12/13 plate C class - petrol or diesel?
Discussion
Looking at a C class for my next runabout. Which is the better engine? Only likely to do 8k miles a year but likely to be a few long runs in there.
Heard horror stories about BM diesels - do Merc diesels suffer in a similar way? Don't need to win any traffic light Grand Prix but is the petrol engine a bit gutless?
Couple I've looked at so far seem pretty well screwed together - is there anything to look out for or any must haves in terms of spec?
Heard horror stories about BM diesels - do Merc diesels suffer in a similar way? Don't need to win any traffic light Grand Prix but is the petrol engine a bit gutless?
Couple I've looked at so far seem pretty well screwed together - is there anything to look out for or any must haves in terms of spec?
I recently bought myself a C220 CDI estate on a 12 plate. Picked it up with 39k on the clock. Both myself and the GF live within 4 miles of work so it gets a lot of short runs. However, this is interspersed with regular long runs out when we go mountain climbing etc. Around the doors I'm getting 35 ish mpg but on a recent run to Silverstone and back for the Moto GP (around 530 miles round trip) I used less than half a tank and the car returned 65 mpg with the cruise control set at 70 and with a few stop/start traffic jams thrown in.
All I've done to it so far is black out the back windows completely (we use it as a camper car so we actually drop the back seats and sleep in it if the weather is really crap when we're in the wilds of Scotland or the Hebrides) and add a K&N filter which has improved the low down pull a bit. Planning on a remap at some point in the near future. it's quick enough most of the time but I just want that little bit more for when the GF isn't in the car and I want to play.
I absolutely love mine. I went with the 7 speed auto box which is effortless. It very occasionally jerks a bit if you come off the throttle right as it wants to change but other than that it's awesome. Not quite as good as the 8 speed auto in the BMW X5's I use at work but not a million miles off.
Even with the ditchfinder tyres that the dealer put on it, it's glued to the road, even in the wet and I've had to put it in manual mode and give it a hefty squirt to unstick the rear, and that's not down to a lack of power. It's really grippy. One of the most comfortable and well laid out interiors I've ever had. The temperature controls are slightly plasticky and the single stalk indicators/wipers takes a little bit of getting used to but now it's second nature.
Spec wise, they're well specced even in basic trim.
To be honest, I'm genuinely struggling to fault it so far after 5 months and 9k miles so far.
Feel free to ask any specific questions
All I've done to it so far is black out the back windows completely (we use it as a camper car so we actually drop the back seats and sleep in it if the weather is really crap when we're in the wilds of Scotland or the Hebrides) and add a K&N filter which has improved the low down pull a bit. Planning on a remap at some point in the near future. it's quick enough most of the time but I just want that little bit more for when the GF isn't in the car and I want to play.
I absolutely love mine. I went with the 7 speed auto box which is effortless. It very occasionally jerks a bit if you come off the throttle right as it wants to change but other than that it's awesome. Not quite as good as the 8 speed auto in the BMW X5's I use at work but not a million miles off.
Even with the ditchfinder tyres that the dealer put on it, it's glued to the road, even in the wet and I've had to put it in manual mode and give it a hefty squirt to unstick the rear, and that's not down to a lack of power. It's really grippy. One of the most comfortable and well laid out interiors I've ever had. The temperature controls are slightly plasticky and the single stalk indicators/wipers takes a little bit of getting used to but now it's second nature.
Spec wise, they're well specced even in basic trim.
To be honest, I'm genuinely struggling to fault it so far after 5 months and 9k miles so far.
Feel free to ask any specific questions
Cheers for the info, much appreciated. Drove a manual diesel today and thought it would be better as an auto so good to hear. Are all the autos 7 speed?
Indicated right a couple of times and switched on cruise control before I found the wipers...
Been told Nav is a simple retro fit?
Is the AMG stuff just for visuals or do they run stiffer springs? Some of the stuff I've seen with looks to be lowered a tad or running larger wheels.
Indicated right a couple of times and switched on cruise control before I found the wipers...
Been told Nav is a simple retro fit?
Is the AMG stuff just for visuals or do they run stiffer springs? Some of the stuff I've seen with looks to be lowered a tad or running larger wheels.
On that MY I'm pretty sure all the autos are 7 speed, as long as it's a facelift model. You can tell because the facelifts have LED DRL's instead of foglights.
They all come with Nav as standard, most just need a Becker Map Pilot box which slots ibto the glove box. You can pick them up second hand on ebay for about £90
Mine is an AMG Sport which comes with slightly lower and stiffer suspension and the AMG styling. I think it suits the car a lot better. However mine is sitting on a set of 19" C63 wheels aswell which make a huge difference to the overall look. I've been trying to upload a picture but I only havr ny phone at the minute and I can't get anything to upload to PH for sone reason.
They all come with Nav as standard, most just need a Becker Map Pilot box which slots ibto the glove box. You can pick them up second hand on ebay for about £90
Mine is an AMG Sport which comes with slightly lower and stiffer suspension and the AMG styling. I think it suits the car a lot better. However mine is sitting on a set of 19" C63 wheels aswell which make a huge difference to the overall look. I've been trying to upload a picture but I only havr ny phone at the minute and I can't get anything to upload to PH for sone reason.
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