Reliability of W213?
 

I've been driving a 2004 Lexus ES330 since I bought it new 12 years ago. I'm considering handing it over to my 16yr old daughter next summer. I really like the new W213.

Given that I've lived with a hassle free car for a dozen years, I'm a little worried, and I'm interested in your opinions as experienced MB owners, what the reliability of the 2017 W213 E-class might be.

Opinions?

I was previously interested in the new C-class, W205, but there are way too many horror stories over on the W205 forum about that car.

I assume it will be a good successor of 212. I can admit that 2014 face lift had amazing reliability. It was first Mercedes I had absolutely zero problem with everything. Lexus is much less reliable car. ES was terrible car, it had very serious problems with brakes, wheels vibration, it aged inside to quick, it looked as 10 years old car just after couple years. LS was a bit better from this stand point, but still no comparison to Mercedes. Mercedes will look like a brand new whatever amount years you own it. And yes, my son is also turning 16 soon. I need a car for him, but I think to get some Honda.

So far the W213 has been bulletproof. Not a single one sold has broken down.

Hmmm. Maybe I'm statistically lucky. My 2004 Lexus ES has been extremely reliable. I do take it into the dealership for standard maintenance twice a year. Maybe something has broken once, but it's been so many years ago I can't remember what it was. And the interior still looks new.

A reason I'm interested in the W213 is the tech. Other than Tesla, the interface for just about every other car looks like the Netscape browser, circa 1997.

Here are the reliability stats from Consumer Reports of the MB sedans vs all other cars. It's amazing that the E-Class is so much better than the C and S. Can anyone comment on whether this makes sense from what you have experienced?

C-Class: Reliability is 83% worse than average

E-Class: Reliability is 6% BETTER than average

S-Class: Reliability is 71% worse than average

Here's a link to a huge database for long term quality. Keep in mind this is an analysis of used cars by manufacturer and model so recent models will not be included. However, it gives a very good indication of long term reliability.

http://longtermqualityindex.com/index.html

:rolf:

Are you really asking about the reliability of a car that isn't even going to be sold for 6 months? :smash:

Yes. I'm asking for anecdotes from MB drivers who have experience with how reliable new model year MB sedans are, specifically the E-class.

It appears that buying the new C-class (W205) is a dice roll. A lot of people on the forums have had a lot of frustrating problems. I'm wondering if experience shows that the first year W213 will be similar.

Thanks,
Jeff

Excuse me, but does your car have electronic stability control? Because I've done some research and I was shocked to find out that your car didn't have ESC as standard.

Considering the horrible experiences that the first year buyers of the W205 (2015 redesigned C-Class) I will hesitate before jumping all in on this one until there is a lot of feedback available. Probably by next spring we will have some valid data.

Does anyone know where this car will be manufactured for the North American market?

Based on my experiences with the W205, I'd be hesitant to jump into the first year of the W213. That being said, I'm still planning on getting one when my lease is up in late 2017 / early 2018

The "E" Class is the most reliable car MB makes, BUT overall MB ranks below the middle in reliability per Consumer Reports. Yes, I know they are biased. But they do have one of the largest databases around.
Based on my experience with a W212 made in Nov. 2009, I would wait for the 2018's. All problems were fixed under warranty and provided a loaner every time, but too many problems for a car in this class.
This will be even worse with all the new or refreshed vehicles MB is putting out.
Will probably be made in Sindelfingen (sp.) Germany.

My thoughts exactly considering MB recent performance with all new designs such as the 2015 W205. They can't even get body panels to fit, screeching brakes, bleeding MBtex seats, lots of wind noise and etc etc...


I will wait at least 6 months after production starts hoping for either mid run improvements or even better yet glowing reports :-)

Have you guys searched the W211 & W212 transmission problem?
I had a 2008 E350 that transmission does not know what gear to choose from during a right / left turn.
On my 2014 E350, Mercedes bought it back because the transmission problem.

