My S212 E Class Estate with 190k miles... part 2!

[JBell]

Dealer has come back and said he is willing to repair the oil leak and suspension. I wouldn't be keen on him doing the work so I would request that he just send over a reasonable amount for the repairs to be done.

Well get him to pay Klasse or a decent indy to do it, that way at least you know it has been done properly

 

[Conor]

Well get him to pay Klasse or a decent indy to do it, that way at least you know it has been done properly

Yeap, something like that is the plan anyway. I'm waiting on paperwork from Klasse as we speak and should have a better taste for things.

 

[Conor]

Ok, so Klasse have come back..

They have come back with a figure of £2200 to cover the faults and not the serviceable parts. That £2200 includes replacing the NOX sensors (due to DTC appearance) at a cost of about £1200. Steve has also highlighted that the car is due a service, which was a big part of my anticipated spend.

The rest of the cost is addressing the rocker caps on the engine due to leak. Also he says it's the NSR air bag for suspension which is causing the problem.

I have mailed my seller and asked him about covering costs etc. This is starting to sound a little rich is it..? But.. if the dealer is willing hand over some cash, then this could work out.

Question is.. and I rely are on your experience here.. would these be the potential big ticket items that could be the cause of headaches, or could there be another collection of stuff to go. I guess what I am asking is, following my current risk taking.. would it be a worthy risk to look at getting through this set of issues and enjoying driving after that or would it be better to hit reset and return to seller?

 

[LostKiwi]

The answer to your question will largely depend on how much risk you are happy with and how much the seller will contribute to the pot.

 

[JBell]

If the dealer will fix it you have a very decent car to use for a few years, if not I would seek a full refund.

Has the service come up on the dash?

 

[PovertySpec]

would these be the potential big ticket items that could be the cause of headaches, or could there be another collection of stuff to go.

Both. It's a Mercedes with 190k on the clock which seems to have been unloved.

If you manage to get the seller to cover this first tranche of repairs and you give it to the indy to fix you're half way there.

 

[AMGeed]

If there is any possibility of the dealer taking the car back at no expense to you for the indy inspection, take it.
Cheap Mercedes are cheap for a reason and even though there may be a good car underneath the work outlined so far it seems unloved and sold by a pretty unscrupulous dealer.

If however the seller will cover that £2200 bill (I doubt it) and you are happy to deal with the other items spotted then you may well have a car that serves you well for years to come.

 

[bembo449]

if its a registered trader and within 3 months of the purchase date , he can take it back under the consumers act of 2015

 

[Conor]

Thanks for all the responses guys and apologies for the delay.

So I have decided I will be keeping the car as dealer is engaging.. I want to avoid taking the car to him to get serviced as that is a faff as I need to do the public transport out of town think upon drop off/pick up.

Dealer has said he want to get work done as cheaply as possible and doesn't want to hear about London prices, which is completely reasonable and understandable.

I have reasoned the best approach to be that him and I negotiate a figure of money that he will send me to carry out repairs. That figure could be based on what he would expect to pay for the repairs, or something along the lines of my sourcing and pricing parts (aftermarket) and time to complete. He cover the cost of parts and a nominal contribution towards labour.

Remember there are a number of items that need work but in the context of warranty I am really only talking about items related to engine leak and rear air suspension.

Big question: Should the NOx sensors faulting be a warranty item? I mean if they were to trigger an MOT fail based on current state, I would argue yes. They are also expensive. Shall this be added to the warranty negotiation?

In the interim I will be shopping around for parts and service effort on various pieces of work.

 

[umblecumbuz]

Hmm ... looks to me as though you have an uphill struggle either way - whether you return the car and expect the dealer to simply hand back your outlay, which, being a one man band, he's probably spent anyway by now - or whether you pour money into this obviously unloved and neglected car.

No easy answer that is not going to cost you.

 

[Crispian]

The car has done mega miles,you could fix the current issues and then next month a load more crop up.

Triggers broom and all that......

I would be looking for a refund and a lower mileage car.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Not really a level playing field regarding negotiating an outcome, the seller is holding all the money and you have a faulty product. I would definitely pay him a visit with the list of parts that need replacing including labour costs before anyone starts work on the car and negotiate from there to find out what he considers a reasonable contribution. If you can’t agree hand the keys back for a refund.

I would consider half your costs as a reasonable figure bearing in mind there is an aspect of betterment or benefit to you going forward

 

[Conor]

Hmm ... looks to me as though you have an uphill struggle either way - whether you return the car and expect the dealer to simply hand back your outlay, which, being a one man band, he's probably spent anyway by now - or whether you pour money into this obviously unloved and neglected car.

No easy answer that is not going to cost you.

