older MB E320 or BMW 530D

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davidjpowell

MB Enthusiast
Joined
Nov 8, 2007
Messages
4,923
Location
Doncaster
Car
E350 w212 and Ford Ranger
Rover bargain is pissing me off and is getting sold for as little loss as I can make. Useless piss of metal that should never have been built.

More thinked, it's never run right (does not start at all now), and even if I get it sorted I don't think I'll ever trust it. On that basis it has no value to me.

I'm thinking of spending a little more - up to £2k, on either a 530D or an E320 CDi. Likely to be around the 2000-2001 mark with as near to 100k as I can get.

MB issue will of course be rust.

What's other people views on reliability over the next 100K?

Just not sure myself.
 
When you look at the condition of my f-I-l W210 E320 CDi with 190k for £1500, it's got to be one of them.
 
What about the oily bits? How do they last?
 
Having owned 2 E39s and a W210 I'd say go for the BMW, mind you, the 530d is not a terribly economical car.

E39 does rust too, but not in the same league as the Mercedes.

Not sure the E39 530d has swirl flap issues, if it does get them removed before they remove your bank balance, never had many problems with my BMWs to be fair, so I guess they are strong.
 
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I'd lean towards the E320cdi. The tranmsissions are tougher, and whilst the rust is off putting, the engines are tough on those I6's. The 530d is a better car for handling and IMHO the trim is nicer, but its less spacious.
 
Spaciousness does not matter. This is our second car - my work car.

I'm leaning towards the MB - as looking at Autotrader my budget may be slightly challenged by a sensible mileage 530D...

I'm thinking Autotrader rather than Ebay because of the rust,.
 
Auto E39 Diesels have swirl flaps but it's only a 2-3 hour job to remove them. I did it myself

I was impressed by a W210 320 CDi I drove recently - quiet, comfortable and high-geared in top. The E39 is a lot more driver-oriented. It's fairly sensitive to tyre size and the state of suspension bushes & etc, but then all modern cars are

Judging by local cars E39s hold up extremely well in comparison to W210s. In a corrosive atmosphere the Mercedes just rust to pieces

rustyw210.2.jpg


Sorry, forum won't let me post images

Nick Froome
 
C270cdi ? Any Vovlo's, playing devils advocate. You and MBs do not have luck on your side!!!

Volvo's are prone to eating autoboxes after 100k. I want an autobox again.

I blame Enterprise.

I had a 2 year old W210 and did not have any of the issues that I had with more modern ones.

Thanks Nick also - comments noted.
 
Saab isn't an auto - but that's not bad value.
 
E39 530d's have a GM auto box that has a bad history... The 525d's however have a ZF box I believe. They also have an engine breather issue that is blamed for them doing turbo's and the front struts on every one I've owned (or others I've driven) needed changing.

Injectors fail and can get stuck too - a £1,800 job on one of mine :-(

The rear doors leak on later cars (door membrane seal issue), tailgate wipers pack up and the parking sensors fail. The ventillation fan fails (a sh!t to replace) and the UK trafficmaster dealer fit option goes faulty and drains the battery.

They are still a great car however although I'm rather taken with our early 211 experiences (both of them) and would rather have a 211 over an E39 or E61. That stated, I never saw rust on my E39's.
 
I'm thinking of spending a little more - up to £2k, on either a 530D or an E320 CDi. Likely to be around the 2000-2001 mark with as near to 100k as I can get

What's wrong with petrol? You'd have more choice at that budget, and with the price of diesel these days, you'd be quids in for a long time.

I bought an E280 S210 over 3 years ago and can report average fuel consumption over 30mpg. :)
 
What's wrong with petrol? You'd have more choice at that budget, and with the price of diesel these days, you'd be quids in for a long time.

I bought an E280 S210 over 3 years ago and can report average fuel consumption over 30mpg. :)

I would not be quids in. I do plenty of miles in my work car, often pressing on, and my previous car that was very economical for it's size suffered, falling below 30 even on a run.

I know from experience that I can expect an average of 37 (or perhaps better - I had a fuel card when I had mine) from the E320
 
I used to average 3mpg more in my 530d compared to my 530i (10%), I used to average around 8mpg more in my 211 320cdi compared with my 210 320 v6 (25%).

In saloon form I would take the BMW, in estate form would be the Merc.


I have been on the BMW forums for 15 years now and never really heard any issues with auto boxes, swirl flaps yeah, but never any one who has had it happen to them, always a friend of a friend.
But all cars that are old will have issues, why does anyone really sell a car like that for £1500? Surely it is worth more than that to the owner, unless there is something they know is up with it?
 
I'd drive the E60 and take a hit on the depreciation. From what I gather you too many miles to drive an old unreliable heap.
 

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