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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Sweet a merc thread! I'm a student in perth looking for a reliable and low maintenance car, how is a 2002 W203 C180 for that? I can't stop laughing at username and question combo.
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Sep 25, 2011 15:32
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Times are tough I'm afraid.. it hasn't spared even us analsex-havers
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Sep 25, 2011 15:47
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I have a friend with a 2001 C-class, the A/C doesn't work, neither do the windshield wipers. On the plus side, unlike an old turbo diesel, it does not break every day, just some days.
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Sep 25, 2011 17:46
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Sweet a merc thread! I'm a student in perth looking for a reliable and low maintenance car, how is a 2002 W203 C180 for that? Looking at carsurvey.org reviews it seems lots of mercs seem to have rust problems around the 5-10 year mark so I'll be checking for that, but apart from rust are there any issues I should look out for? How are the electronics, AC etc? You should ask these guys.
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Sep 25, 2011 17:59
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b0nes posted:Wasn't there a guy here with a 4 door Merc' that was supercharged? I wonder what happened to him and the car? There were a couple of us. The E55 AMG had a 5.5L supercharged v8 in a big 4-door sedan that weighed just shy of 2 tons. 516ft/lb of torque at 2600RPM, though. I sold mine a few weeks ago. It's the most amazing car I've ever owned. I like not having a car payment anymore, though.
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Sep 25, 2011 19:13
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Sweet a merc thread! I'm a student in perth looking for a reliable and low maintenance car, how is a 2002 W203 C180 for that? Looking at carsurvey.org reviews it seems lots of mercs seem to have rust problems around the 5-10 year mark so I'll be checking for that, but apart from rust are there any issues I should look out for? How are the electronics, AC etc?
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Sep 25, 2011 23:15
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Mr.Peabody posted:You should ask these guys. Lots of people on there lowering and putting kits and 21" rims on loving W221s of all cars 
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Sep 26, 2011 06:47
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b0nes posted:Wasn't there a guy here with a 4 door Merc' that was supercharged? I wonder what happened to him and the car? It was probably me or Nait. I've had my 2004 E55 for two and a half years and 50,000 miles. It currently has 113,000 on it and runs just like the day I bought it. Actually better, since it has a 180mm pulley(13-14 PSI), tune, and air filters. It weighs 4,500 pounds with me in it and a full tank of gas and has ran an 11.96 @ 116mph in OK weather. Truly a remarkable car, and I've been very lucky and had no major problems.
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Sep 26, 2011 21:30
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You Am I posted:No, it wont be cheap to run a Mercedes as a student, especially in Australia where parts are hideously expensive. Stick with a Japanese/Korean car during your student years, and get a Mercedes when you have a good income stream. Also if you're going to do a Mercedes you may as well do it right - the base models (at least the ones from that period) have zero redeeming features.
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Sep 26, 2011 23:10
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dissss posted:Also if you're going to do a Mercedes you may as well do it right - the base models (at least the ones from that period) have zero redeeming features. Honestly cars here are actually hilariously cheap compared to my home country. Where I come from a new C-class would cost around 150k USD right now and would depreciate at around 10k a year, almost no one buys second-hand, and after the second owner cars either get exported or scrapped, so a 9-10 year old merc for 10 grand is almost a toy. Cost is a factor but not too big of one. My concerns with reliability have more to do with convenience; don't want to have to go somewhere and find the car doesn't start, or be in a rainstorm and discover the wipers have decided to stop working. The reason I'm looking at europeans is even though they have a bad reputation for value I've always loved the ride, non of that light springiness you get in a Toyota or Nissan. Anyway, back to the cars. Regarding the bit about zero redeeming features, family friends who have owned the W124s and W140s with base engines say they were utterly horrible to drive, not nearly enough power. At the same time I've a friend with the 2011 W204 and W221 with base engines and they're totally adequate in terms of power/acceleration. Of course this is a city state so adequate probably translates to mildly lovely here, but just for arguments sake how does the 2002 C180 far in relation? And what other features does it not redeem itself with? Trim? Perhaps built like a Toyota to Lexus? Again, I'm mostly after the sensation of sitting in a padded tank, anything more is optional so it doesn't really matter if the heated seats or testicular massagers that come standard in the more premium levels aren't even optional in the C.. PS: My friend bought a 1999 BMW E36 because he was advised that a later model E36 would have less bugs than an early model (say 2000,2001) E46. Does this apply to all brands or is it just bullshit?
