Good to be back after a long absence from the forum - reason: a lot on my plate and an inexplicable aversion to being in front of a computer away from the office

They're right when they say time flies when you're having fun... my 39 months with my Orion Blue Baby Benz Sportscoupe is coming to a close in May. I've been tempted from all sides of the automotive spectrum as to what to get next but I'd miss this forum too much to be changing to another brand (not that there's anything wrong with that ).

All kidding aside - I love my car and would even consider purchasing it but I'm no longer 45 and need more doors. In addition, the 17" wheels of the sport package are completely unsuited for the NYC-TriState area although I love the way they look - as opposed to the butt-ugly stock 16" wheels (no offense to those that have them - personal opinion and you know everyone has one of those...).

So I'm tending heavily towards a C230K Sports Sedan but here come those wheels again - they're even more gorgeous but the potholes of Jersey City are sure to do them in again. I love the old 2.3 litre supercharged engine of the 2002 Sports Coupe (save the somewhat rough engine noise reminiscent of a European TDI but that can be helped with a nice Kleeman exhaust as I have personally witnessed at one of our GTGs), don't know how the new 1.8 L one performs in comparison, and I'm not a spirited driver so I wonder how the lame-o C240 6-banger would stack up?

I know I'll be able to answer that question by taking a few test drives but wanted to get some input from my fellow Benz freak forum members first to get my bias calibrated by the time I get to the dealership.

By the way, in our area, only the Morristown dealership seems to give you a loaner (last time, it was a crummy Camry ) even if you didn't get your Benz from them. Englewood, Paramus, Manhattan all turned me down - one offered a ride home at least - and I didn't bother calling Ray Catena or anyone else. Contemporary Motor Cars in Little Silver - where I picked up my SmurfMobile - is a bit out of the way but I love the way the treat you otherwise.

Alright - time to sit back and watch the comments roll in. Thanks for your $0.05 everybody! :p

 

C230WZ all the way!

i prefer the coupe but since you are asking about the sedans well stick with that. ive had both C240 loaners and C230WZ loaners. ive had a 2004.5 C230WZ loaner for a 1 1/2 weeks now and its a nice car. i prefer the sportiness over the luxery and its cheaper. for your money the WZ is the way to go.

 

I hear ya Lemon Man! I like the hatch and sporty look of the coupe, and the Sports Sedan is lighter, cheaper, surely more fun to drive... so I guess I'll just have to retro-fit it with fatter tires to get through the day with these truly rotten roads then? I was already considering an M-Class for that reason... aaand that one comes with a hatch!

So the C240 is not too heavy for the relatively low HP and torque? In other words, it doesn't feel too sluggish? I'll point out again that I'm not a very sport-oriented driver but no one wants to starve to death in the passing lane either....

 

the kompressor 1.8 is faster than the 2.6 v6.
and the '05 interior is much better now in the 230s
unless u want the wood trim. get the 230 with less
money.
or spend a little more. supercharge the 240, you
might pump out 300hp easily. "C26 AMG"

 

Hahaa - now you're talking I just didn't want to spend ALL my money on the car, otherwise it'd be a no-brainer. MB sure does offer a lot of temptations for those with extra cash...

 

I thought for a minute that DEDE answered my question:

=================
Final words of advice:
"If you have been driving a '92 Ford Taurus L arond for the past 5 years, you will realy realy like a new c240 much better."

Thanks,

Dede.
=================

Unfortunately (or fortunately), I've been driving a 230K for the past 3 years...

Back to Square One :|

 

IMO the 2.6L is strong but underpowered. it feels sluggish. the 1.8L is peppy but not much torque. i think for your money the C230WZ is the way to go.

 

the 1.8 s/c has more hp and torque than the v6 statistically.
but a v6 definitely helps in acceleration...but doesnt matter, just
use a lower gear when driving up the hill or passing lanes. that's
what the gear box is for. the 230 is not gonna lose to the 240
performance wise.

 

yes it does, but the 2.6L feels smoother and sounds stronger IMO. i have a 1.8L and i love the engine so im not putting it down. i think all in all for you money the C230WZ is the way to go. im not a fan of wood trim and smaller wheels, smaller brakes, etc.

 

Yeah, Chris - not really understanding why you'd consider the 240; get the 6-speed C230. The manny is vastly superior to the one on our cars.

Of course, you could get a wrx!

I've never had a problem with my 17" rims, but then JC is driving hell, so that wouldn't surprise me. They're a popular rim, though, and if you wanted to go to a 16" rim, I'm sure that you'd have no problem selling the OEM ones.

Good to see you're still alive.

 

Hey tommy - good hearing from u, too!

