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Just picked up this 2005 C240 4matic today in Perlite Grey Metallic / graphite
New commuter car / daily driver for my girlfriend to commute daily and for us to use to keep miles off my other cars..
No Nav, not sure what other packages it could have as I am not familiar with the package range for the w203.
It has 98k miles, seems "clean" overall but needs a few random things here and there to be 100%.
Mechanically it runs strong, no trans issues, idles great, drives on the highway and around town nicely no weird smells, sights. No CEL
It will pass inspection but...there are a few things it needs/I want to do aka my projects for the next few months:
Time to make a shopping cart on autohausAZ.....
- Spark Plugs (can anyone recommend? stick to OEM Bosch 6702?)
- Oil change + Filter + Filter gasket (prob just buy new OEM Assembly)
- alignment
- wheels balance
- tires
- wheel bearing?, humming at speed around 60mph (may be the bad tires)
- fluids
- front tow hook cover (not on parts site... ebay?)
- washer fluid reservoir neck (was missing - he said neck cracked)
- random interior pieces like the temperature knobs and chrome trims
- Horn is gone (he said it broke and he never replaced it but unplugged anyway)
- trunk 3rd brake light lens is cracked.. (just like on the 06 SL...)
- The damn rear sunshade is stuck up and the motor just cranks away.
- Front passenger fender had been resprayed after some light damage (no accidents on record) and needs to be re-aligned it sits a bit off right now. needs to be wet sanded and polished.
- Random paint nicks and scrapes; car needs a good conditioning
- turn signal bulb
- in-cabin air filter, air is a little musty
- sagging headliner near rear book light
- Steering wheel is wrecked... new one or retrofit AMG?
Luckily no real bodywork is needed and no accident history on file (though I learned of the resprayed fender when I got there) but it needs touching up in a few sports and a good polishing as there are swirls all over...
The seats are pretty nice and overall it just needs a good clean inside as the prev owners had 3 messy messy children and they barely bothered to clean it before we came because it was a sort of day-before "we are coming tomorrow" type thing.
"Plans"
It is a daily and for my girlfriend but I am a car guy and like to tinker.
Besides all the above maintenance which will be sorted first, I will likely add:
- a full conditioning and detail...most important after maintenance.
- Aux input via glovebox
- Bluetooth - it has the phone but not sure if it will work via bluetooth?
- new OEM 17-18" MB wheels (c55 amg?) as it needs tires anyway
IIRC The 4matic can't run staggered though so not sure if the AMG will work
- if I can find a cheap command system, may retrofit the command
- I found a front/back/side OEM c55 AMG kit for $600 shipped.... tempting
- May try to find a set of OEM bi-xenon headlamps as I don't like halogen
Anyway, here are the pics:
^ there you can see how the front passenger fender is not aligned right... it's missing a bolt right next to headlights.
and you can see my Infiniti in the background very upset that I am paying attention to another car....
I'm on a bunch of forums but am happy to join another car community!
Any maintenance tips, tricks, help, part sources, etc. would be excellent!
Btw if this helps people understand the market for a similar car, I bought it for $4k and it just hit 99k miles. He was asking $6k.
Great price for how much car you get for it...
Last edited by jbaker1121; 02-16-2016 at 03:08 PM.
Air intake filters
cabin air filter (battery location)
LED license plate light "no error" kit (not bulb, entire unit)
new turn signal bulbs
Perlite Grey Metallic touch-up paint
Haven't checked out my cart on AutohausAZ yet...as I am slowly finding better prices
Well, getting the sunshade down was an easy fix... just smacked together the bars as it was trying to lower them... So that's checked off the list
noticed the rear shelf is extremely faded to the extent that it looks purple....
Gave the interior leather and vinyl a quick cleaning / moisturizing to bring some life to it.
Played with the cluster computer a bit as the prev owner didnt have the correct time set, among other things.
Unfortunately today noticed a few more dings and scrapes on the exterior - nothing serious though.
