RedC230K

Last week, I got a Mars Red '04 coopay to replace my flaky '02. Mercedes provided assistance in trading me out of it... an amicable buyback, basically.

Here are my observations, for what they're worth (and that isn't much):

The 1.8 is smoother, quieter, and has a more pleasing exhaust note. The difference in percieved power is barely noticable. I thought I'd hate the smaller engine, but I love it.

The interior has been cheapened up a lot. No Homelink. No lighted vanity mirrors. No fresh air dial on the center A/C vent. Non-adjustable upper center dash vent. I hope Benz saved $5 per car this way. Cheep cheep.

Seat Belt "presenters" - good idea! poor design, though. They don't help much.

Mars Red is definitely darker and no orange tinge whatsoever. It's an OK color, but Magma was a GREAT color!

The 6-speed shifter/tranny is waaaaay smoother. WOW!

Continental Conti IIs? Well, at least I got Pilot Sports the first time around.

Bi-Xenons are pretty cool. Why do they "auto-level", though? They seem to only do it at startup.

I'd like to add COMAND - anyone selling their once the DVD nav comes out? What sucks is... central IL is split on TWO CDs!

jpb5151

Interesting comparison. I hope you grow to love your new car. Is there a difference in handling?

RedC230K

Thanks! Handling is about the same, I think. I have less thn 400 miles on it and snow on the ground, so I haven't been able to push it really hard yet.

amdeutsch

For the Nav you best get together Steve.

The new upcoming DVD cannot be retrofitted into existing W203s because it uses a different databus.

c class 279

RedC230,
Where in IL are you? I'm from Springfield, my coupe is from Isringhausen. Where is yours from?

RedC230K

I'm in Peoria. I was in Springfield this week with my Coupe - my band played at the Hilton for New Years.

Jens C320

I am guessing at start-up they are making sure the motors are working and not "stuck". But if you are driving along side a concrete median wall, hit the gas and you can see the light goes up (with the motion of the car) for a second and then drops back down as the levelers do their job.

tifosiv122

You might not be using these incorrectly, IMO they help a lot. I am 220lbs and it still lays just above my shoulder so I don't need to reach behind the seat.

Erik

tifosiv122

This I sort of understand...I bought an '03 and the MSRP is up less then $1,000 and the C7 package is now standard.

I just priced the car with the Comfort and Premium Packages (the C1, C5) that I bought in '02 ('03 model year) and it is almost identical to the MSRP in '02 and I got the exact same features. That means similarly configured (except bare-bones) the car didn't come up in price in 2 years, thats not bad.

Erik

zimmer26

You forgot no rest mode (if I'm not mistaken) and no dimming mirrors unless you go for the sunroof. Quieter engine at the expense of at least another .5 sec to 60- I pulled several runs on my new Escort accelerometer (highly recommended btw, lots of data/fun) in the high 6 low 7 range- braking 125ft from 60-0 and 15.1 in the 1/4. After driving the 1.8 in auto I would definitely go for the 320 next time (over the 2.3 as well if it were still online), but I do like the Mars red and the xenons though- nice job and best of luck.

C230K

good luck with your new ride, it's a good feeling when your paying for a car you enjoy. I traded my 2002 c230 coupe for the c320 coupe same color (magma red), big difference. Is there a great difference between the colors

zimmer26

I had the occaision to view them side by side and you wouldn't mistake one for the other. I'd say the difference is comparable to magma MB vs. your Volvo- not huge but a noticeably deeper shade of red, its a nice color, I'd gladly take it and save the 7 hundo putting that toward extra cost of the 6.

truelove

josh, they only autolevel at startup because that's the only time they really need to. they level themselves according to the weight distribution in the car at startup. so if you have something very very heavy in the trunk for example, thanks to autoleveling, the xenons won't be pointing up in the air only to blind oncoming traffic. or maybe you for some reason you have a 600 lb person sittin in the front seat , with autoleveling, the lights won't be pointing down.

and i personally love the seatbelt extensions. they bring the seatbelt forward a good 7 to 8 inches, not sure why you wouldn't care for them.

oh, and about the non-lit vanity mirrors. this must be an '04 thing, my '03 has lights.

EDIT: just saw the post from Jens C320 about the autoleveling doing their job after startup. perhaps this is the case (probably is). i've never noticed it, but then again it is very subtle and would be hard to see while moving.

truelove

i believe you're talking about the button to turn the compressor (AC) off. the '03-'04s have this. it's called AC off i believe. can't remember what the button says and i can't go look (drove my wife's car today due to the snow), but there IS one to disable the compressor.

zimmer26

Right, but that's not what I was referring to, that's the economy mode. Rest mode departed after 02 model year, its not a big deal, but what it does is keeps the fan running while the car is off to keep the cabin warm by utilizing residual engine heat for up to 20 or 30 minutes.

mctwin2kman

My 2003 still has Rest mode. I hold the AC Off button and then it comes on. I can hear the fan.....

truelove

hmmm, i'll have to go try it. i had no idea about this 'rest' mode. i've heard the term but i just assumed everyone meant that the 'rest' mode gives the compressor a 'rest'. i'm dumb.

zimmer26

Interesting, why would they change the wording on the button? Crazy *** Germans, same type of deal with our old two button keys that really do have 3 button functionality (well 4 if you include panic.) My theory on this is that's their way of tweaking perceived value/model separation, the switch/extra button costs them virtually nothing but they want some differentiation beyond the sheetmetal. Strange, but it makes sense, to me anyway.

RedC230K

WOW! Thanks for all the info, guys.

The seat belt presenter makes it impossible to reach with my left arm, as I'm accustomed to.
I hadn't noticed the REST feature gone... weird!

Mars Red is considerably more dark and muted than Magma. Mars is more of a blood red.

The cheapers cars (like mine) are the ones that are effectively de-contented over previous years, but the well-optioned cars get everything added back in. My '04 with similar options is over $1,000 more than my '02 was. (but I have xenons!)

truelove

ahh, i see. i grab the belt with my right hand. always have in every car i've been in (when i'm in the driver's seat anyway).

steffen

I wouldn't blame the Germans for changing that button. It's probably the stupid-*** Americans that were too dumb to check the manual to find out what "EC" and "REST" stood for, so the Germans had to dumb down the button by making it obvious "AC Off".

--Steffen

jigga619

I just came from the international car show in my city and i noticed that the 04 C230 didn't have the infrared thing on the passenger door handle.

jpb5151

No big loss. On our 2003, we have to be so close to the door to make it work that we might as well just get inside.

zimmer26

Really? So based on that, I guess MB thinks C320 sedan owners are "smart" and C320 SPORT sedan owners are "dumb" because the former still has a REST button while the latter doesn't. Now why do think they did it?

mctwin2kman

Rest is still there I believe it just does not say it on the button. That and the C320 has a completely diferent climate control system in it.