Perhaps.. we shall see. I see the points about mileage but given that one of these with about half odometer would be at least twice the price.. there is a little room to spend on repairs. Also, I'm not sure about unloved.. it had been regularly serviced by MB whenever needed etc.. I would just say that when the suspension and engine leak came to light it was traded but I would say if that car was unloved over during it's 190k life it would be in pretty bad shape.

The car has done mega miles,you could fix the current issues and then next month a load more crop up.

Triggers broom and all that......

I would be looking for a refund and a lower mileage car.

Potentially, but to be honest, I could pick up one with less mileage and higher price... any of the above issues could easily surface too.

Not really a level playing field regarding negotiating an outcome, the seller is holding all the money and you have a faulty product. I would definitely pay him a visit with the list of parts that need replacing including labour costs before anyone starts work on the car and negotiate from there to find out what he considers a reasonable contribution. If you can’t agree hand the keys back for a refund.

I would consider half your costs as a reasonable figure bearing in mind there is an aspect of betterment or benefit to you going forward

Well, I guess that is true to an extent, and especially if he isn't afraid of court judgements. There is an element of me annoying the crap out of him until we reach settlement too.

I do plan on trying to get some cash and as a last resort I will certainly be ready to hand back and go down the refund route.

I'll do some homework this weekend and try and come up with a list of the parts cost and estimated labour time.

 

[LostKiwi]

I don't think it was unloved. The overall cosmetic appearance seems very good.
I suspect the original owner who traded it in decided they wanted something newer when they found z few issues with airbags and the NOx sensors. They wouldn't have been the first to decide the cost of repairs was too high for the value of the vehicle.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Always interesting to put the OPs situation in context relative to the fact that owning a MB is never going to be cheap. He has bought an 8 yr old £45k car for approx 15% of it’s original sale value, the car has done nearly 200k miles so engine and running gear need £3k spending on them to bring the car up to a reasonably reliable standard. The bodywork and interior are in very good condition as to be expected with a 212 that has been cared for so the OP is taking a reasonable gamble that the car will provide low annual mileage transport for the next 5 years, so the maths work out at £1200 depreciation pa allowing for a residual value of £2k, there will be costs along the way but we all face that

 

[umblecumbuz]

Don't forget that the longer you take and the more you play with the car, the less likelihood there is of the dealer willingly taking it back from you.
For that to turn out successful, time is working against you.

 

[Conor]

I don't think it was unloved. The overall cosmetic appearance seems very good.
I suspect the original owner who traded it in decided they wanted something newer when they found z few issues with airbags and the NOx sensors. They wouldn't have been the first to decide the cost of repairs was too high for the value of the vehicle.

True, then a mug like me comes along...

Always interesting to put the OPs situation in context relative to the fact that owning a MB is never going to be cheap. He has bought an 8 yr old £45k car for approx 15% of it’s original sale value, the car has done nearly 200k miles so engine and running gear need £3k spending on them to bring the car up to a reasonably reliable standard. The bodywork and interior are in very good condition as to be expected with a 212 that has been cared for so the OP is taking a reasonable gamble that the car will provide low annual mileage transport for the next 5 years, so the maths work out at £1200 depreciation pa allowing for a residual value of £2k, there will be costs along the way but we all face that

Yes, that is kind of along the lines I am thinking alright. The costs associated with the high mileage related repairs (suspension, leak, NOX) come in at 2200 for all OEM parts and a West London mechanic...I regard the other list of items as something I would probably still need to do at a 100k car to be frank.

I think there is potential room for manoeuvre on the 2200 figure too as I intend to shop about. The jury is out on whether I will be buying OEM parts for this.. there is an element of bangernomics on this and total cost of ownership will take a significant hit with the cost of OEM.

Don't forget that the longer you take and the more you play with the car, the less likelihood there is of the dealer willingly taking it back from you.
For that to turn out successful, time is working against you.

Oh true that, I haven't been driving the car now, because the near side rear suspension is pretty bust to be honest. The dealer is currently on the other side of the world and returns in Feb. But is engaging via email and keen to get the car to him when he returns.

I'm trying to be human and not badger him while on hols so i've kind of parked the issue for a few days until nearer his return date.

 

[John Laidlaw]

I don't think it was unloved. The overall cosmetic appearance seems very good.
I suspect the original owner who traded it in decided they wanted something newer when they found z few issues with airbags and the NOx sensors. They wouldn't have been the first to decide the cost of repairs was too high for the value of the vehicle.

Agree with this 100%

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

There is a current thread on rear airbag replacement with Aerosus units so worth looking at that, certainly a lot lot cheaper than MB supply and fit

 

[McDonald]

Conor, we're all rooting for you but you'll need to be realistic. His holiday may be a fiction too. Time passing works against you. Keep everything documented, dates and times. If you get a wad of money out of that dealer, I'll be impressed.