Hey guys.

Just a quick update, in case anybody was curious, the problem turned out to be lifters - as in they were pretty much shot. The lifter leakdown was bad enough to cause some of the valves to not open fuly, resulting in the miss, and the rampant ticking noise.

The cause? Weill, with only 20,000 kilometers on the odometer in seven years, the Mercedes mechanic that initially diagnosed the problem stated that the lifters simply sat 'disused' (i.e. not lubricated) for far too long, causing them to seize.

There is zero structural damage inside the engine from this, but the noise was getting very annoying... thank goodness for warranties, I wouldn't want to 'out of pocket' pay for this. I'm familiar with old-style SOHC & pushrod engines, so I was never entirely sure about what was causing this problem - I've only worked with solid lifters in the past. It's good to finally have it sorted out.

Thanks again to those of you who tried to help, and if anyone encounters a similiar noise with their car later on, maybe this thread will help you diagnose it!