shotgun_banjo

I am planning on getting a second car and it should be a c-class as per the other half's instructions. I am eyeing on 3 2009 c300 cars with the following specs:

1. RW drive, dynamic handling package,door opener (mirror),rear window sunshade, satellite radio, audio 20, memory seats/steering wheel,xenons, sport suspension, Premium package, 17 rims, 59K on odometer - iridium silver

2. 4matic, premium package, audio 20, sport suspension, 17 rims, xenons, 54K on odometer - paladium silver

3. 4matic, premium package, command, sport suspension, 17 rims, xenons, 62K on odometer - teneorite gray with ash MBtex inserts

All 3 cars are priced at $28,800 canadian with new tires and new pads and rotors and all serviced and are CPOs.

I drive a GLK with all the bells and whistles and the options on my GLK are scattered on these cars so I need your help and priceless advise. I do have a few concerns that if the community can clarify:

a. are there any known issue with these cars, 2009 to be exact and is the 4matic on these cars okay?

b. I kinda like the ash mbtext and looks really nice on the teneorite gray but I am not sure if the creamy white color will need 2-3 times more cleaning than my black mbtext and also how does it compared with the black mbtext (wear and tear) so anyone who has this option on your cars your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

c. the other half will be driving it as well so is the first car with the dynamic package even worth considering?

d. do you guys think the one with the dynamic package has the tendency that it was abused? and how to find this out?

Thanks for the reply

Knightmare69

Given that you're in Canada, I would only look at the 2nd and 3rd option. My wife has the greyish interior and it's a pita to clean as it picks up almost every stain, then again I am OCD about cleaning the car so. Honestly, since the other half would be driving it it's better to let her decide on how she wants the int. As for abusing the dynamic handling, I'm not sure what you would consider abuse but like I stated in the first line, for Canada I would consider only cars 2 and 3.

shotgun_banjo

the stains that you are talking about....did you manage to completely remove it? I detail my car every week so that won't be a problem in cleaning it. I am more concern about how it will hold-up on wear and tear.

Sportstick

On the issue of rear wheel drive, I would not automatically assume that being in Canada drives a requirement for 4MATIC. In our Michigan winters, my rear wheel drive C on Blizzak WS60 does very well and not that much different than our E350 4MATIC on the same tires, although the E does pull away from a standstill a bit more effectively. I don't know your wife's driving skills, (or if she drives for enjoyment or just point A to B transportation) but if you feel they are very good (and yours are as well), there is a potential disappointment to having the 4MATIC. I've gone from my rwd to a 4MATIC loaner and am struck at how much heavier and less responsive and fun to drive the car becomes. Of course, going from my stick to an automatic adds to that, but I can feel the heavier more sluggish steering response. 4MATIC is slower and uses more fuel all year long for the sake of some modest assistance in winter, assuming you obtain really excellent winter tires and do the swap. To me, the overall driving experience is not worth the sacrifice. Drive your candidates back to back and see if you can feel the difference.

I have the two tone light grey/black interior in MBTex (although I think the vinyl has a different name in Canada?). I find it easy to clean and the car looks new after almost four years. It depends on how you treat the car and whether you maintain it. I clean the interior about twice a year to keep it in this condition.

As for the condition of the car, find out who did the service on each and ask to review the service records for completeness and timeliness.

My 2009 is likely the highest quality, most reliable car I've ever owned since my first car in the 1970s.

ggms16

First of all, with all the respect to the Mod Sportstick, I don't share his opinion over the 4matic.

I've driven both, RWD and 4matics and yes, there is a bit of a difference in performance, but its not day and night. I do feel the 4matic much better when you drive hard into a corner, these cars are amazingly sticked to the asphalt all the time, no matter what the weather is..

I drive my car in Florida so I don't face any snow, but I do have a lot of rain and the 4Matic is just awesome in those conditions. Sportiveness is great enough, improved by the dynamic package you said. Exiting from a corner fast and smashing the pedal on these cars feels just awesome, fast and sticky all the time.. I know some people prefer the RWD, I do myself because its 'more fun' but the 4Matic definitely has its good points and being in Canada I wouldn't even think about it.

