Hi all!

I am new to this forum and am looking to buy an ML320 for my girlfriend. I have been reading about the SUV and it looks like it gets good reviews. I had a couple of questions though:

- I there any model year that has problems? I heard I should buy '99 and up as '98 had some issues?
- What should I expect to pay for a vehicle with about 60,000 miles (no year preference). You think USD 15k would be way too low?
- Any other things I should be cautious about?

Thx so much for your input!

 

I would subscribe to carfax & run the vin# of every car you look at. It is a quick way to find out about collision repair & etc. When you get it narrowed down to a few, See if a dealer can run the vin to check for warranty work, if the maint is up to date, & if any recalls were done.

Around here, SC, $15k is way low for 60,000 miles. Most were priced well above that (~$20k) and had over 120,000 miles. That said, we bought a 98 ML320 with 101,000 miles for $10k + ~$500 for an extra key :^). Ours runs great & so far everything works but we looked for 6 months before we found this one.

Good Luck,
Kyle4501

 

I have a '98 ML320 and it has been fine.

Had to clean the MAS Airflow Sensor the other day, but other than that, she's been sweet.

Here in Northern California, you can get a ML pretty reasonable. Try http://www.craigslist.org/ and select your city on the right side and you can search on ML and plug in the dollar amount you want to spend.

Then like kyle4501 said, make sure to run a CarFax to make sure you're not getting into something that's jacked up.


Hope this helps

 

Be sure to get a GOOD warantee. It will put you in the poorhouse real quick without one. They are nice to drive and safer than most SUV's though.

 

Hmm, that kind of worries me... Are they bad cars? I am actually a BMW guy and never had any problems. Thought Mercedes should be pretty similar? [sm=smiley24.gif]

 

ALL vehicle manufacturers have good vehicles and bad vehicles.

Mercedes makes a good SAFE reliable vehicle.

The majority of people on these forums are people ranting about their vehicles because they've had problems and are "searching" for help or answers. That's why you mostly read the BAD things about them. and not the good.

Not too many people get on here to praise their vehicles.

something to think about.

 

SL600_Cruzin, Excellent point!

I went looking for this forum to get help with a problem. When all is good, I'm enjoying the ride. Most are here to get help from fellow owners who share their knowledge so they too can return to enjoying the ride.

If the ML's weren't such GREAT cars/trucks/suvs, the resale value would not be so strong. The warranty advice holds true for ANY late model since the electronics are so sophisticated now on all cars.

Get out and drive some ML's & compare them to other suv's, then you will see for yourself what the fuss is all about!

Good Luck!
kyle4501

 

I've seen whole web site design to be what I would call "BMW 750 hate site"
Even BMW design what seems to be serial lemon.
I heard some ML is having some issues assembly-related, but our 99 model is basically trouble-free.One recall on hose clamp (!) and those annoying cup holders, that come off the hinges each time they are open and you enter the car.

 

My cup holders have never come off.

Came pretty damn close to bashing them with my knees a few times though.

You must have longer legs than me .... LOL

 

... or bigger cans of beer.