Possible c180k se pan owner?!?

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cv65user

Member
Joined
Aug 19, 2010
Messages
41
i got 6/7k to spend and i found this within my budget as well as 1800cc mpg/insurance cost purposes , any problems with the wear and tear age related known leaking problems with the panaramic sunroof?

any other mechanical problems i should look for on a 60k , 6 yr old car ?
Would u agree that it's a bit over priced when similar autotrader ads going for 6k mark? how often should oil changed / serviced??
is the command mp3 enabled already?

its from a dealer , can anyone recommend a finance checker for HPI such as mytextcheck?

http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classifi...ge/1?logcode=p
 
05 plate
1 yr warranty but unsure if this is with used car dealer or ill be going through a third party such as warranty direct
60k on clock
mot unknown
tax unknown
se spec
c180k
panarama roof - ive heard rattling in these needing a 4k fix!?

media


media
 
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oh


The items they suffer with are:

Although supposedly galvanised they still rust.
Front and rear springs snap. (done 3 sets this last week).
Timing chains stretch.
Engine breather pipes split. There is one under the inlet manifold that's a bstard to get to.
Water gets into number one coil and fills up the spark plug recess causing missfire.
Plugs foul up
Track rod ends wear out quickly.
I think that's about it.

its an 05 , i thought pre 04 had rust issues?
my other car on choice was a VW passat 1.9 TDI but the 5 year old ones i was looking within my budget needed timing belt doing in a year or so , which is why I thought Ill go for a MB as it has a chain driven belt
springs snapping?!?! is that over weight of car ????????

and why would track rods wear out quickly?
 
oh


The items they suffer with are:

Although supposedly galvanised they still rust.
Front and rear springs snap. (done 3 sets this last week).
Timing chains stretch.
Engine breather pipes split. There is one under the inlet manifold that's a bstard to get to.
Water gets into number one coil and fills up the spark plug recess causing missfire.
Plugs foul up
Track rod ends wear out quickly.
I think that's about it.

its an 05 , i thought pre 04 had rust issues?
my other car on choice was a VW passat 1.9 TDI but the 5 year old ones i was looking within my budget needed timing belt doing in a year or so , which is why I thought Ill go for a MB as it has a chain driven belt
springs snapping?!?! is that over weight of car ????????

and why would track rods wear out quickly?
what does it do and is this it

250752518425_0.jpg
 
oh


The items they suffer with are:

Although supposedly galvanised they still rust.
Front and rear springs snap. (done 3 sets this last week).
Timing chains stretch.
Engine breather pipes split. There is one under the inlet manifold that's a bstard to get to.
Water gets into number one coil and fills up the spark plug recess causing missfire.
Plugs foul up
Track rod ends wear out quickly.
I think that's about it.

its an 05 , i thought pre 04 had rust issues?
my other car on choice was a VW passat 1.9 TDI but the 5 year old ones i was looking within my budget needed timing belt doing in a year or so , which is why I thought Ill go for a MB as it has a chain driven belt
springs snapping?!?! is that over weight of car ????????

and why would track rods wear out quickly?
what does it do , the symptons ill know track rods is at fault ? and is this it - looks like a CV joint to me?

250752518425_0.jpg
 
oh


The items they suffer with are:

Although supposedly galvanised they still rust.
Front and rear springs snap. (done 3 sets this last week).
Timing chains stretch.
Engine breather pipes split. There is one under the inlet manifold that's a bstard to get to.
Water gets into number one coil and fills up the spark plug recess causing missfire.
Plugs foul up
Track rod ends wear out quickly.
I think that's about it.

its an 05 , i thought pre 04 had rust issues?
my other car on choice was a VW passat 1.9 TDI but the 5 year old ones i was looking within my budget needed timing belt doing in a year or so , which is why I thought Ill go for a MB as it has a chain driven belt
springs snapping?!?! is that over weight of car ????????

and why would track rods wear out quickly?
 
its an 05 , i thought pre 04 had rust issues?

So did I... but BlackC55 runs an independent garage, so he should know. I guess the post 2003 cars are less prone to rusting but not entirely immune. In part this could be due to soft water-based paint that chips easily - allowing moisture to creep under the paint if the stone chip is not treated and sealed. MB do specify 30 years anti-rust warranty for this model - but it's a 'goodwill' warranty with some strings attached and the chances of successfully claiming (based on other members' experiences as posted here) appear to be about 50%-50% and depend much on how helpful your local MB dealer wants to be.

springs snapping?!?! is that over weight of car ????????

