Hi All

I sold my E55 about 6 months ago and am looking to get into another AMG. I was primarily looking for an E55 but came across an E63. 2009 model year and the seller says that it doesn't suffer the same problems as the previous E63 regarding head bolts and cams. Is this true? Also, how is the 7 speed tranny for reliability?

Thanks!

 

It is NOT true. All W211 E63s (2007-2009) are affected by the headbolt issue; only MY2011 and newer vehicles received the revised headbolts. The MY2009 has the MCT transmission whereas the 2007-2008 have a conventional 7-speed; both have a good track record.

 

 

I've only noticed that E63's tend to have more options than the E55. You're more likely to find keyless go on it than on an E55 although it was available as an option. And yeah, it still had head bolt issues til 2011. You can go over to the C63 forum and it's discussed at length in several threads. Some say the way to go is to replace the bolts one at a time, should be around 1k for parts and labor. Or blow the engine and get a bill for 25k for a new engine or at least 5-10k for a used one installed.

 

 

Wouldn't the MCT be the W212 E63 though? I'm under the assumption that the 2009 E63 is still W211.

 

You are correct; the articles I read are usually European and hence they received the w212 in 2009.

 

Ah that makes sense. Thanks for the clarification.

 

Thanks guys! Ya I will be researching the headbolt issue before making any decisions. I'm not too worried about modding as I was happy with the E55 so never did end up doing any mods in the 2 years I owned it.

 

honestly if i got rid of my e55 i would either buy another one but stock to start fresh with mods or for for the 2012 cls63 or 2014 e63 costs 2x more but would be worth the bank loan

 

The W211 ran from 2007-2009 for E63's, and they all share the same architecture M156 engine and 7G tranny.

 

I bought my 2007 E63 in Dec. 17' and it was revving up to 1500 at idle, even more when the engine got warm. It turned out that while I was awaiting the bank to approve the loan (which took all but a couple minutes) it took the previous owner several weeks to transfer the title! In that time he put 2400 miles on the car and failed to tell me about this new idle issue, as it was not the case when I test drove it in November. Once his title was received from his lender, I had arranged for him to drop off the car for cosmetic repairs of the from hood and spoiler. During which time the car was at the body shop, we exchanged $$ for the title. Once I picked the car up from the shop is when it struck me that there was an idle issue. Further, the guys at the shop had used there Diagnostic Device that told them there was a problem code pointing to the transmission, Yikes! Because the idle was high, it certainly effecting shifting issues especially when approaching a stop as the car did not want to downshift, and when it did, it was jumpy!

So, I barley drove the car 10 miles home before I started taking her apart only to find the Intake Manifold wet with an oily goo and the Intake runners totally carboned up. In addition there was a distinct pull to the right so I ended up rebuilding the front end, had the IM rebuilt by Rebuild Master Tech in Pompano Beach, Fl. who did an exellent job and showed me how ridddled with rusty holes my Throttle Plate was which they replaced with their extra beefy plate they sell on eBay. I had also busted off a fitting attaching the Breather hose and those little posts which have o-ring fasteners on them to hold down that Breather hose were all disintegrated, so they managed to find a replacement top half!!!! I was so pleased that during the time that they were repairing this, I was taking apart the front Suspension and ended up replacing both front air Struts with their refurbished ones when I brought my used ones in to exchange for theirs when I picked up the Newly refurbish IM. Both their work on the IM which was fabulous and Newly repainted to boot and their front Struts have worked and operated flawlessly since I have installed them.

I also was aware of the Headbolts issue and toyed with the notion of walnut blasting the Intake runners to clean up the carbon, but in the end I decided to bust the move and do it right by removing both Heads and having them rebuilt by Xtreme Heads in Palm City, Fl who were top notch and had more than sufficient high end equipment to not only do the head rebuild, but they could actually create an entire new head from scratch if absolutely need be, for big dollar I might add as it was explained to me that since they don't own the CaD software for my Heads, the only way they could do it would require 100s of hours of photographing CAD images into their computer of every nook and cranny of the Head. Turns out their specialty are Porsche Heads, and the admitted it was their first time working on an E63 Head, but after fully being briefed as the equipment they would use to measure valve tolerances, double check Spring weights etc., I had no apprehensions whatsoever. When they determined that 8 of 16 Intake Valves were bent, they called me and I confirmed to them that I would order the OEM Valves as compared to using their supplier, I was impressed to say the least. I might also add that it was only after seeking out 3 other "Head" shops and seeing just how unorganized some choose operate that I was thoroughly impressed with these guys just upon walking through their door. No showroom needed, just a hardcore very organized clean shop with top of the line equipment and I was sold.

