vinkodex.V-Class W638: corrosion, electrical faults, weak brake system
It does not show up on every car. Check before you buy.
expensive
severity
not available
mileage
2
sources
2 sources next to the write-up.
The fault
How you spot it
The quality problems of the first V-Class (internal code W 638, 1996 to 2003) cannot be narrowed to one part: according to the German technical press the series suffered from several kinds of quality problem through to the end of production.
- Widespread corrosion. On a twenty to thirty year old MPV the question is how far the rust has gone.
- Vehicle electrics, and within that the electronic level control (ENR) by name.
- The maker introduced comprehensive revisions even in 2003, the last production year, which means an early and a late car are not the same vehicle.
In its 2014 used car report the DEKRA singled out the brake system, and rated the quality of the series poor overall.
On the W638 the condition of the individual car decides, not the model.
Which model
Who it affects
The card opens the generation, the engine or the transmission.
Generations and models
1 generations.
Mercedes-Benz
W638
V-Class
M 93 / CC BY-SA 3.0 de
Mercedes-Benz V-Class W638
1996–2003
vinkodex.Checklist
V-Class W638: corrosion, electrical faults, weak brake system
What you would check for this fault. Take it to the car.
Before you buy
Checklist
What you tick stays on this device only.
Sources
How we know
Information, not an expert opinion
We write the descriptions, and we put the source next to them. A person reviews them before they go out. They are still information, not a technical expert opinion.
- A fault on the list does not mean the car you are looking at has it.
- A fault missing from the list does not mean the model is fault-free. Write-ups are made model by model. Not all of them are done.
- You decide whether to buy. This is no substitute for an inspection. That needs a workshop and a history check.