Drop-a-Daimler

The dealership called today and said they were shipping my C350 Sport Sedan out on Friday (26-Jan). I can't wait! Man this was one hard car to find!!! Why are there so few available?

I am in Virginia (USA) and could not find any locally. None. I only found one in the whole country even close to the way I wanted (7-Speed, Sunroof and Nav; it is Iridium and has the Xenon option too). It is a 2006 so no Birdseye Walnut, twin AMG exhaust tips and new multi-spoke wheels but it is very nice. It was in California so I flew out to San Francisco Mercedes on Van Ness and bought it last week.

Arn560

Post pics of the new arrival. Congratulations!

scottw

I want a C350 sport with manual transmission. My guy at MB of Manhattan (NYC) showed me his computer listing all cars anywhere in the country. There were none to be had and that was back in early October. I may get a used one or wait for the new model.

moosejaw

There's a used 2006 with low mileage on ebay now with a 6 speed manual

Drop-a-Daimler

I did see one 6-speed manual '07 at San Rafael Motors in Pewter. But this thing had everything I wanted plus the little trunk lip spoiler. I got to drive a certified used Barolo Red '07 7-speed auto C350 Sport with 2K miles but it didn't have Nav and they wouldn't deal at all. That may be my favorite color.

Washington DC traffic is usually rated the second or third worst in the country and my days of living with a clutch in two hours of stop-and-go gridlock every day were over a decade ago.

I read that the C350 3.5L 6-speed manual did 5.4 seconds 0-60 in the Motor Trend test. That was impressive. But then I read that the 7-speed auto does the same 0-60 times (although MB claims 6.1) and a quicker time in passing (45-75) than the manual.

I really (really) liked the 7-speed auto. I have a 3.0L C280 4Matic now and I love the car and the motor but I don't really like the 5-speed auto on it. I was sold the moment I drove the C350 7-speed. It was night-and-day from my 3.0L 4Matic coupled with the lower suspension and beefier tires.

I pushed the C350 SS on the test drive coming down a steep windy mountain road and got the front to let go. It transmits a whole lot more of the road feedback to the driver than my 4Matic. Makes my 280 feel numb. Sadly it definitely doesn't over steer with 55% weight up front and 225/45s vs. 245/40s out back.

Anyway, the Pilot Primacy tire will have to go. I may sneak those cool dual AMG tips and the new chrome SmartKey in when the wife isn't looking.

moosejaw

If youre impressed with a C350, you'd crap in your pants if you had driven a c32

scottw

I have my brown pants ready...after a C350, I probably will move up to the C63 in a few years.

e1000

oversteer can be induced quite easily by using your right foot

Mercus

The reason they are so hard to find is that at that price point, most people opt for the E class....

patrick_y

If the car is still in SF and you don't want the wheels and tires, I'll be more than happy to take them off your hands. You can get the car with whatever rims that you like then.

Agreed, it's difficult to find a C350 since most people would go for the E Class or the C55 AMG. But personally I think that C350s are very special since I see the absolute least of them on the road. I see less C350s than C55s.

The Michelin Pilot Primacy tire is not a bad tire. The best tire for this car is however the Michelin PS2; they have a special model for this size made specifically for Mercedes-Benz C and CLK cars. I'll take your tires and rims if they're still in this area; but my chances are starting to look slim since the ship date is approaching. By the way, the Primacy tires are also lasting a bit longer than my expectations. Usually these tires only last around 20k miles but mine seemed that they would last a bit longer. Unfortunately, I had a nail in one of my rears so I had to replace the two rears early.

Enjoy the new machine. Personally, I do like the 5 speed auto, the 7th gear on these cars is too high and while it's good for fuel efficiency, the car really needs to downshift one or two gears for passing acceleration. With the 5 speed, you actually get considerable acceleration while staying in top gear for passing (in my opinion).

Bon appetit.

brydon

I have a C350 SS and I get myself into plenty of trouble with only 268hp. I hate to think how many tickets I'd get and how many little old ladies would soil their pants if I was unleased in a C32

Drop-a-Daimler

I would, and I want to. I found a 2005 C55 AMG V8 but it had 27K and was not certified and the CarFAX report was not clean. So I went the sedate route. But I've been reading about the new platform C550 sedan with the 380 h.p. V8. That might be nice too!

