[Getafix]

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Getafix, take the Yamuna option is my suggestion. Costly though it is and don't get involved with a Merc girl again. Twice I have evaluated a Merc as an option to buy. For folks my age a Merc has its allure. But several business associates, employees, neighbours and friends who owned one advised against such a purchase mainly because of the litany of maintenance issues, minor failures and harassment at the hands of the authorized service centres. Cut your losses. When we get to middle age each day of life is more valuable - don't waste it on a Merc. Best of luck. Share what you finally do.

Originally Posted by McLaren Rulez

Unfortunately, the W163 M-Class was one of the worst offerings from Mercedes in terms of reliability. Your example may or may not be a good one but that model was a bit of a disaster worldwide with respect to reliability.

Dump it and move on!

Originally Posted by Nitrous Power

Can't add anything more tho what you have said! This piece of crap was manufactured in USA, the first manufacturing plant outside of Germany by Mercedes Benz. This car earned a reputation of highly unreliable car and long time to recover from that reputation.

The best advice is to dump this car and move on.

Originally Posted by aaggoswami

On a serious note, the watery grave might not be an easy option as the paperwork of this car shall be in your name.
Giving it another shot is marred with risks of high probability of future failures. The car is quite old and was discontinued more than decade ago.

This is where I put in my opinion : Sell it off. Whatever little it fetches, but sell it off. Take care of paperwork and buy something more reliable. No point in putting more resources, be it time or money.

Originally Posted by Lobogris

I hope you are not serious about the Yamuna option? Why not sell it cheaply or even offer it for free?

Originally Posted by Paradox p100d

My two cents
Sell it (or give it for free ) to a Bollywood film crew so they fulfill the honor of driving it into the yamuna or destroying it with one of their over ambitious stunts

Atleast you might be able to say that's my car when watching the movie

Originally Posted by V.Narayan

Well said. Giving it for free might work. If to a charitable outfit you would be passing the burden on to them. But check it out.

Originally Posted by GTO

Sorry to hear about the troubles, but it's not the mechanics fault. Most Mercedes from that era suffered from poor quality & reliability, thanks to a horrible CEO called Jurgen Schrempp who put Mercedes through a painful cost-cutting drive. Plus, the complicated cars of today aren't designed to last more than 10 - 15 years. Gone are the days of 'over engineering'.

Your car is now 14 years old. Any further repairs will be throwing good money after bad. Get rid of her and buy a newer SUV. Look for 2 - 3 year old examples to get the best prices & value for money.

Sane advice, gentlemen. Just as I expected, but was dreading.

Yup, the yamuna option is too dramatic, and perhaps illegal. I guess I'll just keep it parked outside my office among my other cars. Does catch the visitors’ eyes, to be honest (the model seems pretty rare, at least here in the north).

That way, I can still enjoy the occasional drive, albeit with one of the drivers following in another car, in case the old lady throws another tantrum. Which isn't that frequent, or critical either. Hence the desire to get it set right.

Anyway, big thanks to all you veterans. Much appreciated.

[ajmat]

What exactly is the problem that occurs? This is still not clear

[Harvester03]

I have a different take on the W-163 ML (M-Class renamed to GLE-Class). But I admit there is a caveat, I am temporarily in the US. I agree that the first-generation W-163 MLs introduced in 1997 (designed and produced in Alabama) did have issues (the most obvious being in the quality of finish), and higher instances of lemons, so I would avoid the first few years of the W-163. My non-lemon, 2003 model ML-500 (V8, 4966 cc, 288 hp), with the huge spare market for the model in the US, hits a sweet spot.

I was in the market for an SUV in the US a few years back, primarily for interstate travel. I started the search with new cars or still in warranty options, costing under Rs. 15 Lks like the Toyota Rav4, Jeep compass, Ford Escape, and Nissan Rogue. Then I expanded the search to include older models within extended warranty (sticking close to the same budget), like the Toyota 4Runners, Jeep Wrangler and Ford Explorer. That is when I came across an older ML-350, and it won my heart the first time I test drove the ML (I admit the Mercedes brand holds a cherished spot in my Indian heart). The ML-350 was much older, out of warranty, and in a completely different league. Though I checked out many MLs before I settled, it was love at first drive.

I weighed my inhibitions on the notoriously expensive Mercedes maintenance, against the ample depreciated inventory of ML’s, and the robust spare part market for the decade-old model in the US. Though the V6 ML-320/350s (V6, 3724 cc, 232 hp) got me hooked, it was the V8’s that blew me away: the ML-500 (V8, 4966 cc, 288 hp) and the ML-55 AMG (V8, 5439 cc, 342 hp). And the love affair with my ML500 is still fresh after a few years. I justify the slightly ;-) higher annual maintenance of the ML (over the annual depreciation of a new Toyota), as the price of love. Given a choice, I would love to get my V8, 5-liter engine, body on frame W-163, ML-500, back to India when I return, but its not worth the pain considering the SUV/MUV’s I could buy in India for the same expense.

[Retrogrease]

My fellow beings- need your advice.

3.2L V6- w163 petrol. 2002 I think.
I’m about to salvage it from a yard for about 80,000INR. Will not be my daily driver. But I’ll give it home and repair and minor issues. After reading about it on the internet and now team bhp- the butterflies in my stomach has come to rest. Should I? Should I not? No pictures with me yet.

What do you think?