Advice needed - Viewing E55 Tomorrow

[Cyclone1]

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

Hi Will,

Great response.

I agree that most of the external issues can be sorted relatively easily.

I agree that at 6 yrs it's going to have some issues and not be perfect.

Just need to fully diagnose the squeal first.

Jules.

 

[buccal]

Wouldn't worry about the paint either, may have been keyed rather than anything sinister. The main thing is its been sorted to a high standard

 

[BlackC55]

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.

The cause of the squeek is either the SC pulley or the SC itself. It needs proper diagnosis really.

RC gaskets are not labour intensive. The time is taken removing the sealant from the upper cover of the RC. I have done a couple for forum members Peter and Ossie.

 

[Cyclone1]

The cause of the squeek is either the SC pulley or the SC itself. It needs proper diagnosis really.

RC gaskets are not labour intensive. The time is taken removing the sealant from the upper cover of the RC. I have done a couple for forum members Peter and Ossie.

Thanks again for the reply.

I have been told eslewhere that the short squeak is the S/C belt and the remedy is to spray graphite spray into the clutch section....have you heard this before?

 

[BlackC55]

Yes.

 

[glojo]

I hate being the odd one out butI am used to it.

Bodywork issues
If the car has had any type of respray,then if you want to keep within the mobilo umbrella, then this work MUST be carried out by an approved agent. It will be recorded on the database and no record equates to non compliance.

Refurbished wheels.

The 211 has had problems with corrossion on the wheels and providing the car was less than 3 years old, they will be replaced new for old,so why the refurbished ones?

I gaurantee there will be better cars out there, but I also gaurantee you will see worse. It is your money and you are in the driving seat. Do NOT be in any rush.

Sorry to be out of synch with everyone else

 

[NewMB]

If there is a "shirp" noise as you start driving off..... this is perfectly normal and have appeared on all the E55's I have ever driven (drove 3 different ones before settling for my black (now sold)).

The MB tech guy even confirmed this as being the Supercharger.

This sound should not happen when driving at speed or using lower gear/kickdown.

 

[Cyclone1]

Yes.

Ok....

So does this means that it's just a work around or would the real diagnosis be a clutch replacement?

Thanks
Jules.

 

[Cyclone1]

If there is a "shirp" noise as you start driving off..... this is perfectly normal and have appeared on all the E55's I have ever driven (drove 3 different ones before settling for my black (now sold)).

The MB tech guy even confirmed this as being the Supercharger.

This sound should not happen when driving at speed or using lower gear/kickdown.

Thanks, so no fix required?

Jules.

 

[Cyclone1]

I hate being the odd one out butI am used to it.

Bodywork issues
If the car has had any type of respray,then if you want to keep within the mobilo umbrella, then this work MUST be carried out by an approved agent. It will be recorded on the database and no record equates to non compliance.

Refurbished wheels.

The 211 has had problems with corrossion on the wheels and providing the car was less than 3 years old, they will be replaced new for old,so why the refurbished ones?

I gaurantee there will be better cars out there, but I also gaurantee you will see worse. It is your money and you are in the driving seat. Do NOT be in any rush.

Sorry to be out of synch with everyone else

Fair points, I can check the paintwork and get this verified, either way it's been done to a high standard.

I think the alloys may have been refurbed due to kurb marks.

Thanks
Jules.

 

[Cyclone1]

OK, Been to see another today...

This one is also an 2003 E55 in silver. It has less spec (no Keyless Go, Dynamic Seats, Sunroof, or rear blinds) and has more miles 76k v 65k. It's had the same amount of owners but the current owner has had it for 2 1/2 years, the slight down side is that it has MB SH up to when the current owner bought it, since then he has taken it to a local MB Indie specialist, this is not necessarily a problem as the standard of work and attention may be better than that of an MB Dealer?

This car was much nicer and appeared to have been looked after better than the one I viewed yesterday. It drove better in that it was smoother than the one yesterday and there was no jitteryness in the steering wheel. Driving this car confirmed that the one I drove yesterday might be modified, this one was still very quick, but the one yesterday was brutally quick.

The downsides with this car are that its history shows no evidence of the car ever having its spark plugs changed....and at 76k miles then it's a worry. It also had quite worn rear discs and the pads needed changing all round (maybe another 1.5k miles). It had a D service being indicated in approx 3k miles so pretty soon really. There were no odd noises from under the bonnet and the car felt much more planted. All electrics worked well. This was a cared for example but the owner was not really mechanically minded and seemed unsure about plugs etc, he had his faith in the Indie that services it.

Both cars are up for the same price and while the second car is the nicer example, I feel it'll need more money spending on it initially. I've virtually ruled out the first car now as it might be modified, I don't see this as a bad thing though, but if it has then I'd like to know what has been done, by whom and when.

Jules.

 

[e55]

Mine had a full MB dealership history when I brought it. Since I have ahad it I have been using an indie who is also on this forum. I dont see it being a problem. If you hold the car for 3-4 years it will be 10 years old when you come sell it. I dont think a full MB history will be that important by that time.
Try get one with as much specs as possible. It will hope fully have more desirability when you come sell and being a top model W211. If you can try get a 2004 onwards model, as they are supposedly better built also.

