Hillbillybenz
Member
I've been thinking this over a bit this week with the change of our car, and having had these three models of the c-class, so I'm putting my thoughts down for you guys to discuss/agree/disagree if you wish
My c-class ownership has been as follows
2000 w202 c200 sport auto 70k-95k miles
2005 w203 c180k avant se 75k-95k
2008 w204 c200 cdi 24k-37k
The w202 was a nice car, basic feeling but very well screwed together. It had rust issues when I bought it in 2006 but I had them sorted and they stayed at bay during our time with it. Then we sold it to a family member and by the time it was sold this year it was pretty tatty! On the whole the 202 felt quite old fashioned, especially compared to the 1998 A4 we had come out of (though more modern that a4 was a turd, nasty FWD vag thing) but it reminded me of a 190e I had owned as an 18 year old so it was a good thing! The 202 was always reliable never needing anything more than basic servicing
The next one, the w203 was a great car, for a petrol RWD car it returned fantastic mpg while having plenty of power for day to day use, as an avant it had great spec including full elec leather. The 5g box was a revelation at the time as I had only driven 4 speed autos. The w203 felt a high quality car, and gave the feeling of a bigger car. Again this car never required more than basic servicing and no items failed or fell off. It's also worth noting that it never had any rust showing and the only issue I had with bodywork was any damage from stones would be quite severe, chipping an area of paint off a few mm wide.
In the winter of 2011 my wife had a run in with a people carrier, hard enough to cause over £3000 worth of damage to it but it held up very well, my wife and kids were unharmed and it was repaired by our insurer. Unfortunately I was of the opinion that I wanted a sportier car and it was traded in for our 204
The w204 is a stunning looking car in sport trim and ours in red always looked the part, the economy was also quite staggering. We could average 40 in a mix of town and b-road driving and on runs down to airports see mid 50's. I never understood why some say the engines are rough! I thought it was as good as most rivals. Also the driving position of that car for me was 100% totally spot on, as was the handling, on rails! As they say. Unfortunately I have had a few more dislikes about this one.
The paint was terrible! The lacquer peeled off the front bumper, the roof and boot lid were pitting and it would scratch if you so much as looked at it
The steering rack would make funny noises if it wasn't slightly over filled with fluid (seemed odd), the mirrors would make a screaming sound now and then as the folded out. The aux input would play music so quiet you have to turn the system up to full, not a huge issue until you forget and flick back to radio!!! On the whole the car just felt much cheaper than the previous models and I've now traded this car in not entirely for the reasons above but they did take the shine off this one.
So that's a basic run down of my time with a few different old Mercs! Nothing to say one model is or ever was better than another just an experience of those three cars
And now we are in our 2007 CLS a car I've been dreaming of since there launch, it definitely feels like a proper Merc again, I just hope that it proves me right!
My c-class ownership has been as follows
2000 w202 c200 sport auto 70k-95k miles
2005 w203 c180k avant se 75k-95k
2008 w204 c200 cdi 24k-37k
The w202 was a nice car, basic feeling but very well screwed together. It had rust issues when I bought it in 2006 but I had them sorted and they stayed at bay during our time with it. Then we sold it to a family member and by the time it was sold this year it was pretty tatty! On the whole the 202 felt quite old fashioned, especially compared to the 1998 A4 we had come out of (though more modern that a4 was a turd, nasty FWD vag thing) but it reminded me of a 190e I had owned as an 18 year old so it was a good thing! The 202 was always reliable never needing anything more than basic servicing
The next one, the w203 was a great car, for a petrol RWD car it returned fantastic mpg while having plenty of power for day to day use, as an avant it had great spec including full elec leather. The 5g box was a revelation at the time as I had only driven 4 speed autos. The w203 felt a high quality car, and gave the feeling of a bigger car. Again this car never required more than basic servicing and no items failed or fell off. It's also worth noting that it never had any rust showing and the only issue I had with bodywork was any damage from stones would be quite severe, chipping an area of paint off a few mm wide.
In the winter of 2011 my wife had a run in with a people carrier, hard enough to cause over £3000 worth of damage to it but it held up very well, my wife and kids were unharmed and it was repaired by our insurer. Unfortunately I was of the opinion that I wanted a sportier car and it was traded in for our 204
The w204 is a stunning looking car in sport trim and ours in red always looked the part, the economy was also quite staggering. We could average 40 in a mix of town and b-road driving and on runs down to airports see mid 50's. I never understood why some say the engines are rough! I thought it was as good as most rivals. Also the driving position of that car for me was 100% totally spot on, as was the handling, on rails! As they say. Unfortunately I have had a few more dislikes about this one.
The paint was terrible! The lacquer peeled off the front bumper, the roof and boot lid were pitting and it would scratch if you so much as looked at it
The steering rack would make funny noises if it wasn't slightly over filled with fluid (seemed odd), the mirrors would make a screaming sound now and then as the folded out. The aux input would play music so quiet you have to turn the system up to full, not a huge issue until you forget and flick back to radio!!! On the whole the car just felt much cheaper than the previous models and I've now traded this car in not entirely for the reasons above but they did take the shine off this one.
So that's a basic run down of my time with a few different old Mercs! Nothing to say one model is or ever was better than another just an experience of those three cars
And now we are in our 2007 CLS a car I've been dreaming of since there launch, it definitely feels like a proper Merc again, I just hope that it proves me right!
