ML dilemma - Owners advice appreciated
Discussion
OK - An ML is not the most pistonhead of cars, but certain personal reasons (disabled father) have lead to me needing to change my A2 for something that is a bit more practical for carrying wheelchairs and is easier to get in and out of (no door sills, big wide gaps to get in and out of, not too low etc).
Then the final step - looked at a few forecourts and the wife has declared the ML to be acceptable!! (Happy wife = happy husband
)
So - Experiences, opinions, advise and recommendations please.
I recon I have a budget of 12 - 14k (but naturally want to spend as little as possible)
I want a tidy one, probably a 1998 - 2000 (mileage getting higher obviously) with as many toys as possible.
What would other ML owners say I should look out for? I recon I am looking at the 270 oil burner and the 320 petrol?
Any scare stories? Anything I should be walking away from?
Anyone ever tried chipping / remapping one of these?
Any merc dealers here got a fully loaded cheap ML and are interested in PX'ing with an A2
Cheers for any advice positive or negative!!
Then the final step - looked at a few forecourts and the wife has declared the ML to be acceptable!! (Happy wife = happy husband
) So - Experiences, opinions, advise and recommendations please.
I recon I have a budget of 12 - 14k (but naturally want to spend as little as possible)
I want a tidy one, probably a 1998 - 2000 (mileage getting higher obviously) with as many toys as possible.
What would other ML owners say I should look out for? I recon I am looking at the 270 oil burner and the 320 petrol?
Any scare stories? Anything I should be walking away from?
Anyone ever tried chipping / remapping one of these?
Any merc dealers here got a fully loaded cheap ML and are interested in PX'ing with an A2
Cheers for any advice positive or negative!!
From my experience of a ML320 (petrol) late `99 new from main agent was that it was a complete piece of junk !
Friend has had ML270 CDI `02 no problems. This I think is what you should be aiming for quality wise.
From this I went on to have two X5 BMW`s, great cars in every way.
From these I`ve gone back to have a MB 320 CDI, again new from main agent. Cars OK, but dealer....not good!
Looking forward to new `07 BMW X5 a.s.a.p.
dean phillips said:
From my experience of a ML320 (petrol) late `99 new from main agent was that it was a complete piece of junk !
Friend has had ML270 CDI `02 no problems. This I think is what you should be aiming for quality wise.
From this I went on to have two X5 BMW`s, great cars in every way.
From these I`ve gone back to have a MB 320 CDI, again new from main agent. Cars OK, but dealer....not good!
Looking forward to new `07 BMW X5 a.s.a.p.
Cheers for the pointers, X5 doent do it for me, may be something to do with the east London local "Drug Dealer" image .. (purely a localise phenomina!!!)
Have been doing some reading and have heard similar on other review sites ...
Anyone got any opinion on the ML430? are these any better....
i would try and find a facelift model 270 CDI if i were to buy one at all,the 320 is heavy on fuel been heavy and 4 wd and also ive heard of some gearbox faults on the early ones, however in the CLK i had the box was fine, the BMW X5 is a good car but as always in this specific area i would get a Range Rover.
[quote=YamR1,V64motion]
i would try and find a facelift model 270 CDI if i were to buy one at all,the 320 is heavy on fuel been heavy and 4 wd and also ive heard of some gearbox faults on the early ones, however in the CLK i had the box was fine, the BMW X5 is a good car but as always in this specific area i would get a Range Rover.[/quote]
Rangie was first choice, but getting a late model (1998 - 2000) in my budget that does not look completely shagged is hard ... not sure if its poor build quality or my budget
I will not be using this thing for offroading
it is purely a fit for purpose thing for moving my father about, that is also capable on motorways and provides some comfort (wife factor)
Fuel economy is not a major issue - wont do more than 10k / year ... reliability is .. i use AA Relay enough with the jag.
OK .. so the 320 is out ... its either reliability of the oilburner or the performance and oilwell emptying nature of the 430 ..
...
i would try and find a facelift model 270 CDI if i were to buy one at all,the 320 is heavy on fuel been heavy and 4 wd and also ive heard of some gearbox faults on the early ones, however in the CLK i had the box was fine, the BMW X5 is a good car but as always in this specific area i would get a Range Rover.[/quote]
Rangie was first choice, but getting a late model (1998 - 2000) in my budget that does not look completely shagged is hard ... not sure if its poor build quality or my budget
I will not be using this thing for offroading
it is purely a fit for purpose thing for moving my father about, that is also capable on motorways and provides some comfort (wife factor) Fuel economy is not a major issue - wont do more than 10k / year ... reliability is .. i use AA Relay enough with the jag.
OK .. so the 320 is out ... its either reliability of the oilburner or the performance and oilwell emptying nature of the 430 ..
...
paracetamol said:
Why not just get a good MPV instead of an overweight lethien of car??? They drive horribly!
Its a principle thing ... Just me and the wife normally, no kids or plans for kids. If my mother sees us with a Baby Carriage then the unsubtle hints will get unbearable.
Also a tow car would be handy .. (boats / possible future track day car)
try to find a decent facelift 270 CDI, there wont be a lot of difference in performance between that and the 320 but there will be in the fuel economy, ive never driven a 430 one, i have driven a CLK 430 and that was bad on fuel, that weighs less than the ML and is 2 wheel drive so i cant imagine how bad it would be, i agree finding a decent late 90s-early 2000 Range Rover is a bit difficult and if you dont want to take it off road it doesnt really pose any real advantage over the ML but i just personally prefer them.