Gave it a bit of a rough drive today to see if there were any CEL that would pop up, overheating issues, etc.
the last owner left it smelling like an old sock stuffed with oranges -- so I cleaned it up with some OZium spray, mixed with fresh air and (windows down in 15 deg weather) a few cleaning supplies, smells pretty clean in there now.
The last owner neglected to even clean the numbers off the side of the car from either them or the previous owners writing for sale w/ # on the side window.. you can see residue....
Here are the interior pics: as you can see, the temperature knobs are missing for some reason, but the clips are still there (so it is still adjustable) but I will have to seek those out....
The steering wheel leather is a mess. It needs to be replaced. Not sure if I will upgrade (dont want an airbag light) or try and find an OEM replacement - or simply a re-cover kit that will be the cheapest look, and better than nothing. My GF doesnt like the bulky feel of the wheel with a typical cover on it....
otherwise, besides a few nicks and scrapes, and a couple missing tiny pieces, and the carpet being untucked from the passenger side of the front middle console...the interior is in pretty good shape.
pics:
Ordered a few more bits and bobs - time to seek out a part out for some of such.
Looks like its shaping up nicely! Im really jealous of your cup holder/center console. The 05+ center consoles are just so much better looking.
Also - I believe this car is an m112 powered 2.6L v6, unless in 05 240s actually came w/ m272s. Pop the hood and share a pic to clarify
Thanks man. Like I said and you can see from the pics, it needs some TLC after what seems like some neglect through the years. I don't think it ever had a proper wash or cleaning inside since the last owner bought it 2 years ago, though he claims to have done maintenance (at least he had receipts for oil to show me) plus the brake pads are Bosch, for example, so at least it seems when it was maintained it was done with decent parts...
As for the inside, I agree I am happy to have bought an 05+ for the price I paid as it is a nice facelift upgrade from the older ones.
The cup holder's pop-up and swivel function is broken, which I will fix soon, and the wood around the shifter unfortunately has some cracking, so i may order an entire new set depending on what I end up doing with the radio. depending on the price I can get one for, I may get an OEM Comand unit to fit in, or but a similarly styled aftermarket unit (there is one that comes plug-and-play with all connections wires, even a rear camera, for $400 - about the price of a COmand unit + the supplies you need - ) I have to see how much other maintenance costs me before going for the head unit though, as the speakers and all are fine as of now... plus I am not too keen on spending 10% value of the car on something that isn't broken...YET.
So if you're interested in my center console, parts may be for sale
It should be the M112 as I believe the 05 240 comes with the M112 E26 according to my research.
Thanks for the kind words. I have a few parts coming in the next few days, will post up pics and make a DIY for some of them if there isn't already one...
New tires will be on by next week, unless I find a decent set of wheels with good tires on them beforehand (sometimes bette rot just buy another set - save money)
Today it is officially registered and insured and
Last edited by jbaker1121; 02-16-2016 at 03:09 PM.
That cup holder is much simpler than the previous iteration w/ a cover (that cracks) and a more complicated mechanism for the cup holders that always breaks. I just ripped my cupholder out yesterday and the cover cracked this previous summer so i've been scheming updating my center console.. :P
I forgot to comment about your headlight alignment. Its an easy fix - you dont even technically need the bolt on the outside that holds it to the fender/bumper. You can loosen the bolt on top and the bolt near the radiator. With those two bolts loose, you can push the headlight into a better position where the seals sit more in line w/ the bumper. At that point you can just tighten up the loosened bolts and you're headlight will be better aligned. This would avoid having to remove your bumper to align your headlight.
BUT, looking at your picture, you probably wanna loosen up the bumper and remount it as it def is not mounted on correctly on your passenger side. There is a little plastic hook that the fender has that I believe the bumper can sit on. Yours appears to be under.
Anywho - looks good. That m112 will probably never die :P Enjoy!
