Thinking of buying this...any feedback, pointers please

[such01]

Any sign of a misfire, walk away. On mine, I'm satisfied that the problem was caused by intermittent failure of the intercooler coolant circulation pump (no fault code). If I'd known that at the time, it would have cost me a couple of hundred quid to have the pump replaced; as it was - bore and liner one pot, all new rods and pistons, though I could have got away with just three rods and pistons - the bill was £11k...

ISTR labour was about a third of that, and that was about four or five years ago. When I acquired my current 550 bhp M157 CLS 63, the first thing I did was have that pesky pump replaced, just in case...

So was the miss-fire then originally due to the ICC pump and would this have prevented the 11k bill had it been changed? So it would be a good idea to get this changed on any potential pre facelift W212? Is this a DIY on the drive job? Thanks

 

[such01]

If you're buying at this end of the market (like I'm looking at, at the moment, because I don't earn enough to buy a £40k+ car), then I'm considering the preventative and maintenance stuff I can do to save money, otherwise the AMG tax on an older car will be big compared with newer cars that likely have less stuff going wrong.

I'm reasonably handy on cars.
Take the rear brake pad example above at circa £400. Rear Brembo and TRW pads (possibly OE) on Autodoc are around £50 (the most expensive W213 E63 pads listed) a set (2x2 pads) and I am experienced enough to do those myself. Some brake appropriate greases, new boot, bolts and retaining spring kits, proper mega cleaning whilst doing the job, take the opportunity to run some fresh brake fluid through. For under £100 I'm getting the best outcome, but it's time heavy.

My view with cars is you pay one of three ways, and I'm budgetting this especially for AMGs.
- pay high new car depreciation; or,
- pay high repair costs for older cars; or,
- pay high time cost with self repairs service

I'm happy with the latter, and I really enjoy taking my time with the jobs and being in my 'zen' space. And thankfully with my approach, it's the only way I could afford a '63.

I'm very similar - though I can stretch the budget I'd rather not if I can find a well maintained E63 like this one could be. I can do brakes quite confidently - certainly the fronts, the rears I've only done once - the first attempt the discs were stuck and I didn't have the confidence to whack them as hard as the Indy eventually did!
I'll find out more about this E63 I've seen and see if MB @glasgow can shed any light on any work done outside of servicing.
Thanks

 

[such01]

On the note of extended warranties - as an example - warrantywise cover is 15/150 - up to 15yrs and 150k and covers the following:



Would this be adequate for the potential issues? You can choose the level of cover for single payout up to the value of the car, labour rates etc. As an example for a single repair limit of £4k with a labour charge of £150, voluntary £150 excess comes out at £122 monthly - I can prob negotiate this down as being an existing customer with my daughters car. I had a policy on my 212 for 3 years and over that time they paid for sunroof motor and oil cooler seals.

 

[sgregory124]

If you're buying at this end of the market (like I'm looking at, at the moment, because I don't earn enough to buy a £40k+ car), then I'm considering the preventative and maintenance stuff I can do to save money, otherwise the AMG tax on an older car will be big compared with newer cars that likely have less stuff going wrong.

I'm reasonably handy on cars.
Take the rear brake pad example above at circa £400. Rear Brembo and TRW pads (possibly OE) on Autodoc are around £50 (the most expensive W213 E63 pads listed) a set (2x2 pads) and I am experienced enough to do those myself. Some brake appropriate greases, new boot, bolts and retaining spring kits, proper mega cleaning whilst doing the job, take the opportunity to run some fresh brake fluid through. For under £100 I'm getting the best outcome, but it's time heavy.

My view with cars is you pay one of three ways, and I'm budgetting this especially for AMGs.
- pay high new car depreciation; or,
- pay high repair costs for older cars; or,
- pay high time cost with self repairs service

I'm happy with the latter, and I really enjoy taking my time with the jobs and being in my 'zen' space. And thankfully with my approach, it's the only way I could afford a '63.

I should add that whilst i'd love to be able to do some of the more basic jobs (like brake pad replacement for instance), I just don't have the space, tools, confidence or the time to do any of them. I'm happy to pay an indy for those things, although with these cars its the parts that are expensive (particularly in respect of brakes). I know for instance that this year at some stage, the car will need front discs and pads and the indy quoted me only about £200 less than MB Nottingham (Group 1 Automotive) for the work - so its swings and roundabouts really!

 

[sgregory124]

On the note of extended warranties - as an example - warrantywise cover is 15/150 - up to 15yrs and 150k and covers the following:

View attachment 167248

Would this be adequate for the potential issues? You can choose the level of cover for single payout up to the value of the car, labour rates etc. As an example for a single repair limit of £4k with a labour charge of £150, voluntary £150 excess comes out at £122 monthly - I can prob negotiate this down as being an existing customer with my daughters car. I had a policy on my 212 for 3 years and over that time they paid for sunroof motor and oil cooler seals.

If I were you and speaking from personal experience - I would put money away every month into a 'slush fund' and keep that for any potential repairs, which is what I do. I have no faith in warranty companies actually paying out to be honest and would rather have the comfort of the money sitting there ready to go for 'most' eventualities. Sure, I won't be putting enough in to cover a seriously BIG repair (like a gearbox failure) but I'd like to think I buy smart and don't abuse my cars, so the chances of that happening are fairly minimal (hopefully).

 

[E55BOF]

So was the miss-fire then originally due to the ICC pump and would this have prevented the 11k bill had it been changed? So it would be a good idea to get this changed on any potential pre facelift W212? Is this a DIY on the drive job? Thanks

Long story short, I'm pretty sure that was the problem. I did a fair bit of reading, and concluded that that was it. In the absence of any fault code, or any funny noises, and because it would d go into a sort of limp mode, then run perfectly after being switched off and on again, I revved it out on full bore more than once to try to generate one.

The worst-bent conrod was immediately over the turbo on that side, i.e in the hottest-running pot. I found some info on the internet that the anti-knock software could fail to kick in soon enough at full bore if detonation occurred, and if it did it would start in the hottest-running pot. I also found a comparison between M113K and M157 conrods, and there was noticeably less material, and therefore less strength, in the M157 items. I also, just once, got a fault code that pointed to a failing intercooler coolant pump.

Whether you could change the pump on the drive I don't know, but you probably could; it wasn't a very long job, ISTR.

 

[such01]

So this is the one I'm seriously considering...

Mercedes-Benz E Class 5.5 E63 4dr Auto Bi-Turbo

CJS Car Sales Ltd Have A Great Selection Of Used Mercedes-benz E-class In Askam In Furness. If You Need A Used Car Then Visit Us For Quality Second Hand Mercedes-benz E-class In Cumbria

www.cjscarsales.co.uk

Getting some pics of underneath and service history etc soon