Greetings from a ML320 CDi owner

[MackieCross]

Greetings!

Recently purchased a 2007 ML320 CDi W164

I'm pretty pleased with the car overall - there are a few niggles which I've googled and the results led me here.

I've found owners forums to be very helpful in the past & hopefully this will be no different.

Look forward to interacting, learning and hopefully sharing back with you all.

 

[AMGeed]

Welcome to the forum

 

[Deesidecars7]

Hi, i bought 2008 ML320 last year, great car with a few niggles that have been sorted, parking sensors, glow plugs and relay, runs very well now

 

[Smart320]

Hi, i bought 2008 ML320 last year, great car with a few niggles that have been sorted, parking sensors, glow plugs and relay, runs very well now

Would you believe it! I swapped my E class for a 2007 ML 320cdi Sport with 42 k on the clock a couple of month's ago. Had a parking sensor replaced and glow plugs and controller replaced plus a new accelerator pedal to correct a high variable idle and it is now running very well. Getting 35 mpg on a cross country run in mid Wales so pretty happy at the moment.

 

[kid-jensen]

35 Mpg is very impressive, never managed that myself even when driving lika a pregnant vicar...

Still, it's way more economical than my previous car (Audi Allroad turbo-petrol) at 18 MPG, so it's win-win for me.

Change the oil ASAP, and then, do it again! These engines give the oil a hard life...

 

[Smart320]

35 Mpg is very impressive, never managed that myself even when driving lika a pregnant vicar...

Still, it's way more economical than my previous car (Audi Allroad turbo-petrol) at 18 MPG, so it's win-win for me.

Change the oil ASAP, and then, do it again! These engines give the oil a hard life...

Luckily have MB main dealer service record from new, was serviced every year at about 4000 mile intervals,
Last oil change 2500 miles ago

 

[MackieCross]

Thanks for the welcome fellas!

Put a hundred miles on so far, a mix of all types of roads and really pleased.

The issues that were known on purchase were:

- SRS warning X 3 on dash (guessing thats down to faulty sensors)
- Electric tailgate not working (though it does the final grab and soft close)
- Worn brakes warning on dash
- The steering wheel is slightly off centre when supposed to be dead straight

It's booked in with my local Benz specialist to be given the once over - hopefully get the issues rectified and a full service to give me a peace of mind through winter

 

[MackieCross]

does anyone tackle any jobs on this car themselves? is it something that can be done with time, patience and common sense with a bit of knowledge of cars?

- such as swapping out the tailgate electric motor

or do you tend to leave it to a garage to do it all?

 

[Smart320]

I am without tools but at least have a great neighbor with lots of kit for his classic car so will try simple, not too oily stuff. Swapping the accelerator pedal or something similar is my limit but there are plenty of people on the forum who do a whole lot more and I have been surprised at how much information I have picked up just by reading various threads. A basic knowledge supplemented by good advice here seems to be sufficient to do lots of tasks. Unfortunately lots of threads here seem to leave me drooling over V8 petrol engined E class cars or similar,.

 

[MackieCross]

UPDATE

Service B wasn't due - but i've carried it out for my own peace of mind
Geometry sorted - steering wheel is now dead centre
Brakes worn message - was down to a sensor and the brakes all round have plenty of meat on them

 

[kid-jensen]

Nobody is born with the ability to fix cars.... you work it out as you go along. And of course, Google is your friend.
Small stuff like oil changes, Air filters, Parking sensors, Shocks etc are all do-able with a smattering of tools, and if you need some specialised tool, then buy it, it'll be cheap enough on ebay. Even of you never use it again the total cost of getting the job done will nearly always be cheaper than going to the dealer....and you know it's done to standards you approve of!
So long as you know when to get the pros in (like when you need a Star scan), most Mercedes are reasonably DIY friendly.