Irritating Problems W211 E320CDI estate

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bobf

New Member
Joined
Jan 8, 2005
Messages
16
Location
London
Car
08 E320 CDI Avantgarde Estate
Need some advice really my car had a number of irritating problems, history sort of goes like this:-
  1. collected car from stuttgart in march under personal collection scheme - highly recommended
  2. returned car to dealer for PDI 5 days later
  3. on collection, one of the tailgate gas struts had broken
  4. dealer unable to repair as I was leaving for dublin where I was working at the time
  5. took it to local dealer in dublin who wrecked the car finding the problem - couldn't work out how to get the trim panel off so broke it instead
  6. 1 month later strut arrived and fitted - no sign of trim panel - suspect not ordered
  7. 2 months go by - lots of phone calls - ' we had the part but sold it' (not likely as only 5%of E classes sold in dublin are estates) 'weve sacked our parts manager' 'mercedes don't have one' amongst others.
  8. In the end the part arrived and i fitted it myself as it was quicker than waiting in reception for another two hours so that they didn't have to give me a car!
  9. then the Fuel gauge packed up - found another dublin dealer who were brilliant.
  10. complex problem with intermediate box between sender & gauge was naff - took a week to get the part!
  11. Then rear shock falls apart - self levelling gas assisted on this mode.
  12. brake recall is acceptable, i can live with that.
  13. Now back in the UK and have a low speed -20mph grinding sound that sounds like a half shaft bearing but coming from the transmission. was intermittent, but now permanent- about to book it in for the dealer to sort
  14. also have creaking on fromt suspension with the 'wrong type' of speed bumps - rubber bushes have been replaced but no better - wonder if they have messed the camber up, because inside front tyres scubbed badly and tracking is fine- had it checked

Bottom line is 11 months and 22k miles on I love the car, but in over 180kmiles in my previous 2 SAAB's I did not have any problems apart from a flat battery. They were both company cars.... but this is mine cos I was fede up with adding to gordon's coffers - Have I been unlucky or is this just the MB quality issue that I read so much about?
 
Hi Bob,
You have had some terrible problems and appear to have the patience of a saint.

Touching lots of wood here, our S211 has not had any major problems at all. Yes we have had more than our fare share of little electronic 'glitches' but nothing to compare with your sorry tale.

I do not believe in going OTT with a dealer, but I only accept 'satisfaction'.

I would be driving about in a suitable courtesy vehicle whilst those terrible noises are resolved.

;) Our car is now perfect, yours should be as well.

Regards,
John
 
John,
supplying dealer is no problem, i have know the sales manager for more than 20years, its the quality of components that seems to be the problem - the Dublin dealer just didn't care frankly......interesting, thought the estate was a w211?? you have yours listed as an S211 do i have my wires crossed?not being smart, but check this link http://www.honestjohn.co.uk/road_tests/?id=76.... - woryingly if you search on gogle it has the same model number as a Miele wahing machine!!! PS if you want a towbar I fitted a cracking Brink Mirage to mine!!
 
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bobf said:
John,
supplying dealer is no problem, i have know the sales manager for more than 20years, its the quality of components that seems to be the problem - the Dublin dealer just didn't care frankly......interesting, thought the estate was a w211?? you have yours listed as an S211 do i have my wires crossed?.... PS if you want a towbar I fitted a cracking Brink Mirage to mine!!

Hi Bob,
The 211 has two derivatives:

W = car
S = Estate

I'm a bit fuzzy at the moment but the abbreviation is something like wagen = car
stationwagen (spelling is my weak subject) = Estate

The tailgate on ours is all electronic, and is open and shut a number of times each day. Touching wood again, everything is as solid as the day it was bought.

When closing it shuts in what I will tactfully describe as a firm manner.

I am glad to hear that I am not the only one pleased with the dealer. Hopefully yours will quickly resolve those horrible noises you have described.

Don't forget all E-class built after January 1st 2004 have the new nano paint technology.

Take care,
John
 
Ok John I stand corrected, Known as the E Klasse T Modell (S211) learn something new everyday!!
 
bobf said:
Ok John I stand corrected, Known as the E Klasse T Modell (S211) learn something new everyday!!

;) ;) Hopefully 'Oslo' might 'pop up' and give us the correct termology for the S = stationwagen.

He speaks German better than I speak English, plus of course he also owns an S211.

It sounds nice because I have always wanted an S-class estate, at least I can now fool myself into thinking I actually own one.

