Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate?

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 17:28
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - bazomis
Hello,

I'm interested to learn what drivers on here move on to after having owned an E Class Mercedes Estate? Is it another Estate or SUV? Is it an Audi, BMW, Land Rover/Range Rover (which model?) or something completely different like a Bentley or a Tesla?

I would be very interested to know as it may well influence my next purchase.

Thanks
Bazomis
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Thu 20 Aug 2020 17:52
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - badbusdriver

There can't possibly be a straight answer to this, it depends entirely on circumstance.

Why did you buy an E-Class estate (one of the biggest estates you can get in this country)?. Was it because you liked its looks?, or was it because you needed a big estate for family duties?. If it was the latter, and the kids have flown the nest, why would you want another huge estate, or indeed a huge SUV?. BTW, if you do choose to go for a big SUV, be aware that Land Rover products are consistently amongst the least reliable cars you can buy at any price!.

But, frankly i have no idea why, what others buy after an E-Class estate should influence what you buy?.

You are an individual, buy what you want not what you feel you ought to.

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 18:05
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Metropolis.
As soon as I saw Land Rover mentioned, I knew BBD would be in the thread, you seem to have a bit of a fix on JLR. I am not even disputing they have a reliability/build quality problem, but so do other makes accompanying them at the bottom of the rankings, Audi and BMW were below them in 2019. You are coming across a little bit obsessed. Have you ever owned one?

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 19:07
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - bazomis
I bought it for the space (family, luggage and dog), motorway cruising between Oxford and Edinburgh and because it felt like a 'grown up's' car. I am now 58. I wouldn't buy another Mercedes despite the pleasure I have experienced driving this one simply because of the Mercedes 's******ships' and costs of servicing, maintaining (averaging £700 pa over 10 years) and repairing often known if denied faults with the coolant and suspension systems. I've lost count of the number of diagnostic charges I've incurred. So I wouldn't buy another. I've had Audis (ok), BMWs (less so) and a LR Defender and Disco (worst of all) in the past and am a bit lost on what to buy next that will provide both pleasure driving and better value for money. I have repeatedly thought about a Vogue but am put off by depreciation, vast servicing costs (£900+ a time) and image.

Bazomis
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Tue 25 Aug 2020 11:16
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - expat
I bought it for the space (family, luggage and dog), motorway cruising between Oxford and Edinburgh and because it felt like a 'grown up's' car.

A big estate is absolutely the right car for carrying lots of stuff long distances at speed. You don't want to be crammed into a little hatchback for that.

I notice that you didn't mention if you want an auto or a manual. I assume the Merc would have been a torque convertor auto. If you are looking for an auto then think very carefully before getting a VAG car. They use a dual clutch automated manual and it does not have a good reputation. Nor are VAG terribly good at helping people whose transmission fails just out of warranty. Why not have a look at a Subaru Outback? There are not many about but they are largish and reliable.

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Tue 25 Aug 2020 19:12
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - John F
I wouldn't buy another Mercedes ......simply because of the Mercedes 's******ships' and costs of servicing, maintaining (averaging £700 pa over 10 years) and repairing often known if denied faults with the coolant and suspension systems. I've lost count of the number of diagnostic charges I've incurred. ................... I've had Audis (ok)......

....so how about an S4 or S6 Avant? Or even an RS if you are feeling flush. If I was in my 50s, a well paid job, kids left home, no significant expenses, I think that twin turbo V6 is a peach. I get the impression you could afford one, too ;-)

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 17:57
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - mcb100
A better question, surely, is one to ask yourself - did the E Class do what I wanted it to do?
If it did, and suited your lifestyle perfectly, buy another one.
If it didn’t, analyse why it didn’t and look for an alternative that may do a better job.
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Thu 20 Aug 2020 18:32
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - badbusdriver

Have you ever owned one?

No, but that has no relevance to LR's positions in reliability surveys.

As soon as I saw Land Rover mentioned, I knew BBD would be in the thread, you seem to have a bit of a fix on JLR. I am not even disputing they have a reliability/build quality problem, but so do other makes accompanying them at the bottom of the rankings, Audi and BMW were below them in 2019. You are coming across a little bit obsessed.

This is a forum where people ask advice about buying cars. We wouldn't be doing very well if we didn't point out that a car they were considering is likely to prove unreliable. And doing so when a relevant post comes up (not that often really) hardly constitutes as an obsession does it?. If you feel it does, then i guess, amongst others, SLO must be obsessed too.

