I'm currently borrowing/driving a 2005 C230K and I'm seriously considering purchasing it. I like the car - it's comfortable and plenty fast for my style and needs, and the price is right. Consumer reports reports excellent ratings for most categories, yet the car remains on the not recommended list. My friend purchased a new 06 C230 6cyl, and after it was in the shop for most of the time he owned it, the dealership gave him is money back (true story, transmission problems, he's now in a Lexus IS 350). He's trying to warn me away, but I think he's a bit sour on the brand. Opinon? I don't want to throw tons of money at a car and have it sit in the shop all the time or be a PITA...

 

MB's like most European cars are just not built with the same realibility you get from American and Asian cars. The quality of materials is better, just not the build quality. So it's hit and miss, I've had 5 MB's and all were pretty bad in the reliability area except for my last one which has been mechanically flawless, better than an Acura and Infiniti I had. Even with that said, you can get a lemon with any brand car, I turned an Infiniti I30 in under the lemon law.

BUT, the car is great and for many of us the joy we get from it exceeds any problems we have. Most of the problems are initial problems and after the first year of fixing what the Germans have messed up, these cars are actually quite reliable. It's best not to keep them beyond the warranty period without an extended warranty because repairs on most new cars are costly, on the MB they are very costly.

 

As with any car in mind, things can happen like this. People buy cars that have no problems till the day the car dies and some people like your friend gets a car that is at the dealer every other day.

MB is really great since the 05 is my first MB, I am very happy with the car.

I think you should get it over the IS because I think the IS is not that great to begin with. The styling on the German cars are much different than the JAP cars. I've owned many jap cars and I can say that the Germans have a different feeling.

 

That's funny because my Maxima was damn near bulletproof.

We've never had an issue with any of our Mercedes and we've had them regularly over the past 25 years. The only one that had a problem was our 1989 260E...and that was electrical, airbag didn't deploy on a head on collision.

Just be prepared to pay more for service and parts.

Erik

 

If I have one, you can have one too. Go ahead make our day & welcome to our world!!

 

Personally I have never heard of any story like yours on an 06 C230 and have never read one either. I have read tons of service related inquiries re: transmissions etc... on 06 C230's and your story puzzles me considerably.

 

get the benz!

i had a few "quirks" if you look up some of old posts, but i love the car. the sytle, the handling, the looks and seeing that three-pointed star when i drive.

just put 1,000 miles on the car this weekend and it was an ABSOLUTE pleasure. cruising down the highway at 80mph feels like you're going 50.

plus, this sport sedan is just hot

 

I agree, Most/All European models are good for its "equipment" such as a good/better engine than jap/american cars, stuff like that, but electronics jap cars is like #1, you buy a european model for its brand, but on the other hand, if u go ahead and buy a lexus, u might find to have different problems, just as much pain in the ***

 

I sent my friend a link to this post and I'll see if he won't reply in my place as he as all of the details.

 

No free service. That's all I can think of.

 

Come to the Darkside.....

 

costly to maintain, costly to modify, but thats the m-benz way of life!

and gotta be carefull where u leave the car sometimes. there are always people out there thats jealous and want to damage a beautiful car(vandalism).

other than that. theres no reason to stay away...

 

Whats there to be puzzeled about? Reading about problems does not mean you will run across specific issues. Here's the story...I bought the 06 C230 7speed auto in August (first mistake as it was one of the first cars in Northern VA) and I loved it.

At 230 miles a seal at the oil filter either broke or split or something and my car started leaking oil and filled up the oil pan. Time out of hand-2 days. At 2000 miles the car started to shift very hard from either 1-2 or 2-3 depending on the mode I was in (C-S) so I took it in to be looked at. Time out of hand-4 days. Got the car back and noticed right away that it was still doing it so after 2 weeks and a scheduled appointment I took it back. The dealer flashed TransControl and order a snap ring that was part of a service announcement (obviously you have not read everything as this is a known service announcement) and the part is special order and will take a month to get in. Time out of hand-5 days. One month later I take the car back in and Mercedes decides to not only flash the TransControl again and replace the Snap Ring, but they now want to relace the Transmission, the Torque Convertor and all seals. Time out of hand-36 days as it was Christmas and the transmission had to come from Germany.

