2009 Mercedes E350 AMG Sport coupe
Discussion
About time I did one of these.
The background... recently my commute has gone from zero to about 50 miles a day on a really crap A road. So, for a while I’d been thinking about chopping in my V70 D5. She’d been a marvellous workhorse for 3 years, but was starting to show her age and miles a bit. Hauling such a huge estate car around seemed pointless for me most of the time.
Added to which, I’d just completed my Class 1 advanced driving course, and wanted to treat myself a bit.
I’d started to look at Audi A5’s in earnest, and was planning to pay up to around £7000. But, with a house purchase looming, that was pushed onto the back burner.
Unfortunately Helga had other ideas. What had been a previously intermittent engine management issue turned into a permanent limp mode, and the garage couldn’t find the cause. One of those annoying faults which probably just was a pinched wire somewhere really well hidden.
So, I needed to replace her NOW. Having started looking at A5s, I was startled at how apparently affordable E class coupes could be. I’d loved the look of them for a while. So, I started seriously looking. Saw one locally which just didn’t ring the right bells. Not looked after particularly well, and also close to £7k. Gut said no, so I moved on.
I’ve bought a few cars in the past off really rubbish eBay ads, because sometimes people who don’t do computers turn out to actually be selling really decent metal. This one piqued my interest...always look in the background. It didn’t even specify the model, nor any real detail.
Looked like a scam advert, but I rang the mobile number and left a message.
2 days later, I’d abandoned hope, but that morning I received a call back. It all sounded a bit strange, the man was selling it on behalf of his boss, and a trader had been meant to come the day before but never turned up. Nonetheless, I commandeered my mum’s Mini and shot down to the back of beyond in Devon that afternoon.
It actually turned out to be the man who was building a driveway to the client’s house. When he gave me a lift down in his van, the issue became apparent. Nearly a mile of unmade track to an utterly amazing, Grand Designs style barn conversion. The client hadn’t really used the car for the last 18months as it wouldn’t make it up and down the track. Client didn’t really do eBay, so his guy had done the ad for him.
Sure enough however, I inspected the car and it was an absolute peach. 2009, 122k, 1 owner from new, and a fairly decent, if not all Merc, service history. Apart from some nasty stone chips, and some badly corroded alloys, and in need of an extremely thorough wash around the nooks and crannies, it was absolutely pukka. I reasoned that I’d probably need to overhaul the brakes, so knocked a further £300 off the asking price. I paid the man £200 deposit, and resolved to return in a couple of days to collect.
In the meantime, I did a little due diligence and spoke to the owner via his business, just to confirm that he wasn’t on holiday and I was being erroneously sold his car... all checked out ok and I collected her as planned.
So far I’ve (very well) spent £200 at a local bodyshop to give the car an all-over titivation including the bonnet stone chips and a fair bit of paint out of the very wide opening doors. She now looks a million dollars, having also received a good polish. I’ve also washed her several times to rid all of the red Devon mud out of various seals and holes. Also an air con bomb and new cabin filter to rid the slight smell of wet dog after being parked up for a while. But actually the handbrake, which was virtually seized, and the other brakes, which were very sticky, have all freed themselves off without intervention, a massive bonus.
I am utterly enamoured with this car. The spec list is extremely impressive... being the AMG sport it gets the proper 18” AMG alloys, updated brakes and a very nice body kit. He ticked pretty much everything else bar the Harmon Kardon sound system, including trick LED lighting, active cornering, adaptive lighting, navigation, pneumatic orthopaedic seats (does take some getting used to, the seats can be quite...firm until you adjust them). I’ve spent the princely sum of £10 and now have Bluetooth connected for music as well as calls.
It is a wonderful car to drive. Probably not the most dynamic on the twisty bits... various reviews talk about how it’s not a B road blaster and that’s true. Nice sweeping A roads though, all day. The AMG Sport gets the adaptive suspension... the difference between comfort and sport modes is night and day, really firms the cars handling and throttle response up. If I’m caught in traffic en route to work, it stays in comfort, but with nothing in front, Sport makes it all a little more fun.
On the list in the spring will be a remap. There’s still a nice shove of torque and the figures for the CDi are really good, but it does feel slightly constrained. First order of business will be refurbishing the alloys and putting some decent tyres on the back, it is extremely lively in the wet when provoked.
Overall I’m extremely happy, I’ve spent far less than planned on a very ‘together’ car which feels special to drive. Added to which, the owners last service bill about 4000 miles ago was not far off my purchase price of the car, with gearbox oil etc changed, and a lot of money spent on grilles and a headlight after a wildlife interaction... fingers crossed I won’t be spending quite as much on maintenance!