I've since the rebuild put around 8000 miles on the car and have to smile every time I'm on the road effortlessly overtaking on demand not even coming close to redline! The Struts absorb even the most obtrusive pot holes at speed and the instant self leveling in aggressive and, if the situation demands, "twitch" steering combined with that extra beefy swaybar up front make for incredible handling considering the beasts weight of 5k lbs!!

Next up is to upgrade the sound system with an Audisson Bit Nove and some Amps and then there is the rear Subframe Bushings as well as the rubber driveshaft ends, a Rear Main Leak, rear shocks and Air Springs and while I'm at it replace the rear wheel hubs!!!

 

Good to see someone treating the car like it has value.

 

I love my W211 E63 with the M156 engine. I just purchased a BMW X5 M, and I thought the AMG was a beast. Dam this thing is fast with all-wheel drive.

 

Wouldn't touch a 63 with a ten foot pole. Had the opportunity to get a SL63 for a steal, a literal steal, and passed entirely on it because of how poor the entire drive train is reliability wise. Mercedes hasn't made a decent engine/transmission setup since the 55.

 

If the E55 is so much better, then why are there so many threads discussing their issues. The E63 is a good platform, and their issues can be resolved. My 07 E63, has never had cooling problems that the E55 suffers from.
I have owned (2) E63's and (1) C63 and neither of these cars, gave me any issues. Compared to the issues that some E55 have faced. Their are far more complaints from E55 owners, then there are E63 owners on this forum.
But E55 owners will always talk, I rather listen to someone that has owned both platforms, then to someone that never has.

 

There's a rather large distinction between E55 owners who don't do proper maintenance and, for example, never replace their radiator so their cars run hot. My CLS55 runs as cool as could possibly be. 55 platform has ZERO cooling issues.

I've personally seen three 63 engines apart in my local dealer because of the head/cam issues, and I've had long discussions about the 7-speed transmissions and the multitude of issues they have on a regular basis as well. It is anything but a reliable platform. I deliberately didn't buy an SLS when I semi-retired my CLS55 because of the continuous issues of both the 63 engine, and Mercedes' use of that Getrag transaxle which is also as hideously unreliable as the regular 7-speed that comes in the E63.

I've only owned the CLS55, and not an E. I don't really consider an E a decent car. I just chose the CLS55 over the S65/SL65 at the time I was looking to replace my BMW. I've driven about 8-10 E63s, and wasn't impressed with the engine either. It never was a sufficient replacement for the 55.

Personally, I think maintenance issues are minor compared to serious, systemic design defects and flaws that resulted in a number of lawsuits against Mercedes from pissed off customers. If people properly maintain their cars, the 55 is relatively bulletproof when compared to the 63. You can spout whatever nonsense you want, but there was nothing well designed about the 63 drivetrain and anyone with sense would stay far away from it.

 

Interesting thoughts you have there. You did not buy an SLS because you were scared of headbolt or lifter failure? It would see that those fixes are relatively cheap compared to the price of an SLS. I am sure you take excellent care of your car, so why have you had so many issues then?

 

I didn't buy an SLS because of the transaxle issues. That particular Getrag is used in a number of brands/vehicles, and it took them a long time to work out the internal sensor issues. I also didn't particularly think the SLS was a special enough car for the price tag, and adding in the existing problems with the 63 drivetrain that were "maybe" resolved by Mercedes (and I would question if that's the case even now) --- it just didn't make financial sense to buy one over what it was competing with in the used market. My Italian choice was a much better deal, a much more special car, and one that doesn't look like a C63 driving down the road.

I haven't had hardly any issues with my CLS55. Aside from the usual Mercedes gremlins which you'll find in any of their cars. Not sure where you're deriving that from.

 

Your entitled to your own opinion. As there are many E63 owners that love their cars and probably wouldn't trade them in for a E55. So we can agree to disagree.

 

I'm sure you do, and I'm sure that you can correct the flaws with the car with some time and effort. However, recommending someone buy one blindly is foolish (over a bulletproof design), and you should make people aware of the potentiality for disaster that comes without fully comprehending the existing issues with the design that Mercedes has failed to address (except in the later years, possibly).

You are (you're) only doing them a disservice by pretending they don't exist.

I could give you a list of 20 reasons why to not buy a Mercedes at all.