...when I took delivery was when the dealer told me I couldn't get the Burmester sound system. I was initially disappointed, but have since gotten over it.

C200 AMG line, Obsidian Black, Cranberry Red Leather, Airmatic, 18" five-spoke AMG wheels, Pano sunroof, etc. Japanese spec, of course.

I've had it 4 days, driven a total of 24 km. So far, I love it. The black with red interior looks great. The sunroof blends perfectly with the black paint (I kinda don't like the two-tone look with other colors). The airmatic suspension is spectacular. Super smooth in Comfort mode and stiff/responsive in Sport+ mode. It is surprisingly quick, even with such a low hp rating.

The stalk shifter is taking some getting used to. The Comand system is similar to the one in my W204, but with a lot more options, so navigating that is an adventure. I'm slowly going through the manual and figuring stuff out. I found the lumbar adjustment, for example. I'm glad the dealer ordered an English language manual for me.

He also threw in just about every dealer accessory possible -- air atomizer, sliding 'comfort box' in the trunk, AMG floor mats, windshield sun shade, fold-up box in the trunk, trunk net, seat back covers, etc. at no charge.

Again, so far I'm really enjoying it.

 

Good stuff, pleased you are impressed.

Not sure why the Burmester wouldn't have been available - not heard of any shortages. I take it that it is an available option in the Japan market? It would be a shot in the the foot, by MB if it weren't.

 

It would have been okay if I had ordered a W205 (C250) from SA, but I specified that I wanted a car from Germany. The only car they could get was a C200, which is unavailable with Burmester in Japan. The C250 was an additional US$10,000 and unavailable from Germany.
It's going to be my wife's every day driver and she wasn't concerned about it, so we acquiesced.

In the beginning, we were talking about getting the C250, so I guess somewhere the difference was lost in translation (literally).

 

Enjoy!.

Pity you did not get an SA car ~ some of the best built. People think that built in Germany = built by Germans with higher QC standards. Not so, the Bremen & Sindelfingen plants use mainly Turkish labour with very similar standards to SA.

 

Had I spent more time here before ordering the car, I probably would have gone with a SA build. Your comments have been unwaveringly complimentary.
As you stated, I felt that German-built was the only way to go. I still would have had to pay the extra US$10,000 for a C250 to get the Burmester, though, according to the dealer. When we started negotiations, we were looking at the C250 and I guess the language barrier got in the way when we switched to the C200.

Anyway, I'm still quite pleased. More pleased every time I drive her.