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Enterprise felt like they were doing me a solid by renting me a new Chrysler 300. It is slightly preferable to walking. Honestly I have no idea how a 2020 model year V6 RWD car can drive so poorly. It's atrocious.
The irony of this is that the 300 is based on old Mercedes chassis components.
The irony of this is that the 300 is based on old Mercedes chassis components.
Oh I know.. I mean, 20 year old components. It certainly does not feel like any recent Benz. The ride quality is OK, the steering is awful, it feels much slower than the E350 though they have similar power. The quality of the work and materials are just laughable. Actually during our walk around the rep was like "I've already noted the misalignment of the front fascia parts" and I was like "yeah, that's just how they put them together.."
The irony of this is that the 300 is based on old Mercedes chassis components.
Right? One time I was changing tires on my mothers '11 Hyundai Genesis and my wife's '03 S500, from underneath the car they were indistinguishable, my friends used to tease me about the Daimler/Chrysler logo too, one friend referred to my car as "That Chrysler Pierre paid 80 grand for" He had a Volkswagen Phaeton at the time! Which I called his "Walmart Audi"
Enterprise felt like they were doing me a solid by renting me a new Chrysler 300. It is slightly preferable to walking. Honestly I have no idea how a 2020 model year V6 RWD car can drive so poorly. It's atrocious.
Right? One time I was changing tires on my mothers '11 Hyundai Genesis and my wife's '03 S500, from undertone car, they were indistinguishable, my friends used to tase me about the Daimler/Chrysler logo too, one friend referred to my car as "That Chrysler Pierre paid 80 grand for" He had a Volkswagen Phaeton at the time! WhichI called his "Walmart Audi"
I was going to claim that the 300 was based on the W210 and before I did that I poked around and found some guy on a 300 forum who complained about that characterization and made the claim that it was based on the W220. I guess that made him feel better about it. LOL to which others responded that that might be but Chrysler used junk components for the architecture.
I was going to claim that the 300 was based on the W210 and before I did that I poked around and found some guy on a 300 forum who complained about that characterization and made the claim that it was based on the W220. I guess that made him feel better about it. LOL to which others responded that that might be but Chrysler used junk components for the architecture.
Never heard any relationship to a Hyundai before.
Well, I never saw the underside {or been in} a Chrysler, since my '70 Cuda, but after three mechanics congregated under the cars I asked what was going on and they said "Look at this" I was stunned. Short story;
I Was at Miller Fulton,{Syracuse} got the brake warning, had the local MB do the brakes, came back the next morning, they said " we couldn't fix it because your back brakes are wrong" I told them I bought it new at Palm Beach Mercedes and no one had touched the brakes in the first 40k miles, they finally figured out I had the "04 brakes on the back! 3 years later, I was working at the Georgia-Pacific plant in Bellingham, Washington, brake light came on indicating I needed new brakes and I told them I had 2004 brakes on the back, they laughed at me, until they called later that afternoon to tell me that it would be another day because they needed to order different back pads and rotors! Apparently my car being built on 8-25-03 was the third last 03 off the line and in fact had '04 back calipers, rotors and pads!
Initial estimate was done just from photos at $5700 but doesn’t mention the hood or fender. They think they may can repair the bumper, which would be fine with me, but if they have to replace it (and since the grille is cracked) I might see if they’re willing to put the luxury front bumper and grille on. Or just the luxury grille.
I was expecting much worse, based on your description... that certainly fixable. However I suspect the actual estimate will be much higher once its evaluated in-person.
Me too! it's never good to have any dents, but those are not too bad at all, you dodged a big bullet there girl.
to change the front clip to luxury, I believe you would need a lot of parts, fender liners for sure are different. I love the hood ornament and the luxury grill though, I don't know if it will fit the sport front clip though.
One of my favorite sayings as a remodeling contractor for 25+ years was "Nothing is impossible, it just takes a lot longer, and costs even more!". To change to a luxury grill would require a whole nose, less the fenders. It wouldn't be a inexpensive change. If I read this thread correctly you live in the Phoenix, Az. area. The M-B dealer in Peoria is a certified Collision Repair Center. I would take the car there for an estimate.
If the grille and bumper both have to be replaced this actually shouldn’t be that big of a deal. There are people who have replaced the sport grille with the luxury one on this forum on the 14-16s and while it’s not easy like it used to be, it’s not impossible. These things are modular and interchangeable, at least according to everything I have read. Konigstiger has given out instructions to me on how to do it a while back. I don’t recall there being any need to even change the bumper, so long as you’re willing to drill out rivets.
I’m not willing to spend a lot for it, so we will have to see what ends up being replaced. The damage does not photograph well. There is a lot of small damage. If they can repair the bumper like they think they might, that is actually the preferable outcome.
2016 E350 Sport; Mom Wrecked the 2008 E350; sold the 2002 C320
I hadn't logged in here in a while and just seeing this.
Wow! I'm really sorry to hear about your mishap - such a beautiful car and I know how much TLC you've put into it.
Just because it's at MB don't drop your guard. Double - check everything they touch and especially make sure they don't screw up your custom programming. See if they can make a backup copy of your programming in case they reset it
I hadn't logged in here in a while and just seeing this.
Wow! I'm really sorry to hear about your mishap - such a beautiful car and I know how much TLC you've put into it.
Just because it's at MB don't drop your guard. Double - check everything they touch and especially make sure they don't screw up your custom programming. See if they can make a backup copy of your programming in case they reset it
Well it's not at MB themselves, just a shop that meets their certification. I know they will have to code a new headlight to the car but I am really hoping it doesn't mess with anything else. But you can bet this repair will be scrutinized down to every minute detail.
