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Consumer Reviews for the Mercedes-Benz M-Class
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Worst reliability of any vehicle I have ever owned
Manfred Schropp, 09/14/2015
2009 Mercedes-Benz M-Class ML320 BlueTEC 4dr SUV AWD (3.0L 6cyl Turbodiesel 7A)
The engineers who designed the vehicle did a good job. It is spacious, comfortable, quiet, has a fantastic range on long distance drives - up to 700 miles on one tank 95 liters / 26.5 US gallons. I still love driving it after almost 7 years. You can drive 800 miles in one stretch and exit the car still feeling fresh. The strong torque of the Diesel engine with up to more than 30 mpg, the … transmission working seamlessly in the background, the comfortable ride, the quietness of the cabin, the excellent seats make this a wonderful vehicle.
BUT THE RELIABILITY IS TERRIBLE! This is hands down the worst vehicle I have ever owned in terms of frequency and cost of repair (see below), and these cars include 2 Jeep Cherokees when they were still made by AMC. While my local dealer is very very good, Mercedes Benz of USA and the folks in Stuttgart were of no help whatsoever. Verbatim from a MBofUSA representative: "Sorry, there is nothing we can do for you. We suggest you negotiate a real good deal with your local dealer when you buy your next Mercedes."
Repairs & Parts replaced on my 2009 Mercedes ML-320 Bluetec in 6 years & 10 months and 73,696 miles light duty use.
01. Factory recall: Tail lamps, rear lights, power lift gate module replaced 9cost not known) at 5,176 miles
02. Warranty work: Noise from front end; replace right front wheel bearing at 27,670 miles
03. Warranty work: Replace left strut assembly front and replace buttons on steering wheel at 32,477 miles
04. Warranty work: Removed and lubricated shift paddles on steering wheel to fix squeaky noise at 32,620 miles
05. Warranty work: Replaced defective NOX sensor at 35,866 miles
06. Warranty work: Left rear door lock assembly replaced at 42,541 miles
07. Repair NOT covered by warranty: replaced auxilliary heater in AdBlue tank diagnosed at 49,671 although it is part of the emissions control system but NOT covered by MB emissions control warranty (read the small print); paid out of some slush fund after my vociferous complaints to MBofUSA; cost estimate almost $2,200.-; fixed problem at 50,843 miles
08. Repair: Front passenger door lock assembly (same broken part as above, different door) $833.99 after 15% dealer courtesy discount at 53,277 miles; MBofUSA refuses any consideration.
09. Repair: Noise from engine department - loose NOX sensor - tightened - no charge at 56,633 miles
10. Repair: Replace 2nd NOX sensor and EGR temperature sensor and air cleaner turbo seal at 60,028 miles; this NOX sensor lasted 24,162 miles; cost of repair $1,350.92
11. Repair Turbocharger intake shut-off motor, seals, gaskets, pipes (almost left me stranded) at 66,241 miles; cost $1,675.89
12. Repair: Bad Glow Plug Control Module at 68,9921 miles; cost $503.64
13. Repair: Oil leak in front engine area. Turbo Pipe Gree O-Ring Seal and seal on oil breather assembly black o-ring seal; oil squirted on V-belt; replaced free of charge by dealer as it was possibly related to repair #11 not performed 100%; dealer otherwise very good and VERY HONEST. Same mileage as Repair #12 done at same time.
14. Replace 3 engine mounts / support struts. They were leaking fluids; at 73,696 miles; $1,774.38
15. Replace temperature sensor upstream of turbo at 73,696 miles (as in #14); cost 737.98
Estimated cost of warranty repairs $5,000+; repairs paid by owner $6,876.80 (does NOT include windshield replacement caused by stone from passing truck or self inflicted body damage); additional regular maintenance cost incl. tire replacement $8,391.98 (does NOT include registration, SMOG check, insurance, fuel); total estimated cost for all repairs, incl. warranty work, and regular maintenance ~ $20,268.78; Days in service 2491; average number of days between repairs (does not include regular maintenance trips) 166; average number of miles between repairs 4,913.
UPDATE 1: The car now has 80,750 miles on it and nothing has broken since my original review. That is about 7,000 miles without something breaking, although I did have a brief scare at about 76,000 miles when the car lost power on a long uphill portion on the freeway and slowed down to about 35 mph. I managed to pull off the road [slow trucks were using the emergency lane], turned off the car, and after about 5 minutes restarted it. It has been running fine ever since. A visit to the dealer did not show any recorded error code. About 30 miles earlier I had added fuel when the tank was still half full. Maybe the fuel was dirty and caused a momentary clogging. I still love the design and how it drives very much, it is just the reliability that I hate. But I may have gotten a particularly bad one-off example.
UPDATE 2: At 80,915 m replaced defective 2 front air suspension struts & air compressor & 4 new tires as a result, new turbo inlet pipe seals, new transfer case input shaft seal, incl. C-Service $7,303. 15 unscheduled stops so far not counting light bulbs. Repl. backup camera (warranty), est. $2,400 incl. module.
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