Mercedes still has nagging build problems...long (archive)

I owned a 99 ML320, which in the 3 years I owned it had $9,000.00 worh of warranty work done on it. I replaced it with a 2002 ML320, which the dealer promised would be more reliable. In the first month I had it, it was in the shop 4 times. When I took delivery of the 2002 ML, there were no less than 4 defects that were due to sloppy assembly at the factory. This should have warned me away, but I took it anyway. Finally, after the first month of being on a first name basis with the dealer's service manager, I Lemon Lawed it, went straight to Northest BMW and ordered a 2002 X5 3.0i. The BMW was flawless, except for the key memory issue, which is no big deal for me. There is no comparison between the ML & the X5. Quality of materials on the X5 is superior to the ML, as is build quality. There is also no comparison in feel & handling between the two. The ML is a truck, and the execution is very crude in comparison to the X5. I liken the ML to a not very reliable work horse, the X5 to a high spirited thoroughbred.
Even though I've read that BMWUSA is not as responsive as many would like them to be regarding problems, I can tell you from experience that MBUSA is the worst. They are arrogant, and will stonewall at the drop of a hat.

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