YamR1-V64motion said:
try to find a decent facelift 270 CDI, there wont be a lot of difference in performance between that and the 320 but there will be in the fuel economy, ive never driven a 430 one, i have driven a CLK 430 and that was bad on fuel, that weighs less than the ML and is 2 wheel drive so i cant imagine how bad it would be, i agree finding a decent late 90s-early 2000 Range Rover is a bit difficult and if you dont want to take it off road it doesnt really pose any real advantage over the ML but i just personally prefer them.
I agree, i prefer the rangies ... but the suspension problems and other horror stories scare me more than those of the ML ..
It may go down some rough country tracks ... but nothing thats not concidered as a public highway ... its been chosen for other resons of "practicality", and i feel that i would probably insult a "real" offroader!!
edited a second time to say ahh ... its the comma that messes up the quote formats
ok .. if the 430 was thirsty in the CLK i probably dont even want to know what it will be like in the ML ....
cheers for your input!
>> Edited by xjsjohn on Monday 8th May 16:06
>> Edited by xjsjohn on Monday 8th May 16:07
It's said that the quality gets better post face-lift, so if you can aim for 2002 or later if budget stretches. A warranty or deep pockets is a necessity if you drop for a lemon, as fixing them ain't cheap!! Servicing
I also dismissed Range Rovers on the basis that they would be costly to service and repair, air suspension especially. However my father-in-law has just made the reverse decision, as he thinks the ML service/repair costs are high!!
Ours (2003) has been back to the dealer quite a few times, but only one thing was serious - had both cats replaced under warranty at 15 months old, at a cost of £3400!! Rest were relatively minor, but made worse by poor dealer. Since changed to a different dealer who are much better!!
Expect mid-20's mpg pottering about, but you can break 30 mpg on a motorway cruise. We get about 26 mpg towing our caravan.
Plenty of outfits can chip the 270, and www.dmsautomotive.co.uk claim 215 bhp for around £1000 IIRC. Watch out of towing with a chipped diesel though as I've heard that the higher exhaust gas temperatures on a chipped car are pushed higher when under load.
Finally, we've been pleased with our despite the odd problem. Reputation isn't great, but at second hand prices, they're fairly good value I reckon - notably cheaper than X5 for example.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do...
I also dismissed Range Rovers on the basis that they would be costly to service and repair, air suspension especially. However my father-in-law has just made the reverse decision, as he thinks the ML service/repair costs are high!!
Ours (2003) has been back to the dealer quite a few times, but only one thing was serious - had both cats replaced under warranty at 15 months old, at a cost of £3400!! Rest were relatively minor, but made worse by poor dealer. Since changed to a different dealer who are much better!!
Expect mid-20's mpg pottering about, but you can break 30 mpg on a motorway cruise. We get about 26 mpg towing our caravan.
Plenty of outfits can chip the 270, and www.dmsautomotive.co.uk claim 215 bhp for around £1000 IIRC. Watch out of towing with a chipped diesel though as I've heard that the higher exhaust gas temperatures on a chipped car are pushed higher when under load.
Finally, we've been pleased with our despite the odd problem. Reputation isn't great, but at second hand prices, they're fairly good value I reckon - notably cheaper than X5 for example.
Good luck with whatever you choose to do...
xjsjohn said:
[quote=YamR1,V64motion]
i would try and find a facelift model 270 CDI if i were to buy one at all,the 320 is heavy on fuel been heavy and 4 wd and also ive heard of some gearbox faults on the early ones, however in the CLK i had the box was fine, the BMW X5 is a good car but as always in this specific area i would get a Range Rover.
Rangie was first choice, but getting a late model (1998 - 2000) in my budget that does not look completely shagged is hard ... not sure if its poor build quality or my budget
I will not be using this thing for offroading
it is purely a fit for purpose thing for moving my father about, that is also capable on motorways and provides some comfort (wife factor) Fuel economy is not a major issue - wont do more than 10k / year ... reliability is .. i use AA Relay enough with the jag.
OK .. so the 320 is out ... its either reliability of the oilburner or the performance and oilwell emptying nature of the 430 ..
...[/quote]
For your budget you should well be able to get a 1999-2000 4.0 se. On the issue of X5,s i have the use of one from time to time a 3.0D sport and must say that i find the engine and performance far superior to the ML 270 but the ride to be quite appalling when compared to the RR p38 or L322 its just to hard in a vechile with a high center of gravity.
Thanks for all comments here, and for suggestions ... have found that it looks like i get a better range rover for my budget that an ML, and that (to my shock) once placed in one, the wife preferred the rangie too .. shock and horror.
Off to the rangie forums for buying advice now !!
Again, thanks for the help and the persuasion !!
Off to the rangie forums for buying advice now !!
Again, thanks for the help and the persuasion !!
Hate to rain on the parade a bit late but from my experience you will be left with a bigger bill with the Rangie than the ML - ML is a highly under-rated vehicle the reputation of which has mainly suffered from poor dealer back-up rather than reliability issues as mentioned by others. Nearly everyone I know with a Rangie has had whopping bills and constant niggles (cars are 2000 on) whereas the MLs have been more reasonable by comparison. Best choice would be a lux pack ML270 CDI post facelift, these hold value compared to the petrol guzzling brothers (ML430 - 14 mpg) and if you have a good local independent then the servicing isn't rediculous.
Have had an ML270 CDI (2001 Facelift) since 2002. No major issues. Not the most exciting of cars but my wife loves it and good for ferrying the children and assorted animals etc around. Went for lux (leather) and family pack (7 seater). Last service at around 56,000 was £2k (ouch..!) included pads and discs all round.. Service indicator shows next service is about 1000 miles off which means about a 19K-ish service interval which is pretty reasonable.
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