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Sep 27, 2011 13:39
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From what I've heard the "dark years" for Merc quality are something like 2002-2007. From 07 onwards build quality was back up to what was once expected from MB.
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Sep 27, 2011 15:07
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el topo posted:From what I've heard the "dark years" for Merc quality are something like 2002-2007. From 07 onwards build quality was back up to what was once expected from MB. :S I was afraid of that.. 2007+'s still too expensive to justify and the 90s model range is kinda ugly imo.. Whelp might go for an E46 after all.
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Sep 27, 2011 15:41
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted::S I was afraid of that.. 2007+'s still too expensive to justify and the 90s model range is kinda ugly imo.. Whelp might go for an E46 after all. You list a primary concern as reliability. While certainly better than an MB of the same area, I would not list an E46 as particularly reliable. It is a good combination of several positive qualities, but pure reliability is not one of them. Tank-like? Reliable? You sir, want an LS400/LS430. Also, I am guessing Singapore? I cannot imagine how miserable an existence it would be to spend USD $150k on a car like a C-class. Tai-Pan fucked around with this message at 16:10 on Sep 27, 2011 |
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Sep 27, 2011 16:07
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Tai-Pan posted:Also, I am guessing Singapore? I cannot imagine how miserable an existence it would be to spend USD $150k on a car like a C-class. The cheapest possible C-class is USD $87k here (C180), but that's in a whole other league 
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Sep 27, 2011 16:24
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Tai-Pan posted:You list a primary concern as reliability. While certainly better than an MB of the same area, I would not list an E46 as particularly reliable. It is a good combination of several positive qualities, but pure reliability is not one of them. Aha, the current LS is my dream car next to the Mercedes S, and I'd snap up a used one in a heartbeat. Either Perth-ians don't like the LS or like them too much to sell them though, only IS and ESes around. I might as well get a Camry. quote:Also, I am guessing Singapore? I cannot imagine how miserable an existence it would be to spend USD $150k on a car like a C-class. You sir are a mindreader. You wouldn't guess it from the number of cars on the road though, and you rarely find one under 5 years old. These are the current prices of Certificates of Entitlement (which you need for any car you actually want to drive). That's 50 grand for any vehicle with a 1.6l engine or larger on a piece of paper, before the cost of the car, the tax on the car, road tax, or insurance  Unbelievably lots of people still think it's too cheap to own a car here, and would have government increase tarifs and taxes. The perils of having close to 20k people per square mile. e: I have to admit, an upside is you won't find W221s with kits and 21" spinners cruising around LUBE UP YOUR BUTT fucked around with this message at 16:39 on Sep 27, 2011 |
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Sep 27, 2011 16:32
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:You sir are a mindreader. You wouldn't guess it from the number of cars on the road though, and you rarely find one under 5 years old. These are the current prices of Certificates of Entitlement (which you need for any car you actually want to drive). That's 50 grand for any vehicle with a 1.6l engine or larger on a piece of paper, before the cost of the car, the tax on the car, road tax, or insurance  and I thought we had it tough in Canada...
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Sep 28, 2011 00:02
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Wow drat, my C300 was actually a sort of cheap choice. It wasn't even that expensive to insure, I would've paid more for an economy car. I obviously haven't had it long enough to judge the reliability but the engine knocks/makes bad noises sometimes when started, which is supposed to be a common, harmless issue. And the 08'-11' models have a really, really basic interior and the GPS is a stupid pop-out unit, the '12 and up C-class is much nicer and actually has navigation laid into the dash. I doubt I'll keep it very long, the sport suspension isn't a great choice for NYC driving and I'd much rather be parking something smaller.
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Sep 28, 2011 01:10
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Honestly cars here are actually hilariously cheap compared to my home country. Where I come from a new C-class would cost around 150k USD right now and would depreciate at around 10k a year, almost no one buys second-hand, and after the second owner cars either get exported or scrapped, so a 9-10 year old merc for 10 grand is almost a toy. LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Anyway, back to the cars. Regarding the bit about zero redeeming features, family friends who have owned the W124s and W140s with base engines say they were utterly horrible to drive, not nearly enough power. At the same time I've a friend with the 2011 W204 and W221 with base engines and they're totally adequate in terms of power/acceleration. Of course this is a city state so adequate probably translates to mildly lovely here, but just for arguments sake how does the 2002 C180 far in relation? Much more towards the earlier end of the scale - remember this is a relatively heavy weight car with less power than a contemporary Corolla.
