Would you buy this W204 320 CDI

[Couper]

Relative Merc newbie here!

(I had a W220 S500L for a couple of years and loved it!!)

I have been to see this car 2008 320 CDI in Loughborough with 70,000 miles for £6,478 and it seems really good.

Then in the pictures it seems the front and rear bumpers may be repainted/not line up quite right?

Also is this the correct grill for a 2008 320 CDI Sport?

This car is for my mum in her 70's. I really want her to be safe.

All help very gratefully received

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[W1ghty]

Relative Merc newbie here!

(I had a W220 S500L for a couple of years and loved it!!)

I have been to see this car 2008 320 CDI in Loughborough with 70,000 miles for £6,478 and it seems really good.

Then in the pictures it seems the front and rear bumpers may be repainted/not line up quite right?

Also is this the correct grill for a 2008 320 CDI Sport?

This car is for my mum in her 70's. I really want her to be safe.

All help very gratefully received

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

Hi buddy , it’s a big powerful diesel, what sort of mileage, day to day distance will Ma be driving ?

 

[ALFAitalia]

Looks ok to me....the bumpers on silver Merc (and many other cars) seldom are a prefect colour match as they are painted separately to the rest of the car.

 

[Couper]

Hi buddy , it’s a big powerful diesel, what sort of mileage, day to day distance will Ma be driving ?

5 miles plus and trips to Devon and Derby from Lincolnshire.

Looking on spec and location rather than performance

 

[SpikyMikey]

As ALFA says, there is quite often a colour mismatch between bumpers and bodies on silver Mercs - certainly there is on mine.
But you could be right about the alignment of the front bumper & headlight being out on the nearside:

 

[ChipChop]

Mismatched cheap tyres would put me off straight away.

 

[Couper]

Should it have the sport grill and no 3 pointed star sticking up target on the bonnet itself?

 

[Petrol Pete]

Hello and welcome. Don't buy it without having the rear subframe very closely inspected by someone who knows what he/she is looking for.

 

[as400]

I'd be more concerned with is a 3 litre diesel lump the best choice for 5 mile journeys rather than the colour mismatch.

 

[W1ghty]

I'd be more concerned with is a 3 litre diesel lump the best choice for 5 mile journeys rather than the colour mismatch.

Me to . They really don’t like short trips when they don’t warm up

 

[Rory]

I know the market has moved a bit since Covid, and that the UK has traditionally had very low used car prices vs other countries, but that seems a staggeringly high price for a 14yr old C Class.

If I'm decoding the Autotrader header correctly it's been for sale since 26th Feb. The mileage in the pictures is lower than when it was MOT'd in April.

It's a good spec though - but on older car things like the sunroof going wrong could prove very expensive. And that's before getting into the already mentioned subframe, and the brake lines.

Agree with other comments about short journeys - mine was mainly used for long trips, and it'd be 20+ miles before it was properly warmed up.


Can't mother just have a Honda Jazz / Toyotal Yaris?

 

[Couper]

I agree car prices are high now.

Mum wants something c class or above size wise. She always used to drive volvo estates.

There are surprising few automatic cars for less than 7k that fit the bill within 40 miles of me.

Good point re the age of the advert. I can't see header but makes sense.

The car would get 1/2 journeys being longer runs.

I'm really struggling with what seems the wrong bonnet and grill..

Thanks for the helpful response

Struggling to go with it

 

[colinallcars]

I agree car prices are high now.

Mum wants something c class or above size wise. She always used to drive volvo estates.

There are surprising few automatic cars for less than 7k that fit the bill within 40 miles of me.

Good point re the age of the advert. I can't see header but makes sense.

The car would get 1/2 journeys being longer runs.

I'm really struggling with what seems the wrong bonnet and grill..

Thanks for the helpful response

Struggling to go with it

If you’re not sure, don’t do it. There are lots of cars out there.

 

[W1ghty]

I agree car prices are high now.

Mum wants something c class or above size wise. She always used to drive volvo estates.

There are surprising few automatic cars for less than 7k that fit the bill within 40 miles of me.

