Thinking about a C Class..

[dr matt uk]

Evening all,

We've got an Audi A6 tdi Avant at the mo, but looking to trade into a smaller saloon. I want a relaxing automatic commuter car for the daily grind.
And the last of the 'old' 2007 C Class cars are looking like rather good value. By the way, I've never had a Merc before, now seems like a good time to give one a go.

So, what is the pick of the bunch on these?
I do about 15,000 miles a year but open to petrol and diesel options.
Avantgarde SE looks like a plentiful spec - worth the premuim over a classic SE?

And what should I look out for? Known issues? High service bills? Thirsty engines?

Any help or pointers in the right direction would be much appreciated.

Thanks in advance.

Edited by dr matt uk on Wednesday 2nd April 23:11

[Mikey_W]

Which engine has your A6 TDI got? 1.9 or 2.5?

That might determine which C Class to go for..

Personally depending on your budget i'd go for a C220CDI Avantgarde SE, it has enough performance / economy...

http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk/www/cars/MERC...

Or if your budget can stretch then go for the 320CDI Avantgarde, that engine is excellent (510nm torque )

http://search.autotrader.co.uk/es-uk/www/cars/MERC...

Avoid the C200CDI & C180 Petrol they are lethergic. I cannot comment on any other of the petrol variants i'm yet to drive them

[dr matt uk]

Thanks for your comment Mikey - much appreciated.

The C220D does seem to be the engine recommended most frequently, so I'll get up to a showroom for a test drive.

Thanks

[Wacky Racer]

Just picked up a new "C" class a couple of days ago, lovely car, faultless in fact, any questions feel free to ask....

[Wacky Racer]

Mikey_W said:

Avoid the C200CDI & C180 Petrol they are lethergic. I cannot comment on any other of the petrol variants i'm yet to drive them

Sorry Mikey, I disagree...

I have gone for the C180 petrol, there is more than enough power for the "average" driver...(135mph), remember this engine is supercharged......I agree if you are a "sporting" driver you might want a bit more power, but we have just p/x a six month old 320cdi CLS,(it was just too big) and in "normal road conditions" I don't think there will be much in it....

Where the 320 would score is as a motorway mile muncher, but how often can you exceed 70/80/90 in today's conditions???

[dr matt uk]

Wacky Racer said:

Just picked up a new "C" class a couple of days ago, lovely car, faultless in fact, any questions feel free to ask....

Sounds great - is it the new model? SWIMBO has imposed sanctions on my next car budget due to other projects we have on the go

With a £20k max budget the new model looks just out of reach for me. But the old shape prices seem very soft.

[Wacky Racer]

dr matt uk said:

Wacky Racer said:

Just picked up a new "C" class a couple of days ago, lovely car, faultless in fact, any questions feel free to ask....

Sounds great - is it the new model? SWIMBO has imposed sanctions on my next car budget due to other projects we have on the go

With a £20k max budget the new model looks just out of reach for me. But the old shape prices seem very soft.

Mrs WR has just bought a new Mini Cooper "S" last week for exactly the same price £21800...(approx)

(8% discount on the Mercedes, none on the mini)

Mercedes overpriced??...I don't think so......

[dr matt uk]

Wacky Racer said:

Mikey_W said:

Avoid the C200CDI & C180 Petrol they are lethergic. I cannot comment on any other of the petrol variants i'm yet to drive them

Sorry Mikey, I disagree...

I have gone for the C180 petrol, there is more than enough power for the "average" driver...(135mph), remember this engine is supercharged......I agree if you are a "sporting" driver you might want a bit more power, but we have just p/x a six month old 320cdi CLS,(it was just too big) and in "normal road conditions" I don't think there will be much in it....

Where the 320 would score is as a motorway mile muncher, but how often can you exceed 70/80/90 in today's conditions???

This is an interesting point and the reason I have booked in tomorrow to test drive a 220D and also a 180K. This car is a commuter car and will spend a vast majority of its time on the M25 in the rush hour.
Handling and power would be nice, but I'm not really willing to pay a premium for them as I feel it will be a waste on this car. I value my license so rarely stray above NSL and tend to try and avoid press-on driving on the UK motorway network as it makes me feel much more tired and stressed at the end of a long journey.

Smoothness, a good auto, nice stero and comfort are top of my list this time. Plus the company pays more per mile for petrol and diesel cars. I've heard very mixed reports about the 180K so I'll have to wait to have a go. Could well be the smart choice as prices seem to be a good grand or two below the C220D.

Thanks

[dr matt uk]

WR - congrats, that is a fine looking car. I had the pleasure of tooling around in C350 Elegance for a week last year when the new C arrived - loved it.

Have you owned the previous model C that I am looking into?
Will it feel very old hat and obviously last generation?

