ML_idiot

Hi everyone, first time poster seeking some good advice.

We leased a 2010 ml350 back in October 2009 with intent to buy it upon completion of the lease.

I was overseas/traveling for the better part of 18 months and never returned back home to check on the car.

I get back on Sunday to find that my beautiful and wonderful fiance has neglected to do any service on the car over the time I'm speaking of. The service C indicator says it is 330 days past, the "coolant" light is on, the tires are nearly worn out, and the odometer reads 23,759. I had leased it for 30K miles, so it is substantially under the allotment.

It looks like the last oil change that was done was at 10K miles before I left, so I'm really upset since our original plan looks like it is in jeopardy. That's 13K miles without a change or service, and I've never tempted fate like that with any vehicle I've owned to know what the true repercussions are there.

Here are my questions for the experts:

1. Since it's been 18 months since an oil change + 330 days overdue for the service C, is this ml headed to an early grave no matter what?

2. What kind of longer-term damage has she opened the door to?

3. Should I take the car to a german-auto body shop to assess the current state before making any big decisions?

4. If we did turn it in, will I get hosed by any fees for the maintenance neglect, or if we "get caught up", will it be ok?

5. Would it be stupid to buy the car after the lease even if a mechanic says it checks out?

I love my fiance dearly, but this has been an extremely stressful last few days for obvious reasons.

Any help is greatly appreciated.

Cheers,
ml_idiot

ML_idiot

42 views and nothing? Come on, friends...I need some advice of the brutally honest variety.

theunderlord

13K in between oil changes isn't that big of a deal, get the oil changed and don't worry about it. 15K + would be pushing it. if you really want to have piece of mind, change the oil and send in a sample HERE, and see what they say.

Top off the coolant, Get the service C done at the dealer, and relax.

Calmly explain to your wife to be to pay more attention to the car in the future, if she doesn't, tell he you're trading in the ML and getting her a Honda Odyssey.

wongster

you should be ok. i remember i didn't get my oil changed in my old 07 c for almost 15k miles and it still runs strong. just go get the maintenance done at the dealer and you should be ok

houseofdiesel

If your that worried have the oil pan removed for a serious cleaning inside/proper oil change, see what it looks like and go on with life. If there is sludge inside the pan then let it go, if not your fine. There will be other things to do also like trans service, check all other fluids, brake fluid replacement etc, it will be expensive all at once but doubtful there are any life long problems here. Don't go to the dealer to pull the oil pan your just marking yourself for the end of lease problems...get an indie to check it out and then have the dealer service it.
For sure though if you want an extended warranty make sure you still qualify at the local dealer before you buy back the car, they may just sign the papers and your good or they may ask where have you been for service, tread carefully, warranties like paper trails.
Greg

aggst1

You should be absolutely fine at 13K between oil changes providing the correct synthetic oil was used last time. The 10K is a recommendation from manufacturer and it is a very conservative estimate. Synthetic oils actually last a lot more miles (if I m not mistaking over 20K miles depending on driving environment and driving type.)
Personally I would take it in to dealer. If they say something when lease is up then tell them you ll be buying it and you can sell it later. Now all this assumes your better half is a typical driver. If she did 13 k miles very hard etc then it might pay to get it checked out as stated above.
You are on your own with dealing with your fiancé... Kidding aside, don't be too hard on her. After all, relationships in life are and should be more important than material things that can get repaired. We all make mistakes.

AudiA4Turbo22

Don't even worry! Just let your car sit on a lift for an hour or two before draining the oil and that way it will all drain right out and just fill it in with some fresh oil and a fresh filter.

It will be like it was when you left it.

I doubt your tires wore out in 23k miles, rotate the front tires to the back and you should be just fine.

You will not get hit with any penalties for lease return, they don't even check service records. As long as there is no severe mechanical damage(like a blown cylinder head) they don't really care and you obviously don't have that issue.

Plus, you have warranty so don't even sweat it.

Maybe she just didn't know what to do.

qt_ML

Youll be okay .. Since I'm sure synthetic was used you'll be okay, like what was stated previously after 15k+ is when build up can happen and complications might be seen. With service C .. They will do a full run down... Which is why it's ridiculous expensive... Because of all the "checks" they do. The tires should be okay, if anything maybe just a rotation. It was around 50k before I had to replace my tires.

l'm everything will be okay! Make sure you tell to at least notify you the next time a light pops up.