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I'm brand new to the forum and need advice please! I'm looking at buying a used 2005 E500 with 123k miles. Carfax says 3 owners, clean title, eligible for their buyback guarantee. Love this int/ext color combo!
📌How can I actually see the Benz dealer service records? (Bought my mom a Lexus last year and their records are completely online by entering the VIN... which helped a bunch in my research!) If anyone at a dealer can run the VIN for records, please message me. I'd be so grateful as this is my #1 need!
📌Is navigation, satellite radio, 6 CD in dash, Bluetooth integration... all standard on the E500?
📌What major repairs should I be looking to see if completed? Is their timing belt or chain and when recommended?
I work from home and drive very little (only 3k mi last year), so the lesser gas mileage on the V8 is a minimal concern. I'm more worried about having thousands of dollars in repairs in the next couple years. I'm just looking at this Benz as a nice luxury car to drive 3-5 years, transitioning until I can buy new.
I would try and find out if the following major ticket items have been replaced:
- SBC hydraulic unit
- Airmatic shocks and pump
- Fuel tank (factory recall)
- Motor mounts
Check the maintenance history for transmission fluid changes at recommended intervals.
If the car was maintained properly 123k miles is nothing on these motors.
I would try and find out if the following major ticket items have been replaced:
- SBC hydraulic unit
- Airmatic shocks and pump
- Fuel tank (factory recall)
- Motor mounts
Check the maintenance history for transmission fluid changes at recommended intervals.
If the car was maintained properly 123k miles is nothing on these motors.
Thanks ☺ ... would a Benz dealer just give me this info? Unlike Lexus, I can't search it online.
What is your experience with MB and what are your repair skills?
MB dealers generally will not give you Master Inquiry, so unless you befriend someone, you will not see the records.,
You are planning to buy 13 years old car who had 3 owners, meaning 3 guys already did not like it for some reasons and I don't expect owners planning to get rid of vehicle would care about it too much.
Such a car, bought very cheap can be nice project for advanced DIY, so I hope that is what you are?
What is your experience with MB and what are your repair skills?
MB dealers generally will not give you Master Inquiry, so unless you befriend someone, you will not see the records.,
You are planning to buy 13 years old car who had 3 owners, meaning 3 guys already did not like it for some reasons and I don't expect owners planning to get rid of vehicle would care about it too much.
Such a car, bought very cheap can be nice project for advanced DIY, so I hope that is what you are?
No I'm not a DIYer, but I've got a great, honest mechanic. 🤔 The average person gets a new car every 5 years, so 3 owners doesn't bother me. The first 2 owners had it to 89k then the last owner (3 yrs) put the final 33k. All 3 put miles way under the average 15k a year. 2 of the mechanics on the Carfax have been recommended to me (1 is a dealer), so I'm gonna try them directly since they have actual experience with this car. We'll see but I've got a good feeling that this car is solid and worth the risk.
Get the vin number and run it through datamb.com. Options like Navigation, sat radio, dvd is mostly part of the P1 package which most cars had. Bluetooth is sort of a separate option so you'll have to use the vin decoder to see if it has it or not. You might have bixenons too as I see it has headlamp washers. If you pay for a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) at an MB dealer, you should be able to get the VMI from them. If they won't give it to you, find another dealer that will. One dealer was starting to say they don't give them out when I mentioned that I knew that most dealers gave it out and if they wouldn't, I'd cancel the appointment and go to another one that did. You do have to do it in person though, most people don't have any luck getting it over the phone. You might also want to get an autocheck, that usually has stuff that carfax misses. You can get cheap ones on eBay.
In general, the best years of the W211 was 2008/2009. The early ones were more problematic til about 2007 when they got rid of SBC and QC improved. So 2005 is one of those not so great years, but no huge disasters like 2003 which had bad radiators which destroyed the transmission. SBC and Airmatic are basically somewhat big ticket items, over 1k for SBC and maybe around 2-3k to do all 4 airmatic shocks with Arnott aftermarket shocks, otherwise OEM is 1k per corner. That's why a 2007+ E350 that doesn't have the balance shaft problem (some early 2007 still had the issue) is better, no SBC and no airmatic and has the interior/exterior face lift.
No, I haven't made my mind up. I've not even seen or driven it yet. I asked here first then I'll visit then if I like what I see, yes of course, I'll take it and pay for a pre-purchase inspection.
The 2 mechanics actually on the Carfax are who I'd take it to and if I bought it, would go to for service. Hopefully going in person tomorrow, they'll tell me what they've done. What I do see on the CF: @65k shocks and struts replaced, @77k front brake pads and roters replaced, @82k alignment and arm bushings (?) replaced, @105k failed emissions 4x before it passed (2 week timeframe) and now it's at 123k miles. I'm assuming all of these don't throw any red flags?