Good point re the age of the advert. I can't see header but makes sense.

The car would get 1/2 journeys being longer runs.

I'm really struggling with what seems the wrong bonnet and grill..

Thanks for the helpful response

Struggling to go with it

It’s a tough one , I’ve had the 320cdi engine for 10+ years and 100k miles and it’s been excellent but mine has no dpf so I’ve not got the short journey dpf issues . I’m also quite handy to fix stuff .
I can’t help thinking for that money she could do with a petrol engined car.
The om642 engine is a tough lump , but can still throw up expensive turbo,inlet manifold issues . Ideally you need an MB specialist near your Mum to keep this potential cost down/easily fixable .
Remember that rear wheel drive cars like this don’t work in the snow if that’s an issue for Mum (without winter/all season tyres ) .

 

[Smiley]

The bodywork looks pretty good tbf - the car is 14 yrs old; you will be looking a very long time for a 14 yr old car with all factory paint
But it is a bonkers price for a euro 4 diesel; the more city emissions zones extend the more people will be forced to sell these cars. try offering the same car to another dealer as a p/x see what they say - I bet £2-3k max. Find a japanese petrol auto of the same age and not only will it retain its value but it won't eat its way through your mother's wallet.

 

[Spider10]

That's exactly the same grill and badge what was on my 2010 c220d

 

[jdrrco]

I'm really struggling with what seems the wrong bonnet and grill..

It isn’t the wrong bonnet and grille.

 

[Rory]

But it is a bonkers price for a euro 4 diesel; the more city emissions zones extend the more people will be forced to sell these cars. try offering the same car to another dealer as a p/x see what they say - I bet £2-3k max.

That's a good point on the emissions. Car is £3150 on WBAC.

Wonder what the road tax is on this - I've lost track a bit, but it's not a £600+ job, is it? I've seen a few people on Pistonheads with bigger engined older cars say that's getting very painful now.

 

[BTB 500]

I have been to see this car 2008 320 CDI in Loughborough with 70,000 miles for £6,478 and it seems really good.

Then in the pictures it seems the front and rear bumpers may be repainted/not line up quite right?

Also is this the correct grill for a 2008 320 CDI Sport?

This car is for my mum in her 70's. I really want her to be safe.

All help very gratefully received

Auto Trader UK - New and Used Cars For Sale

Find your next car with Auto Trader UK, the official #1 site to buy and sell new and used cars. Over 400,000 cars online. Simple, easy, quick!

www.autotrader.co.uk

Our 2007 Vito has the same OM642 3.0 V6, with a DPF (not sure whether a 2008 C320 would have one?). These engines are not quite as complex as current diesels but there are still a lot of ancillary bits and pieces that can (and do) go wrong ... there's no way I'd be buying a 14 year old one for an elderly relative. From about 90K miles we had ...

Failed crank position sensor
Failed DPF pressure sensor
Failed DPF temperature sensor
Failed EGR valve
Failed turbo (caused by delaminating exhaust manifolds)
Failed MAF sensor

This is a one owner FMBSH vehicle. All of the above put it into limp mode, some of them multiple times until correctly diagnosed and fixed (by a main dealer). It's mostly used for long motorway runs, not short local trips (which as mentioned will cause DPF clogging).

It also gets through glowplugs at an alarming rate - these started failing at under 50k miles. Two more went recently, and the glowplug relay (which is not available from MB), and the special 225A 'mega fuse' fuse that supplies the glowplug circuit). Bill for this was over £1000 at a local independent (not main dealer).

Add in the recent hike in the price of diesel and the emissions concerns/uncertainties already mentioned and I would *definitely* be looking at a petrol engined car for mum. Our 'daily driver' is a 2.0 petrol C Class estate (W205).

 

[W1ghty]

That's a good point on the emissions. Car is £3150 on WBAC.

Wonder what the road tax is on this - I've lost track a bit, but it's not a £600+ job, is it? I've seen a few people on Pistonheads with bigger engined older cars say that's getting very painful now.

Tax is £365 ish