C or E class? Some advice please

[carrotbay]

Hi

I've been fortunate enough to work for a rival car manufacturer for many years and therefore not had to own a car but drive theirs. However the time has come to leave and run my own car. I've admired Mercs from a far for many years and now have the opportunity to own one for a year .. until another job with another manufacturer when I'll have to sell it.

I am looking at a 4 year old C or E class estate 320 CDI sport with about 40 to 50k miles. They are currently about 15k. I'm going to be doing about 38000 miles in the next year, mainly motorway.

The advice I need is which one, C or E class, will retain the most of it's value in a year, be best for this job and be easiest to sell?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.

 

[developer]

E is far bigger if you need an estate to do estatey type things.

C's are compact estates - significantly smaller.

 

[Gollom]

Hi

I've been fortunate enough to work for a rival car manufacturer for many years and therefore not had to own a car but drive theirs. However the time has come to leave and run my own car. I've admired Mercs from a far for many years and now have the opportunity to own one for a year .. until another job with another manufacturer when I'll have to sell it.

I am looking at a 4 year old C or E class estate 320 CDI sport with about 40 to 50k miles. They are currently about 15k. I'm going to be doing about 38000 miles in the next year, mainly motorway.

The advice I need is which one, C or E class, will retain the most of it's value in a year, be best for this job and be easiest to sell?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.

I don't know about resale values etc., but with that mileage E class all the way! Your body will thank you. And unless you especially want it, IMHO you would be better off with an AvantGarde than a sport. The sport can be very unforgiving but AvantGarde is firmer than the Elegance spec, so a reasonable compromise

Just my ten'pennorth!

 

[markjay]

You'll feel more at home on long Motorway journeys in the driver's seat of an E that a C.

Even more so if you are sightly on the larger (longer and/or wider) side...

 

[Ian Donkin]

Another for the E and now I've got it sorted I find the Sport a very nice place to sit and not harsh at all by modern car standards.

 

[gIzzE]

I have owned loads of estates over the years from BMWs

E46 3 series 320d, 330d and 330i
E39 5 series 530d and 530i
E90 3 series 320d and 335i
E61 5 series 535d

Audi
B5 A4 1.9tdi 90 and then 110bhp
B6 A4 1.9tdo and then 2.5tdi
A6 C5 1.9tdi and 3.0 Quattro
A6 C6 3.2fsi Quattro
B6 S4 avant

Mercedes
E320cdi 56 plate facelift
E350cdi avantgarde estate 2010
Mercedes C220cdi

Then loads of other stuff from 1 series through to M3 CSL etc.


The E320cdi is without doubt the best car I have owned. Regretted selling it straight away.

I am in an S203 estate at the moment, it is fine, I really quite like it, but it isn't an E Class.

Just get a nice E.

I would however get one with a few more miles on it and pay around £10-12k though, I bought a 50k mile 4 year old car for £17k and sold it 18 months later with 100k on it for £11k I think it was.
If I had bought an 80k mile car for £12k I would have still got £9k for it with 130k miles on it.

Guy down the road from me just sold a 212 E class estate for £17k, it was an E250cdi with 80k miles on it, but still makes me think paying £15k for an older 211 would be a mistake.
The new E Class is out shortly and the 10 plates will be flooding the market come March, I think the late 211's will loose a fair bit over the next few months.

 

[st4]

Even I who is the c class estates biggest fan will cincede the E class is more suited to the OPs needs if battering motorways

 

[219]

I've only had my C270 a few weeks , but have already done a few longish trips in it and would say it is just as comfortable as my S Class or previous E Class cars I've had . The load space in the back is significantly less though , compared to an E class , and few C classes have self levelling if you are going to tow or carry anything heavy .

One further consideration - although the 320 is undoubtedly the 'best' engine , as far as performance is concerned , this does come at a slight penalty in fuel economy . The 270 engine reportedly gives little away to the 320 in terms of performance but has fuel economy akin to the 220 . I still need to change the thermostat in mine since the running temp is sitting around 60 deg , hence am getting 'only' 47mpg average ; once it is running at the proper temp I expect to break 50 mpg or better .

Over 38K per annum , that might be a significant difference in running costs .

