ML320 Quality

Well price being a factor, the '98 and '99 models can be a great deal. I have bought them (for resale) with up to 150,000 miles and have had no major problems with them (even as purchased) and few minor ones. Many of the problems were assembly quality and shoddy interior components, which have of course been repaired and upgraded early on under warranty.

Bill Ditmire Ditmire Motorworks,Inc.

It seems that the reliability has improved a bit each year. But even a 2003 is no match for the best Japanese SUVs. OTOH, the data shows it better than the X5. My bet is the new XC90s and Touraregs are going to be grim as well, so in the group of Euro SUVs, I'd rate the ML to be near the top now.

Later is better, but the only years I'd really try to avoid are the 98's and

- Mark

My neighbour has had to take his back about fifteen times because of broken electric windows. They just keep on breaking.

I think modern Mercedes are the "Jaguar" of the new century. Nice to look at, but shockingly unreliable. Look at their JD Powers position - every year they just go down and down!

If you think Jaguar is bad, I don't know what you would make of a little British car maker called TVR. Stunningly quick and pretty, but equally stunningly badly built and unreliable.

However, for 30,000 ukpds you can get a car that does 0-60 in about 4.5 secs, so can't complain!

There was a design flaw in the original switches. The switch assembly was replaced with a new design over a year ago. If your neighbor is still having problems, he needs to find a new dealership for service. If it's out of warranty, the part is very inexpensive ($50 or so) and can easily be replaced with nothing more than basic mechanical abilities and Philips screwdriver.

- RODNEY