Not sure what reliability survey you have been looking at, but What Car's 2019 survey places LR (as a brand) 31st out of 31. Audi are 20th, BMW 21st and Merc 24th.

On top of that, a recent thread citing a survey in Auto Express places LR dealers as the worst for customer satisfaction too....

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 18:39
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Metropolis.
Thing is, very often the forum post is unrelated to car reliability, or mention of LR, but you will still bring it up one way or another. I would not class SLO (not that my opinion matters) as obsessed, his LR comments are usually limited to recalling discovery owners trading in for Shoguns when he was I the business, but he tends not to mention them every single thread. Noticed this for a long while and it started to bug me. The reliability survey I referred to was this one (link below).

europe.jdpower.com/press-releases/2019-uk-vehicle-...y
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Fri 21 Aug 2020 09:51
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - John F
A better question, surely, is one to ask yourself - did the E Class do what I wanted it to do? If it did, and suited your lifestyle perfectly, buy another one.

An even better question - why buy one of these expensive moneypits in the first place? I also wanted reasonably fast comfortable commodious estates for SWMBO and family, so we had a Passat GL5 1984 - 1994, Passat 2.0GL 1994 - 2004, Ford Focus 2004 - 2019. Total cost £25,500 (bought used). Our total mileage 530,000. Capital (depreciation) cost 4.8p per mile. 35 years ownership for around the OP's annual repair costs. All were reliable, biggest bill I can remember was for a failed water pump. A son now has the Focus. MB? You must be joking.

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 18:25
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - jthan

Well, I had a C class estate (admittedly not an E) and replaced it with a RAV4, with which I have been much happier. Much simpler and better build, a lot roomier and completely trouble-free. Neither of the Cs I had were troublesome, but they did have a couple of minor issues, whereas the RAV4 has had none.

Admittedly, the last C was a much better driving car than the RAV4, especially on motorways. And unlike some commentators here, I was unimpressed by my local Toyota garage, whereas the only gripe I've had with MB garages in the past has been cost.

The interior finish of the C was vastly better than the RAV4 too, but the mechanicals were rougher.

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 18:46
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - gordonbennet

We buy older cars, so probably not a typical answer.

The first proper estate to replace our old Merc estate was a Hilux pick up with hardtop (only new car i've ever bought), then a Subaru Outback, which in turn has been replaced by a Subaru Forester, Forester happened to be a low mileage bargain it could easily have been another Outback.

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 19:26
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - badbusdriver

Thing is, very often the forum post is unrelated to car reliability, or mention of LR, but you will still bring it up one way or another.

Show me an example of this

I don't mention LR's reliability in every thread, only the ones where folk are thinking of buying one.

And i am certainly not going to stop just because it has started to bug you!.

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Thu 20 Aug 2020 20:02
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Avant

Let's concentrate this thread on Bazomis's question please.

As MCB100 rightly implied above, Bazomis, you need first to decide what your budget, needs and priorities are.

There was a thread you started a few weeks ago where you were thinking of paying about £25k. Is that still the case?

Needs - size (for people and / or luggage), mileage (to determine whether you are best off going for petrol or diesel), and priorities - fun to drive or just a means of getting from A to B?

If you want another big, roomy estate, you'll get a much newer Skoda Superb for £25k than you will a premium brand; or think also about a Volvo. If you want a big car that doesn't have to be an estate, consider a Lexus.

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Fri 21 Aug 2020 08:52
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - bazomis
Well spotted!

I've given up on a £25k budget and VED of £150pa as pretty much all I could get would be a Skoda!

Bazomis
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Fri 21 Aug 2020 09:19
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Avant

If you still need a big estate car, test-drive a Skoda. You might be pleasantly surprised.

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Fri 21 Aug 2020 10:09
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - tim10597

I’d take the Skoda! The Octavia I bought 20 years ago was an absolutely brilliant car, only sold when I got a company car and couldn’t justify keeping it. The Superb estate strikes me as being amazing value for money if bought shrewdly.

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Sat 22 Aug 2020 09:15
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - edlithgow

You don't get estates here in Taiwan. Aren't they Volvos?

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Mon 24 Aug 2020 09:40
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - KBB
Well spotted! I've given up on a £25k budget and VED of £150pa as pretty much all I could get would be a Skoda! Bazomis

You say that like it's a bad thing. I have a 2018 Superb (hatch not estate but the boot is huge and should be big enough unless you regularly carry lots of bulky stuff) and would highly recommend it, as long as you can get comfortable (go for a decent test drive). Seat comfort is, of course, a very personal thing and the vast majority of people seem to find the Skoda seats perfectly fine.

