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Hey mate, welcome from Auckland.
1, Drive another couple and see if they feel as heavy, it depends on what you define as heavy is all.
2, Mine does the same, doesnt bother me too much, i have had the car at the mechanic recently (Eurosurgeon) and they say its tip top (63000Kms).
3, Mine has been tuned for about a year and a half, the tune only nets about 10-20hp realistically. Plenty of cars running around with tunes for years but it does depend on the tune. A dyno run could put your mind at ease to check up on AFR.
C55s seem to be one of if not the most bulletproof merc of that era.
4, That will depend entirely on who installed the stereo and how well it was installed. Have none of the services been done in NZ? Also japanese still write numbers like we do, so mileage will be noted at services.
5, 100000Ks service should be a big one, i gave mine a birthday service as its first service in my ownership, all fluids including gbox and diff ect new plugs (that was a killer there is 16 of them) and it wasnt that bad.
Find a good local Euro specialist to do your work, MB will charge you like its still a $180K car
TBH it looks a bit rough, its definitely been an outside car,that appears to be about the market price.
Hey mate, welcome from Auckland.
1, Drive another couple and see if they feel as heavy, it depends on what you define as heavy is all.
2, Mine does the same, doesnt bother me too much, i have had the car at the mechanic recently (Eurosurgeon) and they say its tip top (63000Kms).
3, Mine has been tuned for about a year and a half, the tune only nets about 10-20hp realistically. Plenty of cars running around with tunes for years but it does depend on the tune. A dyno run could put your mind at ease to check up on AFR.
C55s seem to be one of if not the most bulletproof merc of that era.
4, That will depend entirely on who installed the stereo and how well it was installed. Have none of the services been done in NZ? Also japanese still write numbers like we do, so mileage will be noted at services.
5, 100000Ks service should be a big one, i gave mine a birthday service as its first service in my ownership, all fluids including gbox and diff ect new plugs (that was a killer there is 16 of them) and it wasnt that bad.
Find a good local Euro specialist to do your work, MB will charge you like its still a $180K car
TBH it looks a bit rough, its definitely been an outside car,that appears to be about the market price.
Thank you for the advice, I appreciate it a lot! - The owner said the car had a few services in NZ at a local garage, not a European specialist. From what I gathered it just had the oil and brake pads changed, I asked about the plugs and he didn't know. Ill try get photos of all the service history off the owner.
From AKL, picked mine up almost two years ago when 54kms on odo.
Steering feels heavy around town, probably pulls to the left, becomes perfect when punting hard on the twisty's or track.
Doubtful ECM tune alone yields that much power from 362 factory, so if what current owner is claiming, then possibly have reason to be suspicious of anything else claimed.
But these cars are bulletproof; low tech, low stress engine.
If it were me buying; polish headlights, install bolts allowing camber/caster adjustment for proper alignment, clean/replace MAF, and be careful because you will incur demerits.
From AKL, picked mine up almost two years ago when 54kms on odo.
Steering feels heavy around town, probably pulls to the left, becomes perfect when punting hard on the twisty's or track.
Doubtful ECM tune alone yields that much power from 362 factory, so if what current owner is claiming, then possibly have reason to be suspicious of anything else claimed.
But these cars are bulletproof; low tech, low stress engine.
If it were me buying; polish headlights, install bolts allowing camber/caster adjustment for proper alignment, clean/replace MAF, and be careful because you will incur demerits.
From reading up I agree the tune isn't likely to give 392 hp. Apparently Xtreme Tuning in Wellington worked on the car, I will give them a ring and inquire what it is all about.
Can you expand a bit on the alignment? From the factory can the car not be aligned properly?
Lucky my licence is clean so I can afford a few demerits
The steering on the C55 is heavy; not sure why they designed it so stiff, but it is.
Vibrations could be from motor mounts, transmission mount, or low quality gas.
I wouldn't be too worried about buying the car - if it comes back good from your mechanic, you should be ok. These W203 cars have shown to be fairly reliable.
Looks like a gap issue on the passenger side where the bumper, hood/bonnet and front fender all come together. I'm never a fan of multiple panels not fitting as they should.
Looks like a gap issue on the passenger side where the bumper, hood/bonnet and front fender all come together. I'm never a fan of multiple panels not fitting as they should.
Good spotting, I didn't notice that when I saw the car in real life. Exterior is in quite rough condition.
Congrats on the purchase. Don't worry about the 100K mileage. It is nothing with this car. I have about 108K. Bought it about 20K and 6 years ago. Aside from some suspension parts, plugs, the usual maintenance stuff, nothing goes wrong. About the x-pipe, there are 2 schools of thought: X vs H. These 2 have a slight tonal difference. I have the X. Either way, it should improve your sound experience. I wouldn't expect too much power-wise from the engine. I concentrated on getting quicker throttle response from tuning rather than outright power. It is a nice all-around car. I'm holding on to mine and foregoing buying the newer versions. Although the newer versions are definitely quicker and more refined, I still prefer an analog driving experience and the simplicity of the C55. If you are looking for power, you might have to look at another platform.