C350

We picked up our 2007 C350 about three weeks ago now. I wrote just prior to that that is was soon to be delivered to the dealer. We ordered our car in October.

Would like to follow-up with a couple of photos and more detail, but will have to see as I am not too technical and have not done photos yet on a site like this.

That aside, so far we have been very pleased.

Truth-be-told, the C350 is more money, and in fact, in the shadow (pricewise) of an E-Class, but felt it would be nicer having the "top of the line" C-Class, than an "entry level" E-Class.

Plus, we wanted a manual transmission.

The only way we could get the car we wanted was to order it. Very scarce, and nothing could be found.

More (hopefully) later . . .

yeuchau

why buy 06 c350 since you have 06 c280 already??

tee_tz

Nope. They opt for the 3-Series. More power, slightly better performance at the moment -- current models (no offense), but it's true.

The C350 is $40's well packaged, the E350 is in the high $50's packaged well ... That's a BIG difference. And yeah, I think even though the E350 is the 'entry model', it's still a higher model and more prestigious than the 'top of the line' of a C-Class. BUT you seem like one who values performance and driving for fun, so (1) It's got stick, which is great (only Benz model that does -- and that's why I got the C320 6-Speed); and 2) It's got the same engine (as the E-Class) so being that it's lighter it not only becomes faster but offers better performance. And it's smaller, I don't know if that matters to you, but it did to me.

Anyway; also it's rare because Mercedes-Benz does not 'stock' manual transmission cars. Therefore, only a handful come in and the rest are ordered. And I'm sure there's certainly more stick shift C230's than C350's; finding one with NAV and Stick I think is the hardest combination!


Tee_Tz.

Drop-a-Daimler

I love the 280 3.0L but not the soft suspension and 5-speed auto. So the wife wants to sell her Quattro and use the 4Matic to haul the two kiddies around. And there are some real deals to be had on the outgoing C350s. Sticker was $46K (7-speed, sport, nav, sunroof, xenon, cd changer), dealer went down to $34K out the door including shipping from CA to VA. That was only $3K more than I paid for the 280 (4matic, sunroof) last year. I couldn't resist. Titling it in VA is a pain though, two hours at the DMV yesterday.

C230 Sport Coup

So sad we didnt get the C350 coupe, or the C32 coupe, but then price is likely the same reason.
Ah, I still dream of a 2006 C350 coupe, with a Kleeman kit and
sequatronic tranny.....

raklert

i used to go to school in DC. Traffic was horrible and the police are everywhere. Having a C32 would just add up to your ticket cost.

yeuchau

wow, 34k out the door, you made the right decision then, i would do the same if i was in the same situation

congarts, post pic when you get the car

Drop-a-Daimler

I got the car today and it is a blast compared to the 4Matic 3.0L. Very different kind of car. Tick off the ESP and it will get very sideways for as long as you want. You'all are right, you can induce over-steer anytime you need it. I am a little surprised at how easily it will vaporize the tires and how quickly it gets to the redline. The 7G-Tronic is great fun after the driving the 4Matic 5-speed around. The truck dropped it off near my house at noon and I still have to register and title it in VA. That part is a pain. But I put on the MB trunk lip spoiler and have the big emblem CL-style grille (in silver and chrome) to go on next. Pictures to follow when the sun actually comes out.

Drop-a-Daimler

The sun came out and I was able to run it through the wash. So here's the pictures. Still amazed at how much more "sporty" the sport is over the luxury models.

patrick_y

Wow, yours has four piston brakes.

Drop-a-Daimler

I put the new grille on. Whaderyathink?

patrick_y

That was fast. Looks good, but the previous one didn't look bad at all. Tell me when you put new wheels and tires on.

Drop-a-Daimler

Yeah, stock it was OK. But my bad pics don't do the new grille much justice. It is pretty cool in person (if you go in for that kind of mod). It is mostly Iridium painted with chrome trim pieces, MB OEM star and mesh behind, so it fits right in. Took no more than 10 minutes to install and really seems to make it look all sleek and integrated. I just love not looking over the star popping out of the bonnet now.