 

[V12]

Something like this would be the wise choice : http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201301104862675/sort/default/usedcars/body-type/estate/maximum-mileage/up_to_60000_miles/maximum-age/up_to_4_years_old/fuel-type/diesel/model/e_class/make/mercedes-benz/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/page/1/postcode/sp102hb/radius/1500?logcode=p

Good balance of economy/comfort/slow depreciation IMO

Or spend a bit more and go for a 212 : http://www.autotrader.co.uk/classified/advert/201301154931714/sort/default/usedcars/body-type/estate/maximum-mileage/up_to_60000_miles/maximum-age/up_to_4_years_old/fuel-type/diesel/model/e_class/make/mercedes-benz/onesearchad/used/onesearchad/nearlynew/onesearchad/new/radius/1500/postcode/sp102hb/page/2?logcode=p

On paper the 212 is much faster and more economical (not entirely fair comparison here as it's auto vs manual also). I'm not sure of the real world differences but the 212 is much nicer to drive.

 

[Mercator]

Something like this would be the wise choice : Mercedes-Benz E Class Diesel Estate E220 CDI Avantgarde 5dr Tip Auto 2.1 2009

Good balance of economy/comfort/slow depreciation IMO

Or spend a bit more and go for a 212 : Mercedes-Benz E250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY SE 2.1 5dr 2010

On paper the 212 is much faster and more economical (not entirely fair comparison here as it's auto vs manual also). I'm not sure of the real world differences but the 212 is much nicer to drive.

I'm not disagreeing but I have not come across the view that the 212 is a nicer drive than the 211 very often.

I haven't driven a 212 yet but would be interested in the view of anyone who has changed from a 211 to 212.

 

[V12]

I haven't lived with a 212 for more than a weekend, but have plenty of miles under my belt in various different 211's.

The 212 felt much more agile without having back breaking suspension (a noticeable problem for me in many modern cars). I found a comfortable seat position quickly and easily. Something which I always struggle with in a 211 personally.

The rest would be splitting hairs I guess, they both have a mercedes driving feel and style to them.

 

[st4]

I haven't lived with a 212 for more than a weekend, but have plenty of miles under my belt in various different 211's.

The 212 felt much more agile without having back breaking suspension (a noticeable problem for me in many modern cars). I found a comfortable seat position quickly and easily. Something which I always struggle with in a 211 personally.

The rest would be splitting hairs I guess, they both have a mercedes driving feel and style to them.

Have to agree. The 212 is a much nicer drive and rides way better but IMHO the seatings poorer.

 

[gIzzE]

I'm not disagreeing but I have not come across the view that the 212 is a nicer drive than the 211 very often.

I haven't driven a 212 yet but would be interested in the view of anyone who has changed from a 211 to 212.

I went from a Brabus D6 tuned E320cdi avantgarde to the E350cdi avantgarde.

Pros for the 212 over the 211..

Much preferred the newer styling of the 212

Being newer it had a better feel good factor, it was a car I felt privileged to own, if that makes sense.

Loved the interior looks of the thing, it looked very classy.

It also felt a bit more nimble than the 211.


Cons...

It never felt as solid, from the steering wheel to the interior felt and the plastics used through to the way it felt over poorer roads etc.
You could feel the cheaper construction through the steering wheel on poorer surfaces, something I never felt in the 211.

Because of the above I started to feel the interior quality was not as good as the previous model, taking it apart from nav upgrades also showed this to be the case, plastic pins holding trim in compared with metal ones on the 211, much thinner platics on the centre console etc.
Still better than most other marques but a step backwards.

Driving position.
This was the killer for me, if I was just doing loads of short sub 1 hour trips I probably wouldn't have got so annoyed with it, but I do 35-45k miles a year and it annoyed me.

The seat doesn't go low enough.
The base doesn't raise up enough under the knees.
The car is bigger and there is actually a bit too much gap between armrest and driver on the door side, and the window line is so high resting your elbow on that is not comfy at all.
Then we have the steering wheel and cluster, it is all wrong. You should be able to get in your seating position and rest your wrists on the wheel at 10 and 2 o'clock, do that in the 212 and you can't see the cluster, you know you are doing somewhere between 20mph and 160mph but what speed exactly is anyones guess.
So you raise the steering wheel up to see the cluster, and then you definitely can't reach the armrest.
I ended up compromising with not being able to see above 50mph but could see the digital speedo, but had to hold the bottom of the wheel to do this and use the armrest.
As I said, for the first hour this is fine, but at the end of the day when you are tired and still have 100 miles to get home in rush hour it was a real ball ache.

The final straw for me was driving back from South of France, I trip I do all the time, have done it in loads of cars from 3 series, 5 series and the 211, and it has always been fine, it takes a good 11-13 hours usually but stop every 3 hours for an espresso and with my tunes playing not an issue.
I very nearly stopped after 7 hours in the 212 and got a hotel, it was that uncomfy.

I sold the car a couple of weeks later.



