W202 - Worst MB car ever?

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Jonathan1969

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Oct 17, 2012
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10
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B170 2008
As much as i love the benz brand i cannot help but feel buyers of his w202 were ripped off. I bought a 1998 C200 with only 48k miles with full MB service history - a completely immaculate car. The car now has 63 miles on it but ill list all the stuff that has gone wrong with it

Failure of MAF sensor (twice)
Windscreen wiper motor gone - doesn't extend up and down
Water leaking in the passenger foot-well
Window switches not working
Boot release switch broken off cover for fuel doesn't always open with remote
Electrical problems with ventilation switches the eco light flickers on and off and the fans go up and down .
Interior trim the door handle plastic bit came off
Gear change plastic bit came off
Steering wheel switches came off.
Bonnet release switch came off
Both sets of keys failed and i had to spent £233 from Mb for a replacement key

And now to top it off apparently the crankshaft sensor has gone.

Appalling for a Mb with such a low mileage and a full service history . to put this into context my previous bmw 318is didn't miss a beat and did 134k miles and never let me down.

Anyone else with similar views / experiences. Seriously has put me buying other Benzs. such a poorly made car the interior feels flimsy and poorly made

Jonathan
 
Sound's like you've just bought a bad one, I know of w202's with over 300k on the clock that feel like new.
 
It's 17 years old to be fair.
 
Its a 17 year old car which has done less than average mileage (not a good thing TBH). - you say it was immaculate but it couldnt have been with all the switch/trim faults?

The single blade issue and the water in footwell, fair enough design flaws for the W202, but the rest sound like you have have bought a dud. Didnt you give it a thorough rest before hand?

I had two which for the most part where trouble free.
 
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Had a V6 S202 for a few years and no major problems. Sold it for more than I bought it for! :thumb: I would describe it as solid and reliable.
 
Thanks all . interesting stories. my 318is was a K reg and nothing at all wrong was a much better thought out car . this C200 doesnt feel liek it had any personal input - just made to a cost.
In response to others yes i did check it out.- plus it had full MB service (serviced v recently) with no issue and the MOT had no advisories. Even the tyres were new - straight from MB,

Maybe i did just buy a bad one - i have no doubts it will rack up the mileage but everything else feel a bit cheap.
 
Not sure if I would expect more from a £1400 banger that's decades old and in the era of Merc's worst build quality?
 
Its not always a good thing buying a low mileage older car, lack of use brings its own problems. I have a even older 202 and have had absolutely no problems whatsoever bar the cats disintegrating but as I go over 150 speed humps a day its not surprising !

The wipers are not maintenance free and probably exacerbated by lack of use, ditto the water ingress problem.
 
Not making excuses for the model. Just my take.

Failure of MAF sensor (twice) Once yes, twice is unlucky. I'd be very surprised if both were Bosch or Pierburg.
Windscreen wiper motor gone - doesn't extend up and down Lack of basic maintenance
Water leaking in the passenger foot-well As above
Window switches not working Possibly lack of use and may be just dirty contacts
Boot release switch broken off Damage
cover for fuel doesn't always open with remote Lack of use?
Electrical problems with ventilation switches the eco light flickers on and off and the fans go up and down.Lack of use?
Interior trim the door handle plastic bit came off Damage
Gear change plastic bit came off ?
Steering wheel switches came off.?
Bonnet release switch came off ?
Both sets of keys failed and i had to spent £233 from Mb for a replacement key Not uncommon

And now to top it off apparently the crankshaft sensor has gone. Not unknown and a fairly common fault not just on M-B's
 
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My W202 was incredibly reliable and is now on 350k with its current owner. My only gripe was it was absolutely gutless (C180)
 
The w202 is one of my favourite Mercs!

I have owned 4 in the last 8 years (c180, c200, c280 and a c220cdi)

I bought each one with at least 100k on the clock and I put at least 60k on each one driving to the continent for work. I even sold the c180 with 270k on it still running fine. Aside from regular maintenance and a few minor issues along the way I never had anything major go wrong with any of them! I found them very reliable

When I bought a w210 that was a whole different story!
 
Mine is a 115k one owner car. It stopped depreciating long ago and is a very reliable car. With an arguably better range of engines than the UK specification W124 it could be a practical classic in years to come.

Having said that I haven't seen a 4-cylinder W202 for ages. People seem to keep their C240, C250TD, and C280's in particular. Estates outnumber saloons near me.

Some of the faults above are maintenance issues - possible cheap parts, lack of knowledge regarding the needs of the mono-wiper.

Recent preventative maintenance has included:
- new polybelt
- new radiator (the rest of the cooling system was replaced years ago)
- rust prevention - Olly applied dinitrol to mine some 5-6 years back and I've only got some cosmetic rust from stone chips.
- new battery every 4 years.
- regular servicing
- Italian tune-ups.

The remote key used to cost £55 + £15 for the metal insert. I note the bonnet star has also doubled in price in the last few years.
 
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It's not the car, it's the owners!

You have succumbed to & been a victim of The Myth of Low Mileage.
 
^This, I find lack of use is worse that a few miles on the road.

One of the best car's I've owned, a high mileage diesel w202.

Is all the service history gradual or is there a block where it didn't cover any miles?
 
I concur..I had a good one (though it did have the wet passenger footwell).

On the other hand it cost me £500 in 1998 to replace the instrument cluster on a BMW 5 series because it just stopped working...and it had rust.
 
I long gave up messing around with low mileage cars, the ones that have been pounded for hundreds of miles a week and serviced on time are the ones to go for.
 
I think the 202 is one of the best Mercs made. I've had 4 of them and they have been very very reliable and strong.

Lack of use and poor maintenance are the cause of most of these complaints methinks.
 

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