O/T Merc advice pleeez

[tigran]

Hey peeps, doing a favour for a friend of the family. Going to check a merc that she is buying is cool. Tis a 2001 C180 auto with 60,000 on the clock. What do I look out for and what should it have had done by now? Anyone have any gen.

Hoping there is a resident merc mechanic in da house, pleeezfankoo.

[daverapid]

:)I'm not a Merc specialist, but most of the C class Merc's I've MOT'd have needed the front lower suspension joints to be replaced. I've noticed plenty with noisy water pumps too.

[Imperial]

they go through brakes faster than a hairnet900 through a bacon barm ;D

[magnetteman]

Does it have history?

The only other thing I'd do is listen for a rumbling diff.
They are rebuildable but at a price..

Apart from the faults listed by Daverapid and Andy998imp, which seem to apply to most Mercs for some reason, they are pretty well bullet proof.

[angle]

www.honestjohn.co.uk/index.php?url=/carbycar/index.htm mentions Dave's suspension joint problem, and also says:

'All W203 C-class to April 2002 (saloons and estates) were manufactured without door / seam sealant. Since August 2002 C-Class models, produced in Bremen, were completely sealed on all panels. Inspect the seam on the bootlid and round the bottom of the doors. Despite the fact that they are rusting from the inside out it is NOT classed as perforation and ONLY repaired.'

Which sounds a bit curse word.

[Mr S]

If it's silver, check carefully for spots that look a bit like stonechips, Merc had quality control issues with their silver paint around that time and occasionally it lifts in places and looks a bit like stonechips..

[klunk]

I have a C250 Turbo Diesel. It has done 167K. It still runs strong as an ox.

Things I have had problems with:-

Steering damper (not expensive) but steering may feel a bit vague, especially at speed. Needs a ramp and a couple of specialist tools to replace.

Tyre wear, fronts tend to wear out on the inside face due to the power steering, again not a major problem, but be aware in case it'll need tyres soon.

The scuttle can leak, due to leaf and curse word etc build up under the air con unit, this blocks the drain holes and causes the passenger footwell to get soaked, lift a carpet and check, as part of the ECU is under that bit of carpet.

Rust tends to start around the rear edge of the wheel arch on wings at front and front of arch on back.

Also rust around the boot lock, a renowned Merc problem. Remove lock, clean up, Kurust, then touch up. Done mine twice now!

If it has an 'adjustable air seat' (switches down the left hand side of the seat) Try it, set it up then switch engine off and jiggle about to check that it doesn't have any dodgy valves...you'll hear a hiss.

As DAVERAPID said, the front suspension bush tends to wear. Although my passenger side has just gone at 160K, clonks a wee bit in hard cornering on a roundabout, but not a MOT failure. It's approx £150 for the part and a bit of hastle to do!

If it's a diesel, check the stay bar, front of the engine, just below the oil cap, they tend to wear out and rattle, again not the end of the world to buy and replace.

Check the boot lock key works as the boot key never gets used, and then on that one day that you have a flat battery, it's a real curse word to get into.....don't ask me how I know!!!

Other than that, I have used and abused my car to death, and it is still as reliable and comfortable as the day i bought it three years ago.

For some reason everyone says don't buy the 'Doom Blue' (flat dark blue paint)as it has curse word resale value!! Metallic blue...no problem. Don't ask me why!?!?

Other than that, there isn't much else I can think of, apart from obviously check door' panel gaps for signs of accident damage.

good Luck.

If she does buy, get a srevice done, fuel filter oil filter air filter and oil change.

Best to be safe, as most 'mechanics' know how to reset the service intervals on the digi display.

[tigran]

Thanks for the advice guys. Shame i can't go with her, but will get her to poke about a couple of areas whilst she's looking (ahhh bless a girlie). It's in white (her only criteria for a c-class) so any stonechips issues shouldn't be issues and any resale hopes should be dashed promptly.

Will have a look over it when she gets it back home (a bit late but meh)

[tigran]

p.s. are they 8 or 16v (c180's) and are they belt or chain driven?

thanks again peeps.