1986 Mercedes-Benz E-Class 300E review from North America
"Awesome!"
What things have gone wrong with the car?
Transmission Kick-down switch 135000. Unplugged it so I manually downshift if I need to pass.
Engine cooling fan 110000 (still Broken, but slight foward motion keeps from overheating and run heater during traffic jams)
Fuel Pump 150000 (bought cheap aftermarket works fine)
Alternater brushes 110000 and 155000 ($25 and 2 screws can, change in car).
Needs tune up every 20K miles (eats throught caps and rotors, but very easy to change)
Cabin heater fan died 160000, I am in process of fixing... can remove from engine compartment.
Other Misc failures I never fixed.. Tachometer failed at 150000, clock failed at 145000, Cruise never worked well. A/C dead at 130000 and will hold recharge for 2 weeks. (I add R134A occasionally during hot weeks)
General comments?
I Love this car.
Very fast (rev limited at ~143MPH). Car feels sluggish becuase it starts in 2nd gear (normal operation) so need to manually shift to 1st position for fast starts and then a quick rock of selector up and back down to move to second gear and hold in 2nd till rev limiter kicks in (when racing) then move Selecor to 2nd position to allow 3rd gear shift.
As you can see I have heavily abused this car for 12 years and have had no major failures. (hard to believe I just turned 40)
Car is easy to repair for garage mechanic including brakes, Tune-ups, Fuel pump etc. Parts are reasonale at several aftermarket on line stores.
Car is now 19year old and so many things never fixed that wife says time to scrap. I bought a newer Volvo (non turbo... no fun car) but am having a difficult time parting with my 1st love.
I would highly recommend this car for the driving enthusiast that doesn't mind annoying electrical failures. This car holds it's own against 350Z, 330i, boxter and trans-am (all tested)... but a 540 will smoke you.
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| Engineered to last- work on it your self or its too expensive |
|
| Engineered to go the distance, reliable and easy to fix |
| Would you buy another car from this manufacturer? | Yes |
| Model year | 1986 |
| Year of manufacture | 1986 |
| First year of ownership | 1993 |
| Most recent year of ownership | 2005 |
| Engine and transmission | Automatic |
| Performance marks | 8 / 10 |
| Reliability marks | 8 / 10 |
| Comfort marks | 8 / 10 |
| Dealer Service marks | |
| Running Costs (higher is cheaper) | 7 / 10 |
| Overall marks (average of all marks) | |
| Distance when acquired | 102000 miles |
| Most recent distance | 160000 miles |
| Previous car | Honda Accord |
| Date of Entry | 20th April, 2005 |