ml 270

[jako999]

Hi Im thinking of getting an ML 270cdi auto 98-2000 as the family car (for my wife as theres no way Im getting rid of my SLK) what do people think about them and whats the fuel like around town.
thank For all the help.

 

[SLinKyjoe]

unless someone gets upset by my comments.

i heard that those model years were mainly built in the US and really did not come up to merc levels of expectivity. once the austrian assembly area was enlarged to cope with it, it became better.

i do like the look of them, but its a typical 4x4 really. and i still prefer the BMW X5 (I shall hang myself in the morning).

I also thought the 2.7 was a tad underpowered and always wondered why they never shoved in the 3.2CDi.

you do get more space in a disco! and rumour has it the landcruise never ever breaks down. altho this isnt the voice of experince. I had a grand cherokee once. it was okay execpt you had to inform the steering wheel about 100yards before any corner. then it had the front wheels pointing the right direction when you arrived at the corner.

i was used to sporty suspeion before i bought it, and i went back to sporty after it. it wallowed about.

still, be interesting to see what others say.

 

[angus falconer]

Hi Jako,

I once had one as a loan car and really didn't like it. I must admit bias and say that I don't like 4WD's anyway and this one was like all the others I have been in - slow, lumbering, clunky. The ride was really bad, it was averse to corners and very slow. Directional stability like a drunk on a bicycle. Terrible visibility to sides and rear.

What also stood out on the one I tried was the interior. It was obviously a US-build one and the plastics were nasty.

Why not just get an E Class or something? Just as much room and built for roads not fields.

 

[blassberg]

(hi Angus)

I had one for 108,000 miles over 4 years with luxury (leather) and family (7 seater) packs. Loved it.

Oringinally bought it as a people carrier alternative but it grew on me. Handling was predictable and once learned could be entertaining (in the right way).

Fuel average 26.5 driving as hard as i could everywhere. Clearly didn't get anywhere near the land speed record but rapid progress up/down the motorway.

 

[kit820]

If like Blasburg you simply want a MPV alternative with a MB badge then the ML range would be good for you. 2.7 however may not provide the power delivery you wish as it is quite a heavy car. 3.2 should be better.

If on the other hand you really want a reliable 4x4 that provides just as much comfort and prestige, then yes.... land cruiser/ prado would be an excellent choice. How often do you see 4x4 mercedes being driven in the middle east comparing to the abundance number of toyota/lexus 4x4. It is not just reserved to members of the various Middle East kingdoms or important dignitaries, but it is also the brand exclusively used by the Taliban. Hot weather, tough terrain, constant air cond but still damn reliable I guess enough is said.

The downside of the toyota/lexus is that it is bigger than the merc and because of its popularity in the Middle East, many often get stolen from the UK and shipped out there.

 

[toby mc]

top reasons to by the ml 270 cdi!

i can tell you now that the ml 270 cdi is good very good i am 6ft 6" 17,8 pounds /my wife is 5,ft 6" 9 stone 4 pounds ,my brother has the x5 3.0 he is the same weight and size as myself near enough . we have had a land cruiser lovely machine .but no performance if you are 60 plus and short sighted then buy one .my brother say,s and i agree fun to drive thirsty to keep and it,s the only 4x4 i think that you have to stoop to drive it no different than driving the suzuki jeep :| , at first the only concern to me was that my wife could drive it she can no prob,s she love,s it we only do urban driving and we live in wales and as far as the rest of the world is concerned it is always up and down that is true gradients every where :evil: , we get to the motor way we can get 34 to the gallon pulling a caravan the merc is full up kids and all got dvd to keep them qiute by the way the caravan is 1850 kgs . :-D in town we get 29 to the gallon my merc is auto by the way , the suspension when we had it first was sloppy but we had that sorted out you can have this done by a specialist merc s have good suspension but it need s to be fine tuned thats when the fun begins :roll: power that is a question all the pedigree 4x4 s are not that light in weight 2 tons what do some of these people that drive do, not undrstanding that it is not f1 racer ,so for me the merc ml 270 cdi auto is the best for comfort when set up is staggering ,power for a 4x4 is really good but then my ml is looked after clean as a whistle . also when i was looking to buy a 4x4 i did arrange with bmw/toyota/volve/lexus/and mercedes, out of all these dealer,s mercedes allowed me an ml270 cdi auto ,for a weekend as a car is different in the night as it is in the day .all the rest we had an hour,s test drive with the sales man present ? the handleing of my merc is very sharp but good .tyre,s i use are the genral grabbers uhp . tyre size are 275x55x17 . one thing you should do is persuade the dealer to allow you the car for a week-end seeing as these cars are in the region of 30 plus and i use it light off road and it is tremendous best 4x4 i ever bought i am a mechanical fitter of 33 years and i have seen the worst of the inside of a motor .i am not saying this because i buy mercedes /i have got a vauxhall cavalier 1.7 turbo diesel isuzu with over a million miles on the clock that takes some beating i can tell you . the ml270 cdi is total standard not chipped at all and if you are thinking of chipping one beleive me don,t

the choice is your,s .denton. good luck .

 

[toby mc]

ml 270cdi auto ?

forgot to say the ml is a 2000 model ,

denton .

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Hi Im thinking of getting an ML 270cdi auto 98-2000 as the family car (for my wife as theres no way Im getting rid of my SLK) what do people think about them and whats the fuel like around town.
thank For all the help.

We have a 2003 model and have on the whole been pleased with it. Love it in fact. Some people really seem to have a dislike for them though, which isn't a surprise given it's a Merc and a 4WD/SUV, both of which are up there with Bin Laden in the popularity stakes!!

Dealer service has been patchy, and it has been back several times for warranty repairs. Best MPG was a little over 30MPG on a 1000 mile tour of the highlands, most of the time it's upper twenties.

When we bought ours I started looking at pre-facelift models, but decided to get nearly new, in the hope that the quality would be superior (seems later the better), and the fact it would carry a manufacturers warranty.

If you do buy a car without a warranty, either shop around for one, or make sure you have a reserve of cash ready should the unthinkable happen. Within a month of having ours, we had to have the catalysts replaced, which cost more than the car we sold to have the ML (over £3k IIRC)!! Don't want to put you off, but it seems that everything for MLs are expensive, but once again it's a Merc and 4WD/SUV so you can't expect it to be cheap to run.

Watch out for the brakes. Dealers like to replace them at any opportunity to the tune of £1k a pop. Did the pads myself (all round) and parts cost me about £100. Discs didn't need doing - they were fine after 30k miles despite what the dealer said. Really easy job. Oh and by the way, the brakes will squeek unless the pads have been replaced very very recently.

Depreciation likely to be less of an issue on pre-facelift but you still may take a hit given the new model launch. My mate paid £38k for his brand new from a dealer 16 months ago, full leather, tasty black paintwork, and AMG grille. Now done 7,000 miles and chopping in for a new model. They're giving him £22k for it!! £1k per month in depreciation!!

Sorry if this post has a few scary numbers in it. Just go in with your eyes wide open. We've really enjoyed owning our ML!! All the best with yours.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I also thought the 2.7 was a tad underpowered and always wondered why they never shoved in the 3.2CDi.

I believe that the engine bay is too short to take a straight-six 320CDi, so the straight-five 270CDi was used. New generation 320CDi is vee-six, so plenty of space for the new engine in the new model. HTH