tiredkid

What's up everyone, happy to join this community, but I have a few questions.

I'm currently in the market for a 2012 c350 coupe and really dead-set on that

being my first car. I'm 20 and have 10k to put down on the car. I would be

really disappointed if I got the c250 variant, but as I evaluate my situation

more, I'm finding that might be the smarter decision. I go to college in the

morning, and work at night. So being that this will be my first, and only form

of transportation, what do you guys recommend between the two? If I got the

c250 I know I could pay it off quick since the interest and insurance would

probably be cheaper. When considering the c350, I'm just looking at it as what

I'd be happier with in the long run. Sure the c250 is the smarter choice but

I honestly feel I would regret it down the line. The c350 to me would be more

satisfying and the reason why I even considered this car in the first place..

any input or suggestions from anyone is truly appreciated.. If you or anyone you know has a c350/250 please refer them to this thread. Really looking for first hand owners inputs and reviews of both cars. Experiences, maintenance stories/prices and mpg's. is it comfy? quick? fun? what would you recommend for me? THANK YOU MB FORUMS!! Gonna frequent this thread.

AZN Optics

Welcome to MBWorld. Of course the ultimate decision will be yours, but personally, I'd go with the C350 for a couple reasons. One, it'll be more fun with more pick me up power. Two, it's a NA 6 as opposed to a turbo 4. I'd rather have reliability and elegance of a naturally aspirated engine without the turbo lag.

Have you driven both cars yet? It's one thing to read the spec sheet and another to actually feel her so I'd suggest seeing if you can get your hands on both to test drive and see if the C250 has enough power to satisfy that inner desire, but it has to be balanced with your fiscal responsibility which in the end, typically trumps all else. You're young and in school so will have plenty of future opportunities to get that dream car.

tiredkid

Thank you glad to be here. That is exactly what I was thinking abut the turbo. With the NA 6 I wouldnt have to worry about turbo problems. I havent driven neither but I'm sure the 350 would make me smile. Going crazy cause I need a car for this semester so I think I'll take a trip to a MB dealer on friday and see what they quote me as far as payments and rates. Definitely will be back here as soon as I make my decision..

PelicanParts.com

Welcome to MBWorld! To get a better response, try posting your questions in the vehicle specific section. I'm sure lots of people will chime in with their input to help with your purchase.

MJ50

moved to W204 forum...

C0d3Sp4c3

Son, not trying to be a douche! I'd save my hard earned money for education rather than spending them on expensive repairs.

But if money is not an issue, then the choice is yours. Test drive both cars and get the one you feel you like the most. After all, you will not satisfy anyone here but yourself.

You can either be proud of driving a MB or you can be proud of graduating from college or both....the choice is yours. Good luck.

tpliquid

get the 350 YOLO. YOLO is the reason i used all my savings to buy a C63.

cant bring money with you when u die. enjoy it now before you are old.

edgalang

Welcome to the board OP! I'm happy that this is even an option for you, however before taking the plunge I'd first ask myself these questions...

#1 Is 10k really all you have? Your choice may already be limiting you based on this figure alone.
#2 How long do you plan to keep the car (be honest to yourself).
#3 Do you have proper storage?...where are you parking it? Do you care about door dings, scratched up bumpers, ect parking in student parking lots.
#4 Do you have the means to recover financially in the event of a crash/total loss? (Please do not take offense, but I know you'll get into an accident at least once within the life of the car (regardless of fault...statistics don't lie).
#5 Are you aware of the upcoming maintenance costs and that any service beyond the factory warranty period will be $$$?
#6 Are you going to mod it in any way?
#7 Are you open to purchasing used?


I honestly think if 10k is all you have, then this is a rather aggressive purchase from a financial standpoint. There are some exceptions to this rule, but that is another subject altogether.

Good luck with whatever choice you make

tpliquid

4. insurance pays out and use that towards new car. easy peasy
5. all simple. oil changes is main thing. all other stuff is done every 50k or so.
7. i reckon hes looking for a 2012 C350.

edgalang

#7 I failed in reading it seems. Good catch.

Rodpwnz

Welcome to MBworld tiredkid! If I'm being honest, I regret not getting the C350 instead of the C300. The gap is even larger for the 2012 C250 and the C350. I would most definitely agree that you should get what you want and fully enjoy the car.

c204coupe

funny how all the bay area people chime in....

