W210 E280 buying advice please.

[welland99]

I'm going to look at an E280 elegance estate (99 V reg) at the weekend. It has 85000 miles, but has full MB service history.

The garage sellling it says they have changed the ATF. It seems to have no rust on the front wings (or anywhere else).

Is there anything that comes to mind that I should check? The garage did say they'd put it up on a ramp so i could look underneath.

 

[recycled]

Just look out for rust,wheel arches, inner wings(front) around the keyholes and the boot. and make sure all the buttons and switches are working.
As far as i know the engine and gearbox should be pretty good at 85k with a service history.
If the garage are putting it on a ramp, they must be pretty confident.
Is it a reputable garage? If not HPI please and pay part of it on a credit card.

How much is it if i may ask?

 

[Adam230K]

Ask them when was the last time it had its plugs changed, as this can cost a fair bit if it falls on you to change them (i'm assuming its a V6, which has 12 plugs). Also ask about discs/pads and the usuals, to get a good feel if u'll need to spend money after buying it.

 

[welland99]

Just look out for rust,wheel arches, inner wings(front) around the keyholes and the boot. and make sure all the buttons and switches are working.
As far as i know the engine and gearbox should be pretty good at 85k with a service history.
If the garage are putting it on a ramp, they must be pretty confident.
Is it a reputable garage? If not HPI please and pay part of it on a credit card.

How much is it if i may ask?

Thanks for the advice. Whereabouts do you mean for front inner wings? Do you mean under the bonnet, or did you mean when looking from underneath?

I agree that they must be confident to let me look underneath. He offered 6 months mechanical warranty too. When I asked him if the ATF had been changed, he told me that he changed when he got the car "because he always does on automatics". He also said that there was no ATF filter. Is this true, or could it be an indicator that he is making it up? Anyway, I'm not too worried if he is making it up because he said that he later discovered from the service history that the ATF had been changed (by MB I presume because they had done all the servicing) only one year before that.

Unfortunately, I have no idea of the reputation of the garage, but I will get an HPI report anyway and I will try to pay some on the credit card. Any idea how much I need to pay this way? £100 enough? Well I will pay it all on the CC if I can, but I don't want to pay a surcharge, like some places add on.

I'm hoping to get it for £3k or a bit over, and he said he'd give me a new MOT and change the engine oil and filter.

Does this engine have a timing chain or belt? Does it need changing regularly?

 

[welland99]

Ask them when was the last time it had its plugs changed, as this can cost a fair bit if it falls on you to change them (i'm assuming its a V6, which has 12 plugs). Also ask about discs/pads and the usuals, to get a good feel if u'll need to spend money after buying it.

Thanks, Adam. Well it had a Merc B service less than 10000 ago and an A service 12 K before that. Would plugs routinely be changed in an A service or B, or both?

How long do you think they should last anyway in a good engine (ie not getting oiled up) and when not driven too hard? I tend to change plugs only when needed, not as a matter of routine. My current car has done about 40 - 50 K on the current set and it still runs fine. Starting OK. MOT OK.

The car is definitely a V6. Does it definitely have 2 plugs per cyclinder - I had no idea. Would 2 plugs per cylinder tend to make them last longer than only one, or would the longevity be unaffected?

 

[Adam230K]

Longetivity of spark plugs are typically 40k miles on most mercs, regardless of how hard their driven, although i do imagine driving it hard would wear them out a bit quicker. Its not a routine in the A service, but they do get checked in the B service i imagine.

If its been B serviced about 10k miles ago, that means its due for another service very soon, so i'd watch out for that.

I'm not sure about the logic that if it has 2 plugs per cylinder they will wear out in less time, i doubt it to be honest. There is 2 plugs per cylinder in merc V-engines, along with 3 valves per cylinder, they do this so the engine has no problem igniting fuel at all parts of the rev range, especially at low revs i imagine.

 

[C240Sport97]

When I asked him if the ATF had been changed, he told me that he changed when he got the car "because he always does on automatics". He also said that there was no ATF filter. Is this true, or could it be an indicator that he is making it up? Anyway, I'm not too worried if he is making it up because he said that he later discovered from the service history that the ATF had been changed (by MB I presume because they had done all the servicing) only one year before that.

there is a filter in the gearbox and it needs to be changed, plus you have to use MB ATF fluid, which no doubt he did not as it is very expensive.

best to budget to do it again

 

[N5...CLK]

Dont Buy too many Problems,go for a Audi estate safe bet...Nix.

 

[recycled]

Please buy if it is in good condition. yes £100 is okay on your card and as for the rust yes look through the bonnet, where the springs up as well as behind the wheel where it meets the front bumper

 

[stevesey]

Dont Buy too many Problems,go for a Audi estate safe bet...Nix.