Btw, the manager of the lot that has it... his mom is a family friend of a decade, so I'm gonna ask right out how much they've got in it. He's already told me they've had it on their lot 6 mo (maybe because that year does have issues? Possible maintenance cost? V8 higher fuel?). NADA clean trade-in is $5100 (loan value $4400). They got it at auction, so it's reasonable to think they got it around $4k. They've got it stickered at $5500. If all checks out with mechanic and if I successfully get the MB records, based on 6 month lot time... I'm hoping to get it at $4700-4900.
If I even think for 3 seconds it doesn't feel right, I'll walk without hesitation. I'm not in a rush to buy. I'm looking to find what's right for me. ☺
Get the vin number and run it through datamb.com. Options like Navigation, sat radio, dvd is mostly part of the P1 package which most cars had. Bluetooth is sort of a separate option so you'll have to use the vin decoder to see if it has it or not. You might have bixenons too as I see it has headlamp washers. If you pay for a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) at an MB dealer, you should be able to get the VMI from them. If they won't give it to you, find another dealer that will. One dealer was starting to say they don't give them out when I mentioned that I knew that most dealers gave it out and if they wouldn't, I'd cancel the appointment and go to another one that did. You do have to do it in person though, most people don't have any luck getting it over the phone. You might also want to get an autocheck, that usually has stuff that carfax misses. You can get cheap ones on eBay.
In general, the best years of the W211 was 2008/2009. The early ones were more problematic til about 2007 when they got rid of SBC and QC improved. So 2005 is one of those not so great years, but no huge disasters like 2003 which had bad radiators which destroyed the transmission. SBC and Airmatic are basically somewhat big ticket items, over 1k for SBC and maybe around 2-3k to do all 4 airmatic shocks with Arnott aftermarket shocks, otherwise OEM is 1k per corner. That's why a 2007+ E350 that doesn't have the balance shaft problem (some early 2007 still had the issue) is better, no SBC and no airmatic and has the interior/exterior face lift.
THANK YOU! VERY VERY HELPFUL! What would be a reasonable cost for PPI at dealer? My personal, long time mechanic charges $40 for a thorough inspection and drives it. Yes I'll get the Autocheck! What about the timing chain cost? Do it at 150k miles?
Get the vin number and run it through datamb.com. Options like Navigation, sat radio, dvd is mostly part of the P1 package which most cars had. Bluetooth is sort of a separate option so you'll have to use the vin decoder to see if it has it or not. You might have bixenons too as I see it has headlamp washers.
Ran the VIN... thanks for the site resource. I don't see Bluetooth on the list specifically. It does say: COMAND DVD PLUS (WITHOUT NAVIGATION)EQUIPMENT PACKAGE ELEGANCE
CD CHANGER
Not sure what's included in the elegance package?!
My recommendation is to go test drive the car and see how it feels.
You'll be able to tell a lot by running it through it's paces (acceleration, shifting, brakes).
When these cars are in good shape and running well they drive like an absolute dream.
The PPI is a must if you're seriously considering buying the car.
I would try and find out if the following major ticket items have been replaced:
- SBC hydraulic unit
- Airmatic shocks and pump
- Fuel tank (factory recall)
- Motor mounts
Check the maintenance history for transmission fluid changes at recommended intervals.
If the car was maintained properly 123k miles is nothing on these motors.
Also center carrier bearing and boot for driveshaft. And flex disc on driveshaft.
Ran the VIN... thanks for the site resource. I don't see Bluetooth on the list specifically. It does say: COMAND DVD PLUS (WITHOUT NAVIGATION)EQUIPMENT PACKAGE ELEGANCE
CD CHANGER
Not sure what's included in the elegance package?!
No bluetooth in 2005 unless it has optional puck(most do not)
THANK YOU! VERY VERY HELPFUL! What would be a reasonable cost for PPI at dealer? My personal, long time mechanic charges $40 for a thorough inspection and drives it. Yes I'll get the Autocheck! What about the timing chain cost? Do it at 150k miles?
Well for the price you're paying, the PPI at the dealer is probably in the $150-$200 range which is their standard charge for an hour of labor and maybe not worth it if you can get a good one for $40. I only take it to them for things that I can't get an indy to do such as firmware upgrades on their later models. Bluetooth was only for the phone anyway, you'd have to use the ipod cable in the glove box if it has it for music. Make sure for $40, the indy has a tool that can scan for mb specific error codes not just regular OBDII codes. Most indy mechanics don't have the equipment as that costs extra unless they specialize in MB.
Elegance doesn't really mean anything as it's probably just a trim level that most other cars have. Timing chain should last the life of the vehicle. Don't change it unless it's bad. Just make sure you use the right type of oil, MB requires MB 229.5 spec oil which is either Mobil 1 0w40 or Castrol 0w40 which can be easily found in most auto parts store. There's other ones too but not as popular. The generic 5w30 probably won't meet spec.
