W164 ML63 - How Mad Would I Be...

[E55BOF]

No, haven't seen it yet; it's 200 miles away. The deposit is refundable if I don't like it, but I reckon I will like it. I have form here. Every car I've travelled a long way to see, I've come away with; the only one I would have rather left was the R129, but in that case there was not the slightest possibility of getting my deposit back from the lying little scrote of a Bradford crooked car dealer (Bitter? Me? As if...), so I decamped with the car so as to have a bargaining chip for the subsequent negotiation.

So far as partial debadging is concerned, from the side, at the lights, I think most drivers would see just another old ML. Until the lights change...

 

[alexanderfoti]

Spend 8k to buy

Possibly another 2-6k doing maintenance, suspension, timing adjusters etc.

Be aware it's an early 156 so cam wear may be an issue.

As you say it's a revvy V8 in a heavy car. It's not slow but it's not the torque monster of old. They suit the bi turbo better.

Handling is as you'd expect for a tall car. Lower profile wheels and harder suspension (than standard AMG) will make it wander and follow all road imperfecttions due to suspension setup, so best to leave alone on that front.

It will do roughly 13-17mpg.

I'd definitely have one

 

[E55BOF]

Thanks for that. Would there be symptoms if the cams were wearing, and at what mileage does the problem usually show its there?

If the indie that has maintained it is to be believed (post 28), it has been well looked after.

No intention of changing the suspension in any way.

I'll take my iCarsoft and check for codes.

 

[Dippo]

No, haven't seen it yet; it's 200 miles away. The deposit is refundable if I don't like it, but I reckon I will like it.

I'm going up that way next weekend to visit family...

You should be there seeing it now!

 

[alexanderfoti]

Thanks for that. Would there be symptoms if the cams were wearing, and at what mileage does the problem usually show its there?

If the indie that has maintained it is to be believed (post 28), it has been well looked after.

No intention of changing the suspension in any way.

I'll take my iCarsoft and check for codes.

Tapping noises when idling, but they can wear silently for a while before it's audible. By this mileage they have usually had cam covers for leaks etc so I'd imagine the indy would have checked the lobes then.

Cam actuators rattle when starting up. They all make noise for 0.3-0.6 seconds at start, but longer indicates an issue.

 

[E55BOF]

"You should be there seeing it now!"

Plans had to be changed; couldn't go up. It should be ready middle of next week, but I can't actually go up until the following week. The chap I spoke to said that wouldn't be a problem, but the deposit receipt doesn't actually state which car it's for, so if somebody comes in with a wad of cash, they could sell it in the meantime. I hope not, but you never know...

And it could of course be a bag of nails, but I think it's probably OK.

 

[E55BOF]

Spend 8k to buy

Possibly another 2-6k doing maintenance, suspension, timing adjusters etc.

Be aware it's an early 156 so cam wear may be an issue. Tapping noises when idling, but they can wear silently for a while before it's audible. By this mileage they have usually had cam covers for leaks etc so I'd imagine the indy would have checked the lobes then.

Cam actuators rattle when starting up. They all make noise for 0.3-0.6 seconds at start, but longer indicates an issue.

I'm happy I know what to look out for now, thanks to Alex, but as it's a dealer sale, I have full consumer rights if anything goes wrong in the first six months after purchase anyway. The vendor has a warranty, but even if there was none, I paid the deposit of over £100 with a credit card, so if it did all turn to ratsh!t the credit card company is equally liable.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I'm happy I know what to look out for now, thanks to Alex, but as it's a dealer sale, I have full consumer rights if anything goes wrong in the first six months after purchase anyway. The vendor has a warranty, but even if there was none, I paid the deposit of over £100 with a credit card, so if it did all turn to ratsh!t the credit card company is equally liable.

I’m sure it won’t come to that. I look forward to hearing how you get on. I hope you love it as much as I love mine

 

[E55BOF]

I reckon it will be fine. I'll be booking it in for Terry Gates to look it over, though, just in case...

 

[E55BOF]

Well, I went up and bought it on Wednesday. An honest-ish dealer, I'd say; the car is nice, but there were a couple of minor surprises.