Goodnight,
John
 
I don't know whether the w or s stand for words. I thought limousine=saloon and kombi=estate in German. But there again I might be wrong.
 
bobf said:
Need some advice really my car had a number of irritating problems, history sort of goes like this:-
  1. collected car from stuttgart in march under personal collection scheme - highly recommended
  2. returned car to dealer for PDI 5 days later
  3. on collection, one of the tailgate gas struts had broken
  4. dealer unable to repair as I was leaving for dublin where I was working at the time
  5. took it to local dealer in dublin who wrecked the car finding the problem - couldn't work out how to get the trim panel off so broke it instead
  6. 1 month later strut arrived and fitted - no sign of trim panel - suspect not



  1. Just FYI, I have had trouble with MSL and Belgard previously (MSL just are lazy and took 3 days to do nothing before I just upped and took the car off them, and Belgard forgot to tie down the radiator coolant hose so it scraped off over a few days by the cooling fan and temp was +++++ very dangerous).

    Only place to get any MB fixed or serviced is Terry Ryan in Deansgrange. He is expensive but they only do MB and the odd TVR or such. Basically after being fecked around by the other two, I am lucky to have found him so if you need a 100% job go there. (No this isn't an advert, they just don't f**k around there and know MB inside out so it's just advice to any Dublin members).

    EDIT: edited for content --Shude
 
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Subyland said:
I don't know whether the w or s stand for words. I thought limousine=saloon and kombi=estate in German. But there again I might be wrong.

Morning Subyland,
Thanks for being tactful, and I understand completely what you are saying.

My poor attempt at pointing out the difference between the saloon and estate is only referring to the 211 E-class. I suppose because we are English the 'S' and 'W' seem back to front, but please trust me when I say the S211 is indeed the Estate.

Thanks for your remarks,
John ;)
 
Sorry to hear about your experiences with the car. I have a 2002 w211 bought from new and done 35000.

At 5000 miles I had had plenty of things go wrong, and i mean plenty.

I am glad to say that things do settle down and I enjoy my car now as much as the day I collected it.

Persevere

Marc
 
marc777 said:
Sorry to hear about your experiences with the car. I have a 2002 w211 bought from new and done 35000.

At 5000 miles I had had plenty of things go wrong, and i mean plenty.

I am glad to say that things do settle down and I enjoy my car now as much as the day I collected it.

Persevere

Marc

Same here, I've done 43000 miles now and I love the car.
 
RichardM said:
Same here, I've done 43000 miles now and I love the car.)

The 211 is easily the best Mercedes-Benz we have ever owned and has now sadly set the standard for any future replacement. :eek:

I will be looking forward to seeing the new R class, but it will have to be something special to drag the wife out of our present vehicle. ;)

Regards,
John
 
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I guess if the stealership network was able to pick up the problems and deal with them efficiently then there really would be no problems. If you have a problem, take it to the stealership and they know straight away what the solution is and give you an accurate timescale for fixing it and price if applicable then I guess you don't mind so much. When they suck through their teeth, deny knowledge, replace half the car's parts and the problem persists then they've not successfully managed your expectations and that's what leaves us feeling dissatisfied. People tend to be happy if they are informed of SOMETHING in these situations, even if it's bad news.
 
glojo said:
Morning Subyland,
Thanks for being tactful, and I understand completely what you are saying.

My poor attempt at pointing out the difference between the saloon and estate is only referring to the 211 E-class. I suppose because we are English the 'S' and 'W' seem back to front, but please trust me when I say the S211 is indeed the Estate.

Thanks for your remarks,
John ;)

Hi John,

I totally agree with you that the code S210 is for the estate. What I was saying was that I was unsure wether the letter S was chosen because it was the first letter of a German word meaning estate or something similar. From the little German I know estate=kombi. So why the S I do not know... :confused: :confused:
 
interesting threads..... thanks for the advice in Dublin MB 240, unfortunately although I fly over here I am now mercedesless as it basques in heathrow longterm carpark. Forgot to add that the Nokia phonekit packed up - they said that it was the software level of my phone although unlikely as it had worked for 6 months - starnage how it stopped working after the diesel gauge was fixed but then i'm scarred to ask... upgraded the software, it worked for 3 weeks and then the microphone unit packet up - at about the time when the airbag sensor packed up in the passenger seat. I do agree thet the car is superb, love the drive and having replaced the sidelights with platinum white PIAA (see other threads) it still looks the biz after 22k
 
bobf said:
Forgot to add that the Nokia phonekit packed up - they said that it was the software level of my phone although unlikely as it had worked for 6 months - starnage how it stopped working after the diesel gauge was fixed but then i'm scarred to ask

:D ;) :y Hi Bob,
That was one of my many little teething problems. The symptoms I had were the phone would suddenly come up with a message saying it was 'unable to receive signal' or similar type message. Every time it went to the dealer though it would be perfect. They replaced all sorts of parts trying to get the telephone to work properly. Then one day they suggested I get a new sim card with the latest software updates from my service provider. Once the new card was installed it worked perfectly.

Your symptoms and problem might well be completely different.

Good luck,
John
 

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