Three days after I get my car back at the end of January it started doing it again. I inform Mercedes I am done and want a new car. Now, here comes the fun part, Mercedes said OK. I did some research and found out that I can now buy my car with all of my options PLUS Command unit and Bi-Xenons for LESS than what I paid for my car originally, so I asked for my exact car plus those two options and we would be good to go.

MBUSA NOT the dealer said nope, you want them buy the car again with those specific options as we will give you your EXACT car. So, I asked for my money back and three days later I had a check for 36k.

FYI, I went out and bought a 06 G35x not a IS350 and I can say with 100% conviction, as I have now owned both cars within a matter of months, that the G35x is a better car in all aspects.

 

I love my 05 C230K, However it's not without downside:

I love the car because:

-German built (feels solid at high speed, 130MPH no problem)
-Its a MB (mostly for the name)
-Fuel Efficient
-Good 6spd manual and feel of clutch
-Problem free so far (Knock on wood, had it for 2 years)

I dislike the car because:

-Modding is SO expansive
-No Free Maintance
-Worried about problems after warrenty expires
-SLOW as hell (A Accord V6 would probably take me)

With all that said, I take care of this car like my baby.

-Car wash once a week (depending on weather)
-Early oil change (Instead of factory's recommanded 11,000 miles, I change it every 6500 miles, Mobil 1 0w-40 of course)
-Spark plug every 40,000 miles (Factory 80k miles)
-etc... brake fluids, radiator, and so on.........pretty much doing everything in half the time of what factory recommands.

All in hope the car stays in good shape after warrenty runs out

conclusion, Overall I love my car and if I were to change to another car would mainly be the fact this car is SLOW and I would want to get a car that has more HP. (Infiniti G35 6spd and Subaru Legacy GT would be good example........Personally I don't care for the "Mercedes" name so much, I look at the car itself)

 

You Buellwinkle are very wrong

1. Amercan cars have never been and never will be of a better quality than a german car.

2. The build quality on any german car would be 100X better than any american car out there

3. American cars are built very cheaply

 

test drive The BMW 325I (E90) and then decide

 

It's a different type of quality, MB obviously uses better materials in the production of their cars than the equivalent Ford or Chevy and that's what makes them endearing to us, they exude a certain quality. On the otherhand they are built by cheap east european labor so the build quality is lacking. This is not new, it shows up year after year on JD Powers long term dependability survey and in Consumer Reports. In contrast, Ford uses lower quality materials, afterall they are selling equivalent cars for less money than MB but the higher tech factories and their overpriced U.S. labor force makes them better built. Now out of 5 MB's, 1 has been reliable so far, one was taken back on under the lemon and it's replacement wasn't much better and the one prior to my current one was in the shop 17 or so times in the first year. Now in contrast I owned about 7-8 Fords, 2 trucks and the rest in Mustangs. They all have been great, my current Ford, a '98 Mustang is fantastic despite the abuse it gets from my kid, my Chevy truck has been fantastic, never a problem. That's not to say people don't have problems with Fords or Chevys, it's just that for me, the odds are stacked against MB. Now that doesn't mean I don't like my C230, it's been great, loved all my MB's, being a lemon or a peach, great fun cars and don't forget the main reason I roll in a Benz, the free car washes and croissants.

One funny thing that I remember from my old piano tuning days. The saying in the trade was that you can tell how bad a piano was by how long the warranty was. Steinway would give you 5 years, Japanese pianos normally had 10 years and Korean pianos came with lifetime warranties. Ironically, MB comes with a warranty that's longer than just about any American or Japanese made car but shorter than Korean cars, hmmm....

