Faults:

3 glow plugs dead (1 welded into the head!) - replacements £7 each, but tricky to remove.

Signs of rust - check behind the door rubber seals. Mine has been resprayed at some point in the past. A few bubbles here and there, especially around the wheel arches. Nothing major though, just keep on top of it and you'll be fine.

Corroded coolant pipe to rear of engine (feeds heater matrix for cabin warm air) - fixed for now with coolant additive, but will need attention soon. Not a big job really, but difficult to get to. The car has a massive coolant reservoir with an electronic 'low coolant' warning so its easy to keep an eye on.

Front suspension bushes split (tyre wear and faint knocking)

Wheel nuts stuck (poor servicing by last owner, no copperslip used, I warmed the wheels up to remove them)

Leaky diesel spill pipe in head (cheap to replace)

Oil black as ink (7 litres to refill, £15 ish)

Changed all the filters (not expensive, air filter was a fiver)

Power steering fluid slightly low (only available from Mercedes dealers, they won't say which type it is - about £8 a litre)

General Comments:

Its beautiful to drive, really quiet and refined. At speed, you can barely hear the engine which at 75mph is only turning at about 2500 rpm.

Acceleration is brisk, although traction isn't great when the road is greasy. The traction control cuts in a little too enthusiastically for my liking.

Autobox is nice although a little jerky when accelerating hard.

Seats could do with lumbar support, but they're OK.

Headlights are poor - I recommend upgrading the bulbs, as the reach is very limited.

Steering wheel has no height/reach adjustment that I can find.

Window wiper is quite clever, it detects when the car is stationary and automatically changes to intermittent operation, until you move again.

Aside from the above though, I think the car is excellent. It feels very well built, hardly any rattles or squeaks at all. Plenty of cubby-holes to put your things in, although it could do with a better cup holder.

Faults:

Air getting into diesel line causing occasional starting roughness - fixed with new O-rings.

Front lower suspension bushes split (common problem). Wears tires, but not a handling issue.

Driver's window motor sometimes fails for a few seconds.

General Comments:

Mercedes 300TE's with 7 seats are possibly the best vehicle to own, with the best spread of benefits: comfort, economy, safety, longevity, performance and reliability.

This 1997 3 liter turbo diesel feels as punchy as a previous 3 liter petrol 12v, yet gives 35+ mpg.

Comfort is amazing. MPVs and SUVs make me sick and often have a very choppy ride. This Mercedes is firm (Avantgarde model) but composed. Easily capable of 300 miles in one go (both in fuel and for driver).

There have been some paint issues with this year, and there are some paint bubbles forming on the bonnet underside edge, but for me it is the mechanicals that are the most important, and the massively under-stressed six cylinder in-line turbo diesel feels only just run in at 115,000 miles.

Indeed a taxi driver in Greece recently had a new Mercedes bought for him by Mercedes (Germany) in exchange for his 4,600,000Km 30 year old 240D. And no, those numbers are not a typing error.

I think this says it all.

Faults:

Oil loss after 500 km.

General Comments:

Needs only 7 litres diesel per 100 km!!!

Not a lot for a 1700 kg car with automatic transmission and full options.