wielandmc

Hi all.

I have been seriously thinking about getting a nearly new / ex demo automatic W205 C220D AMG Line as my next car. `I love the styling of this car, but the problem is that I have been put off by the bad press I have seen on it - either press talking about the engine sounding like a tractor and jerky gear changes, or owners talking about horror stories of everything going wrong and spending more time at the dealer than actually in the car, along with tales of appalling service from MB dealers.

Please convince me that I should get one of these - I am sure there must be happy owners out there right?

thanks.

Stickan

I got one 220D and no problem so far.

Mike5215

Have you driven one yet?

Gungaslow

It's the perfect car if you like sh:t build quality, rattles like fine China in a metal tool box, electronics going out randomly, terrible sound system, hard ride like it has square wheels, engine sounds like a bees nest, terrible paint that chips if you look at it wrong, premature front tire wear, terrible windshield wiper chatter... etc... it's great!!! You'll love it

Mike5215

Yeah I'd recommend driving the other cars in the class before deciding. I've had a 430i as a rental for the past couple of weeks.

The 3-4 Series power trains are smoother, the interiors while not as ornate don't make a peep. Ride quality even on run flats is good. Handling is good. The car feels more solid and substantial. Their base, unbranded audio system is substantially better than the Burmester, and the optional HK system is better still. The T4 in the 330i /430i is as smooth and quiet as a 6 and when it does make a sound it sounds good. IDrive is as good if not better than COMAND.

dieseldoc

But this guy has had a C450 and currently drives a C43 and rarely offers good info. As Mike said, Drive multiple different cars from multiple manufacturers and see what you like.

Igotsoul4u

Tough one. It's certainly an incredible looking car both inside and out. For me the looks are spot on. The little rattles are super annoying to me. If you listen to music all the time you may never notice. My dealer has been very accommodating fixing

Drive quality is going to be subjective. If you drive kind of chill you probably wont't notice any jerky shifts. You need to decide that for yourself. I get by fine with the tranny but it is not as intuitive as my Honda ridgeline which is another disappointment. The wind noise is also annoying to me. It is not linear at all. There are constantly little wind noise increases with every change in wind speed. All cars have wind noise, but its more of a constant white noise. Mine there are little bursts of a "different" kind of wind sound. It's hard to describe but very noticeable. I also get a high pitched whistle at higher speeds.

Overall the engine is what blows my mind but I have a the biturbo 6. It hauls *** and sounds incredible. The 4 is a great engine but it sounds like any other 4. I also paid close to 17k less then the new price and that gets me back into very happy terrirtory. I do have long term concerns about the rattles getting worse, but my maintenance record will hopefully back up my concerns down the road if it becomes awful.

Also, don't forget things like tires and maintenance will be at premium prices.

removedCFGaccount

Buy the longest warranty you are likely to need cuz you will need it. Lovely cars, for deep pockets, college students and sailors.

H8onit

I wouldn't do it again

shteef

One thing I've learned, ignore all the complaining on forums, nobody ever posts to say "my car's great, no issues at all for years". I run a company building emergency vehicles, my team of 30+ guys work on literally hundreds of vehicles a year and I've 20 years of "on the tools" experiance, trust me, the W205 is not a bad car, just try and choose a varient manufactured in Germany rather than their other plants which can be a little more rattley. And Like all German cars, sell it just before the warranty runs out.

Crankster

My C300 is great and I have no rattles with 13,000 miles on the clock.

wielandmc

Thanks for the feedback guys. I haven't test driven one yet however have driven my fathers W204 which was really nice.

It's seems such a shame that so many people are having niggly problems with such a premium (and expensive) product.

My plan has been to buy once and buy well on something that will last me a good while - especially as it seems we are heading towards a world where diesel and petrol will be no more... so I'm a little disconcerted to also see comments about getting rid before the warranty expires...

Other option that is in the price range is a 420d Gran Coupe M Sport but I guess that's a conversation for a different forum.

Thanks all!

removedCFGaccount

I think you missed the mark: they are delightful cars, but the extended warranty is a good investment as is prepaid maintenance!

dieseldoc

I just had a Rental 2017 W205 for 3 weeks after someone hit my w204 c class and it was being fixed. The car did not have a single rattle in it. The car seemed to be put together quite well.

removedCFGaccount

Regardless of where assembled, they set the engineering standard, wonderful, and expensive.

JBMCL

I have a C300 and I absolutely love it. No regrets at all and it's been reliable *knock on wood* except for some electrical gremlins and burnt LEDs.

Sure I could get into a new 3er/4er but the 3er is due for a facelift next year and the 4er will have one soon after.