Definitely get a pre-purchase inspection. It's a good idea for any used car purchase, but a must for a car like the E500. A shop should charge around two hours labor to do it.
You should be able to get the service history from a Mercedes dealer. Before buying my car I called the dealer that sold the car new and spoke to a service adviser, because the VMI contains personal information they couldn't give me a hard copy, but the adviser read off the service history to me. Another important piece of information in the VMI is the history of warranty claims. Repeat warranty claims for the same issue might be a red flag, either a problem with the car or a problem with the competence of the service facility performing the maintenance. Given the age of the car, it's likely that it hasn't been to a dealership in quite some time, so there may be nothing recent on the VMI.
Along those lines, I'm very concerned about the 4-time emissions failure. I would be trying to find out exactly what the issue was, and what was done to repair it. Some jurisdictions have emissions test history online.
How long did the last owner have the car? A short ownership can be a red flag. Could be a car flipper or someone who bought it and realized it had problems.
Others have already gone over the big ticket items; the Airmatic suspension, SBC brake pump, and the gas tank. I see the car has had some suspension work done to it, so some of the components thankfully aren't original, but the car has traveled some miles since the work was done. The hot weather in Texas can hasten the deterioration of rubber components in the suspension, regardless of mileage. The driving habits of the previous owner also play a big part in the longevity of suspension parts. A good pre-purchase inspection will look at all of that, in addition to the Airmatic struts there are a number of ball joints and rubber bushings that go bad over time.
The SBC pump for a long time was a dealer only item, if it was replaced it should be on the VMI.
The gas tank was covered under a 10-year warranty, but this car being a 2005 is no longer covered. I'm not 100% sure with these older cars if the entire tank needs to be replaced should it start leaking or just the fuel pump assembly. The entire tank is a four figure repair bill. It may never start leaking, though.
Nobody else has mentioned it yet, but maintenance costs are going to be higher than with Lexus. The engine holds 8 quarts of synthetic oil and uses a high quality fleece oil filter. This means oil changes are expensive, even DIY, but the tradeoff is that you only have to do it once a year or 10,000 miles. The V8 in the first generation W211 also has 16 spark plugs.
Oh, and the Carfax buyback guarantee doesn't cover mechanical issues. It's only applicable to undisclosed accidents or issues with the title.
My personal opinion would be to look for a 2008-2009 E350 with a good history, that way you won't have to worry about the Airmatic suspension or SBC pump. There were hundreds of other changes as well, and the quality of the second generation W211 is much higher than the 03-06 cars.
Get the vin number and run it through datamb.com. Options like Navigation, sat radio, dvd is mostly part of the P1 package which most cars had. Bluetooth is sort of a separate option so you'll have to use the vin decoder to see if it has it or not. You might have bixenons too as I see it has headlamp washers. If you pay for a PPI (pre-purchase inspection) at an MB dealer, you should be able to get the VMI from them. If they won't give it to you, find another dealer that will. One dealer was starting to say they don't give them out when I mentioned that I knew that most dealers gave it out and if they wouldn't, I'd cancel the appointment and go to another one that did. You do have to do it in person though, most people don't have any luck getting it over the phone. You might also want to get an autocheck, that usually has stuff that carfax misses. You can get cheap ones on eBay.
In general, the best years of the W211 was 2008/2009. The early ones were more problematic til about 2007 when they got rid of SBC and QC improved. So 2005 is one of those not so great years, but no huge disasters like 2003 which had bad radiators which destroyed the transmission. SBC and Airmatic are basically somewhat big ticket items, over 1k for SBC and maybe around 2-3k to do all 4 airmatic shocks with Arnott aftermarket shocks, otherwise OEM is 1k per corner. That's why a 2007+ E350 that doesn't have the balance shaft problem (some early 2007 still had the issue) is better, no SBC and no airmatic and has the interior/exterior face lift.
Originally Posted by Andre91
Definitely get a pre-purchase inspection. It's a good idea for any used car purchase, but a must for a car like the E500. A shop should charge around two hours labor to do it.
You should be able to get the service history from a Mercedes dealer. Before buying my car I called the dealer that sold the car new and spoke to a service adviser, because the VMI contains personal information they couldn't give me a hard copy, but the adviser read off the service history to me. Another important piece of information in the VMI is the history of warranty claims. Repeat warranty claims for the same issue might be a red flag, either a problem with the car or a problem with the competence of the service facility performing the maintenance. Given the age of the car, it's likely that it hasn't been to a dealership in quite some time, so there may be nothing recent on the VMI.
Along those lines, I'm very concerned about the 4-time emissions failure. I would be trying to find out exactly what the issue was, and what was done to repair it. Some jurisdictions have emissions test history online.
How long did the last owner have the car? A short ownership can be a red flag. Could be a car flipper or someone who bought it and realized it had problems.