The NTG2.0 COMAND unit in the car is completely dead, and the dealer didn't seem exactly astonished; no doubt coincidentally, the boot panel that gives access to the relevant fuse block had been disturbed recently... Hmmmm no.1. (Not a problem; I'm putting in an NTG2.5 anyway)

Oddly, the car was fully warmed up, and had actually been run for twenty minutes, but covering 0 miles, before I arrived. I did rather wonder why; Hmmmm no. 2. No funny noises, though, so I thought I'd take a chance.

(I now know why; to charge the battery. The dealer did say, out of the blue, that it had a new battery, but there's no evidence of that, and I rather doubted it; 12.5 volts overnight after a 200-mile run suggested it's a little tired at least. I put it on the Ctek, which did its stuff in less than two hours, though, so I guess it's OK).

Bloody boring, trundling down the motorway with no music or radio, but I could at least hear any funny noises. There were none. Reason to be cheerful no 1.

Good tyres, matching Michelin Latitude 3 all round, nearly new on the front, and nearly new discs all round too. Not a sign of a car run on the cheap; reason to be cheerful no. 2

It drives pretty well; ample power, no feeling that it's lacking in torque in the lower rev range (maybe I should try harder...), revs cleanly to the red line (not that there's much need for that; again, maybe I should try harder...), doesn't roll too much, corners OK once the roll has been established. Doesn't sound nearly as nice as the CLS for my taste, but it's OK. Reason to be cheerful no. 3.

Fuel consumption? Well, averaging 68 mph over 207 (nearly all motorway) miles gave 21.0 mpg. Reason to be (relatively...) cheerful no.4.

Overall, I think I was right; it's a good 'un. Result.

 

[BlackC55]

Ive had one. Brilliant car. Stupid money to fix, maintain and fuel. But I did like it.

 

[E55BOF]

Stupid money to tax as well...

 

[SpikyMikey]

Well, I went up and bought it on Wednesday. An honest-ish dealer, I'd say; the car is nice, but there were a couple of minor surprises.

The NTG2.0 COMAND unit in the car is completely dead, and the dealer didn't seem exactly astonished; no doubt coincidentally, the boot panel that gives access to the relevant fuse block had been disturbed recently... Hmmmm no.1. (Not a problem; I'm putting in an NTG2.5 anyway)

Oddly, the car was fully warmed up, and had actually been run for twenty minutes, but covering 0 miles, before I arrived. I did rather wonder why; Hmmmm no. 2. No funny noises, though, so I thought I'd take a chance.

(I now know why; to charge the battery. The dealer did say, out of the blue, that it had a new battery, but there's no evidence of that, and I rather doubted it; 12.5 volts overnight after a 200-mile run suggested it's a little tired at least. I put it on the Ctek, which did its stuff in less than two hours, though, so I guess it's OK).

Bloody boring, trundling down the motorway with no music or radio, but I could at least hear any funny noises. There were none. Reason to be cheerful no 1.

Good tyres, matching Michelin Latitude 3 all round, nearly new on the front, and nearly new discs all round too. Not a sign of a car run on the cheap; reason to be cheerful no. 2

It drives pretty well; ample power, no feeling that it's lacking in torque in the lower rev range (maybe I should try harder...), revs cleanly to the red line (not that there's much need for that; again, maybe I should try harder...), doesn't roll too much, corners OK once the roll has been established. Doesn't sound nearly as nice as the CLS for my taste, but it's OK. Reason to be cheerful no. 3.

Fuel consumption? Well, averaging 68 mph over 207 (nearly all motorway) miles gave 21.0 mpg. Reason to be (relatively...) cheerful no.4.

Overall, I think I was right; it's a good 'un. Result.

Congrats!
Oh, BTW

 

[poormansporsche]

Running with all 8 cylinders is probably the best result though

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Well, I went up and bought it on Wednesday. An honest-ish dealer, I'd say; the car is nice, but there were a couple of minor surprises.

