my brother in law looking to get a sedan kind of sporty but yet good mileage. He said "no" to BMW due to issues he's heard about E46s. now because of fuel prices he wants something with good mileage. I suggested the new Benz E320 CDI. only thing is I read somewhere where people are raising hell about the C55 AMG's quality and Mercedes quality is sliding. is this true?
I know all cars have flaws. Yes I've read the J.D. Powers report on how he ranks car problems per 100. only thing is I find it hard to believe a Buick more dependable than a Honda or Nissan. Personally I think someone over at GM gave someone oaver at J.D. Powers some benjamins and said rank us high. and they did.
thanks guys for your opinion

 

MB are having electrical flaw issues, not so much construction (fit & finish) problems.

They build some of the nicest looking cars around, hopefully the problems will get worked out soon.

 

Buick has so few problems because they sell so few cars, and those that they do sell, never see major mileage (read old people).

And Beltfed is dead on, quite a few electrical gremlins, but they are built well otherwise, and are pretty sexy looking.

 

my parents never had any electrical problems their 2 mercedes. 99 ML320 and 04 C230

 

It's mostly the high end vehicles loaded with electronics that are having trouble.

Their quality rating is sitting somewhere toward the bottom of the list now. Still good cars, but they've been focusing too much on loading up the cars with electronics and whatnot, and new car programs, that their quality and reliability have slipped a little bit as of late.

 

my friend has some issues on his c240 and my other friend has a trouble free e320

 

with Pure AD that it is mostly the high end models

My C32 had no problems at all. My dads SL has had 3 or 4 issues with it. It's a 2003 with about 6,000 miles on it and all of the problems have been electrical. I think most of the newer models are having problems.

 

They sell Mercedes in Hazzard county?

 

once a car gets TOOOO High tech like S600 and 745il then there will be electrical problems...

but as long as there is no safety issues (tranny/motor) then it should be cool as long as it s under warranty.

 

Mercedes quality problems are genuine. It's reputation is being hurt here in the US, and even in Europe where Audi has surpassed them in sales.

Both Consumer Reports and JD powers confirm MB's problems. Since your brother in law is focused on luxury and sport (in that order) check out the Acura RL and Lexus GS. Both are great automobiles.

 

Consider yourself lucky ... my bro's C32 ... some issues.

- C$1500 ABS brake sensor replaced (warranty)
- sway bar link not properly torqued from the factory (3 trips to 2 different dealerships to get fixed)
- numerous 'return to workshop' warning lights with various fixes
- numerous 'check engine' warning lights that may have been (self-) resolved

My bro will never get another MB again. He regrets leaving Honda/Toyota. He might give the the Infiniti M a go (or buy a new GS).

Until the Daimler CEO gets his act together ... there will be a lot more people looking over MB.

 

The newer Mercs are rising in quality. I sat in the new ML350 SUV at the NY auto show and it was pretty decent. Not the best in class though, I don't feel they've caught up with the Lexus RX330's level of quality and attention to details. Lexus really knows how to coddle the passengers...there is ample leather padding precisely where you'd want them to be, where you would need them. When you open up the flip down rear armrest in the Lexus, there's a nice slab of wood covering the pop-up lid. It's left bare and plastic on most other cars, even in the 50K range.

Now the E-Class sedan you can tell was from before the people at Merc decided to up the ante. Compared with the newer Japanese sedans, the E-Class didn't feel as cushy. The padding on the door armrests felt thin in comparison to the new RL and GS. The rear seats felt flat, it's like they only paid attention to the front passengers.

 

I own a C230 Kompressor and to this day only problem ive had is a bad cd changer which was covered under warranty. Other than that evrything is great, my aunts E500 had some few electrical issues. Other than that

 

personally, I find benz's to be some of the most uncomfortable cars i've driven.


W/ that said, mechanically speaking all the ones that have been in my family have been great.

 

An E320 CDI lists for $50,000 (it goes for almost $75k in ). The concept of buying a car that expensive but worrying about fuel economy blows my mind.

He could pick up a 6MT TL with Navi and still have enough money for 5,263 gallons of premium fuel @$2.85/g. That's enough to last the average driver about 10 years.

 

The same can be said about all the next Lexus hybrids too.

 

 

The high end cars are having computer problems, but my wife's C240 has been great. Very very solid car. At 100 mph (short stints) I can't help but laugh it is so quiet and solid. Just wish it had 30 more hp.

 

Buick sells many many cars, dont know what you're talking about.

As for old people, that in my opinion is the most telling factor. Old people who want an isolated ride are less likely to notice problems with their vehicles. You'd be amazed how many bad belts, inbalanced wheels and other problems you'll see on Buicks simply because to those drivers, its Point A to B.

 

Check out the GS300, to me that is THE car to get in this price range. And you have lexus backing it so even in the unlikely event you have a problem, they're going to bend over backwards making it right. To me its not worth risking getting a benz until they clean up there act. Those who think its limited to electrical problems on the higher end cars should talk to the techs. at the dealerships. The C class has TONS of problems with suspension components breaking/wearing, this is fine while under waranty, but when its not a benz is expensive to fix. Actually its not fine, why get a car that breaks when you can get one that doesn't?

Besides with the japanese cars being so strong today, why buy an over priced car, that has known poor reliabilty and bad dealer support? My fleet of 04 honda's are all trouble free, I've never had cars that don't need to go back to the dealer for repairs with in the first year before! Between Honda/Acura, Lexus/toyota and Nissan/infiniti I would be worrying if I was a german automobile manufacturer! The honda, acura, lexus and infiniti are all kicking ass and taking names.

 

my dad has a benz. the only issue he has had is a dead battery. ( but that was b.c he left the lights on).

 

I've had similar problems as well.

- all sway bar linkages replaced
- all the electrical issues you described mostly due to loose plug on throttle actuator.

Too many electronic gagets causing problems imho. My tranny program is very good either. Sometimes when Im on it, the torque converter gets confused and disengages causing jerking. And for people that say MB quality is getting better, that is BS. New MBs dont include service anymore, you have to pay for it ($150 oil change every 10k, $550 service every 20k). E classes are still having problems (i.e. voltage regulator and BAS recall), even new slk55s have electronic daemons.

Dispite all this, I still love their engines though.

 

Getting a C55 Soon!!!

 

THAT'S EXPENSIVE!! Holy S Batman! Acura charges me C$29.95 for a regular oil change!

 

$30 is expensive for a dino oil!!