5Hundred

I'm a former W212 E350 owner looking to purchase a E-63 (W212) in my local area

There are a number of options:

2010-2011 M156

Price Point:
$18,000-$30,000

Mileage:
40,000 to +120,000

Condition:
Clean or Salvage
Mostly Turn-Key

Expectations:
Common Maintenance
(Brakes, Tires, Oil, and Filters)
Differed Maintenance
..you name it


I would appreciate all feedback on this potential acquisition.

5Hundred

All cars would go through PPI but I want to seal the deal on a nice car. Understandably the M156 is a great engine but the damn reliability of it worries me.
I am looking for a heavily optioned example, but want your feedback on what packages are "necessary" and what's may not be.

cetialpha5

If you get the 2010, make sure the head bolts were done or budget for it. I think they were fixed sometime in 2011 so you'd have to check the engine number.

homeofstone

I would go for a late build 2011 and purchase an extended warranty. If you can't afford the extended warranty then your budget may not can afford to keep up a Mercedes E63. ie. front brakes and rotors will cost at least $1600.00 not including labor. Pano roof repair 800.00 to 1100.00. Tires 180.00+ each and will last maybe 20,000 miles. My tires are gone in about 12,000 miles due to how I drive and I use the Michelin Pilot Super Sport which are one of the best tires : cost about 250.00 each plus tax, install and balance.

BlownV8

Gor for the 2012+ even if it is a stretch. You will be much happier with the decision and there is room to add lots of power for not much money.

MaschioneCazzuto

W212

dinman

I have owned a 2010 E63 for over two years now, sitting at 148,000 miles, got it at 100k. I would consider myself very fortunate though, as my list of repairs is very short-

Voltage regulator ($120)
Valve body/Conductor plate/TCM (car would not go into gear) was ~$2500


Now i have done alot of other things, but i would classify these as wear parts, any car with higher mileage would need these at some point IMO-

Many oil/filter changes
A horrific amount of tires
Transmission fluid change (was done during repair mentioned above due to having to drop the pan)
Brake fluid changed
Rear diff fluid changed
PS fluid changed
Main & Aux battery
New belt (old one came apart)
Air filters
Oil fill cap & dipstick replaced (both were cracked)
Sway bar end links replaced
Engine mounts replaced
Removed glove box to repair the dampner and glove box light (neither were working properly)

There are various other small things i have had to do im not including because they were 100% my fault

I send in an oil sample every oil change to check for wear metal or anything else out of the ordinary. I change the oil every 5-6k miles with Mobil1 0w-40.

Next things i plan on doing- change the coolant and replace all 8 spark plugs and the valve cover gaskets (mine are leaking finally)

Before i got the car- it had the following done-

Pano roof noise fixed (12k miles)
Intake manifold gasket (61k miles)
COMAND knob replaced (92k miles)
Pads & Rotors (97k miles)

And other obvious maintenance


So mine has been awesome IMO, and i don't plan on selling it.

Keep in mind, i did all of that work listed above myself minus the valve body/tcm/conductor plate repair, the brake fluid flush, and the rear diff fluid change.

Everything else i did- so that obviously saved me a lot of money.

I believe alot of the engine problems on these cars come from lack of maintenance. Long oil change intervals, allowing it to get low on oil, High revving before the engine has a chance to warm up, etc.

Yes, the headbolt issue is there but i think it is not near as common as some make it out to be.

And yes, people have had these engines fail with much lower mileage than me that have been properly maintained.

On the flip side, i have seen one with 400k miles, original engine, and 2 or 3 with over 200k. I plan on pushing mine up there too

I am anxious to pull my valve covers and inspect my cams for wear, because if you didn't know, that is another issue that surfaces when talking about the m156.

Again i love mine, the exhaust note is intoxicating, and i doubt i will replace it with anything else any time soon

homeofstone

dinman, in your list was leaking valve cover. Mine did same thing and it was a crack in the cover causing the leak. I was a hair line crack and hard to see.

dinman

Uh oh. Fingers crossed that isn't the case on mine