The car is actually quite light for its size, mine is 1,430 Kg inc the automatic transmission (my previous Vauxhall omega was nearly 1,700Kg). And your two-door coupe would be even lighter. I think that the issue with broken springs is endemic around the UK these days across all manufactures and has more to do with speed bumps, potholes, and poorly-maintained roads rather than a manufacturing issue or a model-specific issue.

and why would track rods wear out quickly?

I don't know the answer to that - I vaguely remember Tony Bones from WIM (the suspension guru) mentioning that MB stipulated very strict tolerances for the suspension setting that MB dealers are not allowed to exceed, he thought these were unsuitable for UK roads which have a pronounced camber and suggested that these settings needed modifying outside the official MB figures to achieve best performance of the car, so this may have something to do with that.

Having said all that - my 2006 car is parked on the street and (currently..) has no rust, and the only fault it had in 5 years was the faulty Front Passenger Seat Occupancy Sensor as mentioned above. So my car has so far been very very good and in fact exceeded my expectations.

One last note - my car was made in MB's South Africa factory, which in the early part of the previous decade had very bad reputation for making poor-quality cars. They have since resolved this issue as can be seen from my own experience. The point I am trying to make is that there could be issues related to where the car was made - and I don't know for fact if the coupes were built in the same factory as the saloons.
 
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Hi cv65user . It was me that just purchased the car on the link by Markjay, ( well my mate actually).
From the photos it would appear the seller is Pentagon ? Maybe an MB Dealer as this used to be the name of our local MB dealer ?
I cannot quite understand that your choice was guided by MB timing chain versus VW cambelt as they are two totally different animals , both very nice cars. My company car until recently was an 06 Skoda Octavia in which i covered 117,000 miles with no mechanical problems, although it does now have a noisy bearing ( probably clutch thrust ) hence it is now going to auction. VW badge engineered vehicle and was a nice drive.
However , absolutely no comparison to driving the C180k . Instantly fell in love with the MB , and as it was a private sale could tell that the owner had really cared for it. Far greater presence than your average car, after all its a Mercedes ! Power is adequate ,well appointed , and very comfortable, smooth drive . Good luck with whichever you choose .
Some very helpfull people on this site for any queries/problems you may encounter.:thumb:
 
Hi all I am impressed how you all have taken time and effort to reply.

To get things straight is my 55 plate car got written off in non fault accident getting paid out just over £3200.

I was looking for a £5k car along the lines of a 2005 vw passsat 1.9 tdi not 2.0 tdi as there were prone to injectors failingbaccording to ukpassat forums. But my £5/6k budget meant I was going to be looking at a 6 year old car with roughly 50,000 miles which meant the timing belt would need doing soon meant another £500 expenses so I thought I might as well go all out stump up the cash lowest enging size c180k as I'm 28 and insurance coat reasons for a c class se evo spec. And not worry at least changing belts. Although Its just come to light the belts steeching issue.

I have driven the c320 268 bhp semi auto with all the dancing toys such as sat nav. 6 cd changer, bheated seats, electric blinds lol. Must say I was impressed.

No, pentagon is actually a vauxhall dealer
 
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That ^ will be on the cusp of being galvanised.

If you've been looking at Passats, why aren't you looking at the C-Class saloon?
 
sorry my english is not very good . what does cusp mean. u say mean close to being not galvanised as its 2004/2005? so no one can really can say by judging pics ?
 
Yes, by cusp I mean it could be 50/50 whether the body is galvanised.

Technically it was late 2003, but it depends on the actual build date of the car.
 
Hi I checked the car out . When u lock the car the drivers side door pin bounces up and down rapidly but the car stays locked when you pull the handle. Didn't notice it when unlocking though.

Also in the full merc Benz service history. In 2007 it reports user said car is hard to start sometimes. MB says did a pressure test on fuel all ok suspect fuel pump issue qouted repair price £320 to customer.

Used car dealer reassures me that was reported in 2007 so must be ok now


What are your opinions please. Is the door pin an ok fix. I researched that it could be as simple as door padding foam blocking it or lock replacement needed which will set you back £300?
 
Had same prob on c230 coupe mb said new latch cost £75 they wanted £150 labour , bought latch local garage fitted it for £40 prob solved !
 
I See thank you. So it could be door latch or door lock. Do you have pic of door latch. Isn't this where the door holds onto the framework?
 
Latch and lock are the same it's one unit ,watched my garage do the job was bit fiddly glad I didn't try it myself , door panels speakers door seal all needs to come off soz no photo threw it away !
 
Door latch and lock are the same thing it's all one unit , fiddly job though watched garage do it door panel and liners of speakers out glad I didn't ave a go myself was worth the £40 !
 

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