The background... recently my commute has gone from zero to about 50 miles a day on a really crap A road. So, for a while I’d been thinking about chopping in my V70 D5. She’d been a marvellous workhorse for 3 years, but was starting to show her age and miles a bit. Hauling such a huge estate car around seemed pointless for me most of the time.
Added to which, I’d just completed my Class 1 advanced driving course, and wanted to treat myself a bit.
I’d started to look at Audi A5’s in earnest, and was planning to pay up to around £7000. But, with a house purchase looming, that was pushed onto the back burner.
Unfortunately Helga had other ideas. What had been a previously intermittent engine management issue turned into a permanent limp mode, and the garage couldn’t find the cause. One of those annoying faults which probably just was a pinched wire somewhere really well hidden.
So, I needed to replace her NOW. Having started looking at A5s, I was startled at how apparently affordable E class coupes could be. I’d loved the look of them for a while. So, I started seriously looking. Saw one locally which just didn’t ring the right bells. Not looked after particularly well, and also close to £7k. Gut said no, so I moved on.
I’ve bought a few cars in the past off really rubbish eBay ads, because sometimes people who don’t do computers turn out to actually be selling really decent metal. This one piqued my interest...always look in the background. It didn’t even specify the model, nor any real detail.
Looked like a scam advert, but I rang the mobile number and left a message.
2 days later, I’d abandoned hope, but that morning I received a call back. It all sounded a bit strange, the man was selling it on behalf of his boss, and a trader had been meant to come the day before but never turned up. Nonetheless, I commandeered my mum’s Mini and shot down to the back of beyond in Devon that afternoon.
It actually turned out to be the man who was building a driveway to the client’s house. When he gave me a lift down in his van, the issue became apparent. Nearly a mile of unmade track to an utterly amazing, Grand Designs style barn conversion. The client hadn’t really used the car for the last 18months as it wouldn’t make it up and down the track. Client didn’t really do eBay, so his guy had done the ad for him.
Sure enough however, I inspected the car and it was an absolute peach. 2009, 122k, 1 owner from new, and a fairly decent, if not all Merc, service history. Apart from some nasty stone chips, and some badly corroded alloys, and in need of an extremely thorough wash around the nooks and crannies, it was absolutely pukka. I reasoned that I’d probably need to overhaul the brakes, so knocked a further £300 off the asking price. I paid the man £200 deposit, and resolved to return in a couple of days to collect.
In the meantime, I did a little due diligence and spoke to the owner via his business, just to confirm that he wasn’t on holiday and I was being erroneously sold his car... all checked out ok and I collected her as planned.
So far I’ve (very well) spent £200 at a local bodyshop to give the car an all-over titivation including the bonnet stone chips and a fair bit of paint out of the very wide opening doors. She now looks a million dollars, having also received a good polish. I’ve also washed her several times to rid all of the red Devon mud out of various seals and holes. Also an air con bomb and new cabin filter to rid the slight smell of wet dog after being parked up for a while. But actually the handbrake, which was virtually seized, and the other brakes, which were very sticky, have all freed themselves off without intervention, a massive bonus.
I am utterly enamoured with this car. The spec list is extremely impressive... being the AMG sport it gets the proper 18” AMG alloys, updated brakes and a very nice body kit. He ticked pretty much everything else bar the Harmon Kardon sound system, including trick LED lighting, active cornering, adaptive lighting, navigation, pneumatic orthopaedic seats (does take some getting used to, the seats can be quite...firm until you adjust them). I’ve spent the princely sum of £10 and now have Bluetooth connected for music as well as calls.
It is a wonderful car to drive. Probably not the most dynamic on the twisty bits... various reviews talk about how it’s not a B road blaster and that’s true. Nice sweeping A roads though, all day. The AMG Sport gets the adaptive suspension... the difference between comfort and sport modes is night and day, really firms the cars handling and throttle response up. If I’m caught in traffic en route to work, it stays in comfort, but with nothing in front, Sport makes it all a little more fun.
On the list in the spring will be a remap. There’s still a nice shove of torque and the figures for the CDi are really good, but it does feel slightly constrained. First order of business will be refurbishing the alloys and putting some decent tyres on the back, it is extremely lively in the wet when provoked.
Overall I’m extremely happy, I’ve spent far less than planned on a very ‘together’ car which feels special to drive. Added to which, the owners last service bill about 4000 miles ago was not far off my purchase price of the car, with gearbox oil etc changed, and a lot of money spent on grilles and a headlight after a wildlife interaction... fingers crossed I won’t be spending quite as much on maintenance!
