Does an oily under carriage indicate a serious problem?

Something is leaking. That's about all I can tell from that pic, without knowing color/feel/smell of the fluid dripping I couldn't even hazard a guess as to what it is. Will the owner allow you to remove the belly pan and try to find the source of the leak, or allow you to take it to a good Benz specialist for a pre-purchase inspection?

Of course, if the price is right, you may wish to go ahead and buy it anyway and take your chances.

Personally I have never owned a used car that didn't leak, despite my best efforts, but I tend to buy my cars more well used and older. The worst is my '93 F-150 which came to me with a blown out oil pan gasket, and even with a new gasket it is still leaking from somewhere although not nearly as badly as it was.

nate

that's a tough call. my 1979 F150 leaks extensively (motor and transmission oil leaks) but it just keeps plugging along. i just keep checking the fluid levels. A Mercedes is sort of classy compared to a F150. I don't know if I would tolerate leaks in a mercedes. I have to be careful whose driveway I park in, some people don't want an oil stain on their driveway. not sure why.

A Mercedes is no differnt from a Hunday. When they get old, gaskets leak. Doesn't mean the car is at the end of its life, its just a fact of life for any machine.

Some people are totally unable to add oil or other fluids without spilling them all over the engine compartment.

You need to be careful. Oil leakages are not normal or acceptable, especially in some countries.

Some can be easy and cheap to fix, and others can be damned expensive.

Mercedes is not normally a car which is economical to repair.

Before you buy, KNOW what is in front of you.

Cars do leak as seals get old and hard, so that is not unexpected. It could be indicative of really sloppy oil changes, leaking engine oil, transmission oil, coolant. If it's an oil leak chances are it will just continue to leak slowly and you will at some point have to decide whether to put up with the mess or get it fixed.

I would suggest having a pre-purchase inspection performed by a competent mechanic to determine whether this is serious or not and to disclose any other problems. It has apparently had some after-market additions made my Lorinser so you might want to have those looked at during the pre-purchase inspection.

I saw that, also that there was what appeared to be Japanese lettering on some of the controls; if this is for use in Japan I understand that their vehicle inspections may be more stringent than those here in the US and therefore this may be more of a concern.

nate

Think of it as free rust protection.

A little oil spill or oil leak is fine. Now, when oil starts leaking into the passenger compartment, either you have a problem or you are driving a Triumph.

--scott

Exactly. Depends upon where he lives.

An EU inspection would probably take this car off the road because of the leakage. They can be very rigid, and repairs could be very expensive.

This may be part of the reason why GB has not gotten with the EU program?

nate

(oh yes I went there )

Great Britain?

As a full member state of the European Union, I would have assumed they subscribe to those inspections. The MOT in the United Kingdom was, even years ago, more comprehensive than many state mandated auto inspections here in the USA.

thanks to everyone who responded to my inquiry... so far it's been very insightful!

it's true the car is in Japan (as am I.) sometime in 2008 I expect to be moving back to Canada and I'm searching now for a left hand drive car to take home with me. this particular 500e is looks great and the price is decent at around $8600 US with 110000 original km. Still, there are loads of these around so maybe I should seek one out that doesn't have obvious mechanical problems....

I did my R&R in Hong Kong,China in 1964.Over there, it's different.One time when I was about to step across a street in Hong Kong, I nearly got wiped out by a little Japanese car, you learn fast! They drive on the wrong side of the street over there.Interestingly, there are a few places in Canada where they drive on the wrong side of the street (or roads) too. cuhulin

They do it here in Texas too, some Saturday nights ;>)