That cup holder is much simpler than the previous iteration w/ a cover (that cracks) and a more complicated mechanism for the cup holders that always breaks. I just ripped my cupholder out yesterday and the cover cracked this previous summer so i've been scheming updating my center console.. :P
I forgot to comment about your headlight alignment. Its an easy fix - you dont even technically need the bolt on the outside that holds it to the fender/bumper. You can loosen the bolt on top and the bolt near the radiator. With those two bolts loose, you can push the headlight into a better position where the seals sit more in line w/ the bumper. At that point you can just tighten up the loosened bolts and you're headlight will be better aligned. This would avoid having to remove your bumper to align your headlight.
BUT, looking at your picture, you probably wanna loosen up the bumper and remount it as it def is not mounted on correctly on your passenger side. There is a little plastic hook that the fender has that I believe the bumper can sit on. Yours appears to be under.
Anywho - looks good. That m112 will probably never die :P Enjoy!
thanks for the help. I will prob disassemble the upholder and replace the spring as sometimes if they stay compressed for a while they stop working as I've seen on other cars with similar setups....
the fender alignment issue is actually the fender itself - not the headlights - You can look at where it meets the headlight and there is a bolt or something not there.
The car had no accidents on record but the prev own admitted that the front pass fender was resprayed after a parallel parking mishap when they first got the car. The paint matches OK but the alignment of the panel (I dont think it's a new one I think they just repaired it... haven't checked with magnet yet) is just off in the front there because of the missing bolt and is also a little off where it meets the A pillar.
it's on the list of things to fix
Few parts came int today, time to take them off the list
Welcome to the forums! A bit help for you Also the horn should be easy fix if the horn itself is broken (not the wiring) It is located just in front of the radiator and easy access after opening the hood
Welcome to the forums! A bit help for you Also the horn should be easy fix if the horn itself is broken (not the wiring) It is located just in front of the radiator and easy access after opening the hood
Thanks for the help! I've ordered a replacement already, just need to find paint to match it.
As for the horn, the prev owner already disconnected it and the wires are just hanging. Hopefully I can just plug a replacement in and be good...
Did the air intake filters today, last ones looked about 50k old.
The turn signal bulbs I ordered did not fit right (offset pins to hold in it place vs. the mirrored pins on OEM) so need to re-order.
I also ended up ordering the actual in-cabin (in-dashboard) charcoal filter, not just the one in the engine bay, so that will have to wait til another day when I have more time.
In other news, turns out the reason the oil cap looked so weird is because it is a BMW oil cap... it locks in place, but is square so doesn't fit the engine cover. Now I have to get one of those too...
The list piles on just got quoted $700 for new set of Continentals, balance, alignment... may just seek out a set of wheels with newer tires for that price, though it needs an alignment badly.
Threw in the Turn signal bulbs, New Third brake light, and new LED license plate lights (new housings, not just bulbs - this way they are error free)
The signals were straightforward but it took me a couple hours to do the other two as I have never done the same on this car and there were some tricky bits - used DIY threads on the forum.
Unfortunately I found a few other things that the car needed, which I have ordered.
Tires on the way next week as well as a balance and alignment; doing an oil change tomorrow or next week if I get the time to.
I have not decided whether to bite the bullet on a new steering wheel outer because the leather on this one is destroyed - got a kit that comes with a leather strip with holes in it, and string to sew it on. We'll see how it comes out...
I realized the headlamps were not aimed properly. It would appear that the headlight housings are both new, which explains why they looked so nice. However, they were never aimed after being installed. Took a few minutes last night with the aiming screws and now they actually light up the road....
As for the bulbs..
Amazon was running a special on the Philips CrystalVision H7 55W bulbs, down to $27/pair from $65/pair. so, I ordered two pair for the Headlamp low beams and high beams.
Also, I ordered a set of Nokya 9006 Yellow bulbs for the fog lights. I use the same ones on my other car and like them. Also ordered LED for the city lamps and reverse lamps.