There is a long list of mods that can be done but the bang for the buck equation may not be reasonable.
I also have an aftermarket audio setup from Avin. Sound is no match for the original Becker unit even in radio or CD mode. But recent Android updates have improved the sound a bit when using a memory card for the mp3s. In fairness to the head unit, it provides me with DVD playback, mp3 play, navigation, backup camera, and other Android toys when used with your phone as network tether.
Last edited by C55er; 03-25-2019 at 05:29 PM.
Reason: Additional info
Congrats on the purchase. Don't worry about the 100K mileage. It is nothing with this car. I have about 108K. Bought it about 20K and 6 years ago. Aside from some suspension parts, plugs, the usual maintenance stuff, nothing goes wrong. About the x-pipe, there are 2 schools of thought: X vs H. These 2 have a slight tonal difference. I have the X. Either way, it should improve your sound experience. I wouldn't expect too much power-wise from the engine. I concentrated on getting quicker throttle response from tuning rather than outright power. It is a nice all-around car. I'm holding on to mine and foregoing buying the newer versions. Although the newer versions are definitely quicker and more refined, I still prefer an analog driving experience and the simplicity of the C55. If you are looking for power, you might have to look at another platform.
There is a long list of mods that can be done but the bang for the buck equation may not be reasonable.
I also have an aftermarket audio setup from Avin. Sound is no match for the original Becker unit even in radio or CD mode. But recent Android updates have improved the sound a bit when using a memory card for the mp3s. In fairness to the head unit, it provides me with DVD playback, mp3 play, navigation, backup camera, and other Android toys when used with your phone as network tether.
Thanks for the information!.
I'm not looking for more power, I'm keen to change the noise a bit.
At the moment the secondary cats have been taken out, I think the resonator is still in place.
My question is, how much louder will the car be with an x-pipe and resonator delete? At the moment it's as loud as I would like it to be with a slight drone at 2000 rpm. From what I understand the x-pipe is more of a tone thing and can help eliminate drone.
I'm not looking for more power, I'm keen to change the noise a bit.
At the moment the secondary cats have been taken out, I think the resonator is still in place.
My question is, how much louder will the car be with an x-pipe and resonator delete? At the moment it's as loud as I would like it to be with a slight drone at 2000 rpm. From what I understand the x-pipe is more of a tone thing and can help eliminate drone.
What do you think?
I went with true duals and an X but had to add 2 flow-through resonators back as I wanted to listen to music on long journeys without sufferring permanent hearing loss from increased music volume with the windows closed. And I didn't want the missus straining to have a conversation with her neck veins bulging.😊
I went with true duals and an X but had to add 2 flow-through resonators back as I wanted to listen to music on long journeys without sufferring permanent hearing loss from increased music volume with the windows closed. And I didn't want the missus straining to have a conversation with her neck veins bulging.😊
Hahaha Ok, the resonator is a must. I'll have a chat to the exhaust shop close to me.
Hahaha Ok, the resonator is a must. I'll have a chat to the exhaust shop close to me.
Thanks again for the info!
Further info: I am also using the CLK-BS mufflers which are slightly louder than C55's because of the larger feedpipes. I first ran without the resos until I found the setup was just not working on journeys longer than a beer run to the corner store. That"s when I had resos installed.
Further info: I am also using the CLK-BS mufflers which are slightly louder than C55's because of the larger feedpipes. I first ran without the resos until I found the setup was just not working on journeys longer than a beer run to the corner store. That"s when I had resos installed.
The C55 mufflers have PNs A2034906721 and A2034906821. The CLK63 (209.377) has PNs A2094902521 and A2094905921. I was able to buy my pair off a user that was upgrading to aftermarket. The main difference is in the feed pipe diameter (for flow). I do not recall the exact difference in mm but faintly recall it to be about 10mm. I then had to swap out the tips for the OE tips to retain the stock look. I am attaching a pic of the CLK setup below.
And, as installed:
Last edited by C55er; 03-28-2019 at 05:09 PM.
Reason: Grammar
Yes, but only the pipe stubs that feed the muffler. The pipes feeding into the mufflers. If one went with 3" pipes fron the front to the back, a reducer has to be installed to reduce down to the C55 muffler feed pipes which does not make sense. By going with the CLK63 mufflers, the feed pipes match with the 3" mains from the front without requiring a reducer.
02-09-2019, 04:40 PM
