pks485

Hello,

I am planning on purchasing a new C230K Sedan. Does anyone feel that this car is under powered? Any thing else that I should know? Thanks a lot for your help.

-pks485

pks485

By the way, what would a good price be for one?

Thanks!

jpb5151

What do you mean by underpowered?

OK, OK, I think it's underpowered but we've got the auto. It's fine at highway speeds; accelerating from 65-95 mph seems good, for example.

Getting up to highway speeds is OK, but I've got to mash the accelerator.

Most importantly, for any acceleration the engine rpm has to be at least around 3000. If it's below that and I want to really move, I have to downshift.

Also, for us there was a noticeable difference between engine power in the first 1000 miles and over 2000 miles, although low-end torque still isn't the greatest. It takes a thousand or so for things to really smooth out. Gas mileage got better too.

Try to test drive one.

pks485

Thanks for your response. I meant underpowered because of its 1.8 Liter engine. Any other outlooks?

Thanks a lot!

-pks485

czachari

Of course my other cars were 740i ( 4.4L V8 ) and M Coupe (3.2liter I6 ) so the 1.8L is doing pretty good for its size.


CZ

Keyser_Soze

Test drive it! Yea its not the most powerful engin...and remember its only 1.8 liter 4 so once you get it there is not much more you can get out of it....look in the forum there are threads on this engin and the M45 supercharger, people think that supercharger is at its maximum output efficiency....so there may be never a pully kit for this engin....(well there might be one but it may just cost you and do nothing)....also as of today there is NO aftermaket exhaust/muffler for this car.... read what I wrote one more time....because I have had mine since March and have talked to every tuner (Brabus, Remus, etc.) and the other W203 mufflers (i.e. C240 and C320) DON"T fit this car....so they have nothing for it.

ok....i guess i just told you bunch of negative stuff...but i have the car and i love it....if you rev the engin its pretty good....and fun to drive....and its a Benz....you can take out a bucket honda civic with a crappy muffler next to you on the stop light...but don't try to play with a WRX or any of the other people that are packin some ponys under their hood

pks485

Thanks for your replies. I will go and test drive it this weekend to see how it feels. I am sure that its not that bad. Presently I have a stock C230 Sedan (1997). I am planning on possibly upgrading it. Is there anything else I should know about this car?

Once again, thanks a lot for your input.

peet

I came off an M3 so yea, it has way less power - about 60 ponies less. But - it is fun to drive, I love it - I got the 6 spd btw.

Paid 30,500 for it with C2, C4, htd seats and 6 disk cd plus bose sound. Basically just under invoice.

My dad, on the other hand, just bought a C320 sedan, auto, c2, c3, htd seats, 6 disk cd for 36,300 - so if you have the extra moola, go for the 320 and negotiate one helluva deal like my dad did.

Peet

gapriderz

I just got my C230K sedan about 3 weeks ago. It's a very fun car to drive. The supercharger gives it a zip in this car. I drove a C240 loaner before and it didn't have the same power. I vowed not to get the C-Class until I test drove the C230k sedan. Freeway acceleration is where this car excels. It's very fast and nimble. The only minor complaint that I have is the manual front and back seat adjustor. Otherwise it's a great car and the gas mileage gets better everytime.

04 C230 Sport

Well, it sure depends on what you are comparing it against in terms of power and what your expectation is going in. For sure if you are thinking Audi S4 power your going to be disappointed. As a daily drive it is not all that bad and the performance is admirable for a 4. I just bought a 2004, could not find a 2003 anywhere in my area. Probably paid a bit more for the 2004 but it was fresh that day off the truck. I previosuly had a 1.8T A4 and this car feels stronger, as it should. I looked hard at the 230 and 320 sports sedans and just could not justify the 6-8K delta for the V6. The performance was just not that great between the two. There is a little lag in the SC but perhaps that settles out as the computer learns. I think the only other thing you miss with the 320 is digital climate control, oh boy!

Again, as an everyday drive it nice so far and holds the promise of 30MPG. Not bad.

Best of luck. Test drive and enjoy!

I did not look in to the aftermarket products before buying but it is clear there is little if anything other than cosmetics for the 230K. This is a bit disappointing but given this is my everyday car that might be a blessing in disguse. NO temptation to tweak.

jpb5151

Hey, welcome to MBWorld.

You're right about the mileage. We routinely get 31-32 mpg on trips to Michigan and back, which includes lotsa starts & stops, speedups & slowdowns.

In terms of the lag, for us it's partly due to the auto transmission and also to the "adaptive" stuff. The supercharger itself shouldn't lag much if at all, since it's turning along with the engine.

Enjoy your 04. Keep us posted on how it's doing, OK?

04 C230 Sport

Thanks for the warm welcome. I'm already enjoying the car and look forward to participating on the forum.

ScoobyDo

I have mine for 1.5 month now and thoroughly enjoying it. It is simply amazing in curvy roads. If you know how to handle the manual shifter, get the 6 speed. This is one of the best handling sport sedan in the market.

As for the 320, I don't like the weight the engine adds to the front of the car. Check the spec on the cars, the 320 is more than 200 pounds heavier than the 230. 200 pounds on this car make days and nights in the handling department.

Tai230K

i think the c230k sedan's engine is adequate... it's a very nice car and takes turns pretty well... but if you're looking for more power.. go AMG...