Edited by carreauchompeur on Monday 2nd November 22:54
Nickbrapp said:
Very nice, this shape E class is the best looking of them all I think, is it true thst the coupe is a C class underneath and that’s why they look thinner than a E saloon?
Apparently so yes, combining the options and comfort of the E class with the handling of the C class, according to some!Great choice, I bought exactly the same car with I think exactly the same spec/options a year ago - 2009 model too! I've done about 18k in it so far and it's a comfy bus, I echo everything you've said really. Definitely not a B road blaster but very composed, just a comfortable car to eat miles and make swift progress in. I've been tempted by a remap too, the engine feels like it's got more to give than in its standard guise! Mines almost feels sluggish pulling off, but then once you're on the move you get the big diesel wafty torque.
I've had a few maladies with mine but hopefully it'll be a smooth ride now, Ive replaced the thermostat (£150), had an injector seal done (£120) but then got stung with the aggressively priced MAF Sensor (£740!).
I've had a few maladies with mine but hopefully it'll be a smooth ride now, Ive replaced the thermostat (£150), had an injector seal done (£120) but then got stung with the aggressively priced MAF Sensor (£740!).
ks in white with full AMG trimmings. Great commuter. Enjoy!Good day today... every new car needs a proper proper clean and since the sun was out, the spare wheel and everything came out.
Originality and provenance...nice to see original top up oil in there too!
Sadly today’s mega wash was probably slightly in vain given my very, very muddy route to work!
Originality and provenance...nice to see original top up oil in there too!
Sadly today’s mega wash was probably slightly in vain given my very, very muddy route to work!
I too have one of these.............a white E350 with pano roof and red leather interior that I bought in June 2019 with 70k on it and paid considerably more than you! Since then, and despite being at home since lockdown started in March, i've put 40k on it but not without issue.
- Had a leak in a pipe from the steering pump that i had to keep an eye on the reservoir level as if it started to run low the pump groaned something awful. Think this was a £150 fix.
- A couple of months ago my electronic steering lock started playing up by sometimes refusing to release when the key was inserted. I am no expert with the spanners but after removing the drivers side footwell trim, steering wheel and instrument cluster was able to drop the steering rack and remove it. Ridiculously it is a £5 motor that effectively wears out the bushes. There are places you can get this fixed for ~£400 depending on where you are in the country but if you go near MB they are talking the best part of £2k which is ridikeris. Sadly it appears to be "they all do that sir" which is a pest so watch out for this.
I'm sure you know but get the gearbox oil changed - it is a must!
Otherwise i've loved it. Plenty comfy for doing more than 1k miles a week as i was, great on fuel with easy 700 motorway miles from a tank that i could maybe stretch to 800 if i was sensible and stuck to 70mph. I've put Uniroyal Rail Sports on mine and it takes a seriously hamfisted right foot to get the thing to step out of line in the wet now.
- Had a leak in a pipe from the steering pump that i had to keep an eye on the reservoir level as if it started to run low the pump groaned something awful. Think this was a £150 fix.
- A couple of months ago my electronic steering lock started playing up by sometimes refusing to release when the key was inserted. I am no expert with the spanners but after removing the drivers side footwell trim, steering wheel and instrument cluster was able to drop the steering rack and remove it. Ridiculously it is a £5 motor that effectively wears out the bushes. There are places you can get this fixed for ~£400 depending on where you are in the country but if you go near MB they are talking the best part of £2k which is ridikeris. Sadly it appears to be "they all do that sir" which is a pest so watch out for this.
I'm sure you know but get the gearbox oil changed - it is a must!
Otherwise i've loved it. Plenty comfy for doing more than 1k miles a week as i was, great on fuel with easy 700 motorway miles from a tank that i could maybe stretch to 800 if i was sensible and stuck to 70mph. I've put Uniroyal Rail Sports on mine and it takes a seriously hamfisted right foot to get the thing to step out of line in the wet now.
Er yeah, my average tank is low 400ish... pitfalls of a windy route to work and heavy right foot!
Cheers for the tips. I’ve never liked this kind of ignition system and have known it play up on all sorts of other motors so fingers crossed.
I suppose the nuclear option would be just to remove the steering locking element of it!
Cheers for the tips. I’ve never liked this kind of ignition system and have known it play up on all sorts of other motors so fingers crossed.
I suppose the nuclear option would be just to remove the steering locking element of it!
Yep, I’m very pleased. To be fair I think it was just cheap as owner wanted a quick, no hassle sale so his employee listed it at the same price as the lowest one around. I looked at a really sheddy one for 2 grand more locally with a subframe advisory on the last MoT so I’m glad I had something to compare it with...
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