I have a 2019 GLE 43 Coupe (3L V6 twin-turbo), purchased brand-new. It has150,000 miles on it now. Probably 90,000 of that are highway miles put on it during the first 4.5 years. The car is otherwise in excellent condition. It is always parked in a garage. I don't drive it hard. And I've serviced it regularly and it has had no accidents or major poblems ....until now. Now the heater core has to be replaced and it'll cost $10,000. (I will only have a Mercedes dealer do it).

My life circumstances have changed and now I am not driving anywhere near as much - nowadays probably 10-15k miles a year. I was hoping to get another 2 years (or 50,000 miles) from this car.

Do I repair it? Or do I get rid of it and get a new car? Financially, either is doable for me. Still, I'd like to drive this car a bit longer. The trade-in value is around $15-20k.

At 150k miles, am I staring down the barrel of more hugely expensive repairs like this? Or can I realistically expect to do this one major repair and drive this car for another two years, only addressing only more minor issues? Thoughts?

(And if I've put this in the wrong forum, let me apologize. I figured the tech forum would be the best place).

 

You're really limiting yourself by only letting a Mercedes dealer complete the repair. I'm sure an indy could do the job and they (a lot times in fact) have more qualified technicians who can complete the job for half the cost or less. You're at the point of the car's life that having the dealer complete the repair isn't going to help you retain much more value. That generation GLE43 has a fantastic powertrain and could last quite a while. On the other hand you could face another big repair at this point in its life at any point. Economically you're likely better off having it repaired but not for $10k...

 

Retaining value is not even remotely a concern as the car is already worth very little. It has to do with getting the job done right.... or not at all, and getting a new car.

But yeah, in an ideal world I could find an independent mechanic who could do the job. Unfortunately, where I live that is just not very practical. And the reality is that with an independent mechanic - for a complex job like this (which requires the entire dashboard to be removed and multiple parts to be replaced) - there is simply no way of knowing who is up to the task. If I repair it, I'd rather pay $10,000 to know that it's going to be done right rather than pay $5,000 for a headache. Truth be told, I wouldn't even know how to go about searching for a qualified "indy".

 

I don't think you'll get your $10k value back from bluebook depreciation.

Can we guess the coolant system was never serviced ??
​​​​​​Then what does that say about transmission/4M/Diff service ??

What do you think is next...
turbos,
injectors,
misfires,
A/C rebuild
How are the brakes??

 

The car has had all of its scheduled services on-time. Aside from consumables like brake pads, etc,, everything has checked out fine.

The KBB value isn't of much interest to me. If I pay for the repair, it's because I need heat in my car. Know what I mean? It gets cold in the winter.

 

I know exactly what a car without heater core is: undriveable because windshield fogs up on the inside.

Before you know value is going to be upside down... I'd sale it ASAP for KBB + your saved $10K to buy a newer transportation

 

Why does the heater core need replacing? Are you certain that is the problem? How do you know? Is that a common problem?

Assuming the diagnosis is correct, can you replace your car for $10,000?

If the car is in great shape and well-maintained, why get rid of it? 150,000 miles is not extreme.

 

I don't know how much this sort of thing affects your driving enjoyment, but I suspect the chances are pretty good that dismantling the interior to such an extent is going to result in squeaks and rattles, which I highly doubt they're going to subsequently fix for you. That would drive my OCD crazy and make me hate the car. Just a thought.

 

Agree with others, the W166 platform and the M276 engine is a solid combination. Believe it or not OP, dealerships compete in terms of how quick a job is done (as they are paid based on the job and the hours that is expected for that job, they get paid a hour job the full hour if it was done 30 minutes) and not the quality the job is done. So it wouldn't be a surprise that an qualified indie does a job better than a MB dealership.

 

New cars, at least 2022-2023 beyond cars from what I seen are about cost cutting, the car you have is probably more solid and last longer than any new car out there. I guess the saving grace is you will have a new car warranty or if you really into that new car smell.

 

Yes. But the dealership is going to be a better entity to deal with should there be issues with the repair.

 

I thought you must of accidentally added a zero to that figure so I Googled https://www.google.com/search?q=heat...placement+cost

according to repairpal.com :

The average cost for a Heater Core Replacement is between $1,065 and $1,353

 

didn't have the same experience as what you said but your mileage will certainly vary : )

 

The silica desiccant bag broke and silica made its way into the heater core and all the plumbing around it, which will need to be replaced. So it’s not just the heater core.

And let’s face it, we all know that Mercedes dealerships are 2-3 times more expensive those of non-luxury brands and even more than independent shops.

 

Repair it. $10k over two years is approx $400/mo. If you change vehicles you will spend more than $400/mo in either higher depreciation or new loan/lease payment. Assuming comparable vehicle eg X5, GLE, Q7, etc.

 

Aah! But that’s assuming the car doesn’t start having more and more maintenance issues. At 150k miles now, will it? I’ve never owned a Mercedes that long.

 

Is it just me or does this sounds awfully like part of the band-aid solution for the headlight fogging issue?

 

Do what you want to do. Make a decision.

You are inventing objections to any suggestion.

Are you really a chatbot?

 

What desiccant bag? That sounds like BS to me. There are no desiccant bags in the heating system or air vents. Coolant from the engine is what runs through the core and "plumbing". How does desiccant get into the heater system? If that is the case truly, why isn't your engine destroyed by now?

 

Concur. This whole thing is starting to smell like old fish.