BVC500

What happened to the seat controls on the door panels located ahead of the door handles?

In this attached press photo, you can see the seat controls and memory buttons on the door panel. However, when I looked at a C350 Sport and C300 Luxury at MB-Manhattan, the seat controls were on the side of the seat. Did MBUSA decide not to offer full-power/memory seats in favor of other standard equipment? I would think they'd be standard on the C350!

pmb600

There have been several discussions of this already on the forums here. Basically the seats are fully power, however memory functions are not available and thus there are no seat controls on the door.

Big mistake in my opinion and I hope that they add this in a future model year.

PUMes

More than likely the case for next year.

Germancar1

So even the C350 Sport doesn't have them on the doors? All the press shots and magazine test cars do? Interesting.

M

pmb600

Yeah, the press cars they were using for MBUSA did have them, but I guess for the production models they decided not to, because they are not available on any model.

cdn_mb

The seat controls with memory buttons on the door are available in Canada. I've ordered them on my C300 4MATIC Sport.

QQQ

This has been widely discussed in many threads and YES Canada NO US.

dalazernet

Wait... I thought if the seat controls were on the seat that they were only partially automatic adjustable? I think with the controls on the side you still have to pull the little lever under the seat and manually move yourself forward and back....

Talk about cheap.

MBTex

the seat controls are on the side of the seat itself and the seat is fully adjustable through the controls. no pulling any levers.

the only thing cheap is the no memory seats.

pmb600

That only applies to the W203. These seats are fully power, with the exception of the headrest adjustment, but the controls are just not on the door.

F_Porsche

Who the **** needs memory seats anyway??

And talk about retarded when you can move yourself back and forwards!!

I mean it's nice to have that but don't be too jacked up when it doesn't.
Plenny of other things are more interesting on a car!!

PUMes

That would be the Euopean perspective. Americans are spoiled whiners, heck, we kick and scream over cup holders!!! You're not suppose to drink and drive anyway, really.

Germancar1

That is really something, that Mercedes would put the controls on the doors for other markets and not the U.S. To me that is a cost cutting move, but I have to wonder if it doesn't cost them more to produce so many different variants of the same door panel/build for so many different markets? Seems to me just putting them on the door for all markets would be easier/cheaper. I guess this is the price payed for such a high level of standard equipment; seat controls on the seats any and every other car and no fold down rear headrests.

M

MB-JIM

I'm sorry to see the immaturity from those who feel those of us who want set memory are "retarded."
For those who look at the C Class as an "entry level" car it is fine with no seat memory. For those of us who want to buy a C Class as a luxury, "destination" car things are different. A luxury car should offer options such as seat memory as with all the major competitors. I, spent many years driving cars with manual seats, crank windows, no air conditioning, no power steering and I could go on but now I wouldn't consider a car built that way. Every Mercedes I have owned for many years has had seat memory. Why sudenly not even offer it to US customers? Let us make the choice as to whether it's worth paying for.

pmb600

Easy for you to say. You guys can get a whole list of options that we can't get over here.

Germancar1

I agree, there really isn't excuse for this omission IMO.

M

pmb600

I don't blame them for not including them as standard, but they should at least be part of one of the Premium packages.

Germancar1

I agree, even that would be more than fine for people with money in hand that want the car. I don't get why they did this.

M

GDawgC220

It seems like they're going after pissing off the first year buyers by adding it to the next model year and so on. Honestly, how much could it be to add memory seats as part of the car. If they're worried about failure (as in more electronic gremlins to deal with), you would think they should not be worried about that...they've had memory seats for how long now? If that is the fact (going towards more "reliability"), they don't seem to have much confidence in themselves. Or they're just cost cutting more corners and decontenting...again.

RLE

<<And talk about retarded when you can move yourself back and forwards!!>>

Retarded.

You are fifteen, aren't you.

bobbyrab

The nice thing about the memory seats to me is the ability in my C320 to have the seat AND steering wheel automatically go back and out of the way when I insert the key into the ignition. For an older dude such as myself, a little bit of help getting into a smaller car is not "retarded" but a blessing!

QQQ

Sorry but even the memory seats in W204 do not pull back just the steering wheel goes up.

Peyton

Heres my 2 cents

The car is somewhat of an 'entry' sedan and while they want to wow us with tech, they want us to over look things like this to differentiate this model from more expensive models.

Plus...what is it they could do in the coming years? They have to have something to add.... so they leave off 'keyless go' and the memory seats with probably ventelated seats and make it a more complete package as time goes on. Not a 'retarded' idea from a marketing standpoint.

The mid-life changes, I can see all LED tail lights, new engine, and the above options. But the price might bump it up so high that you get an E class with fewer options. My car ran $49k US after taxes as it is, makes sense to me.

bobbyrab

Well my 2 cents is that it is a nutty marketing strategy (at least here in the U.S,) to de-content an automobile. They have lost me as a potential customer, at least for the short term. Why would I want at W204 with LESS standard (and even no ability to get it optionally) equipment? I view my C320 as sort of a mini and sporty E class. Is Mercedes really being competitive or state of the art by leaving out, or not even making available, equipment that was offered in 2002? If they have nothing in their "bag of tricks" for future model years other than recycled options from previous years, they are indeed in bad shape. I just think it is bad marketing.

oblu

Hahaha, just as retarded as listing my Dad's cars in my sig!

For those of us with multiple drivers in the family (wife) mem seats become a semi-important function. But to a greater degree, not having them and knowing that they come on cars in other markets becomes more a slap in the face from an apparently uncaring, disconnected from their customers, manufacturer. Sadly you can get memory seats in cars costing a 1/3 the price of the C; and *all* of the C's competitors have them available.

I'm just ranting about it because it's one of the growing reasons I probably won't end up converting over to benz from my normal audi/bmw buying eventhough I really like the exterior styling of the w204.