Derspeed

Give it a chance. When I was shopping, I admit, I was in a hurry to get something new. I got the C300 because I wanted a manual transmission and the new C's body was just very appealing to me, so I got it. No it's not a $65,000 C63 or M3. I have had the high hp cars in the past, but they don't fit my lifestyle currently. Maybe next time. Anyway, my initial impressiion of the interior wasn't that it was cheap, but rather busy. I didn't like the looks of the climate control knobs though. They actually looked cheap. After living with the car for a while, however, the interior seems to make more sense. I know where everything is, so it's not so busy. The angular lines flow with the exterior. Now when I look at the interior and touch the surfaces, it is more impressive. My only complaint now, is the chrome trimmed shifter surround and cupholders. I still like it better than our last W203.

Basically, in comparable cars, plastic is plastic and leather is leather. It is the shapes inside the W204 that take some getting used to. Once that happens, I'm pretty sure you'll be satisfied with the interior.

I think someone posted a comment regarding MB interiors of the past looking cheap as well. I agree. In my opinion, looking at the older German cars vs all other cars of gone by eras, the German examples seemed to have stood the test of time much better; especially MB vehicles.

I don't know if this matters, but in 2000, we had a new Vette and a new Viper. The Viper was roughly $70,000. I know it was not a luxury car, but man the interior was really cheap and poorly planned. Tough to get used to when you spend that kind of money. The Vette was only slightly better.

BTW, I have had some VWs with impressive interior.

e1000

A lot of this is subjective.

Rafal

How about comparing C63 to RS4 or M3, they are all in the same class? Chalk and cheeze.C63 should have a leather dash and everything inside. It would cost 3 grand extra and we would all pay for it willingly. Now it's just a base model with a big motor and fancy seats.
As for that pop-up screen that obscures the windshield, it looks very "after market"!

Rafal

If buying and owning a car were to be "objective" we would all be driving White Toyota Camrys, a close relative to all other white household appliances...

e1000

not really, objective just means a measurable difference. For example, quarter mile and trap times are objective. How an interior looks is purely subjective. It just seems like you guys are trying to convince one another that thier personal tasts are wrong. Kinda funny.

RJR

That is a great point. Some people like Black and some like White. I do not mind the new interior. If I did not like it I would not have ordered the car. I have been driving Corvettes for the last 5 years and people are always trashing the interior of the Vettes also. I do not mind it. Sure the new C interior could have been nicer but if you do not like it nobody is twisting your arm to buy it. There is a lot of choices in this class so choose the one you like and be happy with it. As far as people complaining about the pop up Nav I think it is easier to look at. My wife has a ML350 and you have to look down at the screen when driving where the pop up sits higher and will be easier to look at when driving.

vixapphire

excuses, excuses. the engine and tranny isn't worth $20-30k over the price of the 350; at least not from a cost-of-manufacture standpoint. as for 2 diff breeds of cars, the stock cayman S without full leather is a few grand cheaper, and has the same cheap interior feel of the c class. very plastique. as such, i suppose the c's cheapness is just the way things are anymore.

funny that by the posts on this thread, we've apparently allowed ourselves to be conditioned to make excuses for MB's putting a jetta-level interior in a car whose costs (including tax) approach $100k.

so much for "no one has any money in today's US economy", eh?

vixapphire

by and large, what i've observed on my LA surface-streets daily commute is that Prius drivers have what is scientifically known as a "ballic deficiency".

lkfoster

I have to agree overall with the cheap look of the w204 interior. But I should add that living in the Arizona desert the last thing I want in the way of an improvement is a full leather dash. Strong sun and leather don't get along too well.

tanktube67

That one think I don't like the big rear view mirrors

spr

I think I can best chime in. I have a c55 and it recently was smacked so I'm getting a new bumper (the only damage). I am renting an 08 c300.

First off, I LOVE the steering. It is leaps and bounds better than my c55. I don't know if this is because it is running an 8" front of just from the different front setup, but it is more Porsche than benz. It turns in much better, and the midcorner bumps are not as unsettling- the latter might be because the shocks are a bit worn on my c55 with 40k?? Dunno but it is much nicer to drive for the most part.