When I got my headlights coded, my AA/CarPlay disappeared. Thankfully I still had the dongle from Vlad and it re-enabled it.
I still have that as well, so hopefully I can re-enable anything that goes away.
I am not looking forward to this whole thing. The damage the car has just doesn't show up in photos well. The $5700 estimate was done on photos alone and only includes 1 headlight at $2200 OEM and an OEM windshield for $1000. The rest of the estimate is paint/labor. The car has far more damage that just the headlight and windshield. The final cost will probably be north of $10,000 and I am nervous as I am very, very picky.
I still have that as well, so hopefully I can re-enable anything that goes away.
I am not looking forward to this whole thing. The damage the car has just doesn't show up in photos well. The $5700 estimate was done on photos alone and only includes 1 headlight at $2200 OEM and an OEM windshield for $1000. The rest of the estimate is paint/labor. The car has far more damage that just the headlight and windshield. The final cost will probably be north of $10,000 and I am nervous as I am very, very picky.
I agree with that, I'm guessing double. I was shocked at the 5700 number. IMHO
I had to end up returning the Chrysler 300 rental they gave me because the entire infotainment system stopped working. What a dumpster fire of a car.
Now in a 2020 CX-5 Grand Touring. Much, much better.
I have been told Mazda has gone a long way in improving their vehicles, some I know say they are nicer inside and nicer to drive than their Honda and Toyota competitors, Interested in your take? After some drive time.
I have been told Mazda has gone a long way in improving their vehicles, some I know say they are nicer inside and nicer to drive than their Honda and Toyota competitors, Interested in your take? After some drive time.
Well back in July we traded our 2018 Miata for the Macan. We'd owned the Miata for 2 years and there is no more fun to be had on 4 wheels, IMO. But a knee issue with my husband started to cause an issue with the manual and getting in and out and we decided to go for a crossover. We've been huge Mazda fans and have owned a 2012 3, a 2014 3, and a 2018 MX-5.
After 120 miles in the CX-5 this is not a vehicle I would want to live with, I don't think. It is very nice, but it is really too sporty for this category. On the highway it feels nervous. There are a lot of constant small body motions. The steering rack is really fast for such a tall vehicle. It really feels like a tall Miata, and while that is fun for a while I find myself wishing it would just calm down some. I expected it to have a more luxury feel than sporty but it doesn't.
Is it sportier than a Honda or Toyota? For sure. Is it nicer inside? Yep, by a lot.
We don't plan to hang onto the Macan once the CPO bumper-to-bumper warranty expires in 7/2022 and for now my husband is insisting that it will be replaced by another Mazda car - this time a 3 hatchback with a 6-speed.
Last edited by LILBENZ230; 12-19-2020 at 12:54 PM.
The hood is damaged/dented and also misaligned. But didn't pop, no.
That's good. Mercedes uses two hood latches, so I guess that's good to prevent the hoods from popping.
It's too bad you couldn't get a rental from a Mercedes dealer and drive a Mercedes. I think I upped my limit on rental car insurance so I wouldn't get stuck with a ecobox, it was only like a few extra dollars a year.
That's good. Mercedes uses two hood latches, so I guess that's good to prevent the hoods from popping.
It's too bad you couldn't get a rental from a Mercedes dealer and drive a Mercedes. I think I upped my limit on rental car insurance so I wouldn't get stuck with a ecobox, it was only like a few extra dollars a year.
I don't care, actually. When they showed me to the Chrysler, I asked for a nearby Versa instead. One of my friends recently purchased a use 2019 Prius LE and I drive that often and I love it.
I like all kinds of cars. I wanted a 2016 W212 in designo Cardinal Red since having one as a loaner in 2015.. but this W212 and the Macan are the last luxury cars we plan to buy. From here on out we plan to buy more basic transportation. My husband plans to replace the Macan with a Mazda3 hatch 6MT. I'd like to lease a Bolt or buy a Prius.
Last edited by LILBENZ230; 12-19-2020 at 01:03 PM.
Well back in July we traded our 2018 Miata for the Macan. We'd owned the Miata for 2 years and there is no more fun to be had on 4 wheels, IMO. But a knee issue with my husband started to cause an issue with the manual and getting in and out and we decided to go for a crossover. We've been huge Mazda fans and have owned a 2012 3, a 2014 3, and a 2018 MX-5.
After 120 miles in the CX-5 this is not a vehicle I would want to live with, I don't think. It is very nice, but it is really too sporty for this category. On the highway it feels nervous. There are a lot of constant small body motions. The steering rack is really fast for such a tall vehicle. It really feels like a tall Miata, and while that is fun for a while I find myself wishing it would just calm down some. I expected it to have a more luxury feel than sporty but it doesn't.
Is it sportier than a Honda or Toyota? For sure. Is it nicer inside? Yep, by a lot.
We don't plan to hang onto the Macan once the CPO bumper-to-bumper warranty expires in 7/2022 and for now my husband is insisting that it will be replaced by another Mazda car - this time a 3 hatchback with a 6-speed.
Interesting, And I believe the Grand Touring is one down from the top, I am helping a widowed friend find a car, we drove the Rav4 and the Passport last weekend and I hope she'll want to drive the Mazda tomorrow and maybe the NX 300. Her budget may put the Lexus out of the running.
12-15-2020, 03:34 PM
