jaymoney92

Hi everyone I have been reading this forum for a while now. I have some experiences with Mercedes since my mom has a 2010 glk350 4matic and my dad has a 09 c300 4matic with a e350 coupe coming soon.

I am 18 years old and stuck between 2 cars. I don't know whether I should get a c300 with a 6 speed or a c350. I do not know how to drive a stick but really want to learn and have tried before. I am fine with the 3 liter engine so what would you guys choose?

MBnewby

C350 all the way, more power, more torque=more fun. It is fun to shift in auto-manual mode which is sort of like a manual. Plus I think that the new C350s have paddle shifters which is very fun for quicker shifts than a manual. I've also heard that the MB manual is not all that great. Not bad but longer throws.

Sportstick

All depends on how important a true manual with three pedals is for you. For me, no automatic is fun or interesting enough and it takes only moderate skill just to press an accelerator. Paddle shifters=yawn...your legs just sit there. So, if you really want the stick to get very active and involved in your driving, you only have the C300 to choose. And, although it's not the greatest manual around, you won't fully appreciate that until you learn and try others. If you get good on the MB stick, you will love some others later. If you're waffling on the trans, go for the C350...the automatic C300 is a bit underpowered.

Of course, please wait a moment while I pick up my lower jaw at the idea of a MB at your early age! I was still getting hand-me-down Chevys and Pontiacs back then. You are lucky beyond all reason...hope you appreciate it.

jaymoney92

Ye I do appreciate it.
I currently have a hand me down Audi A6 from the previous generation. It is an automatic and I dont know what would be more fun. A stick or more hp?

Sportstick

Fun is a very personal choice. I've had 400+ hp sub 4 second 0-60 cars which were automatic and after a while, it just became...go...stop...go...stop...yawn. But, even a small car, slower on a stopwatch, can be a ton more fun because you're more actively involved. Go try a Mini Cooper or MazdaSpeed 3 with a stick and tell me that's not a blast! Arms flying, legs pumping...you're making it all happen. To me that's the most fun, and has been for my 39 years of driving. Paddle shifters on the steering wheel may appeal to someone raised on video games, after all their "fun sensors" migrated to their thumbs, but I think full body action still wins!

Richard2011

Haha. The comment about the video games is great.
If I was in your situation, I'd play it safe and choose the C350.
How do you know you will like the manual or not?
Maybe you should go test drive them both.

Sportstick

So......................?

Dr.Brian

Get the stick! I grew up on them and would love to have one now. That's real driving. My wife can't drive a manual and doesn't want to learn. I'm not going to buy something that she cannot drive so that's that. Also commuting in traffic with a MT is a *****, one of my friends got rid of his M5 after 2 years because he could not handle the So Cal commute anymore. Keep that in mind if you commute to school in heavy traffic. I'll get a stick again eventually. Carrera 4S?

Wargen

This is obviosly a matter of taste and what you want out of your car. My Mercedes is my first automatic and i like it very much because my first priority was comfort and i wanted a car for laid back cruising. My last car was the opposite, it was a Golf GTI and dispite the exellent DSG tranny, i didnt even consider an automatic. The reason was that my priority that time was a sporty car for active driving.

Manual is sometimes more fun if the car is mainly for sporty driving, but for a Mercedes which is mainly focused on comfort i like automatic for most of the time. Manual gives most advatages when you push it hard, and thats not so often for me as when i drove the GTI which promoted me to drive fast.

Thats how i look at it, but i wouldnt buy a manual if i didnt know how to drive it. Not that its very hard but it probably takes some weeks before you feel 100 % comfortable with it, and only at that point would you know for sure if you like it or not.

jaymoney92

why cant they just make a c350 6 speed 4matic.
that would be perfect.

Sportstick

I hear you, but don't let specs/stats get in the way of the real experience....you definitely need some test driving! Start at VW dealer with a new Golf or GTI stick....try a Mazda 3....gets you some practice with stick/clutch.....then head off for the manual C300 vs. automatic C350 (if you can even find a stick to test! I had to drive an hour to another dealer)...just figure out what puts the biggest smile on your face!