A Rather Poor Example?

[whitenemesis]

Just dropped off my car at the dealers and have been given an E320 Elegance estate, 2005 plate with 140k on the clock.

It seems to have all the toys, including what appears to be a rather poorly retro-fitted COMAND and telephone pre-wire. The aerials are simply stuck to the top of the dash!

The cabin is full of creaks and rattles.
The drivers seat is lumpy and appears lower on the left side.
The steering wheel is a good 15-20 degrees off the horizontal (BTW - I really dislike the parameter steering).
Despite the 16" wheels it still thumps over potholes and drain covers.
It wallows around corners.
The gear change (7sp) is quite noticeable and the down changes as one approaches standstill, very jerky.
The 320 sound rough at low speeds and is sluggish to pull away. Once up to speed is no quieter than my 270.
The door mirrors make an horrendous noise when folding!

Now I know this isn't some one's cherished pride and joy but I expected better. I have traveled in E320 taxis with 3x the mileage that have been serene in comparison.

 

[corned]

Assuming it's a service department hack, I'd say that, as a mobile advertisement for the dealership, it is not saying very much about their prowess or technical capabilities!

 

[whitenemesis]

It was a last minute substitution as the car I was to have had is "stuck in Kent"!?

I agree not a good advert for the car either

 

[219]

Possibly a rough car that has been traded in and all that was available at short notice ( although I'd have thought a demo model A Class , or even a Smart , would have been preferable ) . In fact , even another make of any sort but in good condition would have given a better impression , by the sound of your posting .

I remember back in days of yore Western Mercedes in Edinburgh had a number of air cooled Beetles as courtesy cars , which was what prompted us to get our first one as they were very pleasant cars to drive when new .

 

[whitenemesis]

I have just looked at the label on the key fob. "Hacker 320" !!!

 

[corned]

That's an even worse advert for the dealership. They clearly know full well it's a sac de merde and are seemingly happy to leave it that way and for their customers to be in it/see it.

 

[A1GSS]

I have just looked at the label on the key fob. "Hacker 320" !!!

Sounds like a Forum user name...

 

[219]

That's an even worse advert for the dealership. They clearly know full well it's a sac de merde and are seemingly happy to leave it that way and for their customers to be in it/see it.

indeed !

 

[whitenemesis]

Well, the old barge acquitted itself rather well just now as we had to drive through a flash flood (torrential thunderstorm). Parktronic threw a tantrum but otherwise no drama. I know my (much lower) C class would not have made it through.

The dealer has just rung to say my car ready for collection (diff seals replaced again. 2nd time in 6weeks and 3rd time in 18months.. Another story!), so my time with the E was short and bitter sweet. I liked the SBC Hold feature!

 

[Londonscottish]

. I liked the SBC Hold feature!

What's SBC hold?

 

[whitenemesis]

Come to a standstill and give an extra push on the brake pedal and it 'locks' on, until you press the accelerator

 

[corned]

What's SBC hold?

Haven't you found that yet? Wow - are you missing out!!!

It's a feature whereby you give the brake pedal a little extra push when you have come to a halt, and the SBC holds the car stationary on the brakes until you either stab the brake pedal again or apply some throttle.

An indispensable feature when you get used to it!

 

[Palfrem]

Many years ago I used to run a Saab 9000 (had 4 of them - great cars).
The dealers would always have the latest, top spec model to use as a courtesy car.
I know one chap who bought one as a result of what was effectively a two day test drive.

 

[whitenemesis]

Many years ago I used to run a Saab 9000 (had 4 of them - great cars).
The dealers would always have the latest, top spec model to use as a courtesy car.
I know one chap who bought one as a result of what was effectively a two day test drive.

And this is exactly what usually happens with my dealer. On this particular occasion my courtesy was still in Kent.

The reason for my post wasn't to moan about the dealer or the car as a loan car but to express surprise at how poorly the car had 'aged'. After all 5yrs and 140k is still quite young for this type of car?

 

[wxmclk]

This reminds me of a recent(ish) visit to a MB dealer to undertake a service on my CLK. The pre-arranged courtesy car was a ropey A class straight out of stock (price and advert discarded on back seat). This car was a pile of poo. Rattles all over, awful gear change, tracking a million miles out, static on the radio, missing door trim etc etc. To top it off they had left a tow bar kit rattling around in the boot and some old boxes full of assorted crap.!

Like the original post here- NOT a good ad for that main dealer or MB in general.