I realize that not too many of you would be "into this" kind of thing with your Mercedes but...

I was with a group of guys Wednesday that joined me in renting a 2.1 mile road race circuit for the day. We all had cars that we wanted to get a few fast laps with, and... We additionally had an opportunity to put our street cars on the track for some fun as well.

I had driven to the track in my '03 C230K Sport Sedan, another pal brought along his Ford Taurus SHO, and one gent brought his brand new Nissan Maxima (265 HP, 18 inch wheels, etc), another brought a Supercharged Mustang, Viper, etc. you get the idea.

Anyhow, after making some fast race / instruction laps we all took to the track with the street cars. My pal with the Maxima was most interested in my C230K. He could have gone the way of the three pointed star but opted for the higher HP Nissan. Anyhow, with the Nissans 18 inch rubber and more than ample power how could I blame him?

We went out together (with him behind) and made 6 fast laps. The first lap was a warm up, then we laid into it. The Benz performed flawlessly. I tried a lap with the ESP on & noticed that it would restrict me somewhat in the faster corners. I shut that off and never felt like it was needed for the rest of the fast laps. In fact... The chassis is doing its job so well that I would say it could easily handle double the HP. Laps were effortless. The car hardly squeaked a tire as I drove 9/10's with it. Brakes were fabulous, turn in is crisp, balance superb, power was ample as is. I have the auto trans (driver adaptive) and got a chance to see it at work. I left it in "D" and found that it truly does "adapt" to the demands of the driver. Example, I would come into a 90 degree right hander at 115 mph or so, brake hard, turn in and feed full throttle. At the exit the car would be in the correct gear at 5000 RPM, climbing towards redline, and even if I lifted off the throttle to just coast up to the next turn, the trans would hold the gear, readying for more of the lap, keeping me in the powerband. Nice.

It had "learned" that I was in an aggressive driving mode. Then it adapted to my "style." Not bad.

Okay, anyhow, the Nissan.

After 3 laps I had to slow to 20 MPH on the front straight so he could catch up. He is a pretty capable driver, but I think the Benz was just so well planted in comparison. He did catch up with me when I pulled back to 20 MPH, so I throttled back in for the last 3 laps. Result? The Benz opened about 8 car lengths per lap, ending in a 1/2 straight away lead for the Benz by the time we pulled in. The SHO did not fair any better. They both had some straight away power, but they had nothing on the C230K Sport Sedan the rest of the lap.

I drove both of those cars later, and found the Nissan very powerful as mentioned, but it really leaned in the turns. The SHO was stable & powerful, but large. For the road course the Benz is the way to go. I have run it at the drag strip too though (crazy 'eh?), and its not bad there either!

This Sport Sedan is just a super package. I could not be happier. I cant even imagine how much better the C32 AMG could be. It's mind boggling.

BTW... On the way home... The trip computer reported 36 MPG @ 69 MPH average. Nice package.

 

Wow, that looks like a lot of fun. I've always wondered how the 1.8L 230 sedan would do.

 

Thanks for the update! Sounds like a lot of fun!

It's nice to see someone verify what I've felt . . . that is, that the Benz is a better handling car than anyone gives it credit for.

There's a particular off-ramp in my area, nice sweeping right, banked slightly on entrance, flattening to off-camber on exit.

When I had my '87 300TD, it was actually faster through the off-ramp than my '94 ProbeGT. The C230Sport is even faster yet.

These cars are great! Fantastic handling, and comfort too.

One question: How did the brakes hold up after a couple of laps?

 

I love the way the Benz handles stock. I spend over $2,000 in suspension mods to get my Maxima to handle the way I wanted it to. Part of the problem was the solid rear axel, and a very light rear-end.

I am asuming your friend had the '04 Max, which is a boat. The '03 would have done much better, but none of the Maxima's are track cars from the factory. The suspension is always horrible...for racing, nice for luxury.

Erik

 

I'm impressed with how well the transmission worked. I don't have the auto, but it's nice to know that it adapted so well for you. I wouldn't have expected that at all.

 

Brakes were solid every time I went for them. My driving style is to carry momentum though... I may use them a lot less than others making the same lap. That "style" worked well for the car for sure.

Anyhow, the pedal was always very firm, and I was even well into the ABS on many corners.

