After owning several MB cars over the years, I purchased a MB E320 Cdi car in April 2004. They overcharged me with the car road tax to begin with, 13 months???

There has been a knocking noise since the day I bought it, it has been back nine times to MB to fix this fault without success. I have taken the car to two different MB garages and they have replaced the entire suspension system several times, and still the noise is there each time I take it over any uneven roads and especially speed bumps.

Their head office offer the usual apologies and then you hear nothing from them because they pass the buck to the local MB dealer. MB have told me they are aware of this fault on some new MB cars but they cannot find the fault, let alone fix it. MB have noticed this fault on some brand new cars, but cannot explain why it happens on some cars and not others!!

MB Tamworth have now told me there is nothing more they can do and I have to accept this fault as a standard feature of this particular model. Do I look like an idiot who spends nearly £40k on a new car and have to live with a noise coming from beneath the car each time it goes over a bump. I think not! The general manager from MB Tamworth has told me they have done all they can and can do no more, I pointed out why have MB tried to fix this problem on so many occasions over the past year or so, his response was that MB was just trying to please me!

I have taken legal advice and intend to take the matter further. Don't buy the new E320 Cdi, in my opinion, you may regret it.

From what I hear, my experience with a 2000 model Mercedes Benz E Class 320 Elegance estate executive car is pretty typical.

My car has major surface rust on its bonnet, rear wings + wheelarches, all four doors, and the rear tailgate. In addition, the roof and bonnet are peppered with small blisters under the paint, all of which are heading towards eruptions of one kind or another. MB assure me these are 'stone chips' - utter nonsense of course, but that's MB for you.

Recent model Mercedes cars (particularly Cs, Es, CLs and CLKs) corrode like a 1972 Fiat.

A switch to water-based paint around 2000 and an insane attempt to improve falling profit margins by reducing paint specs to just 100 microns (250 would be appropriate for a decent car) has caused enormous problems for MB - or more accurately, for owners of its poorly built cars.

Initially, the firm quietly undertook to replace entire panels, but during 2004, there was a switch of policy to a quick shot-blast and 'blow-over' with paint. Dealers are allowed just a couple of hours labour + materials for each panel, so MB's spend per rusty panel is probably around £50.00. Nice savings for MB, and a guarantee of further rot in future for the hapless owner.

Of course, many of us have 30 year perforation warranties on our cars. Sadly, this is of little help. For starters, most MB rust is due to the appalling paint quality - rust rarely starts from the inside, so there is often no 'perforation' at all, just a spreading eyesore of flaking, disintegrating paint. This allows MB to duck its responsibilities at any time it chooses. Most rust repairs being conducted by MB at present are 'goodwill' repairs.

In any event, miss just one dealer service and your 30 year warranty is void.

The result, of course, is that residuals on MB cars are now very poor. I was offered just £8,500 by an MB dealer for my July 2000 E-class estate - original list around £48k. This is the worst depreciation figure I have ever seen for any car, regardless of make or model.

How sad it is to see a 'quality' carmaker lose its way so quickly.

Smart car anyone?