c32_bc

Assuming that all the steering wheel controls still work (volume, next song, etc), I would prefer an aftermarket nav system. I've seen a few systems with 30gb hard drives

However, for now I'm just concentrating on the first step which is the actual purchase -- all cars I have looked at so far (3 of them) do not have the stock nav, so whichever one I buy, I will be in the same boat as far as having to get a new system. I'm looking at an '02 model with a non-Bose system, so if I take that one, I will maybe also have to look into getting some more speakers.

On another note, are there any major reliability differences between '02 models vs '03?

TJ_Andrews

Yeah, transmission problem and radiator problem were both fixed in 03.

tjbrum

to simplify everything, i'll provide the same advice when i was in your shoes: "Just pull the trigger, you won't regret it!"

jgsx

Nuh uh. The TCU issue was fixed for 03+ models, but the radiator problem was not. It seems like it was fixed at some point late in the YEAR 2003, not the model year 2003. My model year 2004 had the radiator problem. I read that 2003 myth on here several times so I never bothered to check my 2004 until I noticed trouble.

moosejaw

get the white one they are rare

Slater126

White rocks! The vast majority are silver or black but everyone has a silver or black Mercedes it seems. White stands out -- and it's easy to keep clean too! Plus, white with red numbers is Germany's official racing color anyway.

c32_bc

The only problem with the white one is allegedly this dealer is kind of shady. I know the car is out of province, so the dealer might be concealing an accident, hard to say. The black one I'm still trying to figure out the warranty situation, since the dealer does not provide one.

The silver I almost bought today. It was advertised at $34,800 CAD, but I talked to the salesman, he talked to his manager, came back and said the absolute lowest they can go is $32k. I would've bought it at that price -- 2002 model, less than 27,000km, local with no accidents and all service records, etc. However when I went back to the dealership to do the deal, it turned out the salesman made a mistake. Apparently his manager told him $33k is the lowest they can go, but he messed up and said $32k. He also wrote it down (the $32k) on the back of his business card for me, I'm not sure if that means anything.

I'm meeting with the manager tomorrow, maybe he can straighten it out. It's a very annoying situation.

Den.

Who cares about NAV? Maps are cheaper. LOL.

Ironically I keep looking at ads and trying to find cars WITHOUT it!!

Even in Toronto the average seems to be $35 000 give or take.

Donmun

I must say thank you, because i have a 2002 for 8 months now with 84K miles and never knew about the transmission issue. I had 3 BMW's before this and to be honest i love this car just for the raw power, but does not give you the confidence in the twists and turns that you get from the BMW. My car has never seriously misbehaved in a turn it just feels a little nose heavy. 8 months later and one crank sensor later, this car still puts a smile on my face at every traffic light. Oh, be prepared, this car is not very friendly to rear tires.

c32_bc

Alright, the *******s have cracked!

A bit of a story with the manager, but long story short, they didn't give me what I want until about 3 hours after I left the place (salesman called), but now the wheels are in motion and I'm picking it up tomorrow for $32,000 CAD. After the warranty and taxes it'll be just short of 40grand CAD. I'll post pics and maybe a video if I can soon!

rlee02135

congrats

14cue

congrats.
which dealer did you buy from?

be sure to come to the summer meets

edit: good on you for not buying from Lenux.

c32_bc

I bought from the official MB dealer on Boundary road (a few blocks up from Lenux), official MB warranty, etc.

I'll definitely come to the meets -- I need to see what people have done to their cars so I know what to do with mine. Those kinds of things are best seen in person.

14cue

right on. who did you buy it off? i am very familiar with that dealer. i have good and bad stories :P

c32_bc

The salesman's name was Mitch, the manager was Patrick. I don't remember the last names. Do tell about the bad stories though... I'm going in tomorrow for the final deal, maybe I can benefit from your experience.

14cue

i dont know Mitch but i have dealt with Patrick once wheni tried to trade in my C230 for a C55. i was low balled of course but it turned out to be a decent deal in the end - but i didnt trade my old car in there.

my only other experiences there are not sales realted but service related. they just dont want to fix anything i bring in. when it comes time to service something dont leave w/o a confiramtion it has all been cleared. too many times i get pushed around and accept "it's supposed to be like that". my answer SHOULD have been, "Oh, yeah? please get me a new car and show me". just stupid problems like my trunk doesnt spring open, or my arm rest doesnt tilt...all small issues but you wonder why couldnt they just fix them, right? stay away from Broadway for sure though, you will hear mix stories where ever you go but Broadway has been really bad to me. they not only didnt fix my problems but i left with more. once they scratched both my rear rims and didnt admit to it. after 2 more visits and talks with the manager they decided to fix 1, go figure!


anyway, most MB dealers are a pain. no way around that. i would only suggest to be friend a service agent and take it from there. i have been to them all. i currently use N.Van and i dont have any complaints, yet.

c32_bc

Thanks for the heads up. I don't plan to take my car in for service more often than is needed, so perhaps I'll take the longer drive up to North Van if they do offer better service (that drive on #1 is great -- test drove a BMW 335 up there once ).

A friend of mine has a CLK55 AMG, I think he goes to the Surrey dealership. Do you have any experience with them? I'll ask my friend about it as well.

c32_bc

Patrick is a funny guy, I enjoyed negotiating with him. He was very professional at first, but as we exchanged arguments and the discussion progressed, I got him to swear a couple of times.

c32_bc

Alright, the purchase is complete. So far so good -- the car is fast as hell and I didn't kill myself yet!

I borrowed some burned CDs from my brother so I have some temporary music, but I'm still working on the fast forward function. Everything I press that resembles a fast forward button just skips to the next track (I've got the CD changer) ..I'll read the manual before I ask you guys any questions.

I'm going to research aftermarket stereos this week, as well as temporary ways to hook up my mp3 player. So far, the FM transmitter has failed (due to poor sound quality), and my attempt to put in a tape/aux interface has failed due to the fact that the cable prevents me from closing the tape panel

Does anyone know if Ralph's audio store on Terminal and Main is any good? It was mentioned to me and recommended by the MB salesman.

I'm borrowing a digital camera tonight, so I will have some pics up tomorrow.

Cheers,
Art

14cue

congrats.
do post pics.

i dont have any experiences with Ralphs but i am sure there are better places out there. their prices are not that great but they do have a wide selection.

when you were trying to fast forward a song did you hold on to the button? changing songs and fas forwarding is the same button. press and release to skip and press+hold to fast forward.

c32_bc

For some reason that doesn't work in my car (I expected it to work that way but it didn't). However, the radio console has up/down buttons above and below the volume knob, and that fast forwards and rewinds, so I've been using that for now. I'll see if there is a way to do it using the steering wheel, but I don't think there is

In any case, I've already put on about 900 km on the car. I've been driving almost non-stop the last 2 days (I had to pull out the manual to figure out how to get to the gas cap .. haha)

I took some pics at night, I'm not sure how good they'll come out, I know in the camera various reflecting surfaces look super shiny due to the flash. I will grab the camera and post up the pics I've got later today, you can judge for yourself

c32_bc

Alright, I uploaded some pics, I'll have to make better ones because most of these are dark. I forgot to set up the camera to deal with the night-time outdoor lighting conditions :P

I'll see if I can add some more stuff about the car and make a proper webpage in the coming days.

http://antiparticle.net/c32