Saying that, I am in a C5 model 1.9tdi A6 Avant, so far from spoiled by cutting edge dynamics at the moment on my daily driver..

[Wacky Racer]

dr matt uk said:

Have you owned the previous model C that I am looking into?
Will it feel very old hat and obviously last generation?

Matt, sorry no experience of the "old" model, although my near neighbours both have "mint" two year old models.....

My point was if your budget is around 20k, if you push the boat out, for not MUCH more you could get a brand new 180k SE......

Still, your choice, but as I said I achieved 8% discount with a little bit of friendly haggling..

[Wigeon Incognito]

Wacky Racer said:

This is EXACTLY the same as mine, (even the colour) except mine does not have parktronic.....

Erm, I don't mean to be pedantic but that isn't a C-Class - that's an artist's impression of what they believed the new C-Class may look like before it came out based on a CLS.

This is the real deal:



I agree they're cracking cars though, I had the pleasue of driving a 220CDI Sport that looked fantastic in white and as an everyday, practical, modern car it was hard to fault.

Edited by Wigeon Incognito on Thursday 3rd April 11:52

[siwil1]

My wife has the 180k engine in her coupe and I must say that initially it felt very lethargic but now it has loosend up a bit (14k mls)it feels much better and the fuel consumption is also getting better all the time. Its mainly used as a school run car and since day 1 has returned 31mpg av.(she dosent know how to work the computer to reset it ) its now prob ave 33/34 mpg and I'm sure on a steady run you would see 40+. The car is a 56 plate and I must say I think its very well screwed together and we havent had any probs at all, Its not even had to be serviced yet! (another 3k mls according to the computer).

HTH

[Simz]

^^^LOL What a good read, one day!

[Wacky Racer]

Wigeon Incognito said:

Erm, I don't mean to be pedantic but that isn't a C-Class - that's an artist's impression of what they believed the new C-Class may look like before it came out based on a CLS.

This is the real deal:

Sorry for late reply, been out all day:-

Yeah, sorry about that, of course you are quite right, I clicked on the wrong image by mistake....

[Wacky Racer]

siwil1 said:

My wife has the 180k engine in her coupe and I must say that initially it felt very lethargic but now it has loosend up a bit (14k mls)it feels much better and the fuel consumption is also getting better all the time. Its mainly used as a school run car and since day 1 has returned 31mpg av.(she dosent know how to work the computer to reset it ) its now prob ave 33/34 mpg and I'm sure on a steady run you would see 40+. The car is a 56 plate and I must say I think its very well screwed together and we havent had any probs at all, Its not even had to be serviced yet! (another 3k mls according to the computer).

HTH

Mrs WR sold a 180k coupe last year, she bought new in 2003, 30,000 miles, completely faultless, well screwed together etc, and actually very fast and long legged on the motorway using the (manual) sixth gear.....Lovely car....

[dr matt uk]

Ah, I thought that top picture had more than a hit CLS about it..

[Wacky Racer]

dr matt uk said:

Ah, I thought that top picture had more than a hint of CLS about it..

Yeah, sorry about that, here are the ACTUAL pictures.....

[dr matt uk]

Wacky Racer said:

dr matt uk said:

Ah, I thought that top picture had more than a hint of CLS about it..

Yeah, sorry about that, here are the ACTUAL pictures.....

That is a good looking car, Sir. I can't stretch the budget any further though. £17.5k was my actual target, with just a bit of leeway for the right car..

[siwil1]

Wacky Racer said:

siwil1 said:

My wife has the 180k engine in her coupe and I must say that initially it felt very lethargic but now it has loosend up a bit (14k mls)it feels much better and the fuel consumption is also getting better all the time. Its mainly used as a school run car and since day 1 has returned 31mpg av.(she dosent know how to work the computer to reset it ) its now prob ave 33/34 mpg and I'm sure on a steady run you would see 40+. The car is a 56 plate and I must say I think its very well screwed together and we havent had any probs at all, Its not even had to be serviced yet! (another 3k mls according to the computer).

HTH

Mrs WR sold a 180k coupe last year, she bought new in 2003, 30,000 miles, completely faultless, well screwed together etc, and actually very fast and long legged on the motorway using the (manual) sixth gear.....Lovely car....

to be fair the lethargy may have been a bit harsh as I could only compare it to my Elise at the time !

Out of interest and not meaning to thread hijack but how was the depreciation over 3yrs on the 180 coupe?

[Wacky Racer]

siwil1 said:

Out of interest and not meaning to thread hijack but how was the depreciation over 3yrs on the 180 coupe?

Actually it was four years...1.8kSE

Bought in 03 for £21k

Sold in 07...(px price) for 9.5k......AI unmarked perfect condition...30,000 miles...

So not too bad I don't think, seeing as you lose the VAT and dealer's profit soon as you drive out of the showroom....

The new (latest) Coupes are to be built in Brazil btw......