Can't wait for warm weather and hope to be at the next GTG perhaps with a new ride (it won't be a WRX - not that there's anything wrong with it).

I'd get the manny tranny at any rate, i'm definitely leaning towards the lighter, stronger, more efficient engine, and yes - it's been rough on these wheels. I've gone through all 3 of the tires I inherited from you, plus one rim I had cracked doing 35 mph on Grand Street to the tune of $250 approximately. No more Mr. Nice Wheels...

I'll take some cars out for a test drive and let the heart decide - and the butt.

The numbers of the 240 don't stack up well against the Sports Sedan on paper so I appreciate the point Citron made... I wonder if anyone would second that? For me, the 240 is still not out of the race but I strongly tend towards the Sports Coupe. Especially now that tommy pointed out the tranny is vastly improved over the 2001-2002 model C230K Coupes...

 

Looks like I'll be getting into a Sports Sedan these days - I'm currently getting quotes for a lease on a C230K Sports Sedan with Lighting Package, Sunroof Package, DVD-Nav COMAND, heated front seats, split folding rear seats.

The base sound system in my 2002 Coupe was adequate for me so I didn't go for premium sound, plus I'm not big on CDs anymore; I'm looking forward to the iPod interface kit soon to become available.

Did I forget anything? It goes without saying that I'm getting the 6-speed manual. Ruin a fine automobile like that with a slush box - don't think so.

 

oh - pewter... I want pewter, with ash interior. Charcoal looks awesome but dusty; the main reason is the way it soaks up heat from direct sunlight - no need for that with the heated front seats, right?

 

Pewter's a very nice color. But I hear that ash gets dirty pretty quickly, so just make sure that you want dirty instead of dusty. :p

When are you gonna trade it it? Will they have to order it for you?

 

It doesn't matter if its a six or not. This is about HP and torque. Either S/C'd four has more of both than the weezing 2.6.

 

Yeah they'll have to special-order it - a nationwide search came up blank. I'm just too hell-bent on a manual with split fold-down rear seats. You got a point there with the interior color. Come to think of it, smurf blue would look pretty cool in a pewter sedan

I'd rather get it from a nearby dealer because the last time I picked up my car in Little Silver, NJ - about 46 miles from home - and when it's time for a visit, most dealers in the area say 'no loaner for you since you didn't get your vehicle from us' so I end up having to drive farther than necessary or be without wheels for a day. The Morristown dealer (26 miles from home) is the only one granting me a loaner - from Dollar Rent-A-Car. Still pretty nice of them compared to the others. So given a choice, I'd get my car from MB Manhattan this time around. :p

 

Don't forget the power driver's seat, For me this is an essential!!

 

I am looking for a set of 17" 2005 factory sport wheels for a sedan. I am picking my new car up in 2 weeks and we will be trying to sell the factory luxury sedan 16" wheels with tires.

 

We'd be a perfect match although I hate 16" wheels on any car except a Mini. Trouble is I'll have to special order so we're looking at 2 months here.
Good luck with that deal, and enjoy the new ride. I'm jealous already...

 

Hey tommy - thanks again for pointing that out. How's your experience with blue leather - aren't there some pretty good products out there that'll take care of it? I'd just rather go for a brighter whaddayacallit, "ambiance" to borrow a word from our fellow french fighters. But the black interior looks awesome. Dang... why don't they come up with an interior that changes colors according to what you're in the mood for?

I've just got to see ash - it's sorta grey, not like that putty-hued oyster they had for the coupe a few years ago, right? Better take my butt across the river to the dealer and see for myself.

 

Same here. I guess we're a unique breed of buyer for this car!

 

i would order that same combo if i were to order a sedan. those would be must haves for me along with BiX, Navi and Phone and Entertainment. i guess pretty much load it up, but you can keep the auto trans. yuck!

 

I use Leatherique on my leather, and it comes out really well. Though my outside side bolster is pretty cracked right now, so I'm gonna replace the seat with a Recaro/Sparco/Momo/Corbeau/Cobra seat by summertime, just not sure which one. But I do think you're right - I was probably thinking about oyster, the really light parchment color. My loaner yesterday had ash, think, which was a nice medium gray. But it was the boring "brilliant" silver - pewter's so much better than that. Too bad that MB doesn't offer a burgundy interior like BMW; that's a beautiful combo.

 

I was under the impression the driver's seat was powered? What I'm not going for is the Memory package - it's another $600 bucks. Then again, you know what? You're right - I'll probably just be sorry afterwards if I DIDN'T get it.

Thanx for the reminder...

 

There you have it:

"Seating & Trim

10-way adjustable front seats, with power adjustment for height and recline."

- straight from the mbusa website.