Has anyone done the power fold in mirrors on their W203? I have them on my S320 and ML320--great feature. I heard it's available as standard equipment in Eurpoe on the W203....

The most cheapest mod done so far is the modifying the stubby intake hose connecting the radiator support to the airbox. There is a restrictive kink on the flex part of the neck of the intake. I decided to cut it off the flex accordian piece, tried to make a mock funnel piece that is much larger than the OEM piece. The butt dyno result is noticeable, especially in the top end, I must have picked up a few more ponies. No dyno nor pics yet. I'm not through, more mods to follow.

My most bang for the buck mod that I felt was the Evosport UD pulley kit. Especially for my C240, it was struggling for power in the hot summer days. Once I got the UD pulley kit on it was like night and day when I had my A/C on and it was 100F+. It def is worthwhile investment.

Euro door pins - free from the dealer.

Huge question, for Evosport. Does the underdrive pulleys for the C240/320 water pump, power steering pump and alternator also work on the C230K? At $499 this would be something I would order right away. The web site lists a 10- to 20-percent decrease in accessories speeds, reducing the load on the engine. The pulleys were good for 13hp (1st gear), 9hp (2nd gear), 7hp (3rd gear) gains on a 2000 E320.

The gains should be similiar for the 189 HP C230.

my rims! they're so pretty!

On that note, is there _anything_ that'll help improve the low-end torque on the '03 230k? It's still driving me nuts.

haha, yea you could switch the engine for a brabus v8 one!

Dude, don't tempt me! We almost traded the thing back in for a 320. I love the relatively light front end and the good highway mileage, so it'd be nice to boost the 1.8 somehow (w/o doubling the cylinder #) just a little bit.

[wrt the topic, no mods here other than a phone charger and tire pump, both powered by the cig lighter...]

you could use a pulley... but i think it would only get you to 200hp.

No, we do not offer any pulleys for the 200/230 kompressor models.

I bought one of those Barabus 345 page glossy catalogs from eBay. Worth the $12 because any time I want to dream, just look at that catalog.

It is nice to know that MB builds enough strength into the
chassis handle a hopped up V8
0-62 mph seconds must be accompanied by LOTS of tire smoke in the Coupe!!! Very serious FUN for lots of bucks.

is there _any_ way to bump up the low-end torque just a little on the '03 230k? If there is, I'll do my best to talk my wife into letting me do it.

Hey man where did you get those Bi-xenons and how much they costed ya? I am seriously thinking of doing this mod, when I bought my car, they did not have this as an option

The whole problem with the 2003 1.8 liter engine with auotmatic is that we (I) tend to treat it as I would a V6. I leave it in drive which is 5th gear overdrive. Many times I am doing 1500 RPM around town. If we treated it like a stick and kept the revs in the 3,000 to 4,000 range the car drives great.

Right now there is no way to bump up the low end torque. Even the ECU chips will not bring enough torque below 3,000 RPM. Bottom line the engine is only 1796 cc's. That is tiny for a 3500 pound car. Only through tremoundous developement can Mercedes get 189 horsepower out of 1.8 liters. That is in the race car specs from a few years ago, and Mercedes is getting great gas mileage, meeting smog specs, and able to warantee the engine for 40,000 miles. It far out performs the C240 V6 engine. M271 rules for many years to come

AMG bars, Springs ($219 bucks including shipping) and Phillips Ralleye headlamps hands down!

AMG Swaybars > Brabus Swaybars??

chrome door pins and surroundings for $45!!!

I got the SUNMAN package added to my car thanks to MBENZNL. I am waiting for distronic and seat contouring to arrive in the future.

Damn! The SUNMAN package is pretty damn comprehensive, every w203 option possible along with options only found on the w209, w211, and w220...

As for my best "bang for the buck" mods:
AUX Input $27
AL Door Pins $25

I forgot to mention that I am planning my parts buy-ins now for the SUPERNOVA SUNMAN PACKAGE. This involves me taking my car down to the metal floor and then changing everything to MOST.

Mini-Go is on the list but rear heated seat will never get used .....

the freakin stationary heating system. At 3 grand, it's a real bargin!

Not free - $1.39 each!

Door pin surrounds $30!...Without a doubt. All of the mods I've done have been with purpose and worth the money, but the door-pin surrounds were definitely the most unique out of all of them.

nice, i wanted to get some of those door pin surrounds that say mercedes-benz