Guest0001

why did you choose Mercedes Benz over other automobiles? besides the name that is.

Jens C320

I wanted a station wagon and my following choices had the following "flaws":
1. Audi A4 3.0 was too "sporty" I didn't like the harsher ride
2. Volvo XC90, V70 both looked ugly, IMHO
3. Passat W8, also ugly
4. New Range Rover, didn't see the point in spending that much on an SUV
5. BMW X5, traded my 2000 328i because of reliability issues, so I wasn't too keen on another BMW (...I might get another one down the road, there have been several in my family and all of them besides 2 worked flawlessly)
6. E-Class Station Wagon, didn't want to get the "old" bodystyle with the new one so close by.

BlackC230Coupe

the looks, quality, and saftey.

Tai230K

same.... and the free service

BlackC230Coupe

for some of us *caugh* Buellwinke, its the free cookies.

moomeh

my oldsmobile broke down, needed a car. MB dealer offered 0% financing.

jpb5151

MB dealership was closer than the Acura dealership, mainly.

session

Acura RSX: cheaper interior than the C230 (though I'm sure it didn't rattle as much :p), no included maintenance, front-wheel drive, low torque.

Subaru WRX: hate the old body style.

BMW 325Ci: too expensive at the time.

Honda Civic: hah, just kidding.

C230K

Car for the money, hatch back, MB, rear wheel drive and not every body has one. No chrome, no outside antenna, clean lines. Except for the seats, one great auto and nothing can touch it for what you pay and what you get. As long as they do not drop V8 in the coupe, will keep what I have.

LAMAY123

Wow, really!!! 0% financing......I don't find that around at all!

But cookies, gourment coffee, omlet breakfast are always good when it's FREE Just don't take to-go for 10 people. Although I do see that once in a while.

Outland

I wanted another small Coupe...or perhaps a small sporty sedan. something nicely made, with good materials and decent performance. I WASN'T looking for the name.

The RSX-Swas too small inside, very dull looking(peel off the RSX badge, voila, its a Civic) cheap interior, didn't have the safety features I wanted, loud inside, didn't ride as nice, and there's so much ricer stigma with this car. Not to mention insurance is high as hell on it.

A4- nice car. Just wanted a Coupe more than a four door.

WRX- gawd, I loved this thing when you had the pedal down. Hated it when I got out of it and looked at how ugly it was. Note to Subaru- hire some good stylists- you won't be able to build enough cars. Perhaps the Saab version of the WRX will have some nice lines...

3 series- Seems like everyone drives one. The Honda Civic of premium cars. I used to love the looks of a 3 series- but I'm getting tired of the look, after 3 generations of the same theme. Interior didn't feel and look as nice. Car got very expensive once you even glanced at the option sheet. Salesmen were grade A *******s.

Celica GTS- love the front end styling- the rear looks like it belongs on a different car. Too small inside- many of the same drawbacks as the RSX....motor a real dog unless you flog the **** out of it.

Mustang GT- when the throttle is wide open, there's little to complain about. When you have to drive it with some civility, then you realize what an antique turd it is. Interior is too cheap, too ugly for even Hyundai, suspension couldn't soak up a dixiecuphole, much less a pothole. Very cramped. Lots of unholy noises from various areas of the car- door handles go clunk when you close the doors(no damping).

Focus SVT- a real blast for the money. Hard to stomach the idea of driving a Focus. Ugly hatchback- c'mon Ford, give us a real fastback!

Mini Cooper S- loved it- too bad it was so small in the backseat- :-(

Matt230K

Employee discount

That's why I chose mine. It gave me a lease payment that was not much more than my '95 325iS payment. I could have owned that one after 3 years, but what the heck, I got a brand new car for the first time.

20FHK02

In the order of priority:

1. Lower price: 325i and IS300 both cost more.
2. Cheaper insurance rate: it is less than 1/2 of that for the RSX, so intead of dumping the money to the insurance, why not put it on a better car?!!
3. More standard features.
4. Free maintaince.
5. The MB name.

Buellwinkle

1. Free full service car wash
2. Free maintenance for 4 years
3. Free beverages and pastries
4. MB loaners (E320, ML320 and C320's)
5. Very close to home
6. The car represented a good value despite the brand name.
7. Small sporty practicle car without the stigma associated with getting a ricer.
8. Many safety features for a car in this price range

Robert Schrader

The criteria: gotta have hatchback, good handling, decent power, and not be incredibly ugly.

The losers:

Saab: I've owned 3, so they would have had the tiebreaker if they hadn't stopped making hatchbacks. A fine marque corrupted by GM blandness and cowardice.

BMW: Makes hatchback 3 series, but won't sell it here. Idiots. Coulda been a contender. ( Z3 too small )

Nissan 350: Nice looking, great power, handing ok. But if the head designer had been around when I opened the hatch I would have killed him on the spot.

Subaru: Failed the ugly test...by a large margin.

Mini: Too small; both for passengers and cargo.

The winner: The car with the glass roof.

DCX Engineer

1. DC Product - Employee Discount (big deal at the time, most selling for MSRP)

2. Supercharger and six-speed

3. Safety

tom incredibie

which dealer is this at?

Mike T.

Mainly because Peugeot does not sell any cars in North America at the moment.

