Hey Guys,
next week on wednesday ill be driving to the netherlands to get my hands on a 2013 E63s Wagon.
Car has 68k Miles (113k km) and has been serviced every 7-9k miles (12-15k km) at a mercedes benz dealer since 2013.

Pre- Buy i wanted to do following checks,please tell me what you think about that and if im missing something:

- borescope and do a compression check
I heard cylinder 5 is the first to show wear, would it be enough to borescope and compression check this one or should i do more/ all?
As the borescope and the compression check are a bit of work and i dont want to stress out the dealer too much how much of a necessity are the remaining cylinders?

- Check Cam sensors and ECU for Oil in the harness

- Start the car from completely cold and listen for timing chain rattle
telling from the engine number, last 6 digits 36881, it should have the upgraded timing chain, and check valves, can someone approve?
As the timing chain tensioner was updated later in 2014 or 15 i think, do you guys think i`d have to change to the newer tensioner if theres no issues?

-check motor mounts

Please let me know if im missing something or theres something i should watch out for.
Thank you guys so much!

 

Get a PPI (pre-purchase inspection).

 

Consider this sticky - many threads on your very topic - "buying a used e63" and many threads on problem areas to focus on (sounds like you're already familiar with this sticky)

https://mbworld.org/forums/w212-amg/...fixes-diy.html

 

Unfortunately i couldnt find any MB Dealers to do something without waiting 4 Weeks for an appointment, ill have to do it myself

 

Scope all the cylinders and compression test all of them - it's not that much more work.

 

Thank you for the links,
has been very informative!
Your surely right, ll just do borescope and compression check on all 8 cylinders to be safe.

By any chance, does anyone know a good online shop around europe for all the parts regarding the m157?
I always see fcpeuro but i dont want to wait 2 weeks and pay 50 bucks shipping everytime i need something.

 

I see, DIYing is a good idea : )

 

Good suggestion!

 

For additional tests if you're doingbit yourself, do a cylinder leak down test, and assuming you have access the xentry or a good quality snapon/matco/comparable scanner do key on engine on livestream monitoring of the cps magnets, cps, injectors, o2, etc.......

 

This is an old engine (12 years old) with elevated miles (68k) - it's gone through many heat cycles and the plastic parts will be ready to be replaced, and this engine is oilier than a strip club:

- coolant lines and adapters
- gaskets
- coolant reservoir
- pcv
- vacuum check valve
- thermostat
- water/coolant pump

Other things:

- old main and aux battery
- airmatic suspension is a logistical and financial nightmare on a wagon - the parts are hard to come by internationally
- shifter not responding well going from park to drive
- leaking cv axle boots
- front diff seepage
- propeller shaft play and vibrations
- center hanger bearing old and noisy

I mean I can go through the whole sticky. Invariably all of these things may come to play on any car like this beyond 60k miles. If a catastrophic problem is just a scored cylinder or a leaky cylinder then that's one thing but if you add up all the little things listed above, they can be thousands and thousands of dollars and that could be catastrophic to another type of buyer.

Question is:

What is a deal breaker for you?

money pit used E63's:

EXAMPLE 1

EXAMPLE 2

 

Hey, what does anyone have against a strip club? Besides, where I am from there is no such thing. We do have an entertainment venue we like to call the Oklahoma ballet.

 

Thank you for the in depth list Peter

I think up until now over the course of the last 6-12 Months i mustve spend at least 50+ hours just reading forum posts.
Ive read about a lot of great ownership experiences and also about a few very bad ones..

I know repairs on the M157 platform can get really expensive real quick and by now the problems that could occur all have a name.
Its not in question IF something is going to fail but WHEN it is going to fail.

Theres Nothing on earth that can change my mind about buying an S212 at this point, ive just been far to in love with this car for way too long and im willing to take the potential risks.

I I am just trying to stay as safe as possible from moneypits.
And whilst it'll never be a bargain to own one of these i would just like to have a reasonable amount of repairs and avoid any big dramas

 

You sound ready - you've done the homework, put in the time, and have a passion for this car - I'm happy for you, you'll absolutely love the journey when it begins.

Amor Fati - all things that go into the fire, good and bad, burn the fire bright.

 

I would happily recommend spareto.com as a euro (Estonia) alternative to fcpeuro.

 

Hell yeah, thank you for those words!
I am super excited, i hope the car will be in great condition on wednesday!

 

Congrats again, do post pictures : )

 

I will definitely!

 

 

I may have missed it, but I would want to know when the transmission was last serviced. There's nothing you can really check, other than service records. But because of the age and mileage, I would have the transmission serviced right away. Not on day one, but not three months later, either. You ain't buying this car to drive it gently!

 

Solid advice, not something you want to neglect!

 

Im glad you bring it up!

For later / end of this year i planned:
-trans service
-diff front + rear oil change
-Brake fluid change
-cooling fluid change

Unfortunately from those i think i can only do the brake fluid change myself.
As far as i could tell the rest needs to much extra equipment or makes too much mess. I dont have a shop or suitable garage so im a bit limited in the work i can do by myself.

Should i try to do the trans service or even more of said work sooner?
As the next MB Service will be due in September / October it would have been convenient to do this work then.

I planned to do:
-Oil change (+filter)
-Airfilter
-Plugs incl. Indexing
-new Cam Sensors + Clean magnets / cables
-Oil solenoid unplug
immediately after purchase before i even start driving the car once i get it home.

 

Is it 4MATIC? if so transfer case as well, although some MBs have the transfer case share the same fluid as tranny, confirm first.

 

I wrote a mini list of things to do, I think you covered most of it though: https://mbworld.org/forums/gle-class...ml#post9003483

 

Cannot stress airmatic enough - not sure how readily you'll find a unicorn part (rear shocks for wagon) in this global financial climate:

post 62 and 63:

https://mbworld.org/forums/w212-amg/...ml#post9005386

 

I remember having to replace my rear shocks + air bellows + compressor on the air suspension on my 2010 E300 212 Wagon.
Repair bill was i think close to 4 grand with the car being worth not more than 9.

I will ask the owner if the back of the car sinks down when parking for several days and if, how fast.
At least this was the symptoms i got when mine died a few years ago.

Aside from looking for oilleaks there isnt anything i can do right?