Advice needed - Viewing E55 Tomorrow

[Cyclone1]

Short Notice....

Going to look at an E55 tomorrow (2004), is there any obvious things specific to this model that I need to look out for?

Any advice welcome.
Thanks
Jules.

 

[andy_k]

speed cameras and worn back tyres

 

[andy_k]

on a slightly more sensible level......

Aside from all the obvious like smoky/rattly engines

listen for any clunks, rattles etc in the drive train and suspension

If it's an early one then check everywhere for rust and repairs - pay very close attention to the spring perches and the front crossmember.

Have a look at the brake disks - look if they are worn and need replacing as that can be an expensive job. Same for shocks and springs - all AMG specific parts hence they aren't cheap

Make sure all the electrics work, find out when the next service is due, if it's got a full Merc history great, if it hasn't just make sure it's been looked after properly.

Great cars - just watch the speedo for the first few miles as it's very easy to underestimate just how quickly you get to illegal speeds

 

[lynall]

No spring perchs on W211 std mac strutt, poss with air susp, im sure people will say they arent as good as the w210 but i was told that about w210 not as good as w124 but time moves on, i for one am envious.

See here http://www.mbclub.co.uk/forums/wheels-tyres/50843-warning-front-springs-snapping-211s.html

Lynall

 

[andy_k]

yep, I missed the date when I posted

 

[BlackC55]

No coil springs on a e55k 211.

Check for suspension wear as they tend to wear ball joints quickly. Check the rear shocks don't leak as they are £325 plus vat each.

Great car but expensive to maintain.

 

[Cyclone1]

Thanks Guys.

It has full MB SH, done 63k and has just had a major service including plugs etc. I've spoken to the Dealer Service Manager and he says he knows the car and it's a "good one"! Not sure if that's a positive or not but it's a bit re-assuring. Can you still get an extended MB Warrenty for an 03 plate?

 

[e55]

Just check everything electrical!

 

[Cyclone1]

Just check everything electrical!

So do you know if MB will still offer an extended warrenty?

 

[e55]

I am not sure as I did not buy mine through the MB network.
But make sure you check EVERY button and function on the car and make sure it works as they can be expensive to fix.

As BlackC55 said they are not cheap to maintain

 

[Cyclone1]

I am not sure as I did not buy mine through the MB network.
But make sure you check EVERY button and function on the car and make sure it works as they can be expensive to fix.

As BlackC55 said they are not cheap to maintain

Thanks.

Do you know of any alternative warrenties that can be bought and are recommended for this car?

 

[e55]

Best google search. Not sure if any other members could advise.

 

[BlackC55]

Thanks.

Do you know of any alternative warrenties that can be bought and are recommended for this car?

The AA is by far the best.

 

[Cyclone1]

The AA is by far the best.

Thanks, will check it out.

 

[glojo]

We all say to check every single electronic option and that is excellent advice, but the good news is that you have been assured the vehicle has a FULL Mercedes-Benz service history.

As long as the car has been kept within the main dealer umbrella then the car should be pretty solid. Because it is an early type vehicle then when it had the early service work carried it, it would have gone through a strict quality control check.

I have not heard of any rust problems on this model but check the black trim and the wheels for signs of electrolysis.

The E55AMG is a beautiful car and one that most folks can only dream of owning. Not cheap to run, but what price do we pay for that major grin factor.

I just disliike black or silver coloured cars just because they are sooo common

 

[Cyclone1]

We all say to check every single electronic option and that is excellent advice, but the good news is that you have been assured the vehicle has a FULL Mercedes-Benz service history.

As long as the car has been kept within the main dealer umbrella then the car should be pretty solid. Because it is an early type vehicle then when it had the early service work carried it, it would have gone through a strict quality control check.

I have not heard of any rust problems on this model but check the black trim and the wheels for signs of electrolysis.

The E55AMG is a beautiful car and one that most folks can only dream of owning. Not cheap to run, but what price do we pay for that major grin factor.

