Are there any early W210s without rust?

[deejaybee]

There is a lot of information available about the W210 rust problem, but this obviously relates to cars that do have a problem. My question is are all early W210s rusty or are there some which are OK?

I have been making a point to look out for these when driving around and also looking at what is up for sale. Whilst many are sadly suffering from rust some at least appear on casual inspection not to be rusty. If you find one that is not rusty I wonder what the chance is of being able to keep it like that?

Does anyone have or know of earlier W210s that have no rust problems?

There are what appear to be some good value cars out there, especially the 300 turbo diesel, but obviously something that is already 10 years old and has rust is not going to be a worthwhile investment even at the relatively low price they are up for sale at.

Any experience or views welcome.

regards,

Dave

 

[verytalldave]

Import one from Malta. Should be fairly rust free and RHD.

 

[giki]

My ones free of rust and nothing major wrong with it either.

 

[jberks]

The 210 hit the market in 1995. The problem that caused the rust hit in 1997/8 afaik. So, the very early 210s should be rust free. Of the rest, not all went rusty and of those that did, many have been sucesfully repaired and no longer suffer.
The ones that are running around with rust are mostly unloved examples that have been neglected so are best avoided on the used market for more reasons than just rust.

 

[SteveyT]

My '98 is more or less rust free. There are stone chips on the bonnet that are now starting to look a bit brown but given the age and mileage of the car, it's encouraging as this shows mostly motorway miles to me Otherwise that's it!

I will be looking at a front end respray in the summer for it, probably bonnet/bumper and both wings - does anyone have any idea of what I could be looking at paying for this? (sorry for the thread hijack!!!)

 

[maddog]

I saw a 96 p reg e300 that was rotten as a pear

My car (2001 W210) looked fine until about August last year you could barely see any rust , by Dec is was quite bad in places

I thought mine was not going to be affected , looking underneath it today there are a lot of patches that are going to need attention there as well.

I would personally try and find one thats already been repaired , those panels done on mine have a seperate warranty from the bodyshop as well as MB.

 

[johnmc]

My '98 is more or less rust free. There are stone chips on the bonnet that are now starting to look a bit brown but given the age and mileage of the car, it's encouraging as this shows mostly motorway miles to me Otherwise that's it!

I will be looking at a front end respray in the summer for it, probably bonnet/bumper and both wings - does anyone have any idea of what I could be looking at paying for this? (sorry for the thread hijack!!!)

Hi SteveyT,
I paid 250quid to Merc to get the bonnet done while it was in for free door sprays. Add the wings maybe 600-700? Sorry, I've got a US keyboard, can't be bothered looking for a pound sign.

 

[johnmc]

Sorry, should also have mentioned that I would simply not trust an old W210 to be rust free. It's a pain, but there it is.

There are some bargains out there, but they come with plenty of risk and not just the rust.
I've noticed that some in the <5grand bracket sit for months on forecourts around here, especally the petrol cars. I've tried to trade mine in a couple of times and the price I get offered for the petrol car is very disappointing for that reason.

Not to worry, as long as it runs I'll keep it for now.

John

 

[alexspurs61]

Spent £1200 geting mine loking like this. Still does 8 months on, thankfully!

http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/showthread.php?t=35333

 

[southy39]

The 210 hit the market in 1995. The problem that caused the rust hit in 1997/8 afaik. So, the very early 210s should be rust free. Of the rest, not all went rusty and of those that did, many have been sucesfully repaired and no longer suffer.
The ones that are running around with rust are mostly unloved examples that have been neglected so are best avoided on the used market for more reasons than just rust.

I have a 1995 W210 E300 diesel... and i have a few small areas where i have rust naely in the drivers indow frame between the mirror and window glass....
in the underside of 1 or 2 wheel arches

the only problem i have had with the corrosion is with the spring mounts , which i have just found out how to prevent happening again now that both have been re-welded.

(Mastic paint over the upper Spring mounts)

 

[philharve]

My '98 is more or less rust free. There are stone chips on the bonnet that are now starting to look a bit brown but given the age and mileage of the car, it's encouraging as this shows mostly motorway miles to me Otherwise that's it!

I will be looking at a front end respray in the summer for it, probably bonnet/bumper and both wings - does anyone have any idea of what I could be looking at paying for this? (sorry for the thread hijack!!!)

Hi SteveT

Yes, the body panels are approximately GBP300 each to have professionally repaired. I had it done to my C230K. When I say repair, I don't mean a quick blow-over, I mean a full back-to-bare-metal job with panels removed, chemically neutralized to remove rust, epoxy-sealed and paint layers built up and each cured in an oven to produce a diamond-hard finish. Or in other words, the full works. It isn't cheap but I expect the repairs to last the natural life of the car. If you're lucky, you might get MB to pay for it.

REGARDS

Phil