jpnwdc

I have been looking at a C300 Sport. The only think holding me back is the MB-Tex seats. They seem hard and uncomfortable to me. There are very few C300 Sports with leather seats to try out. Anyone compare to see if the leather seats are more comfortable and worth the extra expense?

Mike5215

Regular leather vs MB has a smoother grain and is more compliant. Both will be stiff if it's cold enough, but leather will warm up and feel softer sooner.

I'd spend the extra money but in a C it brings in a lot of other options you may not want or need. Your local auto upholstery shop also can re skin the seats in leather for around $600/seat.

See if there are any C450s you can sit in. Those seem more likely to be optioned up as inventory cars.

True101

Concur with the above, leather does look and feel softer, though overall seat comfort in my experience is exactly same.

omnidive

This is my second Mb-Tex and I really enjoy. The first I had for 4 years and it looked brand new even after 4 yrs. I've had a few 100% leather seat cars and they inevitably crease and wear after a while. I also find Mb-tex isn't as hot in the sun.

The look is great and the cost is well need I say more!

MASSC450

Leather is the only way to go in a luxury vehicle IMO.


I found the leather softer & it looks better than the MB-Tex...nothing beats the smell of real leather either, and with leather you get heated & ventilated seats (in the U.S. at least).


I don't believe those two options are available with the plastic seats.

LAC300

The leather is worth it, you won't be disappointed.

Nuru

Leather is "bedder"

C300Ross

A year ago... you'd only want a C300 w/ Leather seats. There was a major problem with bleeding seats in the MB-Tex for the early builds. It was pretty nasty actually. I didn't necessarily want to, but I made sure I got one with leather. It comes with some other neat features like ambient lighting and ventilated seats.

Popcrnchicken

I can't speak on one vs the other, but I recently purchased a c300 sport with MB-Tex. My wife and I took a road trip and the comfort level is A+

DutchTim1

This is my Mercedes C Class with amg package and full option. You can ask me anything in the description bellow. I can make a video for your specific question.*Mine is full lescher interior, I used to own a half leather on my M class.
Here is my car:
Mercedes C Class Review interior exterior

Luton Driver

Can't help but feel that after a while the plastic seats, as that is what they are, will still look as good as new while leather seems to age badly in most cars that I have been in.

Even though it is not as aesthetically pleasing in a luxury brand you don't need heated seats when the seat is made from cloth and is the most practical of all seat covers in my eyes.

parkwood

I agree, the leather in my 8yr old e class looks tired i always found it very disappointing anyway. I understand that taxi drivers the world over prefer mb tex or artico as it is called in europe as it wears better.

Zorq

I have both a GLC300 and a C450, my personal opinion is real leather has a stiffer texture where as mb-tex is soft to touch, but feels a bit "fake".


I believe the mb-tex takes minimal care and will still look great in years whereas the real leather will require conditioning once in a while to maintain.


Reasons to get real leather would be:
- stitching pattern
- color choices
- if optioned properly (I'm not sure as I loaded mine so I have everything), parts of the side doors trim are also wrapped with real leather
- the real leather when sat on feels more authentic whereas the mb-tex feels almost plasticky due to the softness, but in a good way


Without taking into account the mb-tex bleeding issue, I think either way you will not be disappointed. I love every bit of the interior of the GLC300 as I do of the C450.

DutchTim1

Yeah, good summation of reasons. As I said my mb has leather interior. It also has ventilated seats so the seats have these little holes in them.
I think it is less stiff or firm than without the holes.
Pause at 01:24, you will see the holes.

Luton Driver

Leather is probably the least practical seat material there is followed by MB plastic, which has been given a fancy name because no one likes that word to descried their seats.

In winter it is like sitting on an iceberg until the seat heater starts to work and in the summer black seating will burn your bum if the car has been left in the sun. Maybe that is why cloth was seen as a luxury material in the late 60's when cloth started to replace plastic in the common man's car.

Saying all of that I will stick with my plastic seats thank you very much.

Going back to the subject of leather, it comes in different grades from cheap rubbish leather to the very best. No idea what MB fits but I wonder if the grade of leather has dropped over the years that MB now fit in their cars to stay more cost competitive. http://www.heddels.com/2014/06/overview-guide-leather-grades/

I suspect MB fit bonded leather which is basically rubbish and a bit like the fish that ends up in fish fingers. ie all mashed up and then reformed.

http://www.detailingspot.com/?page_id=308

Television

Leather has changed over the years in 2000 the tanning process had to change to comply to ECU rules. It is not a durable as it was as now it only has a top sprayed on colour coat.

ARTICO is horrible and many complaints where it can just split and many many complaints in the UK on this stuff, take the name ARTICO this stand for artificial cow, and Mercedes describe it as man made leather

ARTICO is just as cold as real leather to sit on, no different to any other vinyl product.

rbrylaw

If MB is using rubbish cheap bonded leather, it's the best rubbish cheap bonded leather I've ever had. My 2012, 4 year old's leather interior (Cranberry Red) looked as new when I traded it recently as the day I took delivery of the car. The leather in my new C300 Sport (Cranberry Red) feels as good if not better.

StanNH

I owned a C300 base with MB-Tex, and now have a C300 Sport with leather. The material has nothing to do with how hard the seats feel. All C300 seats are firm, and that's just how they're designed. The Sport seat has larger side bolsters, so it will feel more supportive, but it's no softer or firmer than the standard seats.

The seating material really has little effect on the comfort of the seat. MB-Tex is pliable, and no stiffer than leather. It seems to "breathe" as well as leather, and is not slippery. Personally, having had both, I prefer leather ... but that's because of the nicer stitching and the availability of ventilated seats. I also prefer the smell of leather.

Functionally, the seat design is what determines the comfort. If you find the MB-Tex seat uncomfortable, it's very likely you'll reach the same conclusion with leather.

DutchTim1

Somewhere in this new video I made a short remark about the leather seats with ventilation.
Look at 03:20