A coworker let me drive her C320 yesterday during lunch. After my drive all I can say is that I'm glad I own a BMW instead.

The Benz is definitely more of a luxury car than my 325i. There's power everything, even power headrests that go up and down. The interior looks much more luxurious than a 3-series BMW. I really liked the power steering wheel adjuster with memory, an option you can't get on a 3-series (why?) but you can on a 5 and a 7 series. Even though the Benz is more luxurious, I did notice little things like the door handles and the door itself that felt cheaply made. It's almost as if Mercedes had a list of things they wanted to add to the car but spent as little money as possible making sure it was implemented. Even the turn signal stalk felt like cheap plastic that wobbled when I used it. These things may or may not matter to most people but I noticed them because I drive my BMW every day.

Luxury is not as important to me as the driving experience, and let me tell you, the C320 drives awfully. You would expect a car that looks that good and costs that much to drive pretty well, at least you would expect it to drive better than your average Toyota or Honda. But I'm not kidding when I say that I really didn't like driving that car.

The car accelerates very slowly and leans in the turns way too much. I was afraid to corner too fast for fear of breaking the tires loose. Mind you this was a pretty new car with very few miles on it. Still, I never felt comfortable tossing the car around. It just wasn't much fun at all. At least the brakes felt fine, pretty linear and very strong without much drama.

I can see why people would choose this car over a 3-series BMW. It's definitely more luxurious and it's a Mercedes. But anyone who enjoys driving would be much better off going for a test drive in a BMW before purchasing the Benz.

http://www.bimmerfest.org/forums/sho...threadid=21653

 

I guess he didn't care for the car...

 

He (or any other BMW owner) is entitled to his own opinion. If his co-worker is satisfied w/ the Benz, who cares about what he thinks about the car....

 

I actually agree with that guy...sorry LaMay...

he does have very good valid point on some of the stuff on the C-class (or the CLK-class) are really crappy. But as for accelerate slowly; he has no idea what he's talking about. The 325 is slow as hell...

 

Hi

Some valid points but I tried BMW 3, jag x type and C class for one week each before deciding and what did I buy? C Class.

BMW interior was a pile of crap, square boring design, exterior design and handling was great. I do not care for the arrogant bmw drivers in the UK that we seem to have.

 

The C class is so high and narrow compared to the lower and wider stance of a 3 series BMW. It's only natural that our cars can't handle as well as the BMWs.

 

Um, yeah, like the 325 is a drag car.

 

i dont think bmw and mb is that different ....

i have driven both 3-series(no sport package) and c320 and i think the 3-seris is not that good....maybe because the 3-series i drive doesnt have sport package?

 

to tell you guys to truth... when i test drove the C320 to decide between a 330 and a C320. i was not impressed w/the power AND the handling. but... i got the C32 after all

Jerry

 

had a 2000 328Ci sport. The sport pkg really does makes a lot of difference to those non-sports.

 

I enjoy driving, but there are different "driving experiences".

I wouldn't buy a 3-series to go off-roading, if I enjoyed the "off-road driving experience" I'd buy a Hummer H1.

I wouldn't buy a 3-series for sheer speed and handling, if I wanted something for the same cash that out-performed the 3-series, I'd buy almost any sport-bike.

You may enjoy the "sporty" driving experience, but I enjoy the "cruising" driving experience, and the more luxurious interior and softer ride handling is great for this, and the 3-series doesn't even measure up.

I have met quite a few better off people who own both a Benz and a BMW. The Benz gets driven to/from work, nice car, nice ride, and states "luxury", but take the BMW out on the weekend and nights to have some fun.

Different strokes for different folks.

 

IMO, the only car that compares to the C320 is the 330i. All the lesser BMWs are underpowered girly cars...

 

when you say that you have to know there are underpowerd MB as well. i.e. C240. The 2.6 puts out less hp then the 325's 2.5 engine. what's up with that!?

 

all i have to say is that.. almost everyone that i have talked to when they were going to buy either a 325 looked at the 240 and who ever was going to buy a 330 looked at a 320. for reasons of their personality they chose the car they have. i chose my 240 cuz im not much of a BMW person not saying its not nice. my best friend has a 330ci and i ride in his car all the time. depending on the mood we are in, either he drives or i drive at night. if we want to go somewhere faster we take his car, if we want to just cruise we take mines. but all in all both are nice cars, both have their faults. i just say enjoy the cars for what they are beautiful works of art

 

The premise of this thread was someone comparing his 325i with a C320, (not a C240). IMO, there is no basis for this comparison, as the C320 can leave any 325i in the dust, any day of the week, leaving me plenty of time to "lean" my way through the first couple of turns before the 325i can ever catch up to me.

A comparison between a 325i and the C240 is more relevent. People who think their 323i or 325i are in the same league with the C320 truly live in a dream world...

 

just needs H&R or Eibach lowering springs to get it closer to the sportier BMW look and drive...why MB had to put a 3.5 gap over the front wheels I'll never know.

 

I think a better comparison would be a 323/325i vs the new C230K sedan...I don't think the C240 compares to the 325i due to the lack of power in the C240...and of course MB doesn't make a decent sport package (even the C230k sedan needs lowering).

