In my household, we have the the 2000 C280 Sport that we love, for the the performance, the comfort, and the luxury, and that my wife drives minimally, plus the the '98 Camry (loaded LE) that I drive a ton. Do I consider maybe a C230, with decent fuel economy (what DO you get?) as a Camry replacement, so that I, too, can feel the love???....[Camry is 1998 w/ 71,000 mi]

 

as you probably know, benzes and toyotas are whole different ballgames. i have a 98 camry le v6 and a 98 c280 and i can tell you virtually every aspect of the car is different; the feel, the sportiness, the comfort, and the maintenance costs

are you only looking for only a benz? what is your price range?

 

I'm really conflicted...The Toyota is a dream in its own right: leather, sunroof, 25 mpg, 0 maintenance, and I drive it 800 miles a week. I always aspired to a Benz, and justified the purchase by saying it was for my wife. But when I drive it, I feel....well, I don't have to tell you. I guess I know what I GAIN if I replace the Camry with a near twin of my C280 (I'd go with a 4 cyl for mpg), but what do I LOSE? I've only had the C280 since October and so far, it's nearly painless.

 

I feel ya eddie.......I dont need to buy another Benz.....I just bought my wife a new Tahoe.....she loves trucks. But, I even thought about getting a less maintenance car myself.......Acura, Honda, Nissan.......Ive become spoiled though. All those other cars do not offer what my C280 has for the money. I luv my baby benz!!!!! I say GO FOR IT!!!!

 

hey man,
From what I've heard, the 96 C220's are the best of them all cuz it was the last year produced...they started introducting the c230's in 97 with some minor engine changes. It has more torque than a 2.2 (155 in the 2.2 vs 162 in the 2.3)...BUT for some reason, I always read that the 230's are slower than the 220's sprint to 60 (not that it's meant for speed, but interesting to notice).

I get about 25-28mpg...which is pretty good for a 10 yr old car, but it is a 4-cyl. There are a few things to look out for on the older w202s....headgasket (should have fixed by 96), wiring harness (should be fixed), MAS, fuel sender unit.

Other than the few problems, they're great cars and pretty dependible IMO. The 4 banger with the 4 speed mechanical tranny are "bulletproof" for some time. Tho they did go to the 5 speed tranny in 97...so 4 speed was in 94-96.

In '98, they did change the body styling just a tad with the rocker panels and bumpers (front and rear) on the w202's...color matched, as you notice on your c280 there and a lil more agressive looking (better than the original body kit).

other differences between the 220 and 230? mmm...not much, other than the minor engine mods, possibly some interior touch up. but other than that, same car, same ride. Reliability ratings view, 96 c220 got very good reliability ratings (4 out of 5 for mechanical) while the 97 got 3 out of 5 for mechanical.

You can probably find a good deal on '96 c220's out there.

Good luck, I hope this helps you!

 

found this on ebay (its located in Brighton)

http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/ws/eB...&category=6334

sure that would make a great family car

but yeah, your mostly going to find around 70k miles-90k miles on 96's...if your lucky, you can find one with lower.

But I think 96-98 would suit well for reliability wise.

 

man, that's interesting! I'm thinking that I'll be able to find a 2000 and keep my payments about the same as my nearly paid-off Camry. Maybe a C230K that looks identical to my C280S?

 

The C230K's are very nice as well. My grandfather has one and i love to drive it when i have the chance :p

The kompressor is good for passing and such on the highway. Well built, he hasn't had any problems with his yet! Then again, he drives it very little...it's a '99 with only about 20k miles on it.

 

man, your family events must be like an auto show! Maybe GrandpaDawg is ready and for a new ride and needs to find a loving home for his '99! Then I can have the multi-MB driveway like you...

 

haha. I don't think he's gonna give up his C230k