Mercedes ML350 (pre-2005). Any good?

[white_goodman]

I miss my old Jeep terribly



It was in really good condition, low miles but at the end of the day, it was 13 years old and just became too prohibitively expensive to run. I do miss the comfort, smoothness and space though. We do have a new Toyota car instead now, which my wife likes just fine but I'm tempted by another SUV to replace my 2004 Chrysler.

I've always rather liked these:

http://www.loanforeveryone.ca/inventory/view/76674...

I still think they look pretty classy in the right colour and less bling than the more obvious alternatives like the X5 and Range Rover. The V6 350 looks like it would be a good compromise between power and fuel economy (I won't be buying the diesel, as they never sold it in Canada) and it has to be be better than the 18mpg that I was getting from my 4.0 4-speed auto Jeep! This version also has the bonus in that it was available with 7 seats, which would be useful when my parents come to visit from England (we have two small kids). Did all M-Classes of this age have 7 seats or was it just an option?

This is from the era when Mercedes-Benz quality wasn't as good as it should have been though, so would I be out of the frying pan and into the fire? I believe there was a mid-life facelift though, which addressed many of the problems with the original car? Having said that I loved my 1999 C-Class Estate, which save for some rust and a couple of minor electrical niggles was still in fine mechanical fettle after 218k! I like Mercedes and like SUVs, so is this the ideal car for me?

Anything else that I should consider? I like Range Rovers and Discoveries but will certainly be unreliable and expensive to run and they only came with V8s here so very thirsty too.

I like the BMW X5 and Volvo XC90 too but the X5 is pretty small by all accounts and only available with 5 seats and the Volvo is huge (perhaps bigger than I require as I thought the Jeep was the perfect size).

Edited by white_goodman on Saturday 24th May 17:35

[white_goodman]

Bump

[andyalan10]

In my experience the Volvo is the only one with any sort of practical shape boot with 7 seats in use. Whilst it is a little bigger than X5/ML it doesn't feel enormous, certainly not like an Audi Q7 or late Range Rovers/Discoveries which can be a real pain to drive in British urban environments and car parks. I would have thought that in Canada you'd encounter far fewer multi-storey car parks and less on street parking on narrow streets.

X5 probably feels most car like in terms of internal architecture and handling, but that isn't necessarily what you are looking for. Early Mercedes M/MLs had a reputation for being cheaply and poorly built but as they are now many years old I'm not sure how relevant that is. Is there a reason you are not considering a Jeep similar to the one you loved, or a newer equivalent?

Andy

[Jim AK]

Had 2001 reg of these. Build quality of interior was dire due to inferior plastics used for things like centre storage box but mechanically it was spot on.

I guess you will see interior issues on viewing & rattles on test drive also people will have worked out fixes & there should be plenty of trim parts available on Auction sites or from a breaker.

What could possibly go wrong..........

[white_goodman]

andyalan10 said:

In my experience the Volvo is the only one with any sort of practical shape boot with 7 seats in use. Whilst it is a little bigger than X5/ML it doesn't feel enormous, certainly not like an Audi Q7 or late Range Rovers/Discoveries which can be a real pain to drive in British urban environments and car parks. I would have thought that in Canada you'd encounter far fewer multi-storey car parks and less on street parking on narrow streets.

X5 probably feels most car like in terms of internal architecture and handling, but that isn't necessarily what you are looking for. Early Mercedes M/MLs had a reputation for being cheaply and poorly built but as they are now many years old I'm not sure how relevant that is. Is there a reason you are not considering a Jeep similar to the one you loved, or a newer equivalent?

Andy

Thanks Andy. All fair points. The extra seats will only get used maybe twice a year and then probably only one of them, so there may still be a bit of boot space in the ML. With regards to the Jeep, I doubt that I could find another one like mine in as clean condition with as few kms. It was the colour and spec that I wanted too. I don't like the 2006-2010 model: heavy-handed styling, cheap plastics, coarse V6 engine and I like the latest model (2011-) but out of my price range. Also, if I wanted another oldish Jeep, I should have probably kept that one and apent some money on it because who's to say I wouldn't have the same problems on another one?

I'm not expecting miracles from a largeish petrol SUV but I wouldn't object to a few more mpg and I like to try out different vehicles rather than buying the same thing again.

[carl_w]

Made in Alabama

[Seeker UK]

Given how thirsty the 350 is, I'd look for a 500 or AMG 55 - more power and not much more thirsty.

[AmitG]

Not sure if it helps but I did a writeup of my 2004 ML350 a while ago, here

http://www.pistonheads.com/Gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Great car IMHO. Built like a tank. Nothing ever went wrong.

But do make sure you get the facelift version. The pre-facelift ones had lots of problems. The post-facelift ones have more of the feel of old-school Mercedes over-engineering.

[MGZTV8]

In my personal experience:

mechanically fine.

bodywork wise - rust, rust and more rust - 2002 ML

[white_goodman]

AmitG said:

Not sure if it helps but I did a writeup of my 2004 ML350 a while ago, here

http://www.pistonheads.com/Gassing/topic.asp?h=0&a...

Great car IMHO. Built like a tank. Nothing ever went wrong.

But do make sure you get the facelift version. The pre-facelift ones had lots of problems. The post-facelift ones have more of the feel of old-school Mercedes over-engineering.

Thanks, that's a very detailed and informative review. I am surprised that it has no trip computer or steering-wheel-mounted audio controls (my 2001 Jeep had these features) but it's not a dealbreaker.

Just a couple of questions:
1) Did yours have any form of ESP/stability control?
2) Did you have the extra seats? Interested to know whether they are forward or side-facing, how neatly they fold away, how spacious they are and how much boot space you have left when they are in use.

I like the robust nature of the ML that you describe and the fuel economy you got from yours sounds fairly reasonable for a large petrol SUV. I would prefer something that feels like it could get me home in a blizzard than a more car-like AWD SUV. Objectively, they're better in almost every way but I like the old-school tough feel of the older Jeeps and Discoveries etc.

[AmitG]

white_goodman said:

Thanks, that's a very detailed and informative review. I am surprised that it has no trip computer or steering-wheel-mounted audio controls (my 2001 Jeep had these features) but it's not a dealbreaker.

Yeah, I was astonished to find there was no trip computer. It's a Mercedes Benz for chrissakes! I think that some models did have it (I seem to remember that if so, the controls are mounted in the roof near the rear view mirror).

white_goodman said:

1) Did yours have any form of ESP/stability control?

Yes, ESP was standard. It's a tall vehicle with a high centre of gravity, so if you really chuck it about it will kick in - but you have to be trying pretty hard.

white_goodman said:

2) Did you have the extra seats? Interested to know whether they are forward or side-facing, how neatly they fold away, how spacious they are and how much boot space you have left when they are in use.

Sorry mine was the 5-seater so I can't comment on the extra seats.

white_goodman said:

I like the robust nature of the ML that you describe and the fuel economy you got from yours sounds fairly reasonable for a large petrol SUV. I would prefer something that feels like it could get me home in a blizzard than a more car-like AWD SUV. Objectively, they're better in almost every way but I like the old-school tough feel of the older Jeeps and Discoveries etc.

I think you've got it spot on. The ML is the last of the old-school Mercedes SUVs. Robust, utilitarian transport. For the next generation they went to monocoque construction and a more car-like experience.