If they did, we would have bought a 406 Coupé with the 210 HP V6. Mmmmm, Pininfarina styling, French comfort/suspension. It's somewhat quicker than the C 230 K to boot.

On the plus side, as a second choice, the C 230 K is a nice car - safe, interestingly styled (but certainly it's no classic beauty), a bit of spunk.

The name - M-B - was, if anything, a deterrent. I hate the snobbery that goes with some Benzes, though you guys and gals are pretty much down to earth...usually

young

in general, i like kind of interesting cars and the panoroof was interesting to me. also, i'm still in the process of trying out various makes of cars (i'm not the kind of guy to keep buying the same car over and over again, no matter how much i liked it).

i looked at the acura cl and the sportcoupe.

Guest0001

well its my turn

im guessing most of you are first time buyers (including myself)

well ive never really been a car guy, just recently getting into it.

i remember 3 yrs ago when the all new 2000 S500 came out! wow what a beauty. then the year after the C320 sedan came out and that was it for me. just the looks of the car was enough to make me buy it. so i started researching and reading more about Mercedes Benz and the history. Ive also researched for about 2 yrs to pick the car that suited my needs

the things i looked for were reliablity(ok i have some sunroof probs and small anoyances, big deal) SAFETY and comfort(although ima get some springs soon)

also the car had to be german of course

the cars i had looked at were

330ci
A4 3.0
w208 clk320 (used low mile)
C320
w209 clk320 (was originally suppose to get)

since i said so many negatives about the 3 i will state some positve ones

330ci- things i liked about it were definitey the performance aspects- handling and brakes. also liked bmw sport pkg way more than the mbs, other than the rough ride

if performance was more important to me this car would be mine. but performance isnt too high on my priorities

A4- definitely one of my favorites. great sport package. great interior, everything was really solid.

only drawbacks were styling(looks way too much vw passat) and what killed it for me was those side moldings :o and when it was nicely equiped it wasnt that much cheaper than the benz and bimmer

w208 clk- i never really liked this car that much to be honest. but it is a nice looking car. the thing that bothered me is that its just an E class coupe. i dont know why they named it 'clk' there is nothing original about it. except it has two doors. i considered it because i wanted a coupe and it was the only MB coupe that was near my range. another thing i did not like was the interior. plus the new ones were coming out and that killed it as well. although now i look at this car i realize how sheek it looks and how much i appreciate MB designs. classy car

W209clk- ahhhh my orginal choice ever since i saw spy pics of this car i wanted it! price was a bit steep for this car, about 53 out the door for a 320!!! and they were scarce. i dont like ordering cars and didnt want to wait till 04. if they had a silver on black clk320 in stock i would have probably went for it. but i hear the 1st yr cars wernt that good and had too many problems

i liked everything about this car execpt the back. yes i know volvo and acura CL. who cares. but the front and sides (window down) i thought were flawless as well as the interior and gauges. the car is sexy and and sleek. it takes a lot from the 2003 E class imo like the overall body and lines are very similar. but rear on the E class is a bit more nicely done since it doesnt curve as heavily as the clk. but im glad the headlamps on the clk are not the ones on the E class. and the tail lights i love. just the back arch has the acura cl and and volvo curve that bothers me

W203 C320- other than the fact its not a coupe,(but looks just as good) this car is just perfect for the 35-45k price range. there is nothing else that i would buy right now. Fantasic exterior, especially with some lorinser wheels and bi xenons! beautiful interior!! wood is great, nice sturdy steering wheel. very solid build car, doors are damn heavy and have nice feel to it. only thing that is not up to par and that is handling and its suppose to be a bit on the float side. but springs will fix that.i coulnt be more happy with this car.

ahh sorry for the long essay but i just mercedes benz and i think they are the best cars.

i dont think anyone on this board is a die hard mb fan like myself. i also thank some friends of mine who got me into it if they read this, you know who you are.

aright im done, mbworld is the best!

gab

Did anyone make a count how many times Buellwinkle mention this?

BlackC230Coupe

Its only on a different chassis.

Buellwinkle

Obviously not enough if people still get it wrong! What I don't understand is how many people buy an MB with out it

BTW, they expanded the free car wash program by doubling their capacity. I went on vacation during the upgrade so I wouldn't lose out on any car washes I was entitled to. I'll keep you posted as this is big news, with faster car washes I may have to put getting an '05 Mustang off a little longer. If they add an onsite bakery then the Mustang deal is off.

BlackC230Coupe

LOL



:p

Kal Rubinson

OK. Here goes. Fun in driving and ability to haul bulk for the weekend hejira are the basic requirements. Have had 3 Saabs (Turbo, 900SE, 9-3SE) but they dropped the hatchback and dropped out of consideration. Have had several MBs in the family at present and in the past.

Candidates:
Lexus IS300 SportCross- Too much kiddie racer design and skimpy seating. Didn't even test drive or price it.
BMW 325/330 Wagon- None available locally in our decision window. Too bad.
VW Passat GLX Wagon- Roomy, well-equipped but not very sporty and in short supply. Lease costs VERY high.
Audi A4 Wagon- Spartan styling, very peppy even with Quattro. Did everything pretty good but it was uninspiring.
MB C320 Wagon- Comfy with more than adequate zip/handling. Available in required configuration with very competitive pricing for lease. (Cheaper than Passat or A4!)

So far, very happy with the outcome, especially the bagels(!), fruit and coffee at the service center.