9th May 2009, 15:11
LOL. I thought I was alone in my Mercedes woes. Best thing I ever did was sell mine. Got a Lexus now. All the problems you mentioned I had as well. Almost killed me once when it switched off on the highway while in the passing lane (CPS).
9th May 2009, 15:12
No way. Similar issues with my wifes ML500. Best thing I ever did was sell it - don't get me started with how much money I lost on trade. Almost 30K.
9th May 2009, 15:16
I loved my 01 Mercedes ML until its first problem. Then the next. And the next. I bought a cheap Toyota Corolla just because it was so unreliable. My Mercedes is parked off (for what its worth). Can't even afford to get rid of it. You are not alone.
18th May 2009, 21:58
Guess where my ML is? At the dealer. LOL. Expecting another bill that is way into the thousands. I wish I never owned this royal piece of junk.
21st May 2009, 13:50
Ignore the comment from the person that supports Mercedes. He obviously hasn't owned a W163 class.
With Mercedes, a good car isn't the norm, it's a rarity. Most of them are lemons. I know this because I am a long time Mercedes fan. Owned them since the early 80's. Toward the late 90's till now, every Mercedes I have has been a bad vehicle. My latest is the ML AMG. I still have it, but hate it. I miss my old 300D.
I have given up on them. I do a lot of my own maintenance, and my brother is a tech at Mercedes, so a lot of my parts I am just out for the cost. But it's really added up. I really feel for you guys that don't have contacts at Mercedes.
My next vehicle will definitely not be a Mercedes. Maybe someone overseas can comment? I don't know if these bad models/builds are unique to us in the United States? I have a friend in England that swears by his Mercedes W163. But he paid a LOT more for his. I don't know if us in the US and being jipped by build quality because we pay less for them? Anyone else want to weigh in on this?
26th May 2009, 05:53
Hi guys, similar problems in Aussie with these cars. Got one in the carport; it's not too bad, and a good friend of mine, his is in my shed with the engine pulled down, about to replace the rings in cyl 3 & cyl 1. Seem to be broken.
Mine is pretty reliable, but I do all the servicing myself, and try to keep on top of it, couldn't keep it if MB had to do it all. I like the car, but it is high maintenance.
Don't have all the problems you guys have had, and it's got 180k on it now. Must have been built early in the week...
27th May 2009, 14:06
I am another proud BMW X5 owner, ex ML500 owner. Mercedes has lost another customer in me. Never again.
27th May 2009, 14:15
Mercedes is officially ranked lower than almost any other vehicle in terms of quality. Read the CNN article.
http://money.cnn.com/magazines/fortune/fortune_archive/2003/10/27/351665/index.htm
8th Jun 2009, 17:52
My buddy bought the same car (an ML350 I think). Paid just over $40K new off the lot. He donated it a year ago to Goodwill. Could not even sell it so he thought the tax deduction would be better than nothing. We use his example with the Mercedes as the rear end of all our jokes. LOL. Can't believe that GM and Chrysler are going under when p-o-s like this are being made. Go figure? Sorry you are having all those problems but you should have known better when you had your first problem.
16th Jun 2009, 07:35
Regarding the Mercedes ML430 - I have a 1999 Mercedes and wouldn't take one if it was free! We have put so much money into this beast that I could scream, replaced the fuel pump, power steering hoses, the poser window panel, and now having major transmission problems. With all the money spent on repairs, we could have paid cash for a new car!
17th Jun 2009, 22:03
Wow, what a string of woeful stories about the 1999 Mercedes ML430.
By the way, Consumer Reports Spring 2008 Buyers Guide shows the 1999 M-Series as being "Average" for reliability in the "Used Car Verdict." Another reason I don't put have much faith in Consumer Reports.
22nd Jun 2009, 16:56
I was going to buy an ML430 a few years ago. Had an awesome deal on it. I saw the below on a forum website and didn't buy it. After reading what you have went though, I am glad I didn't. I will never purchase a Mercedes product. Why take chances on a company that does this to its consumers.
22nd Jun 2009, 17:02
I am a "Consumer Reports" subscriber. "Consumer Reports" rates the M-Class as much worse than average.
23rd Jun 2009, 22:53
For the latest statistics, you should use your login with your password on the website. I just did that. What you will see is the only year rated much worse than average is the redesign year of 2006. For 2007 and 2008, the M class gets "above average."
For the years 1999, 2000, 2002, 2003, it gets "average"
For the years 2001 and 2004 it gets "worse than average"
23rd Jun 2009, 23:04
Too bad to hear all the negativity, because Mercedes had these MLs built in the USA and I wonder if that is the root cause of the problem.
8th Jul 2009, 15:42
OMG!!! I have spent almost 6 thousand dollars (American, not Zimbabwe or some other country) on repairs to my 2000 ML that I paid 46 thousand dollars for (off the lot, again American dollars), did every change as per the manual, even did the transmission flush every 50 thousand miles (at the dealer) even though the manual says it has a lifetime sealed transmission, and now at 120K mikes, my transmission just died. My car is worth about 6 thousand on Craigslist, $4500 on trade, and Mercedes wants almost 9 thousand dollars (for a new transmission. I am going to tow this P-O-S down to my local landfill and burn the %^*#. Washing my hands of Mercedes Benz once and for all.
24th Mar 2010, 02:04
Why would one consider a "new" transmission for a car apparently worth $4500 as a trade in. That defies logic.
3rd Oct 2011, 20:43
Hmmm, I have to agree with the customer on this one. I own an independent repair shop, and there's nothing I hate more than Euro trash driving in the door. European vehicles are over priced, the parts are extremely expensive, the labor time is outrageous, and the turn around time is too long. Customers who buy these Euro trash Audis, Mercedes, Volvos, Volkswagens, and BMWs don't understand the commitment they're getting into. These vehicles are not reliable in any matter whatsoever. In fact they are inferior to Asian and American vehicles; well except for Chrysler.
28th Jun 2015, 18:56
My Chevy Prizm (rebadged Toyota Corolla) has 169,000 miles and the only things that I have changed are brakes and tires. I am the 3rd owner. I know that the person who sold me this car never really maintained it good. It's old and ugly, but never fails to start at the first go.
5th Apr 2017, 07:24
These are expensive SUVs and owners need to find a good independent garage for service even before the warranty expires. My family has owned many SUVs, especially Jeeps. And I'll tell you they are very expensive to maintain compared with midsize and economy cars.
It's hard to find European car repair specialists outside of large cities. And often the cost of having a dealer repair an older Mercedes-Benz isn't worth it. So some owners will just keep driving their vehicles when they know they should get them serviced. Until they end up with a major repair that sidelines their car. If you neglect your car like it's a disposable $1000 Toyota Corolla or Jeep Cherokee, then you will pay for it in the end.
That being said, there are some vehicles that are just plagued with problems and the M class seems to be one of them. Land Rovers and Range Rovers of the same vintage are even worse. That's what drives their prices down so low on the used car market. The cost of regular repairs ends up costing far more than the vehicle is worth. From the first owners who lose so much money in depreciation, to the last ones who pay so much for repairs. It doesn't make financial sense to buy these vehicles, new or used.
9th May 2009, 15:09
Boy, I have had the same problems with my Mercedes. It was badly engineered. Problems started a week after driving it of the lot. Went through TPS, CPS, Throttle, ECU, fuel sender units, new transmission, key fob (and thats not counting recalls) all within first 5 years of service. I traded mine in and bought a BMW X5. Owned the X5 now for 3 years. No problems at all. Not one. Just have done oil changes and she sings like a bird.