Others have already gone over the big ticket items; the Airmatic suspension, SBC brake pump, and the gas tank. I see the car has had some suspension work done to it, so some of the components thankfully aren't original, but the car has traveled some miles since the work was done. The hot weather in Texas can hasten the deterioration of rubber components in the suspension, regardless of mileage. The driving habits of the previous owner also play a big part in the longevity of suspension parts. A good pre-purchase inspection will look at all of that, in addition to the Airmatic struts there are a number of ball joints and rubber bushings that go bad over time.
The SBC pump for a long time was a dealer only item, if it was replaced it should be on the VMI.
The gas tank was covered under a 10-year warranty, but this car being a 2005 is no longer covered. I'm not 100% sure with these older cars if the entire tank needs to be replaced should it start leaking or just the fuel pump assembly. The entire tank is a four figure repair bill. It may never start leaking, though.
Nobody else has mentioned it yet, but maintenance costs are going to be higher than with Lexus. The engine holds 8 quarts of synthetic oil and uses a high quality fleece oil filter. This means oil changes are expensive, even DIY, but the tradeoff is that you only have to do it once a year or 10,000 miles. The V8 in the first generation W211 also has 16 spark plugs.
Oh, and the Carfax buyback guarantee doesn't cover mechanical issues. It's only applicable to undisclosed accidents or issues with the title.
My personal opinion would be to look for a 2008-2009 E350 with a good history, that way you won't have to worry about the Airmatic suspension or SBC pump. There were hundreds of other changes as well, and the quality of the second generation W211 is much higher than the 03-06 cars.
THANKS FOR ALL THIS! I took screenshots so I've got so the info to inquire about. The shop I'd take it to, which is highly recommended, specializes in only imports, and been in biz 20 years, was the 2nd owner's shop in the Carfax. (see below)
Sadly, he just called to tell me that when he went to drive it out for me to look at it, the battery was dead... and now their service dept says it needs approx $3k of work 🙈. He's got another E500 coming in today from auction (2006, 2 owners, 85k mi), so waiting... (and thinking maybe this is why I go back to Lexus shopping) 😕
My personal opinion would be to look for a 2008-2009 E350 with a good history, that way you won't have to worry about the Airmatic suspension or SBC pump. There were hundreds of other changes as well, and the quality of the second generation W211 is much higher than the 03-06 cars.
^^^^^ This! If I had to do it all over again, this would be what I would be looking for.
I love my 2003 E320, but have put about 6k of maintenance in it and had the fuel tank and fuel pump replaced TWO (2) days BEFORE the 15 year warranty ran out on this issue. Talk about being lucky.
THANKS FOR ALL THIS! I took screenshots so I've got so the info to inquire about. The shop I'd take it to, which is highly recommended, specializes in only imports, and been in biz 20 years, was the 2nd owner's shop in the Carfax. (see below)
Sadly, he just called to tell me that when he went to drive it out for me to look at it, the battery was dead... and now their service dept says it needs approx $3k of work ��. He's got another E500 coming in today from auction (2006, 2 owners, 85k mi), so waiting... (and thinking maybe this is why I go back to Lexus shopping) ��
If you only drive 3K miles per year, WHY E500? Look for a nice E350!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! Do not go Lexus shopping BEFORE you have driven a W211 in good condition.
I just recently purchased a C300 for my wife. A couple of weeks later a good family friend bought a Lexus, pretty much equivalent to the C300, a few less miles and paid nearly 10K more. When I sit in the Lexus, I immediately miss the interior design, set up as well as comfort of an MB!!!!!!!!!!
^^^^^ This! If I had to do it all over again, this would be what I would be looking for.
I love my 2003 E320, but have put about 6k of maintenance in it and had the fuel tank and fuel pump replaced TWO (2) days BEFORE the 15 year warranty ran out on this issue. Talk about being lucky.
That's why I ended up with a 2008. I first looked at a 2006 but thanks to this and other sites, found out about the balance shaft so started looking at 2007, but those were hard to figure out they had the balance shaft problem or not. Ended up just looking at 2008/2009 models and found a loaded 2008. Most people don't even know about the vin lookup site so it was easy to find one with all the options I wanted, but a long waiting game. For 2008, most should have been wired for bluetooth. I don't think I've put anywhere near 6k in maintenance, maybe about 1k or so in the last 3 years, not including tires, those 18 inch rims love potholes and cracks/bends/flats were common so maybe I spent another 1k+ on tires/rims. But hey, it's still a fun car to drive.
the battery was dead... and now their service dept says it needs approx $3k of work 🙈.
What kind of service department is this, ........................ finding out a car needs $3K worth of work AFTER a battery dies????? Not sure I would purchase a car from that dealership!!!!!!!!!!!!!!!! WTF?????????
03-20-2018, 07:09 PM