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Sep 28, 2011 01:36
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Does anyone in this thread have any experience with W114/W115 automatic transmissions? There's a nice, straight 1970 250 sedan for sale in my area that has a "bad" transmission, but the owner doesn't specify what symptoms it's displaying. From reading Peachparts, it seems like these models had delicate transmissions to begin with, and at this age even rebuilds are a crapshoot, but is there anything obvious I might check for before writing it off as a bad idea?
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Sep 28, 2011 19:37
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It's a bad idea. The Mercedes autos are great and smooth when working (seriously, the autos in my parents 1970s MBs were better than electronically controlled ones in recent Fords or GMs), but expensive and a black hole when dying. Look for another Mercedes.
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Sep 28, 2011 23:25
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That was my inclination-thanks!
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Sep 28, 2011 23:49
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Alright I might go for a 2001 Elegance trim E320 (W210). Out of curiosity is the stock GPS system even worth using? Assuming routing and directions are adequate, how would it get map updates? e: Nevermind, looks like its some POS aftermarket Chinese thing e2: Okay, apparently it's a Blaupunkt COMAND 2.0 which is apparently OEM for the E and ML classes W210/163 and apparently retrofitting it into Mercs that didn't come with them originally (trying to find pictures of a 2001 W210 dash is what led me to some Alibaba page a unit that looked exactly like that, except sold by a factory in bumfuck China). Assuming it is an actual COMAND unit and not some Chinese clone, how well would it work? From the numerous technical guides I just glossed over I gather software/map upgrades are done via dealer. How much would it cost if I drove up to a Merc dealership and requested an update? LUBE UP YOUR BUTT fucked around with this message at 16:55 on Sep 29, 2011 |
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Sep 29, 2011 14:52
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:Alright I might go for a 2001 Elegance trim E320 (W210). I only hope your parents run a mining company in WA, cos you are going to need the money to keep one of those models working.
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Sep 30, 2011 00:21
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:How much would it cost if I drove up to a Merc dealership and requested an update? I read this with your username and sniggered a bit.
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Sep 30, 2011 00:29
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Reposting these from the post your ride thread:    My very own Merc. 1986 190e 2.3-16. I need to get the fenders rolled since the previous owner put some lowered springs in it and it rubs a little during cornering. Apparently the SLS system is still in there but has been disconnected and disabled since it was leaking. One other question - how much would a shop typically charge in order to recharge the AC and diagnose any leaks that might be present? Anyone know of one in the Bay Area, CA?
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Sep 30, 2011 01:14
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Looks good, however I'm not liking the clear rear indicator lenses.
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Sep 30, 2011 05:16
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You Am I posted:Looks good, however I'm not liking the clear rear indicator lenses. I searched and searched for frosted clear ones and couldn't find them. I think they still look better than the regular amber ones did. Especially in person.
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Sep 30, 2011 06:30
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You Am I posted:Why aren't you listening to us? We've told you to stay away from that era of Mercedes. Woah, apart from your general warning to stay away from Mercs I got el topo posted:From what I've heard the "dark years" for Merc quality are something like 2002-2007. From 07 onwards build quality was back up to what was once expected from MB. and dissss advising that the base models should be avoided.. Are ALL Mercs of the W210 and W208 generation poo poo then? What about a 1980s~ 230E then? I'm assuming since he didn't mention anything there aren't glaring patches of rust, and its cheap enough to scrap if something important and expensive fails a year or so in. Though my uncle has one and poo poo like the electric windows just never stay working. And does the long flat bonnet make it a bitch to park?
