Potentially buying 2009 CLS 320 CDI

[CLSnewbie]

Hi all and happy new year
First post so forgive me if this is not the right area
I am in the market for a replacement car and have found a 2009 320 CLS cdi in silver with black leather , two prev owners , private plate included with CLS as part of the reg, two former owners , 99k on the clock, five service stamps up to 92k ( not sure if main dealer,indie or both). I am due to go and see/test drive tomorrow. It will be purchased on finance.
Local independant garage with five star rating on Google comes with 3-6 month warranty. One month MOT left but garage will put 12 months on.
Last MOT advisory on rear brake pipes corroded and slight play in steering rack joint, no mention of oil leaks from previous MOT's
Not sure if gearbox fluid has been changed but luckily I have a indie MB specialist two miles from me with 15 years experience so would put it in for a service on engine and gearbox
I have already read through some of the forums and got familiar with potential issues like oil cooler , swirl vavle or glow plugs etc but any used car is a lottery.
Apart from these any other issues to be aware of? Did the 2009 have any updates or revisions that the previous models suffered from? What would be recommended for a service at 99k?
What are the service intervals on these models?

 

[Smiley]

Oil cooler seals and possible rusty subframe are the biggies. Rusty brake pipes are common. Sounds like it's probably been serviced every 15k miles and is now due. Can you take it to your local specialist for a pre purchase inspection? You could easily spend £2-3k sorting one of these out if it needs brake pipes, service and oil cooler seals. Better to know before you buy it.

 

[CLSnewbie]

Oil cooler seals and possible rusty subframe are the biggies. Rusty brake pipes are common. Sounds like it's probably been serviced every 15k miles and is now due. Can you take it to your local specialist for a pre purchase inspection? You could easily spend £2-3k sorting one of these out if it needs brake pipes, service and oil cooler seals. Better to know before you buy it.

Thanks for the update , I can ask tomorrow when they are back open , as mentioned there is a 3-6 month warranty so I would be going back to the dealer who is selling the car for any initial faults. Are the the brake pipes a long replacement job?

 

[CLSnewbie]

Thanks for the update , I can ask tomorrow when they are back open , as mentioned there is a 3-6 month warranty so I would be going back to the dealer who is selling the car for any initial faults. Are the the brake pipes a long replacement job?

Also how long a job for the oil cooler Replacemet ?

 

[W1ghty]

Also how long a job for the oil cooler Replacemet ?

8 hours + for the job around £1000 ish

 

[W1ghty]

Also how long a job for the oil cooler Replacemet ?

Look it up on YouTube , it’s a BIG job

 

[CLSnewbie]

8 hours + for the job around £1000 ish

Ouch! Is that dealer prices ? That said I've just forked out £750 for suspension parts + labour on a Qashqai. It may have been done already I would be checking the service history that comes with the car

 

[CLSnewbie]

I had a quick look online and put the car details on MB website for 2 year services , it would provide cover at £45 per month but would that cover items such as intercooler? I would suspect not

 

[W1ghty]

Ouch! Is that dealer prices ? That said I've just forked out £750 for suspension parts + labour on a Qashqai. It may have been done already I would be checking the service history that comes with the car

That’s independent specialist prices . MB are more

 

[W1ghty]

I had a quick look online and put the car details on MB website for 2 year services , it would provide cover at £45 per month but would that cover items such as intercooler? I would suspect not

The intercooler isn’t the oil cooler . But yes a service plans doesn’t cover repairs.
You don‘t want a service plan , just an independent specialist on a car that old .

 

[Trickythemerc]

I think you nailed this in your first post. Used cars are a bit of a lottery, the higher the spec the bigger the gamble. I chose to look for a car without too many toys and a bullet proof engine/gearbox. The OM646 and 5G gearbox are not terribly exciting ! But in the horses for courses scheme of things they work very well. I looked V6 engines but decided that having scratched the itch with V6/V8 Jaguars it was time to look at a good old plodder. Still quick enough to have fun with and does Manchester to Southamton and back on less than a full tank.

 

[CLSnewbie]

Thanks for all the advice so far, best plan is to see and drive the car , checking the history and invoices going back

 

[ALFAitalia]

....and get it on a ramp....no amount of service history will tell you if the subframe is ok as often they look ok from a quick look as they rot from the inside. You need a close inspection to be sure.

