When the W203 C-class sedan made its debut as a MY2001 model, I thought it looked fantastic. I loved the new styling direction that MB had taken at the time (which started with the W220 S-class), with a departure from the classic "boxy" sedans that they had produced in the 1980's and 1990's. In essence, the W203 was like a mini-W220.

In particular, I loved the W203's front end design, especially its headlamp design, which became the template for the many of MB's cars in the early-mid 2000's (CLK, SL, SLR).

Now that the W203 is out of production and the W204 has been produced for 3 model years, do you think the W203 C-class has aged well in terms of appearance? Does it still look "modern" or "fresh" to you?........or does it look really "old" and "dated" now, especially next to the W204?

Some press pics of the 2005 Facelifted model:




Press pic when the W204 was introduced:

The W203 mostly looks aged to me now, with the exception of a C55 or a 2007 C230. The streets are flooded with W203's, so it's gotten to the point where I don't have much appreciation for the W203 anymore, especially considering most of the ones I see are not the higher model (C320 vs C240, C350 vs C280) and are not well-equipped (bi-xenons, comand).

lol.... Do you really have to ask that question? I just bought a 2k6 C230 Sport. I would rather have a used Benz than a new Honda Civic or Toyota Corolla. Wouldn't you?

Mine is showroon condition with minor improvments such as interior lighting and clear side markers and projection headlights. I plan on keeping it that way. However I think the sport looks awesome.

Not to say I wouldn't love getting my hands on a new 2K10.

I don't know how to vote because the 2001-2004 and 2005-2007 W203s seem like different cars to me.

The 2005-2007 W203 (IMO, especially SPORT ones) are some of the best looking cars I've ever seen. My 2005 still gets lots of compliments everywhere it goes because I keep it in pristine condition. I've had my share of loaner W204s and, though anecdotal, everyone said they preferred my 2005's exterior styling. The AMG-kit Sport sedans are aging very, very well.

That said, the 2001-2004 W203 is graying worse than me. The overall design is solid, but the devil is in the details (the frosty headlights being a major offense). IMO, the late W202 C230 and 280 Sport look less aged than the early W203s.

+200000000

I agree with the British auto scribes. The 203 has a timeless design that ages gracefully & does not let itself down in newer company. The 204 will not do as well at 10 years old. I like the post facelift dash/console dropdown but otherwise like the original more sleek body design as long as the car is full house with leather, Parktronic etc. and as new with Bix & clear fogs - I don't like old Classics. Deeper skirting on facelift models aspecially in the nose made the car look more upright & shorter - less sleek & less mini S Class like. They got the facelift fog angle wrong - this jars. The original design made it difficult to size the car from most angles. The facelift defined the size & was more boxy. I dislike the AMG treatment on the nose of the Sport. I think it spoils the original harmony of line & looks vulgar. I don't like the cost saving measures especially on American models that took place at and after the facelift with many engineering details that I like deleted - brake pad wear indicators on all wheels, onboard oil level gauging to name a few.

I thought the original wheels were a little too set in (high offset ET37) - especially noticeable with 15". I think the staggered set up in 16" shown in the top 2 photos for ROW Avantgarde markets was the best of the standard wheel set ups.

I once again agree with the British scribes who pleaded. " Benz - don't mess with it - you got this one right styling wise from day one"

Any car with frosted lights looks a dog to me at nearly 10 years. I curse Benz for deleting rubbing/impact strips from the 204 - slab sided & no protection.

I am a traditionalist & want my Benz star on the hood/bonnet.

The w203 has gotten mellowed out and soft as compared to other cars in the same catagory such as the e90 330i.

I agree with lilbenz230, somehow the older w203s don't look as good as the 05-07. Some of them are not well equipped as kevblah have mentioned. Also some looks like a four wheel (looks like a lift suspension). Rims, front/back/side fenders and high/low suspension do make a big different how the car looks. So, aged well for some not for some IMO.

the w203 still looks very modern especially the facelifted models. One of the few things i dont like about w203 is the different body kits, so for those who are saying streets are flooded with 203's, i completely disagree, streets are flooded with pre facelift models only.
I think the pre facelift interior will age better than the post facelift.
And as an overall, it will definitly age better than the (ugly) 204.

