Are these the Mercedes dreaful years/cars?

[MM85]

We owned a 2009 W204 c180K pre facelift which didn't miss a beat.

Then a 2010 W164 ML300 CDI sport - owned 4 months (7000 miles) but the gearbox jerked terribly.

2011 W204 C220 CDI Sport Estate (facelift) didn't miss a beat for 3 years.

Now on a 2014 W212 E220 CDI Sport Estate, also perfect bar a bad DAB aerial, ride and comfort simply a different league to the C Class.

Yes, I have not heard any horror stories of the W204 or W212. They seem fine. The horror stories are all from the older cars from 1996/7 to 2006/7.

 

[MM85]

You're being a little bit dramatic with that.

The knack with Mercedes is to buy the facelift model; as an example the pre-facelift W204 had a few creaks and the interior feels quite cheap compared to the facelift W204 which is leagues ahead in quality and feel.

Not sure this is true with every Mercedes. With the W124 for example a 1993 is as good as a facelift 1996. Then again the W124 was just solid all around. No wonder it run for 12 years.

Oh, and the last proper Mercedes was the W123.

Alone you are with that opinion.

 

[MM85]

I have a mint 1997 c208 with not one spot of rust on it, coming up 19 years old never missed a beat never had paint a perfect example of whst a Mercedes should be. Prefacelifts were better than facelifts on the 208 which was down to the different primer and paint used on the pre facelift cars

Like I said there must be exceptions to the rule. But the point is, they are exceptions.

 

[MM85]

Same here, gratuitous pic of ours

Beautiful. It's just a very nice looking estate. I find estates harder to get right than saloons. To be honest if I need to choose between the above and the S204 and S205, based purely on the looks, I would be sitting at the dealership a long while. Not sure I could decide. I would have to start comparing features and test drives to help me decide.

What I like about the S203 is how fluid the lines are. Most estates are boxy at the back or just look wrong.

Whilst it's no Volvo the boot is surprisingly practical despite the sloping roofline. It takes five of us plus a dog or two in the back without any problem, but it's still a handy size for parking etc.

Yes, I wondered about the slop and how it may affect space. Good to know it's not much of a problem.

The parking is a good point. I guess an E-Class estate would be more troublesome. The interesting thing about the S203 is that even though it is large enough it doesn't look as big as a funeral car.

 

[219]

I had a 2003 S203 C270CDI and over the two years I had it , it was the most unreliable car I have owned , besides being the most claustrophobic with closed in cabin and thick A pillars which impede vision badly .

Its load capacity was also considerably less than the 123 and 124 estates I had previously , either of which I would have again , but never another 203 .

Also , the newer cars aren't as DIY friendly as the older ones .

 

[MercedesDriver]

C215
W210
W211

It really depends but you can find bad samples of each car you have listed. I have owned these three and can say that W210 never missed a beat was actually great car to own and drive, W211 pre-facelift is just perfect without any niggles so far and C215 had it's faults like instrument cluster and one leaking strut but that's all.

 

[Red C220]

These days I'm finding a number of estates actually looking better than Saloons. Certainly the W205.

 

[a111r]

These days I'm finding a number of estates actually looking better than Saloons. Certainly the W205.

They have always have to me, since the first, S123.
The 205 is the best / worst example of this trend.

 

[TheFoX]

I'm not a big fan of estates, but the CLS Shooting Brake is the exception for me.

Whether a car is dreadful or not is in the eye of the beholder. What one finds desirable/acceptable, another will find undesirable/unacceptable.

Mercedes did have their era where nothing seemed to go right for them, and this stemmed from their hay day when they over engineered their cars. These days, I believe that they have made a good compromise between over engineering and their Achilles Heel days.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Yes, I have not heard any horror stories of the W204 or W212. They seem fine. The horror stories are all from the older cars from 1996/7 to 2006/7.

What are the horror stories?

 

[Deleted member 6183]

My W203 was a good car as has been our W170, both from a time when MB were not covering themselves in glory.

Those who have the issues tend to have the loudest voices.

 

[Tim203]

Hi, I have an identical looking s203 to BTB500's It's a 2003 220cdi in Avantgarde trim . As I'm less than 5'9" I don't dislike the cosy cabin. The leather chairs are electric and comfortable. The cruise control is perfect and apart from the poor ride at low speeds it more than makes up for it on the motorway. I bought this car because it looks fantastic in black and in its class was the only car that had comfortable rear accommodation . The A4 had upright and hard chairs and an equivalent 3 series had little leg room in the back with my 6 ft wife driving. Around town you get 33 ish mpg and it will just about do 42 mpg on the motorway. I would like to chip it though. Other plus points are the neutral steering that tracks properly even on full lock which gives a good turning circle, also a great set of brakes. Lighting is also excellent and the courteous delay and welcoming lights on / off after opening/ closing also a plus. The remote on the key also works from miles away! Pull out net to stop the hound jumping over from the boot also a nice touch. On the down side the indicator/ wiper/cruise switchgear is loose on the column. The finish on the door handles (inside) comes off. The heating system is most irritating as it first has a word with the rest of the car before it switches on although it warms up fairly quickly.The temperature knobs are fairly wishy washy and vaguely marked with 3 temperature figures. I'm never sure If I get the same setting twice. Although the auto box is almost faultless I have to replace the lock up clutch solenoid and valve plate as it makes it vibrate when hot and under load.( kindly diagnosed by someone on the forum but I can't find the thread right now) That's gonna cost £140 odd plus a Saturday morning. There is no rain sensor for the wipers which are loud and parking beepers would have been good on this level of trim. It's overtired and short travel hard springs make it a bit lurchy on bumpy A roads. The problem for me was I had a 406 before and still drive my fathers old one with 240 k and just had it's 1st new clutch. Bombproof, comfy , sweet handling, brilliant heater! Never had new shocks starter or alternator, and keeps working! But the Benz has grown on me. It's quirky, feels and looks good and although it will probably cost me more than the pug to maintain I will get another one when this one wears out and as my German friend used to say his father always maintained it's always good to have the driving wheels independent of the steering wheels. And RWD is not so common these days, and that was the other reason for buying it!