Spark plugs will cost you about £300. Discs and pads will be expensive.
Bear in mind that with a higher mileage car there will be more wear and tear so expect a few things that may need to be seen too

 

[Adam230K]

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.

That jittering in the steering wheel is also normal on most cars with big alloys, one of the cons of having low profile tyres.

 

[Cyclone1]

Mine had a full MB dealership history when I brought it. Since I have ahad it I have been using an indie who is also on this forum. I dont see it being a problem. If you hold the car for 3-4 years it will be 10 years old when you come sell it. I dont think a full MB history will be that important by that time.
Try get one with as much specs as possible. It will hope fully have more desirability when you come sell and being a top model W211. If you can try get a 2004 onwards model, as they are supposedly better built also.

Spark plugs will cost you about £300. Discs and pads will be expensive.
Bear in mind that with a higher mileage car there will be more wear and tear so expect a few things that may need to be seen too

Hi,

Thanks for the advice, some good comments there. I am going to give both of these cars a miss I think......so the search continues....



Jules.

 

[Will]

The more you see, the more you'll learn about them. And when you find a near perfect and genuine car, you'll really appreciate it!

Good luck with the search

Will

 

[glojo]

Hi,

Thanks for the advice, some good comments there. I am going to give both of these cars a miss I think......so the search continues....



Jules.

The sweet spot for older 211's is January 1st 2004 intil mid Summer 2004. Take no notice about build quality remarks, they are just repeating what journalists all copy from each other. Look on this forum for actual problems with 211'sand you will see just how reliable they really are.

Why have I given you such a narrow window?

Before 2004 Mercedes-Benz were using apaint thatwould chip before you could say 'fish and chips' After January 2004 all 211'a apart from 4matic's Were treated to the nano top coat An excellent very hard coating which makes a lot of difference.

Why do I say mid summer 2004?

We always hereabout a golden age when Merrcedes-Benz were built by engineers but since the 124, they are now built to a budget. TGhat might be a fair comment, but it is not very well researched. The early 211's were loaded with lots of small, nice goodies which were withdrawn in the summer of 2004.

Servicing by independants
There are some excellent independants that have the necessary STAR diagnostic equipment that will install allthe latest upgrades, but these garages do not have access to any of the very significant service bulletins. Some of which are very important, you pays your money and take your choices. You can always have the basic servicing carried out by the main dealer and the unscheduled, but expensive work carried out by the indie.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS ask the independant what updates they have installed during the service. That way, you will know they are at least using correct software

I am a fan of the 211, especially the AMG, I just wish my wife had been

 

[IanA2]

I just disliike...... silver coloured cars just because they are sooo common

Yup....common round my way....I have three sitting outside

 

[Cyclone1]

The sweet spot for older 211's is January 1st 2004 intil mid Summer 2004. Take no notice about build quality remarks, they are just repeating what journalists all copy from each other. Look on this forum for actual problems with 211'sand you will see just how reliable they really are.

Why have I given you such a narrow window?

Before 2004 Mercedes-Benz were using apaint thatwould chip before you could say 'fish and chips' After January 2004 all 211'a apart from 4matic's Were treated to the nano top coat An excellent very hard coating which makes a lot of difference.

Why do I say mid summer 2004?

We always hereabout a golden age when Merrcedes-Benz were built by engineers but since the 124, they are now built to a budget. TGhat might be a fair comment, but it is not very well researched. The early 211's were loaded with lots of small, nice goodies which were withdrawn in the summer of 2004.

Servicing by independants
There are some excellent independants that have the necessary STAR diagnostic equipment that will install allthe latest upgrades, but these garages do not have access to any of the very significant service bulletins. Some of which are very important, you pays your money and take your choices. You can always have the basic servicing carried out by the main dealer and the unscheduled, but expensive work carried out by the indie.

ALWAYS, ALWAYS ask the independant what updates they have installed during the service. That way, you will know they are at least using correct software

I am a fan of the 211, especially the AMG, I just wish my wife had been

Some great advice there.

Have been in touch with the owner of a 2004 54 plate that is for sale so will arrange to have a look at that one.

Will keep you updated.

Jules.

 

[glojo]

Yup....common round my way....I have three sitting outside

Is yours the silver one, or the silver one?

I am a terrible hypocrite as we have two vehicles both of which are tealite blue

 

[Cyclone1]

Hi All,
Been to look at another E55 earlier in the week, this one's a 53 plate (Dec 03) so had a few revised bits inside than the two previous cars I viewed. This one has lower mileage (40k) and has full service history. It is due a service C is 7k miles. It has very good spec including Keyless Go, Command, Dynamic Seats, Sunroof etc. The only probelm was it was throwing down with rain when I got there to view it so have arranged to go back again tomorrow.

If anyone is in and around the Matlock area tomorrow afternoon (or knows of any Independant Specialists in that area who might help) and would like to help me view then it would be very much appreciated. We will be taking the car to a place with a ramp so I can see it underneath.
Jules.