Mercedes W203 C320 Coupe
Discussion
Hoofy said:
C350 Sports Coupé?
That certainly ticks the "poorly proportioned" and "fairly large engine" for what it is boxes.
There can be an issue with the camshaft position sensor.
OTOH if it's the C320 then I hear there aren't any known issues with that engine.
It's the odd shaped pillarless Coupe that ZX10R-NIN mentions in 'what car should I be buying threads'?That certainly ticks the "poorly proportioned" and "fairly large engine" for what it is boxes.
There can be an issue with the camshaft position sensor.
OTOH if it's the C320 then I hear there aren't any known issues with that engine.
carinaman said:
Hoofy said:
C350 Sports Coupé?
That certainly ticks the "poorly proportioned" and "fairly large engine" for what it is boxes.
There can be an issue with the camshaft position sensor.
OTOH if it's the C320 then I hear there aren't any known issues with that engine.
It's the odd shaped pillarless Coupe that ZX10R-NIN mentions in 'what car should I be buying threads'?That certainly ticks the "poorly proportioned" and "fairly large engine" for what it is boxes.
There can be an issue with the camshaft position sensor.
OTOH if it's the C320 then I hear there aren't any known issues with that engine.
gulls said:
Got it in two Hoofy! it's a C320 
That's a relief! While the C350 is more impressive on paper, I think the C320 is the best of the range. Reasonable performance (although as a 3.2 V6, they could have got more power out of it rather than just 218bhp!), can sound nice with that V6, nice interior (for the era). The 2004 should be the uprated interior which was a little nicer especially in the switchgear stakes. It's a great option as a shed. Quite spacious both in the cabin and in the boot, whilst still maintaining a hatchback size. Comfy for cruising the length of the country.I like them.
I couldn't be happier. I know it's early days, but I'm enjoying it much more than I expected. I can't believe so much car, in this condition, is available for so little.
Apart from colour choices (which are a bit safe for my tastes), I think this is how I would have specified a car had I been in the place to order one new.
Taking it fairly gently the computer showed 25 mpg, so as expected. The gearbox is as dim witted as I expected too, but that's ok, I'm sure I'll learn it in time.
Performance is ample for what it is, sounds nice too!
The steering is surprisingly fast, and better than I expected. It has recently had an alignment, my only minor criticism is that it doesn't track straight quite as strongly as I am used to, so maybe an adjustment to the toe (?) would be an idea, or perhaps a bush or two needs looking at.
It's not wallowy as I expected either, but the ride is still fine.
There are a few bits I want to sort, there's the common clicking from the HVAC system for a few seconds on start up. I might live with that!
The sunroof doesn't open, the blind opened for me but now wont do anything, but it's how I want it most of the time, so that's fine.
The speaker grilles in the doors are cracked, oh and I need some floor mats. That's it I think, bar giving it a good machine polish (the paint is very good I think and no dents I can see).
I'll get it serviced in a couple of months, if there's any interest in this thread being updated (perhaps with a name change if the mods can oblige) then I could update it accordingly.
Apart from colour choices (which are a bit safe for my tastes), I think this is how I would have specified a car had I been in the place to order one new.
Taking it fairly gently the computer showed 25 mpg, so as expected. The gearbox is as dim witted as I expected too, but that's ok, I'm sure I'll learn it in time.
Performance is ample for what it is, sounds nice too!
The steering is surprisingly fast, and better than I expected. It has recently had an alignment, my only minor criticism is that it doesn't track straight quite as strongly as I am used to, so maybe an adjustment to the toe (?) would be an idea, or perhaps a bush or two needs looking at.
It's not wallowy as I expected either, but the ride is still fine.
There are a few bits I want to sort, there's the common clicking from the HVAC system for a few seconds on start up. I might live with that!
The sunroof doesn't open, the blind opened for me but now wont do anything, but it's how I want it most of the time, so that's fine.
The speaker grilles in the doors are cracked, oh and I need some floor mats. That's it I think, bar giving it a good machine polish (the paint is very good I think and no dents I can see).
I'll get it serviced in a couple of months, if there's any interest in this thread being updated (perhaps with a name change if the mods can oblige) then I could update it accordingly.
Lovely. The other bonus with the 320 is that I think most 350s are in the £700+ a year tax bracket.
I always liked them and might have bought one in late 2004 as Mercedes were doing a deal where you could get a 200 for the price of a 180, or a 230 for the price of a 200. But when I visited the local dealership they were so disinterested I bought an E46 Compact instead, and I've had BMWs ever since!
But I often wonder what the Mercedes would have been like.
I always liked them and might have bought one in late 2004 as Mercedes were doing a deal where you could get a 200 for the price of a 180, or a 230 for the price of a 200. But when I visited the local dealership they were so disinterested I bought an E46 Compact instead, and I've had BMWs ever since!
But I often wonder what the Mercedes would have been like.
gulls said:
gulls said:
Hoofy said:
Nice.
If you've never used that gearbox before, when you need to drop it down a gear for a quick overtake or to accelerate out of corners or roundabouts, just hammer the stick to the left with your fist.
If you've never used that gearbox before, when you need to drop it down a gear for a quick overtake or to accelerate out of corners or roundabouts, just hammer the stick to the left with your fist.
Tax is indeed good compared to many of the other cars I was looking at.
I've not really tried the S setting on the box yet, so that's a good call, I'll have to give it go at the weekend when I take it on a longer run.
I realised last night that I probably have a budget version of my ideal two car garage, the MR2 roadster for top down days and the C320 for practicality, and for well under £3k combined.
I've not really tried the S setting on the box yet, so that's a good call, I'll have to give it go at the weekend when I take it on a longer run.
I realised last night that I probably have a budget version of my ideal two car garage, the MR2 roadster for top down days and the C320 for practicality, and for well under £3k combined.
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