i agree with all but "try a british junk"...

my dad has a 96 Jag XJ-12...and the sound of the door closes it's very solid.

 

Well, jags haven't had the best reputation. It's only over the past several years that they have been disproving their "british junk" status. My dad has a 2001 XKR and it doesn't impress me even if it is supercharged. He doesn't think it's anything special either.

Oh yeah, saw your pic. Riverside - Boulder Creek Apartments. Used to live there too.

 

bullwinkle...infiniti is probably scared if they wash your car 3 times, you'll pull out the lemon card on them for not washing it correctly...hehehhe.

//////////// Oh like I said...check CONSUMER REPORTS for the reliability of the INFINITI.....all of them have great reviews. Scored way way way above average.

checkout the MB ML series

 

Are they scared because their car will dissintegrate in the car wash like the wicked witch in the Wizard of Oz, I'm melting!

I went back to my Car & Driver and the car is definitely the ugliest thing I've seen come out of Infiniti. It looks worse than G20. I think they are targeting the IS300 with their styling. They also said in the article that the platform will be used on an upcoming sport ute.

 

German cars generally have heavier steering because they are designed to be driven on the autobahn at greater speeds than one would find in most other countries. When you're travelling at 100+ MPH you don't want to sneeze and end up in a ditch.

Cheers, BT

 

G35 coupe is beautiful
link to G35 coupe

 

If you like goggle-eyed slugs, that is

 

I wouldn't buy any Infiniti cars due to their poor crash tests. They just don't know how to build safe cars. Take a look at the crash tests for the Inifiniti models here(they don't have the G35 yet):

http://www.hwysafety.org/vehicle_ratings/ratings.htm

The C-class got the best pick and good crash tests all around.

 

those test done by the IIOHS for the Inifinity models are all from the previous generation models, which all are gone except the QX4.

the I35 has made some structural improvement. the Q45 is brand new which has not been tested yet. G35 also has not been tested yet. M45 is not yet available in the states. and the FX45 is not even into production yet.

i think the crash test for the new Q, G, M, and FX will be pretty good.

 

MERCEDES USA made a big mistake to carry the low end models in the US.

Mercedes should only sell V8+ and 50G+ high lines in the States. Selling low end models will only dump down the company's image.

MERCEDES IS ALWAYS A MERCEDES and MERCEDES should not be selling these sub 50G cars.

C-coupe is basically a CIVIC with a Mercedes emblem. If it does not have the Mercedes logo, will you buy it?

If you can only affort a C-coupe and want to impress people (I am rich and can affort a MERCEDES), do yourself a favor, buy a used 99 CLK430, it is a faster and classier car and no one will laugh at the CLK430. Don't buy the CLK320, my 99 Maxima is faster than the CLK320 that I test drove.

 

Holy thread revival, Batman!

 

and a civic will outrun any of the older benz diesels, therefore the civic is more impressive?? i must be missing something here.

wait, wait, lemme try this one: ferrari is always ferrari, and make impossible to afford exotics, therefore any ferrari priced at under $275k is not a ferrari, and less impressive than a nissan?

 

It's amazing how much people judge cars based solely on a $2 badge rather than the mechanics and feel of the car itself. I'll buy a Subaru, BMW, MB, or Jeep, so long as the car is solid and appeals to me.

To say "Well at the end of the day you're driving a Mercedes" is juvenile and shows a lack of enthousiasm for automobiles.

 

its sad that some of you guys judge a car by the brand name. it just show what fakes you are if you hate a car because you dont like the design its cool but dont hate it because of the brand name

 

i dont hate nissans or hondas. we've owned both, and had no problems, and enjoyed the cars. i'm just trying to comprehend the logic.

