Substance

I making my researchs on 2000 model C 43 AMG(w202) , 2003 model C 32 AMG (W203) and 1998 model Porsche 911 Carrera (993). I will end up buying one of them in the next 3 months. 2000 C43 is a very rare car (1500 C43s and only 22s are 2000 model with tiptronic) and I love the look and of course the V8 engine. 2003 C 32 seems to have better accelaration and memory seats, navigation, in dash cd player are really cool adventages over C 43. 2003 and 2004 better because of the clear xenon lights. I figured it would cost me the same money getting a 2002 or 2001 a couple thousand cheaper and installing the clear bi-xenons for 2000$. As for the Porsche 911 carrera. the performance is in between C 32 and c43. 993 chasis looks great(best porsche in my opinion). AWD is available if I go for Carrera 4 and even better perfornanc with Carrera S. Positive sides...There are many C-classes oit there( W202 and W 203) . a C 230 sport looks very close to a C 32 if you get the AMG wheels. Same for the C43. Only way to notice its an AMG is the badge at the back and the sound.(Its still cool tho, when you see guys who wants to race you and think its an old heavy benzy and shocked when you smoke them and they finaly notice its an AMG) BUt Porsches are very rare. Everyone knows any porsche is a perfornance car. negative sides. its older 1998 model the latest fot 993 chasis. 2 doors. almost no backseats. AND OF Course. the BIGGEST down side is its NOT a Mercedes. Its a wolkvagen at the end. Why so I want better performance than C43 and bother C32? COZ all my friends have fast cars such as Mustang Gt, NIssan 350Z etc..and they can all compete with C43 , they have the same 0-60 5,9sec. and I know a C43 can take them easly after 60 miles but who does 120 miles runs on a open higway anyways? I want to smoke them at the lights. A C32 with minor mod can easly do 4,7 or better. and leave most of the cars behind

I am waiting for you opinions.
thnx

BenzoAMGpower

C43 is a nice car.. very solid...feels like a tank. Then again, the C43 lacks the spunkiness and eagerness to accelerate fast off the line that the C32 is famed for. Having owned both vehicles (owning a RENNTeched C32 now), I say go for the newer car. The C32 is cheaper to mod and every bit of a sleeper. 993 porsche is a great car but old. Get a C32, you will be leaving your mustang Gts and 350Zs in teh dust.... it will be time to race cobras and skylines.

steve s

um.. porsche is not owned by vw ag. vw ag includes audi, vw, bugatti, seat, skoda, bentley, lamborghini. vw and porsche have had very very close ties, but neither have been owned by the other. at least, not until 9/2005, when porsche purchased 20% of vw's shares to prevent any foreign hostile takeover of porsche. just fyi..

Substance

If i decide to settle on a 993 porsche, which one I should go for?
c2 vs c2s? are there big diffrences ? which car will hold its value better?
I definetely dont want a AWD. I believe its not fun when you cant burn tires and do all you could do with a rear drive car. I am an international student , studying in the US, I am temporarly here. When I came to the states, I bought my 2000 model C 280. I was so excited about this car and I loved W202 look...I dont know if you guys seen it, the french movie " TAXI " made me buy this car. it wasnt a w202 in the movie, it was a 190 evo II racing against a french made heavly moded Peugeot 406. but 202 is an update of 201. and at that time I coulndt afford a C43. Now I have a few more years here going to graduate school now and I really want to enjoy a nice car here in my last years. since i am on a visa , no financing or lease apply to me..only cash works. and I dont want to pay 40k now and sell the car 15k after 2 years when I am to leave. in my home country I own a 03 clk 200 kompressor. 200 engine is typical for europe since the gas price is 8 bucks per gallon. My last years to enjoy a fuel hungry car.

steve s

taxi (i and ii) was quite the movie. is the auto tranny on ur 200k as much a dog as the one i found on the w203?

u have to ask urself what do u want out of the car? they are probably all around 20-40k.. u could always pick up jrwin's c36 if it's still available..