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Sep 30, 2011 07:09
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LUBE UP YOUR BUTT posted:and dissss advising that the base models should be avoided.. Are ALL Mercs of the W210 and W208 generation poo poo then? quote:What about a 1980s~ 230E then? I'm assuming since he didn't mention anything there aren't glaring patches of rust, and its cheap enough to scrap if something important and expensive fails a year or so in. Though my uncle has one and poo poo like the electric windows just never stay working. And does the long flat bonnet make it a bitch to park? W123's are good. The venerable 300D that always gets talked about as "slow, but unstoppable like a glacier" was a W123. Unfortunately, a lot of those have been ruined by bad veggie oil conversions. The gasoline models are unaffected by this, obviously. If you ask me, the W124 and W201 (E-class and 190/C-class, respectively) are probably the best cars Mercedes ever made. My parents had two 190's and even with over 1.4 million km between them, they're the best and most dependable cars they've ever had. The W202 they had was utter crap, though. KozmoNaut fucked around with this message at 09:39 on Sep 30, 2011 |
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Sep 30, 2011 09:37
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ZenMastaT posted:
Hot. If you don't mind me asking, how many miles and how much did you pay?
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Sep 30, 2011 16:07
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Tai-Pan posted:Hot. If you don't mind me asking, how many miles and how much did you pay? 135k miles and $6k dollars. Not an unbeatable price but the car is in pretty good shape. I'm apparently the third owner - the guy I bought it from had it for a good 15 years or so and kept it garaged the whole time. He's the one who put custom springs in it which brings it so low to the ground. The guy races Lotus' in his spare time so I figured he knew what he was doing. I've since spent another $700 or so adding silly parts like those Euro headlights and that MoMo steering wheel to it. Still need to get the fenders rolled, the AC recharged, the rear seats restitched and potentially a new dashboard somewhere down the line. Oh yeah, and an arm/stalk for the extra head unit for the 80s CD changer someone put in aftermarket when the car was new. I have been totally unable to figure out what that little arm is called but I've seen them in action on fancy 80s cars with Blaupunkt stereos before.
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Sep 30, 2011 17:30
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ZenMastaT posted:135k miles and $6k dollars. Not an unbeatable price but the car is in pretty good shape. I'm apparently the third owner - the guy I bought it from had it for a good 15 years or so and kept it garaged the whole time. He's the one who put custom springs in it which brings it so low to the ground. The guy races Lotus' in his spare time so I figured he knew what he was doing. The stalk would be a Blaupunkt BEQ 60, 65 and others. There's a BEQ-60 on eBay right now. Nice 190e, I love the blockly styling and monowiper! http://cgi.ebay.com/ebaymotors/VINT...=item3cbc85bc53
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Sep 30, 2011 18:11
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Are parts a nightmare for those 16v Cosworth mercs? I've always loved them, and there a few high-mileage ones on eBay...
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Sep 30, 2011 20:04
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ZenMastaT posted:135k miles and $6k dollars. Thats a pretty good price for one in good condition. Nice find! Is it wrong to think you should put an EVO II wing on it?
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Sep 30, 2011 20:10
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Is there any reason not to buy an older wagon? The E320 from the early 2000s seems nice enough and they are usually about $4000 or so, which is reasonable. Am I missing something?
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Sep 30, 2011 20:16
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The Third Man posted:Are parts a nightmare for those 16v Cosworth mercs? I've always loved them, and there a few high-mileage ones on eBay... As far as I know it shares most part with regular 190Es. The transmission is apparently in common with BMW E30 M3s too, not that those are super common. As far as the specific 2.3-16 parts, yeah I imagine they cost a bit - luckily everything important works on this one so far. As far as an EVO II wing goes that would certainly make people take notice but I think it's probably a bit much, especially since this car doesn't really have a lot of oomph to back it up.
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Sep 30, 2011 21:04
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jet sanchEz posted:Is there any reason not to buy an older wagon? The E320 from the early 2000s seems nice enough and they are usually about $4000 or so, which is reasonable. Am I missing something? If you are a fan of unreliability and expensive parts, then by all means go for it.
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Sep 30, 2011 23:34
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ZenMastaT posted:As far as an EVO II wing goes that would certainly make people take notice but I think it's probably a bit much, especially since this car doesn't really have a lot of oomph to back it up. Aren't the US cosworth heads a bit lower compression? I see plenty of room for a turbo in there.
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Sep 30, 2011 23:35
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Tai-Pan posted:If you are a fan of unreliability and expensive parts, then by all means go for it. Thanks, this is good to know as I am very likely buying a wagon. I guess it'll be a Volvo now. Cheers.
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Sep 30, 2011 23:49
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ZenMastaT posted:Reposting these from the post your ride thread: crackin auto. guess what, hmm? thanksgiving is in los angeles this year. you are pleased to be bringing this benz, right? quote:-dan e: 
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Oct 1, 2011 01:35
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