To reply for the rest of your questions:

a. are there any known issue with these cars, 2009 to be exact and is the 4matic on these cars okay?

Known issues? Not many, there's a failure in the ignition system that has been reported by a few members, I don't have any issues myself with my 79k miles C300 4Matic, I only can report a very soft shaking when idling in the steering wheel, called the dealer for a quote to replace the engine mounts and they said 1.700$ because being a 4Matic makes the job extremely difficult.. So I decided to leave it like that.

b. I kinda like the ash mbtext and looks really nice on the teneorite gray but I am not sure if the creamy white color will need 2-3 times more cleaning than my black mbtext and also how does it compared with the black mbtext (wear and tear) so anyone who has this option on your cars your feedback will be greatly appreciated.

The textures used by Mercedes Benz are very strong, the cleaning obviously will be necessary but not something that you will be find yourself doing every weeks. Maybe once in two months.

c. the other half will be driving it as well so is the first car with the dynamic package even worth considering?

Yes. The difference is not dramatic, and at the end it is a Mercedes Benz. If she drives it softly the struts will be soft.. If she gets sporty then the shocks will also.

d. do you guys think the one with the dynamic package has the tendency that it was abused? and how to find this out?

I would take my time and check the condition of the tires, brakes and drivetrain.. I would open the oil cap and take a look at the inside of the engine to lookup for some sludge that you might see there, if the engine looks like GOLD inside, then it is in good shape. You will never know exactly what happened before to a car, but some owners like me enjoy their cars by smashing the pedals here and there, I think everyone does that. It doesn't mean that I take the car to a racing circuit and race it. Usually those cars will show the evidence in the tires, brakes and in the overall shape.

Knightmare69

For the most part yes but I notice a sort of shade difference so I know some of the stain is still there. It can't be helped, I work on my car myself at a friends shop so I get all messy and sometime need to jump right in the car to move it.

Wear and tear wise, my wife once loaded the car with some metal equipment and basically tore the skin of the leather, it's not fixable and irks me everytime I look at it.

shotgun_banjo

well I just pulled the trigger with the ash insert car and never looked back. I just saw the service records of the car and I think the previous owner is as picky as me like a lot of cosmetic parts being replaced under warranty. I was actually surprised that MB replaced the entire MBtext seat covers after it was traded-in as it showed replace front driver, front passenger, rear seat seat covers for discoloration and cracking (take that with a grain of salt). The brake pads, rotors and tires are all new as part of the CPO program. It also showed that one of the rear lamp housing was replaced because of corroded connections (I think I read that problem before here on the forum) and also replaced one of the front headlights because of "non-working" (what ever that means). The entire chrome window trim on the left side of the car was also replaced by the previous owner under warranty 500 kilometers before he traded in the car. There was also a probelm of "snow coming in through air vents while air conditioning is turned on" and a assembly and reprogramming was done. There was also a instance that the key assembly on the car was replaced as it was not accepting the key fobs it was done at 1000 kilometers before trade-in + 2 new keys was replaced as well. Command unit was also replaced under warranty and both folding mirrors was also replaced at 1300 kilometers before trade in time.The service intervals are on the dot except for a service A that was done after 280 kilometers of its due time.

In a way I kinda feel relieve that the previous owner really addressed the problems and maintained it well as the metal and paint of the car is really prestine and no dings and scratches (looks like new to me actually) and MB did fixed the warranty items and after seeing the list of things that was done on the car I negotiated that the 3 year extended warranty to be included on the car so I do think I did get a nice deal on it as most of the electronic parts that I know that causes a lot of problems were replaced and almost brand new. The seat covers is the icing on the cake for me as it really smells brand new.

thanks for everyone who helped.

Domm

Enjoy your car! It sounds like you got a great deal and basically a new car.