AMG_55

get an e55, u wont be disapointed.
out of those cars i would take the c2s.
but i think the e55 is better for everyday driving and its more fun.
it has a lot of torque (391) and will do donuts, slides, burnouts all day long. (we think alike) :p
its also faster, more luxurious and roomier than any of the others.
black on black w/ limo tint, of course

Substance

i think its the same tranny....when I compare the 2000 model w202s tranny to 2003 model clk...clk's is more responsive and faster gear changes i think....the car has the same 1,8 lt kompressor engine as the 05' C 230 kompressor...only diffrence is 230 K produces 189 hp and 200k makes 163. there was also a 180 kompressor available for C class cars in europe which is again 1,8 kompressor with less than 140hp i think. I guess its the same engine with different kompressors.when I compare CLk 200 kompressors performance to my W202 C280....they are almost identical...but CLK was moms decision..I never liked it that much....E55 is my all time fave , however out of my budget, being well over 40k for 2003s....but if i find a way to higher my budget and consider the E55 ..its still a hard choice against the 1997 porsche 911 turbo(993). 0-60 is under 4sec and 1/4 miles is a about 11secs. and also the collective value , most consider it the best porsche ever produced and last air cooled one. that would take me the range of vettes and vipers. but who knows I am studying electrical engineering, i may get a good job offer here and decide stay a few more years and get a 911 turbo for my 3rd in the US. C36 is very cool but the tranny is the problem...I want something that i can shift up and down myself....so only tiptronics works well for me If no manual available. Thats why I only have 2000 model C43 in mind if i can find one of course. there are 3 on autotrader...but no xenons on them and asking price is not a penny cheaper than most C 32s, about 10k more than 1999 C43 are sold for. i am not sure its worth to pay 10 k extra for a tiptronic tranny. plus the xenon will cost me another 2000 oem and washers.
If there was a 2000 C43 available around 23-24k , it would be nice to go for a kleemann supercharger(13k) and make it 450+hp...all together with kleemann spring and shocks less than 40k.

AMG_55

a good 993 turbo is at least 65k
get the e55
im talkin about the 210 body not the new 1 (516 tq)
my mom has 1 (05)

AMG_55

u can find a nice 200-01 e55 for 40k
they have tiptronic and r way nicer and faster than all the others ur considering in this price range

AMG_55

check this out

http://www.kbb.com/kb/ki.dll/kw.kc.u...***&4;MB;E5&&&

AMG_55

****, it doesnt work.
go to link
look up 2002 e55 w/ 50000 mi on it, excellent condition.
its a little more than 41k from private party

2QUIK4U

Yes that would be an option. But are you also thinking of resale value? You will never get that money out of the car. I owned a C43 which I supercharged and also undertook numerous other mods. It was a disappointment when I sold the car, given the amount of money I lost on it. If you do decide to go this route, I would recommend that you buy the old E55 (W210) and use it as a platform for modification versus the C43. The car as a better engine and the potential for increasing power is a lot higher. Not to mention, they are relatively cheap at the moment, you could easily find for 20-28K (not much more than a C43).

A 993C2S is not going to be cheap, this is a rare car and will easily fetch >$45K. If you are willing to spend that much money, you might as well buy a C55 or something else that is relatively new.

Have you looked into the Porsche 964 or 965 (turbo). These were great cars and are very reliable (if well maintained). They have taken most of their depreciation at this point and seem to hold their value well. Check out rennlist.com for info on them.

Good luck on finding the right car.

Substance

were you satisfied with the performance after the supercharged mod.
I know that W202 C55 is like e36 m3....0-60 ...5,5sec. so a 5,4 engine swap wont be really effective....it would be much cheaper to add a powerchip 23+hp and air intake and such...i would get almost the same output of 340+hp with a lower weight due to smaller 4, 3 engine. but the supercharger should make the car run 0-60 well under 5 sec. but its very costy...a kleemann charger is 13k and to keep the 450hp oof power in control, i would need more mods...breaks suspensian etc...and those are expencive as well. in there 3 cars, i believe c32 is the easiest and the cheapest to mod...renntech and klemann has performance kits for 3-4k, which makes the car over 400hp..kleeman claims 0-60 in 4,1 sec. the old E 55 w210 is a very nice car but I am only 23 and I want a more agresive sporty new looking car. and C32 has all the luxuary that the old E55 has. i dont really care about how confortable the ppl at backseats are. as long as i can fit 4 ppl in the car, i am ok...i am single even a 2 door 993 c2s will do well for me. i am morelikely yielding to C32 but the resale values scares..seems like they are not holding value well at all. in a year and a half w204 will be out. w203 will suffer more than w202s i believe.

