Faults:

Normal service, oil changes every time the Assyst system indicates it.

In 22 years of ownership, I have only changed normal wear and tear parts for such an amount of kilometers and years, as the following (this has been the cheapest to maintain car I've ever had):

1. Shock absorbers, twice.

2. Brake discs, once.

3. Thermostat, once.

4. Headlights, once.

5. Inner socket assembly, inside bellows. Once.

6. Electric direction pump, twice.

And that's about it.

General Comments:

This is a great car. Not only what one expects of Mercedes, I've had several before, and at the same time as this one, but a very good Mercedes. It has very good, nimble handling, it goes at full speed and accelerates perfectly, after 370,000kms. It feels always safe.

It is very dependable and durable, as much as my E420, which I still own. I have never been left stranded by this car, never in 22 years... (!) It still feels solid, robust. It is very well made. And I have never pampered it, quite the opposite. It is a car easy to fall in love with. Habitability is also a strong point.

Faults:

- New battery in 2011, original one until then.

- Thermostat broke at 242,000kms, which overheated the engine. I didn't realize it at the time, and drove in traffic some 5kms. All this didn't affect at all the engine or compression, and all the functioning is perfect to date.

- Headlights bulbs. Normal wear.

- Broken boot cover fixtures.

- Transmission selector changed at 245,000kms.

- Gear knob is very peeled off.

- Changed wiper-lights lever at 220,000kms.

- Changed front shock absorbers at 247,000kms. Normal wear.

- Changed tyres some 3 or 4 times, of course. Normal wear.

- Engine accessories band, changed 3 times. Normal wear.

- Engine accessories pulleys, changed 2 or 3 times too. Normal wear.

- Changed brake discs 2 times, normal wear.

General Comments:

This car is amazingly durable and reliable. The engine functions as it did when new. I go on the autobahns 3 times a week for 200kms each time, and I can go very safely at 160-180kms/hr, even with 250,000kms on the clock.

The engine feels as it will give easily some 250,000kms more. I'll write about it if it does...

Never had the "F" problem on dashboard that I have read about in some of the surveys; maybe because it is a simple manual, and not an automatic. My mechanic says, automatics did give some trouble.

Very safe suspension reactions, stability is very good. I prefer by far the reactions on this A-Class, to those of the W202 C-Class; much more predictable.

Acceleration, compression, and engine sound, which by the way is quite silent and smooth; all are like new.

I have used this car to carry even furniture, and wood.

I have spent far less money on this car, that what I have on a Golf, and a Toyota with less kms, and a little more than with a previous 190E.

This is a good Mercedes-Benz in all the basic attributes of a Mercedes: reliability, durability and safety.