I would think for as many of these cars are still on the road, better pictures, diagrams would be available. Text is comprehensive and complete, but lack of good illustrations is disappointing.

A good book like all the haynes manuals I have. Buy a MB shop book if you want the real dirt but this book does well for the usual tasks.

I knew I got a manual around somewhere, then I figured, why not just get a manual? so I did, and it serves its purpose.

If you plan on doing serious work on your Mercedes, this is NOT the only manual you'll need. It is, however, a useful maintenance reference that nicely fills the gap between the owner's manual and the factory service CD. It's also useful for alternate procedures that don't assume you have the special tools that the factory procedures require. The pictures are clear, and the diagrams are mostly lifted directly from the factory service manual.

After reading some of the bad reviews for this manual, I bought it. The Haynes manual is good for the price and compares with all of the other Haynes manuals in general quality. It is certainly better than the other CH****N auto repair manual that uses the same engine pictures no matter what car you have. The manual actually has pictures and diagrams from the referenced car. This manual has enough information for the 123 body style diesel Mercedes owner with average intelligence. The engine / body / electrical and systems information is enough to get you through most diagnoses and repairs. It does NOT cover rebuilding the transmission or rear differential, just servicing (what do you expect for $15.00). If you are going to perform a rebuild on these components, you would be stupid not to have the shop manuals anyway. The pictures are not too clear (B/W) and it could be improved if they had more exploded line diagrams and drawings for the more complex items. Overall this book and Haynes manuals in general do a good job of covering what most of us need at a reasonable price (< $15.00). Try replacing the sunroof drive motor without a manual.

This review echoes the words of Cliff Hunt of Indiana. Unless you're trapped in the Arctic tundra and need to know how to change your oil, don't bother with this book. A common problem with MB diesels is smoke coming from the exhaust pipe and this book doesn't even mention that.
I bought mine from an auto parts dealer, wrapped in plastic and unreturnable of course, and realized perusing it in the parking lot I had wasted my money.

This manual is a consistent with others in this series. For [...], it is better than not having any information ... but not much better. Most of the procedures are sketchy at best, they will get an inexperienced mechanic into trouble quickly by omitting key steps in repair procedures. In many parts of the book, you will read "due ot the complexity of [fill in part or system here] ... this should not be undertaken by the home mechanic." They then proceed to omit the important information and provide you with generic procedures. Save your pennies and invest in the official Mercedes-Benz manaul.

This is an excellent reference for the owners of 123-style MB diesels. However, if you own a 126 or other, this will give you potential hints, but will not apply to all the issues you may face. You will need other references to cover those, such as either "used" MB shop manuals, or by finding a decently-priced copy of the "official" MB repair manuals on CD-ROM ...

Exteremly well documented book, concisely written. Lots of photos to explain every phase of servicing your Contour. The only reason why it is not a 5-star piece is that it is "too much" for the average customer, and too little for the pros. Would be nice to have a book written for "dummies" like me... I guess I am asking for too much.