One easy way to update the look of a car is the lighting. I don't like the blue fake-xenon look, so I just ordered whiter, brighter lights to go with the bright white LED of the rear plate lights.....
in other news, tires have been ordered (Pirelli Cinturato p7 AS+) and it will be getting a balance and alignment as well....
Last edited by jbaker1121; 03-08-2016 at 02:49 PM.
Front City / parking lamps
purchased here:
http://www.ebay.com/itm/191788585081?_trksid=p2057872.m2749.l2649&ssPageName=STRK%3AMEBIDX%3AIT
Front lamps, OEM non- bixenon.
front city lights, LED vs. OEM
Front H/L and city lamps, Left are the CrystalVision H/L and LED city lamp, right OEM, fogs OEM
Front, both H/L CrystalVision, both city LED, both fogs OEM
I thought the crystal vision would be a bit more blue/white (6000k) vs. the white with tinge of yellow (they claim 4000k) that they are now. with the city lamp LED being very 6000k, they come out looking too 'blue' compared to the other lights.
I don't like the blue light look. My license plates lights are white, about 5500k with not much blue in it. These are too blue for me.
So, I purchased the crystal vision matching 194 lamps from Philips, also tinted blue, as they should match the crystal vision H/L to be pretty much white.
For the fogs i ordered yellow 2500k bulbs from Nokya, as they are pretty good in the inclement weather (I use them as my DTRL on my other car)
The crystal vision are a bit whiter than the OEM, but not as much of that blue tinge as I was hoping (for the xenon look) and the output is about the same.
Will update with pics later.
here's a nice shot of the car where I park it at the office. Usually my girlfriend takes it to work but I had it yesterday to drop it off for tires to be done. the ride is night and day with the new tires, it went from driving like a 10 year old car with 100k miles to a 10 year old mercedes with 100k miles....
Here's that pic of the license plate lights. As I said, they are quite bright.
in other news, the C is getting an oil change tomorrow.
I have also got in the windshield washer fluid tank parts so can put that pack together and hopefully it works.
Unfortunately the last few days I have noticed a bit of a rough idle when coming to a stoplight after driving at speed. Will have the spark plugs checked when the oil is done as I have a suspicion that the valve cover gaskets have a slight leak which may be covering the plugs in oil, causing the rough idle.
There is also a 'noise' I cannot quite figure out. Sounds like a woodpecker, and only occurs upon an acceleration from a stop. I am hoping it is not differential or transmission related....
otherwise, the car is great, rides nicely. Can't wait to put the Aux cable into the glove box....
Great thread! Looks just like my 2005 C240 4Matic. Same color and all. Sounds like lots of little things needed in order to get it up to par. These cars are very solid reliable cars. Mine has about 160,000 and still drives very good.
Congrats on your c240. I bought a c230 last year which is very similar to your car and have been pleasantly surprised.
You might also change the atf fluid and filter. If you are a car guy you'll find this easy, and there are tons of instructions on this forum.
What about performance upgrades. I've done tons with my w203, but the 2 most bang for the buck items were my k&n air filter and sprintbooster throttle controller.
my 2002 c240 is pretty much exactly already all you're planning to do here... right down to the bulbs in the headlights and rear licence leds... and don't forget the interior led'so
She's been great and joy to drive but not needed much anymore : (
In case you're curious... http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/5504610776.html
And I'm going to miss her when she goes but until then, still a great ride.
Great thread! Looks just like my 2005 C240 4Matic. Same color and all. Sounds like lots of little things needed in order to get it up to par. These cars are very solid reliable cars. Mine has about 160,000 and still drives very good.
Thanks. a bunch of silly little things but I got the car for a good price so even with those fixes it is still less than buying one at dealer retail.
Originally Posted by LexBrett2
Congrats on your c240. I bought a c230 last year which is very similar to your car and have been pleasantly surprised.