I have a '13 c250 coupe, tbh I don't care how fast it is nor what features it has. if you get a deal on the car your looking for, go for it. just remember repair/maintenance costs are high. GL on your search

C300Sport

Welcome to the forum!
Ton's of things to consider with you and the cars being variables. If you think you will be the type that keeps a car for a long time, get the 350. You might even save money in the long term as you will end up keeping your car much longer compared to trading every couple years.
I tend not to like the 250s power delivery as the turbo lag tends to leave you hanging at the worst times. And of course the big 6 in the 350 sounds soooo much better than the turbo 4.
Either way, you can justify either choice so go driver both back to back and look at the numbers...hopefully your heart and head will agree.

jbt56

The C250, to me, is satisfying. I bought mine at the end of July (a 2012, as well) after selling my 400+ HP, six-speed 2011 Mustang GT. I drove 250's, 300's (the most underwhelming, to me) and 350's. The 350 is faster than the 250, by a bit, but I was very pleasantly surprised with the little turbo engine. None would touch my Mustang in a drag race, but really, where can you go that fast, anyway?
There have been a couple of times since buying the 250 that I wished I'd held out for a 350, but they're rare.
This car, unlike yours, is about my 25th or so, and is at least as fast as my E36 M3 and M Coupes, and handles better than my Mustang. I'll be enjoying the 25-28 MPG average (vs the Mustang's 11-15) for some time, I think.
Drive both, and give each an honest appraisal. The C250 really will surprise you, I think.

Skyline45

Welcome!

So first thing you should know. Mercedes is absolutely terrible at making 4-cylinder motors. They're almost as bad at this than making AWD transmissions.

Now in saying that I have a 4Matic vehicle and love it. Though I know at any moment, the transmission could go with it's very awesome common bearing issue.

A Mercedes purchase should be all in what you want. If you want a luxury suspension instead of a sport, they have a model for that. AWD versus RWD? Bigger motor? They gotcha you.

In my personal opinion, you'll regret the C250 every time you get in it unless you're MPG conscious. It's under powered for what a forced-induction car should be, and like I said before... Mercedes just has never really been that good at making a 4-cylinder motor.

95Sinned420

The only reason you should consider the C250 is if you want a C Class, but want to save as much on gas as you can.

But keep in mind, the C250 is no gas saver. The four cylinder is weak. I've driven a '14 C250 for a week and am glad I have the C300. I'm not sure what it is about it, maybe the turbo lag? Or just terrible low end torque?

Only reason I'll ever buy a 4 cylinder engine is if I am concerned about gas savings, and the C250 is no gas saver. Passing power on the highway is important to me, but that's me.

I wish I got the C350 myself.

tiredkid

WOW!! thank you all for the replies and I wish I could reply to everyone individually,

as everyone brings up meaningful and useful points! glad I came here to discuss this.. As far as

my decision goes.. I am going to go for the c350 as the sole option with everything considered,

as I know I would keep it for as long as I live!! If for whatever reason things don't add up

or feel right then I might do a number of things.. Either I'll settle for a 250 or go with an

equally beautiful coupe, the '07-'09 CLK350 Coupe. That was the first pillar-less MB coupe

I fell in love with, and what started me with considering MB as my first car. The one thing

that keeps me from that car is admittedly, the interior. Hopefully I can get to a dealership

and figure out my options as far as insurance, payments, and interest rates, because although

I LOVE that car, I want to make an informed decision and one I literally can live with.

I see it as this.. the 250 is underpowered as a turbo 4 and the mpgs are not that of a 4cyl

to begin with. There are obviously going to be more problems with a turbo engine down

the line, opposed to an NA 6. And seeing as I'm planning on owning this car forever, an NA

engine would be ideal.. am i correct? and as far as i can tell the mpg savings aren't much with

the 250..

in the end I'm going for the c350, ***** out. If all else fails I still have a few other options.. and

you guys to suggest even more awesome cars, I'm sure..

Also, glad to see all of this bay area love !! San Jose reporting in.

jlr82

After having only extensively driven and borrowed C300/C350's previously (and my older C280), when I went to make my most recent purchase money and MPG were pretty important to me this time around. I was really very honestly surprised by how satisified I was when I drove the C250. Yes, I agree with what others are saying that there are times when the performance just isn't there due to the turbo, but for city driving it is a really fun car for me. I also disagree about the low end torque comment mentioned earlier in the thread, that's where I think the I4-Turbo really satisfies me because driving in the city and almost never on the highway I don't have the need to really push the motor past 4.5k or so, ever. It's all in how you drive and what you think will make you happy.

Above any suggestions I can give my main recommendation is to drive several different models and model years before you make a decision. There are huge differences in the way certain drive aspects feel even between like model years (I think the 2012 vs 2014 C250 is a very different feel from steering and low end pep in my opinion).

And the MPG savings for me is HUGE compared to my previous '06 C280. I would never average more than 20mpg city with the C280 no matter how light footed I was, but with the C250 I'm averaging 26mpg and I'm not babying it.