 

[219]

My C270CDI was also a 2003 ; it used to average 47mpg on a mix of town/country and motorway driving ; I had to be really lead footed to get worse consumption and could creep into the low/mid 50's consumption if I drove it gently ! I'd think that if you are only getting 30's/low 40's there is something wrong , especially with the smaller engine ?

Mine was Obsidian Black and Avantgarde trim with black leather too - seats were only half electric though .

Problem was , well , problems : diesel injectors , swirl flaps , suspension control arms , useless heater ( thermostat / block heater ) , fuel leaks , knackered rear wash wipe which leaked water into the boot , bouncing lock syndrome , one 'key' which became inoperative , and probably more I've forgotten .

 

[John]

I would say the build quality on my 2004 W211 is very good overall.

It's not been without issue but mainly due to age - components have worn out and needed replacement.

It feels very well screwed together with the occasional minor rattle but I usually have music on or windows open so never sit in silence anyway.

I don't think I've ever had a car which had no rattles...

I do have a small patch of rust on a door coming through though which is annoying.

 

[MM85]

It really seems that most agree that the Mercs from around 1996 to 2006 are just not as good as the old Mercs. Any case of a good car from this era comes across as just luck or an exception.

But it's not only reliability. It's overall quality. Even the body panels fitting leaves a lot to be desired. Definitely not up to the tight standards of old Mercedes. I'm still impressed with the W124 I tested, specially compared to the C208 I tested just two days earlier. It's really like even the sheet metal is thinner or something and not as well fitted. I guess it's the whole package which gives this cheaper vibe. I think you just need to look at the earlier cars to see they are quality. A W124 just looks more solid next to it's newer siblings.

And the interiors are also way cheap looking. Lots of more plastic and overall cheapness in the late 90's and 2000's cars compared to the W140 and W124. Some of the interiors of the 2000's era cars remind me of Vauxhalls and some cheap U.S. cars. The level of finishing is just not up to what Mercedes should be.

So when you add the poor reliability, the lack of quality in the finishing and trim etc, it makes a very strong case to avoid those late 90's and early to mid 2000's cars. Even if you may find a person here and there saying they never had a problem. Who wants to risk and find out if he will be one of the lucky dozen?

 

[scumbag]

My list.

2002 R170......Gearstick (yes it was manual) came off in my hand. Build quality issue there. No other faults. (Had car 15000miles)

2004 R171..... Airbag warning light came on. Repeated issue with the Airbag and steering wheel connection. It occurred twice. (Had car 6000miles)

2005 R171 (SLK55)......two water pump replacements- wrong factory installed seal apparantly, one engine oil leak through the rocker covers - incorrect torque setting on nuts when built assumed the man who tightened them and the car had to have new gaskets etc as a result, one powersteering system failure which took two days of investigation and testing for it to be found it was the wrong selection of software in a solenoid somewhere in the system, two complete shutdowns of the COMAND system.

To be honest, Mercedes recovery dealt with it very well and what a car

9000 miles and it went.


2010 s204 c63.........no faults...not one...nothing......nothing at all went wrong. Wore it's rear tyres out at 3700miles. I decided at that time that having a car with a 200mph speedo on an island with a max speed of 35mph was not cost effective so it went. It is still on the island, I am not.


I have a few issues with the nose of a number of Mercedes models at the moment and really dislike the stick ipad type COMANDs etc so am just waiting.

 

[Dryce]

It really seems that most agree that the Mercs from around 1996 to 2006 are just not as good as the old Mercs. Any case of a good car from this era comes across as just luck or an exception.

'Most agree' is the sort of weasel words that a shifty politician uses when spouting the sort of rubbish that you're spouting.

The R170, W203, W211, W219, and W220 all come from that period are were great cars.

We had a R170 and W211 and put bluntly they have tainted every car we have and will own after we sold them they were that good.

 

[MM85]

'Most agree' is the sort of weasel words that a shifty politician uses when spouting the sort of rubbish that you're spouting.

The R170, W203, W211, W219, and W220 all come from that period are were great cars.

We had a R170 and W211 and put bluntly they have tainted every car we have and will own after we sold them they were that good.

Dryce, of course if you compare even the bad Mercedes to some other cars the Mercedes should still "taint" the other cars. It's a Mercedes! The point is comparing them to the actually great Mercedes. This is the thing. Those years may be good, if you are lucky it seems. But Mercedes are supposed to be great, not just good.

As for the weasel insult, don't bother. I know this is the internet and people will say anything, even if they would not have the guts to say it in person. That is more of a weasel thing for me really.

But reading your words and accusations would make a misinformed person think I came up with the whole Mercedes low quality reputation thing for those years, while it's pretty common knowledge really.

 

[markjay]

I think that the 'bad' years ended around 2002/2003, and even so not every car was affected - it is just that during the 'bad' years some Mercedes models had more rust and other issues than you would expect from a leading German car manufacturer.

 

[MM85]

Those who have the issues tend to have the loudest voices.

Of course. This is a natural thing. But only a few louder voices is not enough to earn the bad reputation those years have. It's clear the cars are just not great.

Look at the W124 and the outstanding reputation it has. I'm sure there are a few that may have had problems with one. And I'm sure they were also loud about the problems. But yet it wasn't enough to taint the great reputation of the car. Because it is indeed a great generation.

If complains are enough to taint the reputation of those years is because there have been enough of them. Not because they are loud.