I actally like the side mirrors much more from a useability standpoint as they are much larger and you can see better out of them.

The outside look as REALLLY grown on me. It has the amg kit and 18" amg rims. It looks very sharp. especially since the garage spot mate is a regular w203 next to it. Both are black and the w204 just looks sooo much better.

The bluetooth is awesome and I got it to load my contacts in my q9c. The idrive type wheel is great! The cluster menu is much better laid out, however I HATE how it doesn't remember where you left off when you restart it- it always goes to the mileage menu - likely so the dealer can read the mileage for service. The buttons on the wheel are much better also AND it allows you to jump by preset NOT by band like the w203!! It's great. I have the one without sat or nav, so I cannot comment on those aspects.

The steering wheel does look lame but you can beep the horn by pushing anywhere which is nice, and again the buttons are great and the phone stuff is amazing especially since it's standard bluetooth!

the armrest looks lame but works great to use the idrive type deal.

The seats suck but they likely won't on the amg

The 300 is gutless but the tranny seems to work better at least software wise

I really like the layout of the dash it's much shorter in depth and lower than the w203.

The stereo sounds amazing and this is the stock one! great bass!

ANd the best part is the climate control actually works in the 203 it is SH*T!

The brakes seems great too. Are they the same as the c55?? dunno but are great- probably bc the car as 6k on it and have thick pads. The balance of the handling is also better- again likely due to the 8/8.5 amg rims, but it might be the sways also because it's not so understeer happy- my car also has camber bolts helping a bit but sheesh!

The car is much better overall. the c63 will be head and shoulders better than the c55.

Honestly guys dump your w203 if you have one. Other than the power, the c300 is a better car almost all the way around! I know I can't believe it either!

extassy

Excuses? You were comparing the C63 vs. Cayman S... What do you get in a Cayman for 60K... A fully loaded Cayman S could reach $72K.... do you think the Cayman S worth that much? 245HP 2 door with leather interior? without navigation?

Nevertheless, I do undestand your argument... You are expecting more for the money... but everything is relative... In my opinion, at this point I get more bang for the bucks from MB relative to Audi, BMW or Porsche... But then again it is my subjective opinion on the interior. On another note, I will not spend 60K to 72K for car that has 245HP under its hood!!!

spr

also I forgot to mention yes the interior is much more VW than MB! It has baseball touch plastic everywhere.

I bet the c63 will at least have leather on the doors. If the dash was leather that would be great. I also didn't care for the headliner material - same as c55. It should have suede-

The wierd thing is that there is no handle to close the door but finger detended pulls-which although kinda cheap work better as my handles inside my c55 are scratched to hell.

The climate dials do look extremely cheap as well, but remeber that the c63 will have digital climate which will be different - I hope not the same dials....

Again guys, the climate control actually works though! The wierdest thing with it though??? It doesn't have a recirc button!!???

Derspeed

Spr

It's a lot more fun with the 6spd.

Ferri

I testdrove a C350 for kicks while my car was being oiled. The interior is horrendous, and I felt so claustrofobic I cut the test way short. Dynamically, the car was superb. The engine was very potent and had a great sound to it. However, I cannot get over the fact that comparable cars from Audi and BMW look and feel so much better inside (if not any roomier).

lkfoster

I thought I read that most of the w203 suspension bits are carried over unchanged to the w204. MB made a big deal about the "adjustable" shocks, but I didn't think that the C300 has them.

spr

204's have different stearing and suspension as far as I know. If not then it was just the difference between new shocks and stearing components v. 40k units and 8" fronts v. 7.5" fronts-

I'd greatly like to know if the suspension/stearing on the 300 is redesigned if that's true or not!

spr

Here is an atricle from car and driver:

The C-class suspension layout is carried over — a strut and control-arm arrangement at the front and a multilink setup at the rear — with revised geometry, bushings, and subframes. One main element of the suspension is amplitude-dependent damping, which Mercedes calls “agility control.” It’s not electronic — it uses hydromechanical shock absorbers with an extra chamber to which oil is diverted by a control piston reacting to low road impulses. So in easy-driving situations, the damping force is reduced. Apart from preserving a comfortable highway ride, this system reduces the body’s roll angle by up to 10 percent in some maneuvers compared with the old car. A new steering rack transmits more road feel, and the upshot of all the changes is a more stable car that has excellent body control. Sport models have a suspension that is lowered by 0.6 inch and features stiffer springs and dampers.