 

[Smiley]

Thanks for the update , I can ask tomorrow when they are back open , as mentioned there is a 3-6 month warranty so I would be going back to the dealer who is selling the car for any initial faults. Are the the brake pipes a long replacement job?

A warranty on a 15 yr old car (£5 or 6k?) is not going to be worth the paper it is written on. You do have statutory rights which will cover you buying from a dealer against the worst of outcomes but expecting everything to be put right is unrealistic. With a car of this age and complexity - and with known weak spots it is much better to know what you are buying at what price and then you become responsible - then you know where you stand and, more importantly, are in control of where any servicing or repairs are carried out. The only place to take an om642 mercedes is to a specialist who knows what to look for.
Example - IF the oil cooler seals do need replacing then both manifolds and everything sitting in the V needs to come out. At that mileage brittle plastic parts are going to break, all seals and gaskets need replacing, the turbo actuator mechanism might need some tlc and the manifolds ought to be cleaned out properly whilst they are off - a specialist would do all of this (hence a £1000+ bill); MB would probably suggest replacing both manifolds (huge ££££) rather than clean them (it is a messy job which they just would not do) and the cheap as chips guy that the selling dealer would probably use would do the bare minimum to get the leak fixed.

 

[W1ghty]

I think you nailed this in your first post. Used cars are a bit of a lottery, the higher the spec the bigger the gamble. I chose to look for a car without too many toys and a bullet proof engine/gearbox. The OM646 and 5G gearbox are not terribly exciting ! But in the horses for courses scheme of things they work very well. I looked V6 engines but decided that having scratched the itch with V6/V8 Jaguars it was time to look at a good old plodder. Still quick enough to have fun with and does Manchester to Southamton and back on less than a full tank.

Om642 engine 7g gearbox on that model .

 

[Trickythemerc]

Exactly that is what would worry me, early 7g boxes had clutch pack wear problems despite MB tweaking the software twice to try overcome the issue.

 

[W1ghty]

Exactly that is what would worry me, early 7g boxes had clutch pack wear problems despite MB tweaking the software twice to try overcome the issue.

I’ve got the same gearbox and engine on 133k with no issues to speak of …. (Possibly helped by excessive servicing though )

 

[CLSnewbie]

Well I spoke to the dealer car has FSH but not had a change to see if dealer stamps or not. On further investigation the online MOT starts at 14k and shows again around 80k, it looks like this car spent its life in Ireland becoming coming to the UK. I believe the MOT testing is stricter in Ireland so I cannot see previous MOT'S unless I approach the right authority in Ireland. I am still wanting to take the car for a test drive. In terms of price it is currently up for £3999 ..any thoughts much appreciated

 

[CLSnewbie]

I’ve got the same gearbox and engine on 133k with no issues to speak of …. (Possibly helped by excessive servicing though )

Thanks! How ofter are you servicing?

 

[CLSnewbie]

A warranty on a 15 yr old car (£5 or 6k?) is not going to be worth the paper it is written on. You do have statutory rights which will cover you buying from a dealer against the worst of outcomes but expecting everything to be put right is unrealistic. With a car of this age and complexity - and with known weak spots it is much better to know what you are buying at what price and then you become responsible - then you know where you stand and, more importantly, are in control of where any servicing or repairs are carried out. The only place to take an om642 mercedes is to a specialist who knows what to look for.
Example - IF the oil cooler seals do need replacing then both manifolds and everything sitting in the V needs to come out. At that mileage brittle plastic parts are going to break, all seals and gaskets need replacing, the turbo actuator mechanism might need some tlc and the manifolds ought to be cleaned out properly whilst they are off - a specialist would do all of this (hence a £1000+ bill); MB would probably suggest replacing both manifolds (huge ££££) rather than clean them (it is a messy job which they just would not do) and the cheap as chips guy that the selling dealer would probably use would do the bare minimum to get the leak fixed.

Thanks for the honest opinion, as mentioned only a couple of miles are MB specialists with 15 years experience and they do take a lot of various MB models, the reviews are good these guys so at least they have a trusted following. I'm under no illusion these after market warranties are little more than toilet paper as most items will be down to wear and tear and you will have to fight tooth and nail to get paid out. As the car will be financed I should have the cover if anything catastrophic should happen. In terms of earlier issues from the earlier models of the CLS , we're any revisions made to 2009 models to address these faults or issues?