 

I race a BMW M3, yet I also own a C240/6 speed. The only modifications to the car are the AMG sway bars. That's it.

If people don't know how to drive a car to get the best performance from it, then there's not much one can do.

The stiffness of a car does not always translate to the speed of a car in traversing a race track. You can get too stiff and if you don't watch out you will have a stiff and understeering car.

Here is my pro-s and con-s about the E46 vs W203

* E46 small and no rear passenger space.
* BMW engines make more power and they are silky smooth, rev-limiter is not abrupt like the W203 rev-limiter which I find truly annoying.
* The brakes are comparable.
* The fit/finish and trim level of my C240 is better than any E46 I have been in (although the 2003 I got as a loaner felt more plasticky than my 2003)
* Handling wise both cars are very nice stock, you just need to drive them differently. But if you want good handling, you need to
go to a tuned suspension package. Not springs, or shocks alone, but something designed to work as a package. Pretty soon, I will be putting in H&R coilovers in my car.

* MB has a larger trunk, and more useful space throughout.
* BMW has a much larger aftermarket support and the part prices are about half of what you would pay for MB. This actually ticks me off a lot.

 

I think this is because BMW sells a lot more cars in the US than MB, and tends to sell them to a younger audience more interested in mods. If MB had the same sales volume and demographic as BMW, I'm sure there would be a lot more aftermarket support. Look how much aftermarket stuff there is for VW, even more and usually cheaper than BMW.

Cheers, BT

 

agreed, and once you lower them they are great in the corners. I also put 245/35/17 S-03s in the back, great traction, great handling, can't wait to see what coilovers will do. But currently, 325's can't maintain through the corners of off the line...

 

Pretty accurate and objective assessment. My wife's 230 isn't quite as fun to drive as the 325 (mainly due to excess body roll and extra weight), but it's close, so I can hardly criticize anyone for selecting a c-class. MB - Bob: Where's your objectivity - why the hate?

MR325iT
Apparently residing in Dream World

 

Luxury is not as important to me as the driving experience, and let me tell you, the C320 drives awfully. You would expect a car that looks that good and costs that much to drive pretty well, at least you would expect it to drive better than your average Toyota or Honda. But I'm not kidding when I say that I really didn't like driving that car.


http://www.bimmerfest.org/forums/sho...threadid=21653 [/B][/QUOTE]

Do you work for SB Cutter BMW, Cause I know the C's are selling good and the Bimmers are collecting dizust..

 

No hate intended. And I don't understand the comment about objectivity. All I suggested, (and I think I did so objectively) is that it makes better sense to compare an 8.5 sec to 60mph 325i to a similarly horsepowered Mercedes (C240 or C230Ksedan). The C320 is a 6.9-7.0 sec to 60mph car. No matter how little the Bimmer leans in the corners (or how much my C320 leans) you won't get past me at the first corner if I get there three car lengths ahead of you.

I'd be happy to fairly and objectively compare the C320 with the BMW 330i all day long, as they are cars more similarly equipped, and better matched. I drove both cars on several occasions before my purchase. Yes, the 330i felt more "connected" to the road. But I have learned with experience that my C320 is just as competent in the handling department.

As for the "lower, wider" stance of the 3-er, let's (objectively) run the numbers, from each car's respective published statistics...

Height
330i = 55.7" v. C320 = 55.2"

Width overall
330i = 68.5" v. C320 = 68.0"

Front Track
330i = 57.9" v. C320 = 58.8"

Rear Track
330i = 58.4" v. C320 = 57.6"

Wheelbase
330i = 107.3" v. C320 = 106.9"

Curb Weight (AT)
330i = 3362 lbs v. C320 = 3395 lbs

So, as you can see, the cars are nearly identical, the C320 is actually 1/2" shorter, while the 330i is 1/2" wider. The wheelbases are just .4" apart. The track widths are within an inch, the MB wider in front, BMW wider in back. The curb weights are within 4 gallons of gas of being identical.

The actual reason why the BMW is shorter and wider is because for years, BMW has told you that theirs is the "Ultimate Driving Machine," implying that it is shorter and wider. It's a mindset, that's all, a better advertising program than an objective observation of reality.

Let's face it, none of these cars are Porsche 996s. Now, THAT is an "ultimate driving machine." How's this for objectivity?

 

Not that many more.

BMW sold 213,000 cars in the US in 2001
MB sold 187,000 the same year. For 2002, MB was up to something like 195,000....I don't know BMW's 2002 figures.

In terms of demographics, yes, BMW has the attention of the younger crowd...but many of them still can't afford new beemers.

 

996? OK, now I'm with you. No argument. End of story. Game over. Make mine a Carrera4, please.

The objectivity question came from those little anti-BMW "owner testimonials" in your posts, that's all. I happen to like both makes (MB and BMW), so I appreciate the qualities of both, without needing to "slam" either. I would never paint an entire make with a stereotype - well, on second thought, maybe GM.

Agree that a 325 to C320 comparison is largely apples to oranges - I can't think of too many people whould would actually cross-shop a 325 and a C320.

And where'd you get the 325 0-60 number? Seems very slow, unless of course you're talking an automatic - that would explain it. Otherwise it's low 7s - depending, of course, on the driver .