Hi All, I've just bought my first Mercedes, a 2011 GL 350CDI. Started to read thru the forum, but wanted to check with you what are the 'must do' items in order to address the known bugs of the car. Naturally I am scheduled to do a regular maintenance, oil change etc. Am looking for any other items that might be there.

Previously have been driving different types of Saab's and they had some of these peculiar things that were advised to be done in order to enjoy smooth ride that your garage didn't necessarily tell you about. Hence the question.

 

I used to be a Saab guy myself. I had an 1989 9000S and then a 2004 9-5 Aero. Anyway, there are a couple things you want to check out sooner than later. Turbo seals and oil cooler seals are notorious to cause major issues if leaks aren't addressed. Everything else, I think, are more fix as they break.

 

I had the turbo seals replaced during the service check the other week and have some minor leaks from the transmission scheduled to be fixed in a weeks time. All good then, thanks!

 

How many miles on the truck?
Every 40K miles Transmission oil should be changed.
An overlooked item is the transfer case fluid.. Not properly maintaining this supposedly never change fluid can cause a lot of problems.

Cabin Filters are often unchanged and they affected air flow.. When got my 2011 they were packed up and was affecting flow.

The DEF fluid should be totally flushed and replaced every 20-30K miles...

I would do a general inspection of brake pads, wiper blades, coolant, basically all fluids and replace as you find necessary.

Someone that I had to deal with recently was that I had to replace all my tires as was getting a lot of inside tire wear. And my alignment was way out. Check your tires wear pattern see if you have the same issue.

When I got my truck last year I checked all the rubber seals on the door and hatch was clean and lubricated. I also checked all door hinges.. I like going through the whole truck one section at a time.

My truck when I bought it came with an oil cooler leak and the dealership knew about it, so besides updating to the oil cooler gaskets, I replaced the Fuel filter as well.