Overview & Reviews
All new and sporting a face anybody's mother could love, the E-Class comes in three flavors: E300 Diesel, E320 and E420. A new front suspension and larger wheels and tires provide better handling, while optional gas-discharge headlamps mark new technology. Side-impact airbags are included in the doors of all E-Class models. E420's can be had with ESP, which is a new safety system that makes sure the E420 is under control at all times. The E420 also gets a new five-speed transmission.
User Reviews:
Showing 1 through 10 of 19.00-
The Good, The Bad, & The Ugly - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By Beachlivin - October 4 - 2:00 amThis is a great car to cruise the highway and indeed, a pleasure in L.A. traffic. Its very comfortable, turns heads, and will hold its own in an accident. The V6 & 4-speed are srong and reliable, with no major issues at 160,000 miles. However, the electrical problems are a nightmare. A dashboard light comes on every 3-4,000 miles. Notorious problems include faulty EGR valves, sensors, rattles, and a stereo amplifier that will eventually die. The only ugly thing about this car was the cost to maintain it. 10 months = $3,000, without a major repair.
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Best Car Ive Ever Owned - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By Kevin - September 19 - 7:06 pmBought for $22K. Wiring Harness is the only major issue ever ($1,700 to fix). This car regularly travels 800 mi RT to Gulf Shores, 300 mi RT to Spartanburg...and she just is great on the highway. Avg fuel is 28 in the city and 34 on the highway. Ive put 120K miles on this car and she now has 223K total miles. Even my mechanic thinks this is an awesome car.
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The deisel that wasnt - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By jwkrotec - July 4 - 10:00 amThe new 4 valve deisel is a work of art. There is plenty of power for accelerating and the broad tourque curve makes highway cruising at 75 effortless. Unforntunately, many little problems with various systems have had the car spending days at the dealer. The dealer took several tries to get it right each time! very bad. At 95,000 miles the legendary Mercedes deisel stopped! I was informed that the bad fuel in this country gummed up the vanes in the induction unit and it cost $3,500 to repair. This is rediculous. One buys a deisel to prevent this sort of thing.
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Good reliability - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By highlander - March 12 - 1:06 amI drive some 6000 miles every year on the snow and ice in the mountains and the electronics takes care of the occasional error. This car has has minor corrosion problems all corrected under guarantee at no cost to myself.
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Bad MBZusa service and warranty - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By John Wang - November 20 - 2:00 amI have believed MB but so disapointed this time when the engine blowed out at 31000 miles, a screw linked gear and oil pump got broken then oil pump stopped working......... while there is no engine oil pressure indicator! I got a lemon car with poor assembling quality but MBZusa didnt want to be responsible for their design failure as well as manufacturing failure. Buy BMW!, it is much better in quality and service, I have had a 525i since 1990 and have no problem.
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Christmas tree - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By Not worth it - April 23 - 8:03 pmThis car has so many problems its hard to tell where to start. The common thread is the constant check engine message. So many pretty lights come on its like a Christmas tree lighting up. Performance and mileage are a disappointment. Ride comfort is not at all what I would expect. My wife refuses to drive it, preferring a Saturn with over 200K.
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The best selling Mercedes! - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By So.Cal_Benzo - March 15 - 10:00 amIve had this car for 2 years and it is perfect! It is a heavy car, but with an excellent V6 engine pushing out 217hp with 229 lb/ft of torque this car really goes, especially on the freeway. The passing power of this car is superb! It is built for the German Autobahn and its like a beast on the Freeway!
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Easy to repair.. and you better be good at it. - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By spammeplez - November 20 - 10:19 pmTrans went out at 150000 miles. Electrical problems and an emission gremlin that has never gone away. At 200000+ miles. Oil seep that Ive just lived with for 6+ years of ownership. Annoying but easy to deal with. Squeaky belt but since none of the components running off the belt has ever been replaced.. guess its not that big of a deal. Fuel pump went out but easy to repair plus it was the original. Again not a big deal.. Lots of little things but parts are easy to find, just as cheap/expensive as any car. But easier to repair than any Japanese car Ive ever owned. Just need to figure out the little tricks the engineers designed to make repairs easy. This car will go 300K miles.
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BENZIE 210 - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By dalworth55cars - June 1 - 11:33 pmI really enjoy this superb and silky smooth car. All aspects of the car has been positive. The car handles nicely and feels quite substancial. My only complaints are typical to many other Benzs of similar years both earlier and later. This car turns heads and is deserving of all the attention that it recieves. Mercedes really stepped up the look on the car. To date this is the best looking E-Class. The 2003 chassis doesnt look as beefy, beefy looks good for a mans car. The 1996 is a heavy and stiff car. This tank is built for the road and it superbly holds the road in all weather conditions. This is close to car heaven. That is so far.
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My first MB and most likely the last! - 1996 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
By Zenboy - July 10 - 7:53 amThis car was my first MB and due to the problems and quality most likely my last. At 100K the engine (in-line 6) began leaking oil at the head. I have also had electrical problems with the dash and rear tail-lights. I could live with these issues but the other day while driving down the road my front left spring fell out! The spring pearch had rusted off. If I was going faster someone could have been killed as my spring went bouncing down the road!
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