I just disliike black or silver coloured cars just because they are sooo common

Thanks for the advice.

Unfortunately there isn't much option when it comes to exterior colour. the only one's I've seen are either silver, black or a champagne silver. Out of the three I think I prefer black but we'll see.

Jules.

 

[Cyclone1]

Hi All,

Went to view the E55 (2003 65k) yesterday and have to say I was impressed, however I didn't buy it as there were a few things that need sorting first.

Visually the car looked very nice, but on closer inspection I found the the under side of the front bumper (drivers side) was cracked and had started to seperate, you can only notice this when looking underneath but I assume it'll only get worse, the crack was a good 5 inches long. I am not sure whether this can be repaired as its plastic? Or would need full replacement - how much would a front bumper be?

I took a friend along with me and he is a Pro Detailer, so he checked the paint thickness on each panel, all of the panels were about the same apart from the passenger front and rear doors which were double the thickness. The car is HPI clear so I am not suspecting it has had accident damge and there was certainly nothing visual underneath to suggest this, so it appears it may have had some kind of scrape on that side and has had the respray to sort it. That being said the quality of the spray is excellent with perfect colour match and no signs of running etc, my friend believes the respray is not recent and thinks it may have been done early in the cars life. The rest of the exterior was pretty much spot on. Two of the alloys had been refurbed and the other 2 had very minor nicks in them, so ideally all 4 would need doing properly and together for a perfect match.

The interior was in very good condition and all of the electrics worked.

The car drove very well and it actually felt stronger than I expected. There were no noticeable knocks, bangs or clunks. The steering wheel did feel a little "jitterry" though at slow speed (if you lift your hands off momentarily) so I suspect maybe balance or tracking.

The only mechanical noise that worried me was a very short "squeal" when hitting the accelerator pedal, this seemed to be coming from under the bonnet and I suspect it may be one of the bearings around the supercharger, it didn't do it all the time but was more noticeable when putting my foot down from very slow sppeds.

What should the engine sound like under load? It sounded to me like it was almost like a "fluttering" noise under full acceleration, does this sound right for a 55? Performance wise it felt very strong indeed.

Under the bonnet I notice that there was some light oil residue (film) around the coil packs, is this normal, elsewhere was dry. I got as far under the rest of the car as I could and I could see no sign of oil leaks anywhere.

Only other things that I through into the buying equation were that it needs 2 rear tyres, it needs taxing. Positives are that it has full MBSH and was last serviced (major) in May, it has also had recent front discs and pads all round.

Any advice welcome,

Jules.

 

[BlackC55]

That squeek is the supercharger and is not normal.

The fluttering noise is normal.

Oil leaking around the coil packs is fairly normal. It just means the rocker cover gaskets need doing.

 

[Will]

Hi Jules,

Doesn't sound too bad for a six-year old used car with 65k miles IMHO

If I were you, just draw up a list of costs involved with the issues that you noted and figure out how much it'll cost you with everything done.

I wouldn't neccessarily compare that car (with all the bits done) to most other similar cars as I assume that almost all cars need a few small jobs here and there.

I would imagine that the bumper could be repaired (plastic welded and painted), certainly if the crack isn't huge it's got to be worth repairing as I assume an AMG bumper will be pretty expensive to replace.

Other than that - factor in the cost of the wheel refurb, tyres etc and see how you feel about it overall.

The full MBSH and the recent major service/discs etc are a +ve point IMHO.

Will

 

[Cyclone1]

That squeek is the supercharger and is not normal.

The fluttering noise is normal.

Oil leaking around the coil packs is fairly normal. It just means the rocker cover gaskets need doing.

Hi,

Thanks for your response.

The squeal noise was litterally a split second noise when I hit the accelerator from very low speeds or standstill. I tried going on/off the accelerator at low speeds to replicate the squeal and you could hear it 50% of the time. Once the car was rolling at 40mph+ the noise was not there at all? What would you diagnose this as and what would be the associated costs to rectify?

Are the rocker cover gaskets labour intensive?

Thanks
Jules.