would anyone recommend a none-amg car? i have always wanted a w220 S-class and of course CL -class. Do you guys think the new S class w221 will affect the w221s values? I remember the old SL suffered a lot from the new one. Can I find a decent S-600 for about 40k half a year from now when the new w221 are out. I love the S 600s , V12 engine , beautifull body kit dual exhaust pipes and ultimate luxuary front and back seats.By the way I am in europe now..I have already seen number of new w221s. they started selling them here way earlier than the US. And many buyers. I had a chance to get a ride on one of them.. the car is fantastic. no rivals untill the new 7 series bimmers hits the market in 2009. (i believe it wont be better than the new s-class)

2QUIK4U

You are all over the place. I think it would be more productive for you to test drive a few different cars and then you can narrow it down a bit.

As for the supercharged C43, I was very happy with it. I had the HPS Gen I unit and unlike many people would assume, I did not have any issues with it. Install was a little troublesome because it was a second hand kit and the installer was misssing some parts. Low-end and midrange power was phenomenal. However, the performance of the engine (with s/c) was strongly affected by temperature change. I think this primarily had to do with the fact that it was a non-intercooled unit.

I think that a E55 (210) would be the best compromise for you.

clkcadet

c32 sounds like the best choice.

amgmark

I just bought my C32 after much consideration. I compared it to all the other cars and it was the best for me. My buddy had a Porsche 911.. not impressed.. I think they seem kinda cheesy inside and they only have two seats, I need 4. I also wanted 4 doors and the C32 is by far the best 4 door car in my price range. I also have a BMW 330i so I was really considering an M3. Didn't want the SMG, wanted an automatic, and it doesn't have 4 doors so passed. C43's are ok.. saw one on the freeway a couple of days ago.. I smoked him.. lol.. Why go for that old ugly body style? Get a C32, it's fast enough and with a few minor mods you will be styling.. There are a lot of the w203 body style out there, but I kinda like it because it makes my car look so innocent.. until I floor it.. lol..

Good luck!

AMG_55

e55 210, just like i said, this guy knows what hes talkin bout

steve s

even with intercoolers.. heat really hurts performance of many forced induction systems.

c55m8o

my vote goes for (shouldn't it be obvious) a C43 w/a 5.4L motor, with a full speedybenz suspension kit (in the process of getting installed today) dang fast and it turns too ... does both really really well!

BimmerBeater

C32 all the way... You can't find a used E55 for less than $60k.

c55m8o

they were saying W210 E55 ... way cheaper then $60K. (under $30K private party)

cntlaw

December mercedes enthusiast mag has a good article of C55 W202 AMG.
It is more exclusive than the C43.
link

C43 is a very exclusive car and it is a vintage collection for many fans who are crazy with W202. If you can find one with good condition and the right price, it is wonderful.

C32 is a W203 and is overall more modern and the performance is not a doubt as you can read user comments from this forum. It will be more a flighter car and as you said, you tend not to have a car for race with your friends.

993 is not a sedan, it is easier if you could compare apple to apple.

ProjectC55

Wrong wrong wrong!The performance of my car with the 5.4l compared to the 4.3L engine is like nite and day.Also the 5.4l is only 50lbs heavier. A modded E36 M3 will have a hard time running 13.39 secs in the 1/4 mile unless you have extremely good launch techniques, superb traction,and excellent track conditions. My W202 C55 runs that time no problem + my C55 runs away from my heavily modded E36 90 mph up.My E36 is by no means stk it runs 13.6 secs in the 1/4 documented and could possibly run 13.4 or even less.

However modded C32's are known to run high 12's.I've never heard of a W210 E55 running times like that unless supercharged.

AMG_55

i agree w/ u about the 43 55 nite day thingy.
but a 210 e55 is very fast (4.8 to 60, 13.3 quarter)
i raced 1 and we were pretty much dead even up to 90.
nice m3 i regret ****ing mine up

ProjectC55

The 1/4 mile time for the W210 E55 varies based on a # of known factors.Yes it's a 13 second bracket 1/4 mile car none the less but not everybody is going to get the W210 E55 to run 13.3 secs in the 1/4.You can check the forums and see how much the time varies with different W210 E55 owners.You'll find alot of Modded C32's running high 12's compared to W210's running 13.3's just my .02 cents. By the way what were your mods on the M3?