The trans sure was a real treat. A few guys @ the track asked if I was manual shifting it, but I told them that I did not find the need too. It was pretty capible on its own.

The Maxima must have been an '04... It has the HUGE chunk of chrome on the grill? Kinda an odd looking duck. I guess it has the 350Z engine? Detuned a few ponies.

This Benz is the real deal. I think its all because of that light weight engine. I like the V6 version too, but the V6 would detract from the excellent balance this 1.8 allows I am sure. Mercedes really got this one right.

Great time, a real treat to put through the paces.

 

MIchael-

It's great to see someone else enjoying their benz the way only very few of us know we can.

I autox my car a lot lately, today I am missing a HPDE for work and another HPDE on Sun. I've found the end of the brakes. It's very frightening. 7th Lap on an autocross course, 50 second course, close to a half mile, really hard into the corners, stab the brakes, repeat. My disks turned a goldish hue and they stopped working. I am resolving the issue with Super Blue brake fluid, porterfield pads, and stainless brake lines.

Congrads again, next time get pics! and enjoy your car.


ps... help me convince others to do it too!!!!


Thomas

 

Great to see somebody took the C230K sedan to the track. I have mine for over a month and I don't have the chance to do that yet. I have been telling people that this is one of the top handling sport sedan in the price range. I agree with your observation about the C230 versus the C320. There is over 200 pounds difference and most of the weight comes from the engine weight. I drove both and in the handling department the C230 winds hands down. The confidence that the C230 gives the driver in the curves is similiar to my Boxster S.

 

I am resolving the issue with Super Blue brake fluid, porterfield pads, and stainless brake lines.

Nuk,

One trick from an old racer - the Ford HD Truck brake fluid is DOT4, has a similar boiling point to super blue fluid, is a lot cheaper, and is available at most Ford dealerships. Considering that you'll probably be bleeding the brakes regularly, you may not want to keep discarding the expensive fluid after each event.

Race on!

 

Very nice, thanks for sharing the experience. As for your friend with the Maxima, I only wonder, why didn't he get a G35? Almost the same price, and the latter is a much better car... anyways, back to the topic.

Yeah, the 230k sports sedan has pleasantly surprised me! I took it through moderately windy streets and it was tackling the curves with ease. There was this one turn that I exited with a smile on my face. I'm almost tempted to say that this baby handles better than my last car, an Acura RSX Type-S but I'm not too sure yet. Still have to take the 230k to my old driving grounds to be sure.

 

That's great! Glad you had fun.

 

Yes sir, this car is a ball to own.

Here is a shot of me showing off a launch technique:



I had just smoked the tires to the point of the car disappearing (John Force style - you can see the evidence - dual dark black lines under the car), and finally someone pulled the camera out.

My Son (in the back) got a huge kick out of these nutty moments.

The car is a jack of all trades. Next car = E55 AMG - I am hooked.

 

Looks great.

Maybe you and Nuk can set up a tire fund together. Nonprofit, tax deductible...

 

The sport suspensioned C-Class cars are very confidence inspriring on the road when pushed. My father in law has a Boxster, and having driven it a lot, I must say I agree. The C-Class doesn't have the lightening fast steering, or the wonderous music coming from just over your left shoulder(mind you, the supercharger makes some nice sounds of its own), but the car has that same "I'm planted, lets have some fun" feeling. The limits are obviously somewhat higher in the Boxster, but the car feels "right" when pushed.

I had the opportuninty to drive about 350 miles on back roads coming back from our 4th of July vacation up at the lake, about 100 miles of it twisting, hilly two lane blacktop in western wisconsin! My wife and my son, along with my sister in law were staying a few more days, I needed to be back at work for an important meeting, so I drove my own car. I was free to enjoy the road. Panorama roof wide open, windows down, and music cranked. I wanted to take all back roads home, no Interstate crap. No boring drive, no flying stones, no SUV's tailgating me, no minivans and RV's to weave in and out of, and no state troopers.

I drove the car to the limit around some of the turns. On most of the first 100 miles I wouldn't see another car for 10 miles. It was a blast. Some of the roads come down off steep hills and run along a river and then shoot off into the woods...I was grinning from ear to ear at each curve. Coming into turns marked "30" at around 65 to 70 with the supercharger just whining like mad exiting the turn foot to the floor. I shot across a few flat fields in excess of 100, and the car was unflappable.