We're looking at replacing a couple of cars in our household -- a '93 300E and a '94 Miata. For both we're considering newer Mercedes-Benzes (a CLK and an SLK, more specifically) but are wary of them because of the reputation of the newer cars as being more troublesome than the old ones.

I've done a fair amount of reading on this forum about the quality issues and have found some good information. I do still have a couple of questions, however, and would be grateful for some assistance.

1. What sort of problems do the newer cars have? We don't expect cars to be perfect, but consider problems that can leave you stranded to be much more serious than nuisance problems. An Audi that nearly stranded us three times far away from home is fresh in our memories.

2. Is it still possible for a DIYer to work on the newer cars? One thing I love about the 300E is that I can do a lot of the maintenance myself; it goes to the mechanic only for major services and when there are problems I can't diagnose myself. If I had to take its replacement to the dealer/independent mechanic for every little thing that could be a dealbreaker.

Thanks in advance for your input.

-Mike