Last week we had a 2016 Passat as a hire car on holiday. I found the seats more comfortable but other than that I would say the Superb was at least as good in every other area.

You do, of course, have to get past the badge but if you're not willing to pay the "premium car VED supplement" then you're not going to be able to buy a premium car!

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Sat 22 Aug 2020 09:58
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Manatee

I have two friends who've had them. One had a W124 for over 20 years which he replaced with a new E estate about 5 years ago.

The other went 'quality' after 10 years with a troublesome Citroen XM, with a new E250 estate in about 2004. It was so unreliable he replaced it with a Mondeo estate. This is a chap who has plenty of brass, so not bought on relative price grounds. He's had it 7 or 8 years now.

Edited by Manatee on 22/08/2020 at 10:05

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Tue 25 Aug 2020 22:28
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Alby Back
I'm on my second consecutive E class estate. Between the two cars I've covered 340,000 miles in 9 years. The first one was an E250D new in 2011 and it did 200,000 fault free miles over 5 years. The current one is an E220D new in 2016 and it has done the other 140,000 without any problems.

What will I buy when it's time to change?

Another E Class estate of course. ;-)
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Wed 26 Aug 2020 12:26
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - John F
I'm on my second consecutive E class estate. Between the two cars I've covered 340,000 miles in 9 years. The first one was an E250D new in 2011 and it did 200,000 fault free miles over 5 years. The current one is an E220D new in 2016 and it has done the other 140,000 without any problems.

A good indication of how expensive miles can be when buying new, even for a high mileage driver. I doubt if there was much change, if any, out of £70k for those two cars - that's over 20p per mile so far, minus 3p per mile if you get £10K for the current car. Add in the presumably obligatory stupendous dealer 'service' bills to keep the guarantee valid....I'm breaking out into a cold sweat already ;-(

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Wed 26 Aug 2020 13:29
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Alby Back

Aye, true enough John. As I get older though, I'm increasingly of the view that while it's more than possible to get "good" cheap, or even "adequate" very cheap, that if you want "excellent" it generally costs a bit more.

A bit like a good suit, fine shoes, a quality winter coat, a good frying pan or a decent bottle of whisky, sometimes its worth paying a bit more for something that pleases you a bit more.

I had a succession of Mondeo estates ( I need big load lugging cars ) which served me very well, and indeed I wouldn't discount ever going back to those or similar, they were just fine for the purpose, but the Mercs have been such a joy to use. Only yesterday, I had to make a 250 mile round trip in biblical rain and wind, and can truthfully say I barely noticed I'd done it in the cosseting environment of my car.

Pays yer money, takes yer choice I guess. Can't take it with you as they say ! ;-)

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Wed 26 Aug 2020 18:18
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - John F

A bit like a good suit, fine shoes, a quality winter coat, a good frying pan or a decent bottle of whisky, sometimes its worth paying a bit more for something that pleases you a bit more.

Pays yer money, takes yer choice I guess. Can't take it with you as they say ! ;-)

Totally agree (apart from the pan - not my dept......). I shudder to think of the pence per mile cost of my W12 quattro (so I don't), but every mile's a joy to drive. At least the previous owners shared the cost of its eye-watering depreciation of £60k (from circa £72k to £12k) for just 50,000 miles - £1.20 per mile! Just nicely run in for me.

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Wed 26 Aug 2020 13:35
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Hugh Watt

While speculating wildly about other people's expenditures (!), maybe there's another perspective? These are presumably run as "company cars", and the employer may regard that £70k+ figure as entirely reasonable, in the context of the cost of employing Alby over that period and the profit generated by all that thrashing up and down the motorways of Europe.

(En passant, I'm always diverted by the esteemed John F's contributions, and am gratified that he too is delighted with the Peugeot 1.2 puretech engine!)

(Edit) - and just seen Alby's anticipated rejoinder!

Edited by Slow Eddie on 26/08/2020 at 13:38

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Wed 26 Aug 2020 14:05
Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI 5 dr - What do most people buy after an E-Class estate? - Alby Back

Funding my own cars now Eddie . But still of a mind that I'm happy to pay a bit more if it pleases me more. If/when I can't afford it, then so be it etc. ;-)

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