Thoughts on this E320 Wagon?

[jhynesrockmtn]

Hi,

I don't know much about these, neighbors car. Thought I'd throw it out here, I know there are several knowledgeable Merc folks on the list. Looks very clean. I'm not necessarily in the market but might be if I can get rid of a few things....

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Hard to tell from one pic and little actual description of the car, but I think it's a $5500 car Jerry. Does it have heated seats? They are a must.

here are a few around me:
I'm tempted by this car myself
1995 Mercedes-Benz E320 Wagon Florida Car Super Clean 3rd Row Seats

1995 Mercedes Benz E320 Wagon

There's also a 40K mile car that is asking $18K for it, but not worth more than $8 or $9 IMHO.

I would be interested if any transmission service has been done and how it goes in reverse. And also a lot more pics.

[greglepore]

That is low miles. Head gasket is no small thing, its an expensive repair and they'll all need them at some point. Harness is nice, but not nearly as expensive-still those are the major weak points. It is about 1k-1.5k or so high in price, but the 2 items done are about 2500-3k so it is worth somewhat of a premium. Also, check to see if it has the cargo net -its 250 or so alone. They all tend to rust in the spare tire well, maybe not a socal car, but if there's some there you can use it as a bargaining chip.

You'll want to be rid of the 15 in wheels most likely, simplifies tire choices, and they're all starting to need refinishing. Other than that, its a nice car-not really sporty as the ad says, but very comfortable and smooth to drive with enough power to not be a bore. I get 22 mpg pretty much in all types of driving.

One thing to be aware of is that the tranny has an achilles heel-a plastic part in the reverse selector that can quit and leave the car w/o reverse, seems to happen if its going to at around 150k or so-mine has 170 on and I knock on wood-luckily there's plenty of that in the interior.

Oh yeah, update the stock radio - but its easy. And swapping out the dash and rear door speakers for some quality 3.5's makes a world of difference.

[FLYGEEZER]

My E320 wagon is 18 years old. I bought it from the origional owner 14 years ago. It's now has 180,000 and is my daily driver. My wagon is a mirror imagine of the one you pictured, same color & All. Let me tell ya, lotsa evil "things" happen to these cars that cost a lotta bucks to fix........but what a driver ! We can talk. Yea, buy it. $4500.00 good number. Let me assure you....hold something back, your gonna need it sooner than you think. Mine is NOT for sale..for any amount ...thank you

[speeder]

Yeah, $4500 is a good price for that if it checks out. THey do not bring large $$ and they are not rare by any stretch. Typical BS ad, "car needs nothing" after listing a broken antenna and warm A/C. Also talks about "air suspension" which it does not have. It's a hydraulic SLS rear suspension with accumulators, that is what he had replaced.

There is nothing wrong with not being a mechanical expert or not knowing everything about your car, but to present such BS is not kosher in my book. I'm sure that I could find plenty that it needs if I put it on a rack, as is the case with even the best 18 year old used cars. It looks like good paint, though they don't come any duller than that color, in my and the general resale market's opinion. These are good cars if maintained, but maintenance in this case can include some large repair jobs in the future. They are not some *holy grail* car, they're alright.

[aigel]

Needs nothing. Except for an a/c recharge. Well, go ahead with your recharge - it will leak out again, until you fix the a/c system. Which will be $1500. Which also explains why it hasn't been "recharged".

Silk smooth engine? SPORTY??? RARE and highly sought after? LOL!!!

The MB dealer THINKS the head gasket and harness are done. That means there are no service records from the original owner. And I am pretty sure, what MB dealer THINKS is also not available in writing.

Seller is trying a little too hard to sell this, at a premium nevertheless. I'd entertain it, but definitely make sure you cut through the BS and don't take any of the seller's claims at face value.

G

[intakexhaust]

Nice looking car and description but for the price, should have working AC. Whats the real reason?

For that asking price, should be able to find a later series W210. The 3.2 V-6 over the inline really is a great improvement. Close in performance but the V6 is lighter in weight and return better fuel economy. No mention of this car being a 4matic so assuming it isn't and irelavent but an E320 4-matic is completely different and far more reliable.

[LWJ]

Hello,

On a related note, how does a 4-matic wagon tow? I have a small sailboat that will weigh 1500# with the trailer and fully loaded. I suspect that is too much for a wagon. Thoughts?

Thank you,
Larry

[aigel]

1500 lbs shouldn't be a problem. Have you been to Europe? Everyone is towing their campers with midsize sedans. Just need to watch speed as the wind resistance will go up with the square of the speed ...