Mike5215

Well, don't ignore all the complaints. Give weight to any that are specific and for which there is a consensus. Rattles, jerky shifts, excessive wind noise would fall into that category. It is after all an enthusiasts forum. Being a fairly new release you should expect to see plenty of owners still professing their love for the car, as well as a sprinkling of complaints. It doesn't mean the complaints aren't material or representative.

As the cars begin to age out of warranty eventually the 205 board will be almost entirely be compromised of threads that begin with "HELP!!!". (Visit any board on an older model and you'll see what I'm referring to.

Which goes to your last point: unload it before the warranty expires.

grege

Wielandmc,
If you are new to these forums - some opinion on what you see in here. You could easily persuade yourself not to buy any merc model of any sort if you took all posts as gospel. There is a huge amount of opinion that is very subjective relative to other cars those people have used / liked / etc. esp about ride, tires, noise, reliability etc.
There are gems in these forums, the key thing you will find is the occasional serious issue to be checked out. It's a must to check forums to find the odd problem where its costly to fix if its a used car / no warranty.
Another thing I think could be a huge factor is the variation of opinions is the varying standard of skill of maintenance and service on cars. I have found Mercs maintained by a good dealer with all the Merc info pretty good, but I suspect poor diagnosis and or training and practices could be behind many frustrations. I don't have evidence but I know the factory documentation and procedures are detailed and should make servicing by good staff a good experience.
Quite a number on these forums service their own cars using this documentation and find it good and often what seem quite daunting tasks are possible for people with the right tools and background. Esp with some of the good hints in here.
My take on Mercedes is they have the attributes I value a lot - very very thorough designs, and driving a lot of miles weekly pretty briskly in varying conditions I really take comfort in a Merc process behind all the safety systems design. User interface is something I find very thorough as well - read he manuals and there are so many features and functions that don't appear on glossy brochures, don't make big splashes but you can tell the designers really drive these cars and they make sure the whole experience is covered. And you know these cars are driven at very high speeds routinely by owners and when on the Autobahn doing 200ks and there is a row of trucks a couple of lanes away at 100k things happen really fast and little things suddenly become very important, and this is just part of what is a Merc. Apart from one or 2 items you will find about specific motor issues well documented in these MBworld forums (you can quickly figure if they apply to a given model) their motors are mostly very long lasting and most happy to work at high outputs, dont think they need gentle driving! And the Merc Autos are mostly designed for the big V8's with huge torque / power and solid as hell compared to lesser brands you may be coming from. Merc Suspensions are very technical and clever, and hold the road well. Air suspensions are more common on Mercs than any other model, and deliver some fabulous features I am very happy to accept a possible higher maintenance cost way down the track, given every single moment of every drive will be better for me! Especially with low profile run flats that seem hard to avoid.

This post may well attract some counter examples to these above points, but suggest you in general need to filter out just the information you want to know from the huge amount in here, and not get distracted by a few at the edge of the extremes of opinion. I have had quite a few models and I'm still a huge fan. You should never consider owning a Merc if you cannot spend a little on the TLC - you want be able to focus on the joy of driving it, not worrying if the occasional cost may show up. I consider my SL500 and W205 C250D like having a blonde and a brunette - each time I do a good hi speed journey I arrive saying damn that was a lovely drive, can't make up my mind which I love more ! Very different cars but I arrive fresher than I left after 4 hours or so pretty much nonstop.
Enjoy your shopping and driving! Greg

removedCFGaccount

You live in Nelson? I'm jealous.

StanNH

I just hit 24,0000 miles with mine. I had some minor issues with this car, including a very annoying rattle that my dealer was able to find and fix. They also installed the acoustic glass and new seals under warranty.

My car is rattle free, has no wind noise at all, is reasonably quiet inside, and I am pleased ... although certainly not blown away ... with the Burmester sound system. I have the Sport model and have no issues with ride quality, but I prefer a firm ride, which this model does have.

So no, I have no problems recommending the car although I wouldn't try to convince anyone to buy it. This is a very competitive market segment, and there are some very nice cars out there for the same or less money. Do some test drives and buy whatever you think is best for you.

grege

Yep do the Lewis pass route each way every week, seeing you obviously know NZ! My business in Christchurch.

Pity a huge earthquake broke the main coastal route massively (2 year repair time) with all the ferry traffic and now there is literally 7 times the traffic on my route! And road is falling apart, lost one runflat to pothole.
Turbos on the C250D get a lot of passing action, new rear tyres gone in 8 months / 12000 miles :{

removedCFGaccount

I spent three weeks going from the far North to the far South: what a magnificent place.

JBMCL

Well said! Beautifully written.