The NTG2.0 COMAND unit in the car is completely dead, and the dealer didn't seem exactly astonished; no doubt coincidentally, the boot panel that gives access to the relevant fuse block had been disturbed recently... Hmmmm no.1. (Not a problem; I'm putting in an NTG2.5 anyway)

Oddly, the car was fully warmed up, and had actually been run for twenty minutes, but covering 0 miles, before I arrived. I did rather wonder why; Hmmmm no. 2. No funny noises, though, so I thought I'd take a chance.

(I now know why; to charge the battery. The dealer did say, out of the blue, that it had a new battery, but there's no evidence of that, and I rather doubted it; 12.5 volts overnight after a 200-mile run suggested it's a little tired at least. I put it on the Ctek, which did its stuff in less than two hours, though, so I guess it's OK).

Bloody boring, trundling down the motorway with no music or radio, but I could at least hear any funny noises. There were none. Reason to be cheerful no 1.

Good tyres, matching Michelin Latitude 3 all round, nearly new on the front, and nearly new discs all round too. Not a sign of a car run on the cheap; reason to be cheerful no. 2

It drives pretty well; ample power, no feeling that it's lacking in torque in the lower rev range (maybe I should try harder...), revs cleanly to the red line (not that there's much need for that; again, maybe I should try harder...), doesn't roll too much, corners OK once the roll has been established. Doesn't sound nearly as nice as the CLS for my taste, but it's OK. Reason to be cheerful no. 3.

Fuel consumption? Well, averaging 68 mph over 207 (nearly all motorway) miles gave 21.0 mpg. Reason to be (relatively...) cheerful no.4.

Overall, I think I was right; it's a good 'un. Result.

Glad to hear that you’re largely pleased with it. They really are great cars - enjoy.

 

[Skd884]

Well, I went up and bought it on Wednesday. An honest-ish dealer, I'd say; the car is nice, but there were a couple of minor surprises.

The NTG2.0 COMAND unit in the car is completely dead, and the dealer didn't seem exactly astonished; no doubt coincidentally, the boot panel that gives access to the relevant fuse block had been disturbed recently... Hmmmm no.1. (Not a problem; I'm putting in an NTG2.5 anyway)

Oddly, the car was fully warmed up, and had actually been run for twenty minutes, but covering 0 miles, before I arrived. I did rather wonder why; Hmmmm no. 2. No funny noises, though, so I thought I'd take a chance.

(I now know why; to charge the battery. The dealer did say, out of the blue, that it had a new battery, but there's no evidence of that, and I rather doubted it; 12.5 volts overnight after a 200-mile run suggested it's a little tired at least. I put it on the Ctek, which did its stuff in less than two hours, though, so I guess it's OK).

Bloody boring, trundling down the motorway with no music or radio, but I could at least hear any funny noises. There were none. Reason to be cheerful no 1.

Good tyres, matching Michelin Latitude 3 all round, nearly new on the front, and nearly new discs all round too. Not a sign of a car run on the cheap; reason to be cheerful no. 2

It drives pretty well; ample power, no feeling that it's lacking in torque in the lower rev range (maybe I should try harder...), revs cleanly to the red line (not that there's much need for that; again, maybe I should try harder...), doesn't roll too much, corners OK once the roll has been established. Doesn't sound nearly as nice as the CLS for my taste, but it's OK. Reason to be cheerful no. 3.

Fuel consumption? Well, averaging 68 mph over 207 (nearly all motorway) miles gave 21.0 mpg. Reason to be (relatively...) cheerful no.4.

Overall, I think I was right; it's a good 'un. Result.

Congrats slim dont forget my single malt.

 

[E55BOF]

I don't know yet whether I'll keep it, though; if I do, it will replace the CLS, and that's a hard act to follow if you like AMGs but need a dog wagon too. I could do you a bottle of Strongbow in the meantime...

 

[350cls]

The 156 hater owns a 156 good man you have finally bitten your tongue, you couldn't resist, could you

 

[Skd884]

I don't know yet whether I'll keep it, though; if I do, it will replace the CLS, and that's a hard act to follow if you like AMGs but need a dog wagon too. I could do you a bottle of Strongbow in the meantime...

Ass tight

 

[clk320x]

The 156 hater owns a 156 good man you have finally bitten your tongue, you couldn't resist, could you

I was wondering where you were.