PoaMike

^LMAO. 1 star crash safe rating. Its like the flinstones. I think we should all go back to the steam powered idea.

Cloud9

I wanted the 6sp manual so the Sport was a no brainer for me.

Stick Girl

Ditto.

Philip LeBlanc

I am getting ready to buy a C300 Luxury for my wife. It is on the dealer lot, has P2 and every option except Pano roof. It is white with tan interior. Her current C320 is silver with Ash interior. It surprised me that she went straight to the Luxury model over a C350 Sport or 300 Sports on the lot. It is the car she will drive so it is up to her to pick out what she likes and most of all, she likes that the hood ornament is still there. I am going to bring her C320 in to have a trade-in evaluation to see if we will go that route.

aparikh1207

so I test drove both back to back today. I noticed the Luxury is slightly smoother compared to the sport. I don't know if it was just me, but the luxury seemed to have more body roll? Any one had experience with that? Thought both were good, but still undecided, love the sport exterior, but wood lux interior. The dealer said that they could convert the Lux to sport grill, has anyone done this, pictures? But I still won't get the AMG package. Hard decision as I'll have to live with it for many many years.

jstaneff

My 2 cents worth ...

I opted for the sport version. I liked the look. I too liked the wood interior of the lux version, but to be honest, I really like the shift knob (7-spd auto). The shifter doesn't look like an auto, and some friends have had to look twice because there's no obvious "path" the lever takes. Since I have the 300, my trim is aluminum

Sure the ride is "rougher", but it's still a smooth ride, a Mercedes ride. That counts for a lot.

My wife still says that the car just isn't what she thinks of as a "traditiional" Mercedes. This body style can easily be mistaken for an Accord or a Camry. Some friends have asked how I like my new Accord ... heh, I like the look on their face when I show them the star in the grill.

New style, new look, new idea: sportier than the lux, but still not a track car. Suites me just fine!

jstaneff

Just Photoshop ...

CarGuru

I went sport, my wife wanted the 18 AMG wheels & summer tires. We live in California no need what so ever for 4-Matic and the car sticks like glue in the rain surprisingly. I wanted the more sportier styling as I'm an enthusiast and my wife is not really into "Luxury Cars" she didn't grow up with money so she could care less about wood & chrome. Also the 3.0L w/ just 228 hp is more than enough if thats your price point. We traded a 2004 Acura TL (Auto) and the 3.0L in our C-300 feels quicker and more torquey than the TL or the old 2000 Maxima SE I used to own.

-Ryan

Savage c-300

well put!

chilledbenz

Lol..nice work..but if someone wanted to see what a Lux looked like with the sport grille all they had to do was look in the offical pictures thread. There are quite a few pictures there of Lux cars with the grilles.

ismeto

+1

JimPap

Two things that may matter to you.

In my opinion, you got gotta have precisely the correct tire pressure. A little high or low and the car rides much rougher. Think in 1/4 psi terms.

Secondly, if the road surface is a very textured exposed aggragate (sp?) in asphalt or badly worn and broken concrete, the car will also ride rough. If its a very smooth asphalt, it'll ride as smooth as you'd ever want.

asaini0603

I like the C300 Sports better cause the inside is nice, and so is the outside. The luxury sedan is ok, but the outside doesn't look that nice. I own a 2008 C300 Sports for about a year, and I love it.







MY C300!

cvkatigbak

6 SPEED MT love the handling, never had any transmission complaints, no knocking noises or anything. awesome car.

Spec_Davis

love my c300 6sp handles great and looks hot. lol can't wait till summer comes around i have toys to put on my C300

Distalero

Double ditto. Plus I like loonimum....aluninun....well, you know. I like the "silver" accents.

C300Sport

....me too.

jstaneff

Al You Min ee um

Petje

In Europe we can get the avantgarde also with the AMG kit.

Noticed that the luxury in the US always have the wood trims???
So all US luxury's are what we called Elegance in Europe.

In EU the Luxury elegance have the wood trim's and the luxury grill with the star on the hood, and the Avantgarde here have the Aluminium trims and the sports grill.



Here's a picture of my LUX with the Sports grill (Avantgarde)
It's an old picture when i just received the car, and i havent got a newer/better one because off the mods.

TRauppius

The 4MATIC is not absolutely necessary for driving in snow/ice. In southern Germany, where they get plenty of snow and mixed wintry precipitation, 4MATIC variants are relatively rare. When I picked up my car at the factory I was given a long fact and caution sheet regarding winter driving. I was surprised to find that in parts of Austria during the snowy months you are not permitted to drive on critical roads unless you have true snow/mountain tires mounted, irrespective of 4 wheel drive or not.

I live in eastern Pennsylvania (hilly, not much deep snow, but plenty of ice, sleet, and freezing rain), and find that while the standard all season tires do not have a ton of grip the car's great balance, RWD drive bias for decent uphill traction, and the electronic stability systems great performance do very well to get you moving, stopping, AND ESPECIALLY safely cornering.

The 4MATIC is a well designed and executed system that is driver friendly, easy to use, and significantly improves traction for starting and accelerating, but it does not improve the braking at all, and the cornering/front-clawing ability in deeper snow is just moderately helpful. They are very popular in Canada, less so in USA, and quite rare in Europe.

Also, the 4MATIC setup has a number of minus points to consider: 1) higher weight affecting performance, numerically higher axle ratio = more revs and resulting impact on mileage, loss of staggered wheel/tire looks and performance (all wheels same size in 4MATIC), and slightly higher CG and roll center.

As for your original question, I would also recommend the Sport model, the C350 if using auto tranny. If you want the wood it can be ordered as an option on the C300; an atractive Black Birdseye Maple comes standard on the C350 and you also can NC opt for the Burl Walnut or Aluminum trim.

Finally, the 2009 Sport now offer a NC option for a tan/cashmere/savanna interior with burl walnut trim that is straight out of the luxury model. You have to give up the black 3 spoke sport wheel and aluminum/rubber studded foot pedals in the deal though.

FrankW

get the luxury and get either Brabus or Carlsson kit. problem solved.

sofie0328

Get the sport. you could still get the leather pkg and wood. I just got c300 sport. It has leather seats, wood and panoramic roof. I got the 18" rims but now I'm not sure I should have gotten that with winters in jersey. But it's beautiful.

Skyline45

When I was first looking for my C300 I wanted the sport. Then I test drove it. It rides like complete $h**. I almost changed my mind all together on a new Mercedes. On a whim I decided to test the Luxury. Wow, what a great ride as opposed to the Sport. It was the awesome Mercedes "Magic Carpet Ride" I was used too in my SL, and what I was looking for. It's all a matter of how you like your car to ride is really what determines the difference between the Sport and Luxury IMO.

abqhudson

For looks/drive/handling - get the sport. If a comfortable ride is your priority - get the lux (it has a noticeably better ride over crappy streets/potholes/broken pavement/cracks). I have the sport and have driven both. YMMV.

Cody1707

id recommend getting the luxury with the sport package added thats how i got mine. i just hate the steering wheel as its still the luxury one