 

Speaking of Nissan... check out how Nissan Motors are suing poor Mr. Nissan (a computer store owner in North Carolina, yes, Nissan is his last name) for trademark infringement and the right of Nissan.com, which Mr. Nissan has registered it way before Nissan Motors.

http://ncchelp.org/

 

yeah, i remembering hearing about that suit on the news. my thoughts were that since he registered first, it is his, he has all rights to it, as it is his name. and really, how hard is it to remember www.nissandriven.com as opposed to www.nissan.com ?

 

I don’t know why I get involved anyway. I don’t want to argue with you guys. But instead of driving a C I would rather get the G35. It’s more bang for the buck. This is just my opinion. I did have an Infiniti QX4 great car looked good had real good braking and handling but no power. It was only 173 HP engine very slow car. I didn’t keep it because of the engine it sucked it was very reliable but no power. The bad thing about infinity is the resale values it very very bad. But I have a feeling that the G35 and the G35 coupe will have a good resale values. I did have a bad experience with my infinity dealer and I swore I would never ever buy another Infiniti ever again but the G35 coupe is very tempting.

 

Let me ask a question. Why do some people pay more money $$ to get a “LOW-END” Mercedes which is less equipped, less reliable and has lower performance?

1. Transport from point A to point B. Honda Accord can do the same thing. Don't tell me Mercedes is safer than Honda. Honda Accord is just as safe as the C-class
Link: http://www.nhtsa.dot.gov/NCAP/Cars/2003MidS.html

2. To impressive themself. This reason is important.
For example: Why people bought C-coupe?
Not because of it is good looking – the rear is very ugly
Not because of it is safer.
Not because of the performance and/or it is well equipped. You can get a well equipped Accord Coupe V6 240HP for less money.
Not because of Mercedes’ reliability.
Not because of it offers a better ride. I don’t see Honda Accord makes people uncomfortable.

3. To impress other people. This is the most important reason.
But the “LOW-END” Mercedes like the C-coupe 230K and ML-320 just do not do it. Buying these low-end models is like telling people that I don’t have money but I want to pretend I’m rich, I can afford a low-end, less powerful, less equipped MERCEDES. MERCEDES IS ALWAYS A MERCEDES. This is bull s**t.

To all the pretenders, don’t bash the Japanese cars are not as good as the Germany cars. If you want to show off (who doesn't), that’s fine, just don’t buy the low-end lines. People will laugh at you not because of the car, but because of you are a pretender who paid more money to buy something less.

Instead, you can buy a used CLK430 or a used E430, these are classier cars, better equipped, have better performance and sure will do a better job to impress people. Just make sure you must get the extended warranty because the late Mercedes do not have the Japanese reliability and are very expensive to fix, you will use the warranty.

I don't pretend. I have a used 99 CLK430, fast, beautiful, not very expensive and impresses a lot of people, but not as reliable when compare to Toyota, Honda & Nissan. I cannot afford a new one and don’t see the reason of buying a new car and let it depreciate 40~50% in 3 years. My used CLK is very new from outside to inside and it has 3 years warranty.

Mercedes high-end buyers love the people like me because I pick up their used cars and they can go ahead to buy another new car. People like me maintained the used high-line market and protect the high-end new car buyer’s investment.

Mercedes keeps selling the low end models will further dump down its image of luxury and prestige. What's Mercedes' biggest asset? Its image and brand recognition. Mercedes is destroying its holding ground.

Look at Rolex, Rolex increases their prices every year because of the don't over produce and do a very good job of marketing its brand. I have Rolex watches and don't mind to see its prices goes up every year. But I am sure S and SL owners don't like to see too many C and ML in the street.

 

Dude, so your whole point is that all C class are just low-end cheap junks and should never been produced since all C except C32 are below $50G?

MB produces different models with different body type, size and engines for people with different need. It's okay to express your opinions. But please at least show some respect toward others. Thank you

 

Seriously... your car's not that great either. What's the point of bashing our C and M classes?

I'm a big fan of Nissan cars, but, when it came down to it, I wanted a safe, reliable, RWD car with a decent amount of power and, a flat powerband, and good ride dynamics. And I wanted it new too. The C230K coupe was the only car that could offer me all that for about $23,000.