You might also change the atf fluid and filter. If you are a car guy you'll find this easy, and there are tons of instructions on this forum.
What about performance upgrades. I've done tons with my w203, but the 2 most bang for the buck items were my k&n air filter and sprintbooster throttle controller.
The iPod aux cable is also very cool..
Thanks. I'll be having a trans fluid change done eventually.
as for performance, not worth it on this car to waste money on it trying to get any more horsepower out of it. if it were the kompressor, maybe - but it's my gf's car to get to and from work.
My car has twice the power (to the wheels) of the C240 4matic, lol.
Originally Posted by JonMac
my 2002 c240 is pretty much exactly already all you're planning to do here... right down to the bulbs in the headlights and rear licence leds... and don't forget the interior led'so
She's been great and joy to drive but not needed much anymore : (
In case you're curious... http://inlandempire.craigslist.org/cto/5504610776.html
And I'm going to miss her when she goes but until then, still a great ride.
Thanks. Your link is dead. I did the exterior lights just to brighten them up as the stock ones were horrible.
The LED I got for the parking lights and the reverse lights didnt work so I put stock back in.
....UPDATE:
Unfortunately all the playing around with the bulbs caused the headlight harness to short and the entire driver side headlamp housing does not work. Now, I have to try and fix it without buying a new one. My gf already got a ticket the other night for a bulb being out as they are fairly strict around here.
Oil change went smoothly, though we realized the old owner was using the wrong weight.
i fixed the windshield washer neck and filler only to realize the motor itself doesn't work so I need to get a new pump for that.
We checked the spark plugs because it is a little grumbly at idle and they seem to be thee original plugs, with 102k miles on them (or they were changed at 60k and are dirty anyway)
however, does not seem to be oil leaking on them like I originally thought, which is good, but there is a weird thing when you are in reverse with the A/C or heat on you get a little oil burn smell coming through the vents.
I looked it up and it's either an easy fix like replacing the carbon filter (already have it) or its a leaking heater core or something.
For now I tell her to leave it on recirc, lol.
next, I will do the iPod aux cable as I am already sick of the FM radio playing the same 10 songs..
So, more little things to be done but all together still cheaper than the dealer prices for a similar car
Ahh ... she sold a few days ago now, i removed the listing... sellers remorse setting in.
I test drove a 2011 Ford Fusion yesterday and OMG shoot me if I ever consider looking at a Ford again ...
9 years older and 30k miles more, and the C240 is still a quieter, smoother drive, power and steering responsive, with trim that doesn't fall apart in your hands, finish that doesn't look like a no one cared when it was put on the car ... (ever lifted the trunk carpet and seen underneath... argh).
I could not believe a 5 year old / 113k car could get so worn out Perhaps (I sincerely hope) that i just happened on an abused example, but it was only serviced 3k ago, by a ford dealer at that...
OH well... some nostalgia pics and my little tribute to the car that taught my wife how to drive
The car has been at the shop for 2 weeks because the air conditioning is not working. First they thought it was the compressor, then they figured it was the control unit.
besides that, I have driven it often this summer to keep miles off the other cars and it really is a great little car..
sometimes the pressure sensor can stop the AC from working! but if they have the STAR computer is should tell them what the problem is!
Hi there. At first it was the compressor was not kicking on. Replaced the compressor. Then they realized it was the actual control module. $200 online for a used working one. Just came in today. Hopefully it's working by this weekend as I am bothered having the car sit for 3 weeks.
Originally Posted by ChrisBrown
Your car is looking great. Mine just crossed 233,000 miles recently. Congrats!
Thanks! I am hoping after the maintenance we've done it will last that long. It seems past owners did not take great care of her...
I'm trying to source an OEM steering wheel to replace ours. The leather on this one is destroyed....
02-13-2016, 04:01 PM
Perhaps (I sincerely hope) that i just happened on an abused example, but it was only serviced 3k ago, by a ford dealer at that...
