TexFinn

Yup, new W203 owner here, but definitely not a stranger to MBs. My first MB was a W123 wagon back in the late 80s. Since then I've had W201s, W202s, W210s and W126s.

But this time it was time for a W203: a 2005 C230K Sport. My younger daughter will be 16 tomorrow and this will be her first vehicle to drive.

You might have seen this one before as it was for sale right here at MBWorld. Seller was a really nice guy and I think I got a pretty good deal on it.

Overall the car is in very good condition, comes with all maintenance records/receipts from a local MB dealer, receipts etc. for all other stuff he has done or added to it. Has 19" wheels, carbon fiber front lip/interior trim/rear diffuser, blacked out chrome and quite a few other small nice touched done to it. It has a couple of very minor scratches/scuffs, and a broken foglight. Nothing too big at all.

The main concern is the vinyl wrap on the roof that has started to crack. It still looks good and is not peeling etc., so it's not a biggie. I'll need to tackle that some time in the future.

For now all I'm going to do is get the foglight, change all fluids (including tranny fluid), clean the interior and that's about all it needs.

And on to the pics...

ontmiss

Lucky her

phister

I remember the previous owner. Forgot his sn here. Think he was from dallas right? Just use the MB recommended fluids on the fluid changes.

TexFinn

Not sure about Dallas, but nowadays he lives close to Sherman.

Got Mobil 1 ready to go, got the Shell ATF 134 from Penske for ~$2 shipped, got the right coolant etc.

MBfinatic

Lucky her. She will have a great car! Safe, Fast, and reliable!

Tri-Star

Your daughter is one lucky girl! That car looks to have been custom painted as I do not recognize that color at all. Engine bay was painted as well to match. Congrats.

TexFinn

It doesn't necessarily have to be fast , but at least it should be somewhat safe and reliable.

The color is called granite gray (747) and I don't think I've seen too many of them, either. I've seen it in other models, though (W209s, IIRC).

dre5373

Lookin' good...love that the color match went all the way to the tail lights

ncmudbug

Can I be your daughter?

twotonevert

That is a beautiful car.

TexFinn

Yikes!!! Thanks, but no thanks. Two is plenty enough for me.

And thanks everybody for the compliments. I was pretty much sold when I saw the car live the first time. The mods the PO did are pretty much according to my taste. Well... Except for the black wheels as I've never been a big fan of them, but they sort of complement the whole theme here, so I'm okay with them.

Today is the big day for her as she is taking her driving test in the afternoon. Then we'll see if it will be me or her driving the car in the near future. She'll take the test in her sister's 330i, though, because she is more familiar with that.

LILBENZ230

How many miles does it have?

Some people would imply that new drivers have no business in cars like the C230K and the 330i, but I disagree. They are not too fast, they should be reliable, and they have tons of safety equipment and solid crash test scores. I've never understood parents who have the financial ability to do otherwise but still put their teens in beater Escorts and Cavaliers or the like because "they're gonna crash it anyway". Well EXACTLY, and why would you put them in something that might kill them in a side impact with a pedestrian on a skateboard? Logic fail.

Anyway, hope you have as much luck with your C230K as I have had with mine.

TexFinn

It has just over 90K miles, which is a bit above average, I guess, but not an issue for me.

I definitely hear you on the issue of how some might think whether buying something like these is a good move or not. Those people can think what ever they want. I'm not interested in their opinions at all. We decided already long time ago that we will not start them out with a $1000 beater that breaks down on a weekly basis or is otherwise junk. We decided to invest more and if something happens to the car (fender benders etc.) that is their fault and the insurance is not going to cover them, the repairs are on them. That should teach the kids to be careful with their cars.

And these are not really that fast, anyway. Lots of safety equipment on both. Both should be pretty reliable. And gas mileage on both is somewhat reasonable.

Yeah..., the reliability of the E46 could somewhat be questioned, but as long as the cooling system is being kept up-to-date, the rest are wear items. Both cars should be good to go to take both kids all the way through college. After that they are on their own when it comes to buying the next one.

LILBENZ230

It should be fine for a while. Looks like it was well kept, though I personally wouldn't buy a modified car. Any reason you chose to over a stock one? Just got a great deal?

TexFinn

Yeah, I don't really like buying modified cars, but with all the records the car has for everything and the good price, I just couldn't pass up on it.

Plus the seller was a really nice guy to deal with and a fellow MB enthusiast who had had it since May 2005. His pride in the ownership really shows.

W203E35

Congrats on the car. I'm sure your daughter will love this car.

Too funny

TexFinn

That she sure does.

LILBENZ230

Modified or stock, it will always serve you better to buy a car off an owner who cared about it.

ncmudbug

Agreed. I think it is especially important that the PO kept all his service records. That says a lot to me.

carbonfiberwhor

Congrats man, the car looks great

Makes me think about black rims on my Iridium silver....hmm....

TexFinn

That was definitely one of the things that sold the car to me.

BTW, I'm trying to figure out all the options the car has. Is there someone on here who can get the info?

ncmudbug

How did your daughter do on her driving test?

TexFinn

Passed with flying colors, of course! She had such a good instructor, you know.

ncmudbug

Good for her!

havoc_vulture

Nice car, well what is there to know?
ask a fellow '05 owner of-course

More shots on that interior CF trim!