Donn

I have a C230K on order for mid-April delivery and emotionally I really like the car. The test drives have been a blast but I'm concerned about the build quality. The problems reported by others on this site (car-pull to the right, radio/antenna and panorama roof issues along with other glitches reported are making me second guess my order. Also, the recent posts on edmunds.com car site are pretty scary. If you're interested go to edmunds.com, town hall, (coupes, convertibles, sports), Mercedes Benz c230, and check out the Mar 19th message #922 and then messages 927 thru 945 re coupe problems reported by Madeline.

chronopassion

Those problems by "Madeline" on Edmunds sound like a bunch of garbage. The whole series of posts sounds like some BMW (or Toyota) fan who is trying to undercut Mercedes. I bet "Madeline" does not even own a C230. How could 40% of C230's be in for repair right now? Just sounds too silly to be legit.

Best regards,

CP

C230K

I bet "Madeline" does not even own a C230 and second that. I thought the same, no one has that much trouble with a new car, like the quality of MB. I have been on this forum for the last 8 months and "never" read anyone having that many problems. Think some people have nothing better to do than trash someone else. I thing we should just ignor people like that
Tom

Mike E

I am not suspicious by nature but I have to wonder about those posts by Madeline on edmunds too. I'm not suggesting that the problems are so far fetched that they couldn't possibly occur. I'm more skeptical about the reality of the responses by the dealer and MBUSA to these supposed problems. If 43% of the C-coupes built to date were in for repair, the people on this forum would know it because the population of coupe owners on this forum is large that any such trend would have already surfaced and been identified here.

I have had my coupe for only 3 1/2 weeks and in that time I have driven 2,200 miles. At this point the car seems to be right up to my expectations. I have not discovered any problems and have not been surprised by any unexpected short-comings.

WyattEarp

I also don't buy into those numbers. I've had my coupe for 4 months now, it has over 7000 miles and Ive only experienced one problem with the rear break light switch which the dealer fixed right away. I was concerned about the pulling to the right but I have not experienced any such problems.

benzomonterey

6 Months 8,200 miles. Not one problem. Never been back to dealer.

MarkL

Here's a couple of things to consider. People on boards such as this, Edmunds, etc. are most likely a small minority of people who own the various cars, and are by nature, very interested in their cars, and "picky" (myself included :p). The view you may end up by reading all the posts may tend toward the negative. When I was buying a VW Passat in '99, I almost changed my mind due to some horror stories on the VW board. I ended up buying it, and I hardly had any problems with it in the 3 years I owned it. I can't speak to the C230 build quality, but I've had my C240 for 7 months and it has never seen the service department (knock on wood), yet. The only minor problem that I might ask them about when I take it for the "A" service is the passenger head rest rattles a bit when driving w/o a passenger. If you really like the car and the way it drives, I say go for it, and don't worry too much!

jack230

I read those posts; they are pretty comical.

Mine's been rock solid; I love it.

Iceman's C230

Mine also has been rock solid. No problems here.. I wouldn't read toooo much in to some of the posts....

tommy

"She" seemed to be totally gutless, and I really don't buy the answers that she got by calling MBUSA. Besides, how many different times can you rephrase "grow some ball$" to someone?

As far as the 43% number, I think that there is a large enough sample on this board that, if that were true, we'd be seeing posts every day of griping. So, right now, I'm hoping that she's just a troll who wanted to stir up some doubt in others. Don't know why, though. Is she really dasMafia? :p

sal

LMAO!!!you wrong for that tommy, but that's funny as $h!t.

Donn

IF this is a troll at work she/he sure does a disservice to everyone. Upon a second reading the comments purportedly from MBUSA do seem unbelievable to me. Thanks for the input everyone.

raymond

Donn

We have a C230K bought on November 3, 2001. Here is the honest list of problems we've had:

Car cut out on three occasions, at various speeds for no reason. MB has replaced trunk SAM and fuel pump, so far so good...

Check engine light for misfires - may have been related to the above problem.

Excessive wind noise on driver's side. MB still unable to fix - in for its third time as I type.....

Passenger side headrest fouls the roof liner on occasion - seems as if mechanism doesn't always work.

Metallic grinding noise in engine - currently in for repair with wind noise. I'll post when I know what it is.

Doors misaligned with body.

Rattle in roof (not the moon roof) - fixed.

Several other minor issues, some of which are design flaws and others bad QC, those having been fixed.


In total, we have been without our car for more than three weeks since Nov. 3rd. At least we get an MB loaner.

Cheers

Raymond

DrMike

I agree that Madeline sounds bogus. Someone stirring up mischief at best or some stealth negative marketing at worst (like political campaign ads).

Our 230 hasn't been rock solid, but has be very satisfactory. Had to go back to have low beams reaimed, which helped a bit but changing to Phillips vision plus helped more. Also had to go in when a defective brake sensor created an abs warning message. That did take 2 trips to dealer, on for diagnosis and one for install of the part.

Didn't mind too much going back to the dealer. It is a 45 min drive mostly on rural 2 lane country roads and goes past some estates with ggarages larger than my house. The dealer service waiting room has comfy chairs, 2 tv's, high end coffee machine, and entertaining people watching (like the parents obsessing about the minutest detail on their car but clueless about what their kids are getting into).

Donn

Thanks raymond for the feedback. In January, when I first started looking, I saw a coupe being worked on. They too, were replacing the fuel pump. Good luck with the repairs.

[QUOTE]Originally posted by DrMike
Someone stirring up mischief at best or some stealth negative marketing at worst (like political campaign ads).

DrMike, probably diversionary tactics from a competitors business psychologist. I could'nt resist

avlis

I thought Madeline was a troll as soon as I read "her" post. I came here did a search on "crack" and "cover" and came up with nothing. If the red cover has a design flaw then it surely would have been complained about in the SLK and/or C Class forum.

Her message is so over-the-top that it's really hard to believe that people actually belive her. Do you really think a dealer would actually "glue" a part back together instead of replacing a simple part!?

Cullen

I've had my coupe for a few weeks.. just hit 1100 miles on the odometer. Only problem I've had was a loose connection in the stereo which causes it to work intermittently. Everything else is perfect.

speedfrk

My car has about 2200 miles on it now, and the 6sp trans has never shifted right from 1st to 2nd. All the other gears are good. The Mercedes rep drove the car and said they will put a 2nd gear syncro in whenever I want. It has definately been a time hassle since I have had to take the car in 3 times, but they seem sincere about wanting to fix it and make me happy. No other problems than that, though.