 E350 (150k miles) Maintenance
12-05-2023, 01:14 PM
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W212 2010 E350
2010 E350 (150k miles) Maintenance
My 2010 W212 E350 is the best car I have ever driven. I've been daily driving this vehicle since 2019, and have been sharing it with my father since 2012.
The car currently has just over 150k miles. Recently, I've replaced the intake manifold, tensioner, new serpentine belt, front control arm bushings, and vacuum pumps, and topped off all fluids. I had my local shop do these repairs right at 150k.
Now, the idler pulleys are squeaking on cold start (the shop quoted me $560 for this), the driver side heated side is inoperable (light turns on and then off after ~2 minutes, the seat has the MB-Tex tear), and my front bumper has developed an odd crack from a rock or something hitting me on the highway. I had a local body shop put some JB-Weld on it to keep it from spreading (it's only visible underneath the bumper so no cosmetic issue), my auxiliary battery also fails when the car is left outside overnight in the cold and I start it in the morning (later in the day it works just fine with no errors and the brake HOLD function returns).
Furthermore, the car is constantly pulling to the left. I've had 3 shops do 3 alignments in the last year alone in hopes of resolving this and all have given me a different verdict.
Shop 1: The frame might be damaged, we did our best to reduce the pull, but you'll need to keep your hands on the wheel when going straight (after 150ft it will pull)
- car has had no accidents
- i hit a curb at 15 mph back in 2019, but I didn't notice a pull back then, and at 100k had the suspension inspected by a different shop (none of the 3) with no issues found
Shop 2: *didn't say anything, car pulled to the left worse*
Shop 3 (dealership): Inner tie rods have play, need to keep hands on wheel
- Charged me $260 to re-install a "plate" on the control arm, stating the shop that replaced them installed this part backward. Spent $460 on the alignment and this.
My question is what exactly should be my approach to keeping this car driving with no issues? The main thing that is bothering me is the alignment, as I also have yet to make my tires last longer than 20k miles and have been relying on the mileage credit Discount Tire offers for premature wear.
Personally, my ideal list of repairs/upgrades (in order of priority) is this:
1. Idler Pulley(s)
2. Engine mounts (car currently has no vibration when in park so that's why this is #2)
3. Transmission mount (slight vibration when at a stop in drive)
4. Driver side seat tear (fix heated seat as well)
5. Bumper
6. Full lighting upgrade (HID headlights, license plate lights, etc.)
7. COMAND wheel repair
8. CarPlay upgrade
should I just only do standard services, and fix motor issues? please let me know. i want this car to last forever, and am willing to do whatever it takes as long as it doesn't break the bank.
The car currently has just over 150k miles. Recently, I've replaced the intake manifold, tensioner, new serpentine belt, front control arm bushings, and vacuum pumps, and topped off all fluids. I had my local shop do these repairs right at 150k.
Now, the idler pulleys are squeaking on cold start (the shop quoted me $560 for this), the driver side heated side is inoperable (light turns on and then off after ~2 minutes, the seat has the MB-Tex tear), and my front bumper has developed an odd crack from a rock or something hitting me on the highway. I had a local body shop put some JB-Weld on it to keep it from spreading (it's only visible underneath the bumper so no cosmetic issue), my auxiliary battery also fails when the car is left outside overnight in the cold and I start it in the morning (later in the day it works just fine with no errors and the brake HOLD function returns).
Furthermore, the car is constantly pulling to the left. I've had 3 shops do 3 alignments in the last year alone in hopes of resolving this and all have given me a different verdict.
Shop 1: The frame might be damaged, we did our best to reduce the pull, but you'll need to keep your hands on the wheel when going straight (after 150ft it will pull)
- car has had no accidents
- i hit a curb at 15 mph back in 2019, but I didn't notice a pull back then, and at 100k had the suspension inspected by a different shop (none of the 3) with no issues found
Shop 2: *didn't say anything, car pulled to the left worse*
Shop 3 (dealership): Inner tie rods have play, need to keep hands on wheel
- Charged me $260 to re-install a "plate" on the control arm, stating the shop that replaced them installed this part backward. Spent $460 on the alignment and this.
My question is what exactly should be my approach to keeping this car driving with no issues? The main thing that is bothering me is the alignment, as I also have yet to make my tires last longer than 20k miles and have been relying on the mileage credit Discount Tire offers for premature wear.
Personally, my ideal list of repairs/upgrades (in order of priority) is this:
1. Idler Pulley(s)
2. Engine mounts (car currently has no vibration when in park so that's why this is #2)
3. Transmission mount (slight vibration when at a stop in drive)
4. Driver side seat tear (fix heated seat as well)
5. Bumper
6. Full lighting upgrade (HID headlights, license plate lights, etc.)
7. COMAND wheel repair
8. CarPlay upgrade
should I just only do standard services, and fix motor issues? please let me know. i want this car to last forever, and am willing to do whatever it takes as long as it doesn't break the bank.
12-05-2023, 02:07 PM
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MY'14 W212 M276 3.5NA @55kMi
150kMi V6.... going 250kMi
My 2010 W212 E350 is the best car I have ever driven. I've been daily driving this vehicle since 2019, and have been sharing it with my father since 2012.
The car currently has just over 150k miles. Recently, I've replaced the intake manifold, tensioner, new serpentine belt, front control arm bushings, and vacuum pumps, and topped off all fluids. I had my local shop do these repairs right at 150k.