Yes, a used CLK or E430 is nice, but no one really knows how the previous owners treated their cars. Was the engine broken in correctly? Did the car have unreported accidents? Was it repainted? How often was it washed and its upholstery treated? I personally only get the peace of mind with new cars.

I test drove and liked the G35. I still like it. I also liked BMW's 325i. The bottom line, however, was that, of the cars I really liked, I could only afford Mercedes C-class. I wasn't trying to impress anyone with my car. Does that make me a poser?

What about you? It seems like you only have your used CLK because you want to impress others. You admit that it's not the best, nor the most reliable car you could've gotten... and it's certainly no S600! In fact, compared to the S and SL classes, it's not so great, is it? It's just a "lower-end" Mercedes compared to those, isn't it? But a Benz is a Benz is a Benz, right?

Oh wait... you said it wasn't.

 

So many people on this forum bought their new Benz and have so many troubles. So buying a new car doesn't mean you are better off when compare to a good certified used car. Buying a reliable new Mercedes is like lucky drawing these days. Lexus is a better bet.

I know a lot of people on this forum have stereotypes of the Japanese cars. Like: Japanese cars are copy cats, less stylish, cannot feel the road, bad handling.... all bull.

I saw one C320 raced a G35, they both started from the same red-light. And the G35 was 3-5 car length ahead of the C320 after about 5 seconds. The G35’s acceleration is indeed very good. I wondered why C320’s performance is so poor when it is more expensive.

I am not trying to insult anyone here. If people considered a 55K new Benz is a low-end car.. I don’t mind to buy a barely used certified low-end Benz at a good deal. 55K low end Benz is still more expensive than 2 Accords

My points are:
1. MBUSA should not carry the low-end models to lower the brand’s image. Make better Chryslers and sell them as the low line. Like Lexus and Toyota.

2. If brand name is not for consideration, the cheaper new Benz will not be selling well because they don’t compare well against the new Japanese cars in the same price range.

3. Please tell me in which way a C230K Coupe is better than a 240HP Accord Coupe. Yes, the MBZ chrome emblem is beautiful, the H in the Honda logo is ugly and the heavier door in a MBZ does not mean the car is stronger.

 

In my opinion, the C230K coupe is nicer than the Accord V6 coupe in that it is RWD, has a flatter powerband with more low-end torque, has better front and rear suspensions (5-strut multilink suspension, I believe), and has variable valve timing with two overhead camshafts (Vtec on SOHC is a joke, in my opinion. How variable can two valves per cylinder get?). Judging from my driving experiences of both cars, the Benz has a lower center of gravity (I notice that German cars tend to have lower centers of gravity than most Japanese cars), which would offer a more solid, stable ride.

Performance aside, I much prefer the front fascia of the C coupe to the front of the Accord coupe. I don't like the rear of either vehicle. The C coupe comes standard with wider tires that both look nicer and provide better traction than the stock Accord tires.

I am by no means saying, however, that Japanese cars are bad. The Honda would certainly beat my car in terms of peak horsepower, gas mileage, clean exhaust, and probably reliability. I also like Nissan more than I actually like Mercedes.

The bottom line, however, is this: Yes, there are very good Japanese cars, but in the low $20K price range, the C coupe is the best car to get in terms of performance and, in my opinion, looks. And, sadly, the only way to get most buyers to consider these factors is to brand the cars as Mercedes because the Mercedes name comes with many expectations. People who like a good balance of luxury and performance will consider the C class because of its specs while people who value brand name appeal will still buy the cars because of their branding. It's a smart move for Mercedes.

Besides, how many S class owners really care about the C and M classes they see on the road?

 

I don't think they mind that much. However, most of them are not as shallow and insecure as you are.

BTW, you do know that underneath your CLK is a C-class chassis, right?

 

Please vote for the best overall car based on the specs. Not Brand name bias!