Fuel pump relay overheated, and caused the fuel pump to cut out regularly, which was a dangerous thing to happen where I live, and took weeks and a painful amount of dollars to find.
Distributor cap went soon after purchase.
Suspension was never right, and I kept fixing niggles and replacing bushings pretty much weekly.
Brakes tended to catch little stones, and required surgical removal by a shop.
Water pump died on me.
Air conditioning stopped working soon after purchase.
Climate control started acting erratically after a few months.
Oil loss turned out to come from leaking block, horrendously expensive to fix.
Transmission noise started to develop after one year of purchase.
This car was an eye-opener for me, teaching me that Mercedes-longevity can indeed be a myth. I have not had this much frustration and aggravation with a car since owning a very troublesome Citroen CX 15 years ago.
This came doubly unwelcome, as I had purchased the car specifically because I was in need of a reliable, solid car at the time, and this Mercedes turned out to be anything but. Sadly, I can't even say it's my first bad Mercedes; I just keep believing in them, who knows why.
As a car though, it was a delight. Beautiful, poised, timeless, amazing ride comfort, and guaranteed to get you the attention of anyone, at least where I live.
Hi, I was considering a 300 SE as a possible replacement for my present car, (volvo 240) but after reading this I don't know anymore.
You said your previous car was a Volvo 850- I am also looking at them. Was that any better?
When you buy a 16 year old car it either has been well maintained or you need to get it up to a certain operational level. My experience, MB of this vintage takes about US$ 2000/year to maintain once you get it to that level. Odd as it may sound, it's a philosophical decision on how well and for how long you intend to maintain the car. For me, a car that originally sold for 65,000 can be kept for the rest of your life, if you are so inclined. I ask myself if I'd want to be driving a pristine 20 year old Honda or MB.
A good check from a reputable inspector before you purchased should have picked up a lot of those problems. Service books showing all the scheduled servicing by MB also helps.
It looks like you bought a car that was not well maintained from the previous owner. On a Mercedes, you have to get one that has been well maintained from the grounds up. The 300SE is a much more reliable car than the 420SEL and 560SEL, because the 300SE does not have timing chain issues. Also Premium gas must be used on these cars, and it looks the previous owner may have used cheap regular gas or unleaded plus, which can cause emission and fuel pump damage.
Yeah, rule number one when buying a used Mercedes, check it out thoroughly, by a mechanic or yourself if you are MBZ tech savvy. I bet that why the owner was eager to get rid of it.
The front end rubber pieces are expected to fail, and really though no matter how pampered the car was, they might as well count as routine at this age, because people tend to just replace them when they make a noise, not realizing if the left side goes, then the right side is probably not far behind, and if the front upper bushing goes then the lower one probably ain't far behind. Because of the weight of that car, that rubber wears out after years and miles. Best to replace them all at once and call it a day, then you don't have to worry about them for another 70,000-100,000 miles or ten years.
Replacing them one at a time seems more economical at first, but it will drive you nuts as you will be repeatedly in the shop again and again like a cycle chasing the failing rubber bushings. Then repeat process by the time you get to the last one. Most of them require similar procedures and all are just about right there anyways, but of course the mechanic won't tell you that because that would be less money for him and less trips for you.
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