 

I just tarded in a 2001 Audi a4 for a 2005 c230K this year and boy an I going through buyers remorse.
Audi cheap and easy to modify
Benz slow and expensive to modify
Audi nicer interior
MB nicer front end
Dealer serice make audi look like jiffy lube.
Car is ok just needs some more hp

Buy Exhaust pully kit and chip is about it and that will get you what 220-230HP for what 2800.00 that will get you a good 280HP on a A4

Its a great car If you just want to leave it alone. No more factory service under warranty makes audi another good choice.


Sell you a nice 2005 c230K with 500 mikes on it for 28500

 

WARNING: Excessive inhalation of exhaust fumes may cause permanent loss of reasoning.

Sorry but anyone who loves the Audi interior must have knee high socks and black framed bakelite spectacles with thick lenses and a laugh like someone with an asthma attack.

Mercedes do also make a C350 and C55. I cant think of any reason why Stuttgart would leave it up to the owner to make more horsepower when clearly there is a higher specification car already on sale.

I still have not seen a Navigation install into an Audi that was easy.

 

I love mine and would buy it again. I'm a fan of Consumer Reports although I do not always agree with their findings. If you look at some of their Pro and Cons of the C class you'll see that they don't like the rear seat that much (I don't care) that the controls are complicated (if you read the manual they aren't too complicated) and some of the Pros are great front seats, great handling, great steering feel. They don't recommend the car because of past reliability. Admittedly, past years are the best way to judge what may happen to an '05 but companies do make improvements and corrections through a model cycle so the '05 may be the best one yet. Good luck.

 

Mostly the difference is attention to materials, detail, and style.

That's just bull****, and you know it. The C Class is built in west germany, at a very well paid and long established plant. BTW, build quality is how the car is put together, not how reliable the components are. And build quality is pretty good on just about any Benz.

That data begs a little grooming. German cars' biggest failings are usually the electronics. They always push the boundaries for the time. And that other big issue, you know, brake dust.

What have you been smoking? Have you ever been in a ford factory? Hi tech, they ain't. Ford cars are a joke. The only good ones are rebadged Mazdas and those riding on Volvo platforms. And the US labor rate is no more expensive than the japanese, but far cheaper than the german. Its true, they don't even do 40 hour weeks in germany.

Biggest difference between the japanese and eveyone else is the mindset, they are in it for the long haul, and see the big picture a lot better than both the germans and the americans. So does the Japanese government, which is why they back their car companies, unlike our idiot led government. Many american businessmen just want the short term gain, the big fat payout that comes quickly, regardless of the consequences.

 

I bought my 2006 230ss 7sp in august( FIRST 2006 c230 sold at Helms Bayside ), it has 7,000 miles on it right now,
so far its running great and no problems, no repairs of any kind.
hope it stays same way. love the car and glad i didnt get 325

 

You gotta give some props to American Engineering though. GM does churn out some pretty good ideas. Four wheel steering, Sliding Roofs, A V8 that can turn into a V4, there big push for bio-fuel, just to name a few.

Not that German Engineering is behind by any means. For cars they really lead the pack, thus the reason I bought my Benz. Germans just put cutting edge features in their cars, even if they are so new that they aren't 100% reliable. IMHO the Japs aren't big inovators. However, they do take what's already a good idea and usually perfect it.

 

By that logic the ML which is built in the US should be perfect, and in fact, it's has the worst service record of any Mercedes in history.

I live near 5 or so autoplants...I see the workers on a daily basis...trust me, I wouldn't buy a truck built by these toothless hillbillies if my life depended on it. My truck was built in Linden, NJ. At least I know some quality went into that one. I would never buy anything that comes out of a Michigan plant.

Erik

 

I have owned a number of vehicles in my life, including German, American, and Japanese. Currently, in my garage, I have a Mercedes, BMW, and Volkswagen. I am really partial to the German products; they seem to have quality that the Japanese and American products do not.

I have never had any automatic transmission problems on my Mercedes. Then again, mine has a manual transmission.

Mercedes may be a bit more expensive to maintain, but I have never had any doubts about the quality or value in the car.