Faults:

PreDelivery from dealer as new.

Requested rubber strips all round. Only front and back were done.

Requested cup holder between front seats. Got an arm rest instead. Never used it.

Warranty work.

Both seat height adjusters have broken off, twice. The first time for each was repaired under warranty.

The steering wheel shaft became too worn and had to be replaced.

Gear selector broke. £400.

Almost warranty.

At about 40,000 miles the rear suspension bushes became too worn and had to be replaced. At the same time it was noticed that the rear springs had become too compressed and allowed too much travel. These also had to be replaced. The car was out of warranty so Mercedes only paid for the labor.

Out of warranty.

The rear nearside passenger handle (above the door) broke off. £20 to replace.

The air conditioning stopped working. I was told it needed re-gassing. Probably about £80 plus VAT.

During the re-gassing process, it was discovered that the gas filter was no good and had to be changed, another £50 plus VAT. During the exchange it was found that the thread was crossed during manufacture and was irreparable. This had damaged the pipe and therefore the whole heat-exchanger had to be changed. The air ventilation filter had to be changed which required a major strip down. As a result, a minor re-gassing at less that £100 turned into a job costing over £600.

General Comments:

Very economical.

Loads of room.

On a flat road it's very comfortable.

Over potholes and speed bumps it's terrible for rear passengers.

Faults:

Flat Battery at 30K miles. Some days it would start no problem, but others it was dead. I've replaced the battery at my own expense!

Knocking noise from rear of car, very annoying!!

General Comments:

Knocking noise very irritating. Mercedes have tried to resolve the problem, but cannot rectify it!!! They don't know what is causing it.

Great car for overtaking, even though it's just a 1.4.

Seats are very comfortable, and high seating position is great.

Rough ride, would expect smoother driving from a Mercedes.

Faults:

Rear tailgate windscreen washer inoperative - reconnected by Dealer.

Front anti-roll bar links worn - both sides replaced.

Front brakes started to seized (sticking brake pads) shortly after first dealer service.

Both rear suspension arms badly worn.

Front nearside tyre wear on outside edge since new.

Steering column replaced F.O.C. by dealer at first service.

General rattles and knocks from new.

Harsh ride and too low-geared steering and definite handicap to driving satisfaction.

General Comments:

A superb concept with excellent fuel economy and adequate power badly let down by numerous faults and poor driver satisfaction.