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  • Older E Class Diesel Merc?
  • scottyjohn
    Free Member

    Hi all,
    My Audi A4 TDI Avant is proving not to be big enough, and is now on 240,000 miles and feeling a bit rattle and tired. So I might be able to change and having had a good c-class petrol before, I’m thinking of an E-Class diesel auto. I will only have around £3700 – £4000 and there seems to be a fair amount out there. I’ll be looking at an Avantagarde, with leather, and around 120000 – 150000 miles. What are people’s experiences of the different engines? The 220 appeals due to economy, but how heavy on fuel are the 270 or 320 in the real world? I do a 76 mile round trip on mainly motorway each day and have a very light right foot, my Audi gets around 52 mpg on those kind of journeys currently.

    I just think it’s a hell of a lot of car for the money, but I’m unsure of the reliability or the economy? Also there appear to be one or two 5 series BMW diesels out there at the prices I’m looking at, how would that be for an alternative? I’d like another Audi, but I think they are overpriced now and basic inside compared to the Merc

    br
    Free Member

    I just think it’s a hell of a lot of car for the money, but I’m unsure of the reliability or the economy?

    If it is a 2005-07 I’d avoid, based upon my colleagues, at the time, company car. He had the 270 and it spent many days/weeks in the garage over the two years we had them.

    tbh I’d look at a Mondeo (or equivalent), you’ll get a far better one for the money.

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    they are cheap to buy because the parts are expensive – especially the parts they need as they get older – look at the cost (and the length) of the exhaust for one – and what needs to come off to fit it …..

    my mother proved that brake disks are expensive -certainly for the AMG model – she would slow up from speed then sit on the brake until she had to go again and it would cool unevenly and warp- expensive lesson that .

    lovely places to be though.

    suburbanreuben
    Free Member

    Worst car I ever had.
    Switches all over the shop, thirsty, slow…
    A massive load space though, but to lower the rear seats the load cover/cargo net assembly needed to be slid out of one side. A ten minute job. The electric seats were even slower to adjust.
    The leather was lovely and soft- so soft the dogs put their claws through it. They did more damage in a month than in 8 years of my Subaru.

    tonyg2003
    Full Member

    I assume that you are looking at S211 Mercs. Older than 2006 the main issues are rust (rust, rust and rust) plus SBS pumps. The e220 are super reliable (occasional airport taxi drivers car has +500k on it) the e270 very good (apart from occasional injector issues and economical. The inline e320 is good too and the V6 e320 has occasional turbo port inlet valve issues.

    For mix of performance reliability and economy at that age I’d say e270 is the best.

    I’ve had a s211 e320 and it was a great car. Very reliable.

    Other things – Iike switch gear – each to their own not ever seen this as an issue 🙂

    scottyjohn
    Free Member

    I was looking at around 2003 – 2005. My brother in law has a garage and I get most repairs at parts cost so parts etc wouldnt be too big an issue. Given I can get 50mpg out of my Audi, what do you think the likely mpg would be for the 220, 270, and 320 engines?
    Also, what are the opninions of a 5 series of the same age / price? One of the new shape though not the older 5 series.

    robinlaidlaw
    Free Member

    5 series (E60/61 not E39) will be a bit cheaper to run and nicer to drive plus won’t have the huge rust issue that the pre 2006 E classes do. Those, and the older E39 5s ALL rust in the end and the older E classes rust absolutely all over.
    Smaller boot on the BMW than the Merc if you are looking as estates, similar in the saloons.

    andyl
    Free Member

    Probably wouldnt expect to see much more than 35mpg average out of an old merc diesel of that size (maybe low 40s on the motorway). Not looked at any figures to check this but trying to remember from when I was looking.

    molgrips
    Free Member

    I was looking at around 2003 – 2005

    Isn’t that in the rust-zone for Mercs?

    andyl
    Free Member

    I would try and find an extra £2-2.5k and look at a 2010/11 Skoda Superb. Just about as close to the E-class boot space as you can get but less than half the age and I suspect lot cheaper to run (MPG and bills) and no rust issues.

    robinlaidlaw
    Free Member

    Probably wouldnt expect to see much more than 35mpg average

    This is also true. My ’03 530d got 36mg over my ownership. I was happy enough with that for a car that size and performance but don’t expect 50mpg+ from these kind of large premium diesels with big engines. They are very nice and a lot more economical than a petrol of equivalent performance but you are still talking mpg in the 30s usually.

    scottyjohn
    Free Member

    Ive never seen a really bad looking w211, so dont know if the ones I have seen have been particularly well looked after? Or is it structural rust out of site thats the issue?

    trail_rat
    Free Member

    Look close at the rear aches …

    If you dont see it look up fron under

    They rust from the inside out.

    Once you notice it up top its too late.

    hot_fiat
    Full Member

    Rear arches, door bottoms, boot lid bottom, front wings. Nowhere near as bad as the previous gen though.

    tonyg2003
    Full Member

    S211 aren’t too bad post 2004 when Merc changed their paints again. But post 2005-2006 the electrics got sorted too. Older S211 2003 also have valeo radiators issues.

    slackalice
    Free Member

    As above for bodywork issues. Also check the fuel pipes that run under the floorpan. Prone to corrosion and labour intensive to fix.

    Lovely cars though

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