Bye Bye E320

[e320dave]

I decided to get rid of my 56 plate E320 estate and so took it to WBAC. Was quite painless. Could have got a bit more for it had I done a px, however I am going for a personal contract hire, so that is out of the question. I would have got a lot less from a couple of other dealers had I px'd it for a 2nd hand car, so all in all I am happy enough with the price.

What will I miss?
- The engine
- The performance (good for a diesel)
- The boot space

What I will not miss:
- Astronomical servicing costs (£800 for last service at MB)
- The problems. It was very unreliable for a facelift W211.
- The incompetence of my local dealer

All in all, I am sad to see it go, but at the same time I am glad as I am sure it wasn't going to be long until another big bill. I was planning on getting rid of it at the end of the week, however had to move plans forward as I have had too many outgoings (decorator, Carpets, resolve issue with above car, part of deposit on new cart) so would not have been able to afford the remainder of the initial 3 months up front on the new car. I hope the new car is here by the end of the week, otherwise I will have to reply on that awful thing known as public transport.

Would I buy another Mercedes? NEVER AGAIN. Out of all the cars I have owned, this was by far the worst.
So what is the new car? Well it is not German and it is not that fast, but it suits my needs. It's a Kia Sorento. But why a Kia? Well it's cheap, has 4wd and unlike the Mercedes will probably still move on mildly damp grass. I guess it will also tow my caravan quite well as well (OK main reason for getting it|).

So Bye Bye Mercedes.
Now to sell the Mercedes Bluetooth and the Winter wheels/tyres.

Edited by e320dave on Sunday 24th November 18:13

[developer215]

An unfortunate experience.

My last three cars have all been E Class estates and each one has been spectacular.

[Ribbs27]

Sorry to hear you've had a bad experience with the E320. I've had my 58 plate example for 5 years, done 90k miles and the old girl has never missed a beat and it still looks like new, couldn't be more impressed. Sounds like you got a Friday afternoon car:-(

I also use the main dealer in Chesterfield and they have been superb and no more expensive than the VW & renault dealers i've used with previous cars.

Hope you have more luck with the Kia.

[e320dave]

I guess I just expect a little more for £100 an hr labour rates that my local one charges than an inability to diagnose a problem and not doing the things you ask them to do. Just goes towards souring the experience of a brand.

[toby tucker]

I've owned a W124 e220 Estate from new (1994) which has covered 140k + miles. I stopped getting it serviced by the supplying MB dealership after 3 years old (28k miles) and all its cost me is consumables i.e. pads, discs ,tyres, exhaust and oil/filter change every year/~10k miles most of which I've easily done myself. I had my local garage ( £30/hr ) change the front oil seal and drain /renew transmission fluid and that the only work that's been done on it.

It's been very reliable and never let me down,it has the usual bit of rust on front OS wing above the front bumper but apart from that the body work is in really great condition - it is a delight to drive , smooth, powerful , huge load carrying capacity.

It's relegated to occasional use in our household now and it aint worth a lot - probably £500 -£1k on eBay but the utility value to me is priceless.

Edited by toby tucker on Sunday 30th March 16:37