Now, the idler pulleys are squeaking on cold start (the shop quoted me $560 for this), the driver side heated side is inoperable (light turns on and then off after ~2 minutes, the seat has the MB-Tex tear), and my front bumper has developed an odd crack from a rock or something hitting me on the highway. I had a local body shop put some JB-Weld on it to keep it from spreading (it's only visible underneath the bumper so no cosmetic issue), my auxiliary battery also fails when the car is left outside overnight in the cold and I start it in the morning (later in the day it works just fine with no errors and the brake HOLD function returns).
Furthermore, the car is constantly pulling to the left. I've had 3 shops do 3 alignments in the last year alone in hopes of resolving this and all have given me a different verdict.
Shop 1: The frame might be damaged, we did our best to reduce the pull, but you'll need to keep your hands on the wheel when going straight (after 150ft it will pull)
- car has had no accidents
- i hit a curb at 15 mph back in 2019, but I didn't notice a pull back then, and at 100k had the suspension inspected by a different shop (none of the 3) with no issues found
Shop 2: *didn't say anything, car pulled to the left worse*
Shop 3 (dealership): Inner tie rods have play, need to keep hands on wheel
- Charged me $260 to re-install a "plate" on the control arm, stating the shop that replaced them installed this part backward. Spent $460 on the alignment and this.
My question is what exactly should be my approach to keeping this car driving with no issues? The main thing that is bothering me is the alignment, as I also have yet to make my tires last longer than 20k miles and have been relying on the mileage credit Discount Tire offers for premature wear.
Personally, my ideal list of repairs/upgrades (in order of priority) is this:
1. Idler Pulley(s)
2. Engine mounts (car currently has no vibration when in park so that's why this is #2)
3. Transmission mount (slight vibration when at a stop in drive)
4. Driver side seat tear (fix heated seat as well)
5. Bumper
6. Full lighting upgrade (HID headlights, license plate lights, etc.)
7. COMAND wheel repair
8. CarPlay upgrade
should I just only do standard services, and fix motor issues? please let me know. i want this car to last forever, and am willing to do whatever it takes as long as it doesn't break the bank.
The car currently has just over 150k miles. Recently, I've replaced the intake manifold, tensioner, new serpentine belt, front control arm bushings, and vacuum pumps, and topped off all fluids. I had my local shop do these repairs right at 150k.
Now, the idler pulleys are squeaking on cold start (the shop quoted me $560 for this), the driver side heated side is inoperable (light turns on and then off after ~2 minutes, the seat has the MB-Tex tear), and my front bumper has developed an odd crack from a rock or something hitting me on the highway. I had a local body shop put some JB-Weld on it to keep it from spreading (it's only visible underneath the bumper so no cosmetic issue), my auxiliary battery also fails when the car is left outside overnight in the cold and I start it in the morning (later in the day it works just fine with no errors and the brake HOLD function returns).
Furthermore, the car is constantly pulling to the left. I've had 3 shops do 3 alignments in the last year alone in hopes of resolving this and all have given me a different verdict.
Shop 1: The frame might be damaged, we did our best to reduce the pull, but you'll need to keep your hands on the wheel when going straight (after 150ft it will pull)
- car has had no accidents
- i hit a curb at 15 mph back in 2019, but I didn't notice a pull back then, and at 100k had the suspension inspected by a different shop (none of the 3) with no issues found
Shop 2: *didn't say anything, car pulled to the left worse*
Shop 3 (dealership): Inner tie rods have play, need to keep hands on wheel
- Charged me $260 to re-install a "plate" on the control arm, stating the shop that replaced them installed this part backward. Spent $460 on the alignment and this.
My question is what exactly should be my approach to keeping this car driving with no issues? The main thing that is bothering me is the alignment, as I also have yet to make my tires last longer than 20k miles and have been relying on the mileage credit Discount Tire offers for premature wear.
Personally, my ideal list of repairs/upgrades (in order of priority) is this:
1. Idler Pulley(s)
2. Engine mounts (car currently has no vibration when in park so that's why this is #2)
3. Transmission mount (slight vibration when at a stop in drive)
4. Driver side seat tear (fix heated seat as well)
5. Bumper
6. Full lighting upgrade (HID headlights, license plate lights, etc.)
7. COMAND wheel repair
8. CarPlay upgrade
should I just only do standard services, and fix motor issues? please let me know. i want this car to last forever, and am willing to do whatever it takes as long as it doesn't break the bank.
No1 most important is engine oil, No2 is tranny oil, No3 position has many contenders....
To adress serpentine issues, the killer is the old tensioner!
Alignment pull. These cars need fresh bushings. The one messing your alignment is the one you have not changed yet... need all:
- lower control arms
- upper control arm
- steering tie rods i/o
- ball joints
- stablinks
Good electrical is paramount with these 40+ computers. In that Dpt No1 troublemaker is the main chassis strap under the car. It makes a poor connection between chassis to alternator. EVERYTHING relies on it. Simply clean it and make it tight.
> Pro-actively replace:
To drive the next 100kMi you are going to meet avoidable emergencies.
Upstream Lambda O2 sensors (2pcs only). These unassuming parts are directing the engine management. The ECU needs clean pair of these ASAP!
Sparkplugs every 60k, chain tensioners 40kMi
Coolant circuit refresh (rear pipe!, plastic tank split, radiator mayo, thermostat)
Alternator need regulator brushes. Starter is going to get slow with one bad brush.
Roof drains unplug (SAM swamp)
Rear brakes need rusted pistons, rusted lines pop!
So you understand that you need to be on top of every system to keep your chassis humming.
That's what ppl on this forum do: swap tips and stories... enjoy your journey.