The 2017 W213 comes with a 9 speed transmission? I think that is a problem people are going to complain alot.

Considering Mercedes is about to buy back my 2015 E-350 (at their request, not mine -- I'd prefer it be fixed!) and that'd be the 6th year they've been making that model... buyer beware.

I came out of a 2004 Infiniti M45. Admittedly, that car was an absolute dog for the first 30,000 miles, but with each time I took it into the dealership, they slowly but surely got the car to actually work. It was a better car at 100,000 miles than new. I sold it at ~225,000 miles to the mechanic who used to work on it.

My 2015 E350 has been in the shop countless times, over 4 months of being IN THE SHOP in the 1 YEAR I owned it. Each time I take it in, they increasingly take longer and longer to work on the car.

And to top it off, last night I get into the car and the 360 Degree/backup cameras stopped working...again.

If you're looking for trouble-free, look elsewhere, at least for the first year of production.

That said, if Mercedes buys my 2015 E back, I want a 2016 E. I've looked at everything else out there and can't find another car like it. Not sure on the 2017 E. Not enough info to know what it can/can't do and I'll admit I'm NOT a fan of the 2017 styling.

The guy is about to hand his daughter his 12-year old deathtrap (His beloved jumped-up POS Camry didn't have stability control). What the hell is the matter with him?!

What an unbelievably dumb thread. First off the new C-Class was just that brand new and in a new factory so yes there were problems. The E-Class however will be built in Germany where the current one is built so the initial quality will be a lot better. Of course a Benz is going to be as reliable as a Toyota/ES300, but no one knows what it will be until the car gets into customers hands.

M

The first versions of the current E-Class had quite a few initial problems which they seemed to get right by about late 2012/early 2013. Some of the problems were major (engine replacements under warranty). Others are STILL ongoing problems like their terrible 7-speed automatic transmissions, AC stepper motors, etc.

I've driven >6 2014-2016 E-Classes in the past year, ALL of them had issues with the AC stepper motors & sensors. 100% failure rate over 3 years of models. That's pretty piss poor.

So if you like new cars - you should lease Mercedes.
But if you want a reliable go with Lexus or Acura.

I've been active on the car forums of every car I've purchased since 2000 (about 14 cars across a variety of manufacturers). In every single one of those cases, the first production year (and sometimes the second) has problems that the following years simply don't have. In 2/3 of those cases, the patterns were caught while the car was under warranty. It's just a fact of life.

If you were leasing this car, I'd say "go for it", but if you're hoping to keep this for another 12 years, I think you're likely to regret it.

If you'd care to use the current model as a proxy, here is a link to German Auto Inspection firm DEKRA's 2014 Used Car report which rates the W212 as best of all classes in overall faults per vehicle (performed in the european markets, where I guess Lexus is not that common):
http://www.dekra.com/en/press_releas...cleID=43425153


You have to understand that with any forum such as this, you mostly read about problems, as owners seldom start threads just to applaud their cars...

like any other car (doesnt matter which make) most 1st gen will have its fair share of faults. especially with all those new gizmos in it. but thats what warranties are for. no one can actually tell until the first few roll out to their new owners.

which brings me to this...

huh?!:slap:


.....and this below is a very good point. some will post how much they love their new cars but not more than when people complain.

Lexus is extremely reliable but the latest Consumer Reports has Acura dropping significantly. Don't assume past success means future success.

Mercedes was higher on Consumer Reports but they have had teething problems with their new cars. Mercedes has refreshed the entire lineup. Mercedes loves to stay fresh and current and have the latest technologies. For example, your old Lexus is without stability control, something that would have been standard on Mercedes 12 years ago. Toyota and Lexus remain reliable by being very conservative with new vehicles and reusing proven parts as much as possible.

My recommendation would be to wait the first year of production. In fact I think you would find better reliability with a C Class if you needed to buy a car this year.