Interesting first post? BTW - Welcome.

He also said that there was no ATF filter. Is this true, or could it be an indicator that he is making it up? Anyway, I'm not too worried if he is making it up because he said that he later discovered from the service history that the ATF had been changed (by MB I presume because they had done all the servicing) only one year before that.

So was he expecting the ATF filter to be external (like the oil filter) suggests he doesn't know his mercs very well. Might be worth asking what brand of ATF he used (MB or a good Dexon II/III is a much debated subject).

 

[d w124]

Dont Buy too many Problems,go for a Audi estate safe bet...Nix.

how come you don1t have an audi then

 

[welland99]

Dont Buy too many Problems,go for a Audi estate safe bet...Nix.

The audi estate has a rubbish seat in the boot that doesn't fold away when not needed!

 

[welland99]

E280 viewing report

Well I went to see the car today (actually now yesterday!).

Good points.
1)Good history - regular servicing by MB dealer confirmed by phone call to MB garage.
2)Also confirmed this by detailed conversation by last (proper) owner before the garage got it.
3)7 seat option fitted, but cushions missing. Previous owner ruined them by spilling something, so he threw them away.
4) Price. Got it down to £3250.
5) 6 months warranty.
6) Will be MOTed before sale.

Bad points
1) Rusty front wheel arch - but this will be sorted presale
2) slight oil leak from under the engine cover at the front of both banks. Think it likely to be rocker cover gasket. Think it was too high up to be head gaskets. Where else under the engine cover could oil be coming from? This will be sorted presale.
3)Another minor fluid leak. Not sure what it was (seemed oily - PS fluid?)or where it was coming from. The dampness was only visible on the underneath of the cover under the engine, kind of underneath the crank shaft pulley. But it was dry everywhere inside the engine bay in this region. This needs closer inspection, but will be sorted presale. Any ideas?
4)Grubby boot, but nothing a good presale valet won't deal with.
5) Confused about the blower in the car. During the test run I tried the blower in the car. It seemed to work fine, but it cut out from time to time. Seller told me it was automatic and this is normal. Is this true? The car doesn't have digital climate control, just the regular AC system.

On balance I felt it was worth the money and as long as the identified problems are solved, I expect to get the car by the end of next week.

 

[N5...CLK]

Problems will Never be solved unless U take the engine out and replaced all the seals,Very BAD Call ,Dont Touch it !!!!!!!!

 

[N5...CLK]

how come you don1t have an audi then

I see U have a W124 E200 ,it is a better car than the W210, I too had a ('88 W124 300ce coupe ) it was a far Superior model to the W210 E320 ,I have at the moment,so the Next car will be a Audi A8 for me

 

[lynall]

Sounds like blower regulator for the fan problem look on e bay.

V engines leak oil from the oil seperator on top of the rocker covers gasket not available just siliconed up, both our cars have been done still mist slightly but neither have any leaks.

May be worth having a llok on e bay a few e430 estates on there.

E430 estate http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/1998-MERCEDES-E430-AVANTGARDE-AUTO-MAUVE-PURPLE_W0QQitemZ250400955767QQcmdZViewItemQQptZAutomobiles_UK?hash=item250400955767&_trksid=p3286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66%3A2%7C65%3A10%7C39%3A1%7C240%3A1318

E280 Avantgarde 2001 http://cgi.ebay.co.uk/2001-MERCEDES...286.c0.m14&_trkparms=66:2|65:10|39:1|240:1318

I think you can afford to be very fussy as there are quite a few W210s about for sale, just watch for the rust!.


Lynall

 

[sasha091]

(e280 2001 )my wife has for the last 7 years .excellent engine i must say .atf & filter should be changed after 60 -70k miles despite mb dealers telling not to.
Becareful of leaks from engine bay and get them sorted ,otherwise might be looking for expensive bills

 

[ShinyF1]

Other rust spots are stone chips around the front end [bonnet, wings etc], and door tops - peel back the rubber seals and look what's underneath.

Also look at the front spring perches and crossmember under the engine [you'll have to remove a plastic cover to get at it]

 

[welland99]

Sounds like blower regulator for the fan problem look on e bay.
Lynall

What do you mean by a blower regulator? Is this the rotary switch in the dashboard?

 

[welland99]

V engines leak oil from the oil seperator on top of the rocker covers gasket not available just siliconed up, both our cars have been done still mist slightly but neither have any leaks.
Lynall

Thanks for that. I just searched for this and found a few postings on other websites about it. Couldn't find anything on this forum though.

There wasn't much oil really and it sounds like this could be the problem.