2012 ML350 4Matic
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2012 ML350 4Matic
2012 ML350 4Matic
Just bought a used 2012 steel gray ML350 4Matic w/98k miles on it a month ago. Bought it to replace a 2007 Toyota FJ Cruiser that I traded in for a new 2017 Chevy Bolt EV that I leased.
This is only my 2nd MB out of over 50 cars/trucks/motorcycles that I've owned or leased in my life. The other was a 1988 500SE which was a great touring sedan. The ML350 is one of 5 vehicles that I currently own or lease. The others are the 2017 Chevy Bolt EV already mentioned, a Cobb tuned 2008 BMW 335i E90 sedan, a 2002 Toyota MR2 2-seat soft top sports car and a 2002 Ford F250 7.3L diesel 4x4 longbed truck.
Each serves an obviously different purpose. The Bolt is for local use and the truck for hauling large/heavy loads. The ML350 SUV will be used mainly for trips into the mountains in winter or for longer road trips when a lot of things need to be carried and when the speed/handling provided by the BMW and MR2 are not as important.
Love the look of the car. It was in very good shape overall but had some issues that I have had to deal with. The tires -- a set of more or less poorly rated Toyo Versados -- were shot. So, I installed a new set much better rated Continental Extreme Contact DWS 06's. Never liked carpet mats, so I bought a complete set of WeatherTech vinyl floor liners for the interior and a cargo mat for the back. Had a mobile wheel repair guy fix some minor road rash on a couple of wheels, added some knock-off MB valve stem covers, got some license plate frames for free from a local MB dealer and added some silver plastic screw covers to dress up the plates.
The hood and windshield were severely pitted by road debris. I touched up and polished most of the dings on the hood, which is acceptable for now, but I am having the windshield replaced because there is no fixing that. I had the same issue on my BMW when I bought it a little over 3 years ago. I actually had the hood and fenders repainted on that car and may repaint the hood on the ML350 later. The windshield on the BMW was replaced when it got cracked, which was paid for mainly by insurance. Paying for the new windshield for the ML350 myself but got a good deal on an aftermarket one from my local auto glass shop.
Lastly, I'm not entirely happy w/the suspension on the car. The shocks are still good but a bit too soft for my taste. I I was planning to replace the front shocks w/Bilstein B6 HD shocks to see if that helped but the availability of the shocks from Bilstein is uncertain and given that the shocks aren't all THAT bad and the fact that the estimated cost to buy/install them (about $1k), I'm going to put this mod on the back burner until a suspension mod is more clearly warranted.
In any event, I like the ML350 very much and plan to keep it for a very long time. Just need to get the 100k mile "B" service done and that'll be all for now.
This is only my 2nd MB out of over 50 cars/trucks/motorcycles that I've owned or leased in my life. The other was a 1988 500SE which was a great touring sedan. The ML350 is one of 5 vehicles that I currently own or lease. The others are the 2017 Chevy Bolt EV already mentioned, a Cobb tuned 2008 BMW 335i E90 sedan, a 2002 Toyota MR2 2-seat soft top sports car and a 2002 Ford F250 7.3L diesel 4x4 longbed truck.
Each serves an obviously different purpose. The Bolt is for local use and the truck for hauling large/heavy loads. The ML350 SUV will be used mainly for trips into the mountains in winter or for longer road trips when a lot of things need to be carried and when the speed/handling provided by the BMW and MR2 are not as important.
Love the look of the car. It was in very good shape overall but had some issues that I have had to deal with. The tires -- a set of more or less poorly rated Toyo Versados -- were shot. So, I installed a new set much better rated Continental Extreme Contact DWS 06's. Never liked carpet mats, so I bought a complete set of WeatherTech vinyl floor liners for the interior and a cargo mat for the back. Had a mobile wheel repair guy fix some minor road rash on a couple of wheels, added some knock-off MB valve stem covers, got some license plate frames for free from a local MB dealer and added some silver plastic screw covers to dress up the plates.
The hood and windshield were severely pitted by road debris. I touched up and polished most of the dings on the hood, which is acceptable for now, but I am having the windshield replaced because there is no fixing that. I had the same issue on my BMW when I bought it a little over 3 years ago. I actually had the hood and fenders repainted on that car and may repaint the hood on the ML350 later. The windshield on the BMW was replaced when it got cracked, which was paid for mainly by insurance. Paying for the new windshield for the ML350 myself but got a good deal on an aftermarket one from my local auto glass shop.
Lastly, I'm not entirely happy w/the suspension on the car. The shocks are still good but a bit too soft for my taste. I I was planning to replace the front shocks w/Bilstein B6 HD shocks to see if that helped but the availability of the shocks from Bilstein is uncertain and given that the shocks aren't all THAT bad and the fact that the estimated cost to buy/install them (about $1k), I'm going to put this mod on the back burner until a suspension mod is more clearly warranted.
In any event, I like the ML350 very much and plan to keep it for a very long time. Just need to get the 100k mile "B" service done and that'll be all for now.
Last edited by sgt1372; Apr 21, 2017 at 03:24 AM.