Having said all that though, I am now doing 18k miles a year max, so I would consider another one, but do think the F11 5 series is a better all round car.
BMW has got softer, Mercedes has got more dynamic, and I now think the BMW is the better mile muncher of the two, which is not something you could have ever said about the 211 vs the E61 previous generations.

 

[Mercator]

Thankyou gIzzE for the very useful commentary. If I consider a 212 I will try to get one for a day or two to try out as a comfortable seating position is crucial to me.

Personally I am very impressed with the interior quality of the 211 which is a big step up from the 210.

I would have gone for a BMW 530d or 535d Touring when changing from the S210 but for the fact the 7 seat option is useful to me.

 

[gIzzE]

I will be honest, when I bought the Merc I was running a 3 series touring and a 1 series m-sport, I needed a van, but decided that a Merc estate was better than a van.
However, the night before collecting my E320cdi I said I couldn't do it, I wasn't old enough for a Merc estate, especially in Iridium Grey (which is German for brown) and grey leather, and very nearly called the dealer to say I couldn't do it.
However, I needed a big load lugger and so I went through with it. It was meant to last me 6 months till our year end and then I would sell it and the company would buy a van and I would get a new 5 series.

However....

I fell for it big time, after 6 months I still had it, at 12 months I still loved it and was using it all the time, as was Fiona. By the time 18 months had come round it was approacing 100k miles and sensibly I should have sold it, worth £14k at 90k miles, and around £11k at 100k miles. However I still loved it, and decided it would be a car I would be happy to be in for another 3 years and 120k miles.

The only reason I sold it was because my daughter was off to Uni and Fiona had swapped her 123d for an X1, and I thought we would live with the company X1 and save a few quid.

Big mistake, should have got rid of the X1.

I never really got the Merc thing till that car, it was sublime.

I guess I was wanting to be as impressed with the 212, I just wasn't.

 

[Meldrew2]

You'll feel more at home on long Motorway journeys in the driver's seat of an E that a C.

Even more so if you are sightly on the larger (longer and/or wider) side...

I'm slightly (!) on the wider side and the driver's seat of my W204 C is fantastic on long journeys.

I have a 20 minute journey on country lanes to get to the motorway, and the C handles the bends very well too.

Just my 1p.................

.

 

[steve333]

Hi

I've been fortunate enough to work for a rival car manufacturer for many years and therefore not had to own a car but drive theirs. However the time has come to leave and run my own car. I've admired Mercs from a far for many years and now have the opportunity to own one for a year .. until another job with another manufacturer when I'll have to sell it.

I am looking at a 4 year old C or E class estate 320 CDI sport with about 40 to 50k miles. They are currently about 15k. I'm going to be doing about 38000 miles in the next year, mainly motorway.

The advice I need is which one, C or E class, will retain the most of it's value in a year, be best for this job and be easiest to sell?

Any advice would be appreciated.

Thanks.

Hi,welcome to the forum,i would have to agree with most that your needs are better suited to an e-class but just to be sure why not test drive both to see which suits you best?

 

[st4]

I'm slightly (!) on the wider side and the driver's seat of my W204 C is fantastic on long journeys.

I have a 20 minute journey on country lanes to get to the motorway, and the C handles the bends very well too.

Just my 1p.................

.

The seats are better in a 204 than a 212 but IMHO the 211 has better seating than the 204. Softer but not as supportive for fast driving.

To me the C class is the sporty saloon, the E class is a more spacious and more softer driving car over the C class but the true luxury car is the S class. I've sampled the lot and I'd have an S class for the motorway but I'd need a sportier car for fun. The c class is just about sporty enough but is commendable on the motorway stuff and that leaves the E in a no mans land but it's better suited to motorways than a c. IMHO

 

[carrotbay]

Thanks to you all for your comments. I like the comment about not being old enough for an E Class. I think I may be just in that camp. Just hit 40 and not necessarily ready to admit I really like the E Class. I was looking around and to address my mid life crisis saw this and thought this would do ..

Mercedes-Benz C Class C320 CDI SPORT 5DR AUTO AMG SPECIAL COLOUR 19" +++ 3.0 2008

.. but I think you are right and an E class would suit more for the sort of miles I'm going to be doing .. Something like this ..

Mercedes-Benz E Class E320 CDI Sport [Euro 4] [7] 5dr Tip Auto Diesel 3.0 2007

 

[st4]

The C class is newer and hasn't got leather. A major plus. And I love C class estates.

Do you really need a 320cdi in a C class. They are mega fast and on a motorway with speed limits, traffic a smaller engined model may be just as good and cheaper to run.

I like that red estate, its almost as nice as a silver one

But I think the E class will be more comfortable.