I'd agree with you on both counts. The post-facelift and W204 interiors to me are too feminine, and I hate the pop-up portion at the top of the dash; I think that is wrong on both design and ergonomics, not to mention the idrive-type crap; well-placed buttons to me just make more sense.

The pre-facelift, modded correctly, will look more timeless than the post-facelfit, imho. I did vote dated, though, because the pre-facelfit does not look "modern", as in mixed in with the current post-Bangle designs, but that's ok with me.

+10000 on the well placed buttons... especially when cruising at lets say 160km/h...

I don't think the car should only be compared to BMW 3 Series. Ugly SOB - I accept it is the main rival but the 203 took sales from many other auto makers in the category as Benz' most successful model ever.

hard to decide which of the many points to single out in agreement...so....

+1000
Amen.

+1 from me!!!!

Interesting comments about the pre-facelifted and facelifted W203 models.

I owned a 2002 pre-facelift C240 Classic (yes the ones that came with black unpainted plastic door handles and plastic wheel covers covering steel rims). In addition to the "Direct Control" set of mechanical upgrades which improved the car dynamically, I personally felt that the facelifted models instantly made the car look more modern, especially the interior dash and centre console.

Pre-facelift interior (non-sport, non-avantgarde):


Facelift interior (non-sport,non-avantgarde):


Pre-facelift "Classic" model (a 2004 model with alloy rims)


Pre-facelift "Avantgarde" model.....I bought a set of these rims to put on my C240 back then

And here are the sportiest versions:

Pre-facelift C32 AMG:


Facelifted C55 AMG:


C32 interior:


C55 interior:

Yeah, the facelift interior and exterior breathed life into what was fast becoming a very antiquated design. That's my opinion, anyway. That's not to say that even the facelift W203 has an interior that is cutting edge. It's showing some age, but it's competitive.

I absolutely love the post facelift W203s (maybe Im a bit bias). I firmly believe that my 4 year old car could be sold as a 2010 model and would still be in "fashion".

Love the side and rear profiles. The haunched look and staggered tires make the car look aggressive for being a small luxury sedan. Astheticially the only thing I wish the car had was a better Nav (graphicially), but Mercedes has always been behind in the department.

I wouldn't mind the facelifted interior... exterior wise, I like my pre-facelift better.

I voted yes....

A C55 looks the best by far, followed by the facelift sport package....

I think that the pre-facelift non-sport package ones do look dated. ^ ur C32 looks nice cuz it's got nice new headlights and the same bumper as the sport package

Interior on the pre-facelift non-sport package is pretty nasty....I almost got an older C320, but I liked the 05 waaay better

C55 Interior > C32 Interior....it's a lot cleaner


Inside and out it's a nice, simple, clean design....

Well of course you do, since your pre-facelift front end is exactly the same as a facelift one with Bi-X.

Agree with you Shiv on the pre-facelift interior being pretty bad. The gauges were so hideous. The color was bad at night, the info screen was ugly and prone to fade, there was no temp gauge.. it had multiple offenses.

I love the wider nose/grill



I would love to build a hybrid of all the bits I like but the C55 comes closest standard to achieving that.

Your original pic of the pre facelift interior with cloth etc does it no favours. It needed to be full house Elegance or Avantgarde spec with leather & dark wood like Laurel or textured aluminium & differentiated colour scheme with dark grey dash top & light Alpaca grey below or the equivalent in the browns & taupes. I looked for a better pic but could not find one. Excuse pic quality! It needs to be understood that the original 203 was trying to look like a mini S Class which it did. The facelifted 203 was trying to look like a mini E Class of the day which it did.

Here is a full house trim including Laurel wheel:



This Swedish guy has worked hard to upgrade his 2002 C320 wagon. A total hybrid:



Early Coupe dash C200 for Australian delivery:

Ugh - I've never understood the love affair with wood on the interior of a car. Those always look like something out of the 80s. And not in a good way, like Echo & the Bunnymen.

Maybe it's me, but I'd think that out of those three, the simple ccoupe interior would be the one that would look better over time.

It depends on the car, i saw a once a coupe with wood trim, it was very ugly...
wood in an s class is "normal", wood in a maybach is a must...
imagine wood in a pagazi zonda f roadster