At a later date, Mercedes will offer the Advanced Agility package, which turns the car into a serious sports sedan. That package includes a variable damper system. Seven sensors provide electronic data that enable continuously variable damping at each wheel, and there is a choice, via a button alongside the gear selector, of comfort and sport programs. In addition to altering the damping, selecting “sport” changes the automatic-transmission shift strategy and accelerator characteristics. The Advanced Agility package also has more direct steering, with a ratio of 13.5:1 compared with the standard car’s 14.5:1.

I wonder what the REAL difference is? I know about the liquid filled bushing and how they create a lot of slop- were those replaced? And what about the steering rack? What's different????

These questions are important as I'd like to know what I can change about the c55 to make the steering less sloppy!

extassy

Thanks for the resourceful info...

extassy

LOL... I felt the direct opposite

Rafal

LOL OK, then let's make it measurable: leather = $3000, crappy molded plastic= $300. Most of us don't need a ruler to measure the "savings" in some of MB new models. Think "measurably cheap and nasty" W210 E class after the rock solid W124!
Thankfully MB got the message and improved their quality in W211.

vixapphire

the Cayman S, which is the model I've been using in my posts here, has 295 hp, fwiw.

and hell yeah, porsche's are the poster-children for "overpriced cars".

i understand and appreciate the willingness to pay a premium for the 63 engine, but given that an assembled, crated 426 hemi from Mopar costs around $5k delivered, if we're being asked to pay $20-30k over stock for the c63, i'm amazed people are complacent regarding the fact that aside from the motor and tranny software and some plastic bodykit parts and new seats, the rest of the car is pretty much a stock 300 sedan.

that's really a poor showing on MB's part, regardless of how you feel about the horsepower. you are being laughed at by the Mercedes brass and marketing people.

lkfoster

There's always been a niche market where the manufacturers can put obscene price tags on limited market cars and their parts. When we bought our BMW e28 M5 back in '89 a replacement cylinder head was $15,000. Nice work if you can get it.

extassy

Yep... Porsche can be considered as "over-priced" car... nonetheless, it is still able to hold it's brand exclusivity for being a Porsche... and most important of all they are still selling cars and remain profitable, so the market niche is always there for the Porsche brand.

Again, you are comparing 2 engines, that cannot be compared apples to apples.
That reminds me when I was at a dyno a few months a go... I was dyno'ing my car and registered 476 RWHP... then there is a guy with a modified EVO MR (race gas) pushing 470 AWHP... he said: I have a car that can hang with you with a fraction of what you paid for your car...
Yes... he is right... however, if I chosen to do so... I could have modified 3X EVO MR dynoing at 470 RWHP... but why compare a modified E60 M5 with a modified EVO MR... two different cars...


Why laughed at? Just like any other brands (including non-auto), companies are bound to the market conditions, competitive pricing and brand exclusivity. Mercedes is doing what it can to be able to compete with BMW and Audi in this class category. From my perspective, Mercedes was able to take that careful step ahead... I don't think that MB will be loosing their current consumers to the new M3 or RS4 or S5.
Interestingly enough, BMW fans are also complaining on how cheap looking the new 3-series are...

bigben320e

Good point. I had made an point about how people let themselves get conditioned into accepting less for more money before on another thread. I got a response that I had lost my marbles for saying so.

If we as consumers say nothing, corporations will roll with it. I remember on 20/20 back some time ago, they interviewed some head honchos of companies as to why they practiced the less for more money. The responses were: "That's what consumers wanted."

Go Figure? Sounded like to me.