G

[amberdfjt]

I knock on wood-luckily there's plenty of that in the interior.

[RANDY P]

I hit 188K on my C36, had one HG, no harness done and otherwise solid. Lots of stupid little things, HG, MAF sensor, the EGR line plugs but EZ fix, likes to get hot when it's warm out and you are idling (get used to it), lots of CEL for stupid reasons. It'll keep you busy but not stranded.

rjp

[Shaun @ Tru6]

I may be lucky, but both my 94 wagons have been reliable to a fault, and what has broken, was supposed to, alternator at 165K. Have done a lot of preventive maintenance too. Parts are 50% to 75% of 911 prices, so that's nice. If you get it, never buyer Meyle or Uro parts.

on the AC, I think that if the condenser goes, and you can't do it yourself, it's a very very expensive job. benzworld.org is a great forum.

[greglepore]

Just to give you an idea, air pump and belt tensioner pulley just went on mine-its diy'able, but a pita, so it went to the shop, $1200 including tow. Water pump recently, will need alt soon, the a/c system is finicky (i've been lucky so far, but just lucky). The basic car is solid enough, but they are expensive to maintain properly, just like any german iron. More solid than similar BMW or Audi, and a different driving experience.

[T77911S]

GREAT CARS!
i have a 2000 wagon with 180k on it.
i have not heard of the head gasket problems which is ironic. i lost most of my radiator fluid, due to something stupid i did. how it did not blow a HG i will never know. but i drove it to maine and back the day it happened.
the thing i hear most about is the tranny and MB's no need to change the oil rule. thats not true. but, carefull about doing the flush. if the tranny has not been serviced it can remove a build up of "stuff" on the clutches and cause it to start slipping.
what i did with mine at around 150k was to remove the pan and what ever oil came out, about 5qts, replace the filter and ONLY the oil that came out. tranny is still fine.
i have not heard about the reverse thing with the tranny but the 2 things i have heard about and experienced is the conductor plate and the electrical connector that can leak oil.
about 5-600 for someone else to do it, but its not hard to do.

the engines are built proof.

i would buy another one. best dirving car i have ever driven.

[Shaun @ Tru6]

Greg, why so much? an air pump is $240, tensioner $50.

Alternator is only $130 - $160 depending on which one you need and it's a 30 minute job.

[onewhippedpuppy]

Nice looking car, lots of BS in that ad though. How do you "observe" that a head gasket was replaced? I'm with the other guys, seems $2k too high to me.

[berettafan]

Waaaay overpriced.

Also consider this is apparently a guy who collects wagons and this is one he DOESN'T want.

[greglepore]

Shaun-I'll let you know when I pick the car up tomorrow, suspect there's an upcharge as I didn't supply the parts and probably at least 5 hrs labor-getting to the tensioner is a pain.

I'd diy it, but its a daily driver and I can only work for short bursts now due to my injury.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by greglepore

Just to give you an idea, air pump and belt tensioner pulley just went on mine-its diy'able, but a pita, so it went to the shop, $1200 including tow. Water pump recently, will need alt soon, the a/c system is finicky (i've been lucky so far, but just lucky). The basic car is solid enough, but they are expensive to maintain properly, just like any german iron. More solid than similar BMW or Audi, and a different driving experience.

That's a pretty severe charge, those two items are not difficult to change at all by someone who knows what they're doing. It sounds like someone needs to make a boat payment.

[speeder]

Originally Posted by T77911S

GREAT CARS!
i have a 2000 wagon with 180k on it.
i have not heard of the head gasket problems which is ironic. i lost most of my radiator fluid, due to something stupid i did. how it did not blow a HG i will never know. but i drove it to maine and back the day it happened.
the thing i hear most about is the tranny and MB's no need to change the oil rule. thats not true. but, carefull about doing the flush. if the tranny has not been serviced it can remove a build up of "stuff" on the clutches and cause it to start slipping.
what i did with mine at around 150k was to remove the pan and what ever oil came out, about 5qts, replace the filter and ONLY the oil that came out. tranny is still fine.
i have not heard about the reverse thing with the tranny but the 2 things i have heard about and experienced is the conductor plate and the electrical connector that can leak oil.
about 5-600 for someone else to do it, but its not hard to do.

the engines are built proof.

i would buy another one. best dirving car i have ever driven.

That's great that you're having good luck with your car but it's a completely different model than the one being discussed here.