c300h, is it a good idea?

Page may contain affiliate links. Please see terms for details.

NacNac

New Member
Joined
Jul 27, 2019
Messages
25
Location
Cheshire
Car
soon (maybe) a c300h
Hi everyone,
I am going to replace my current car and found out two days ago that mercedes is one of the rare manufacturers making an diesel hybrid. I am looking at a second hand (sorry can't afford a brand new)
I went for a test drive today and it was a very pleasant drive.

I was told the following
The hybrid is to help the diesel engine and not to be used on electric only. In other words, the engine is always running but the electromotor will give it a push to it uses less diesel. Unlike Toyota or Mitsubishi, you cannot use the car in EV mode only. Nonetheless, this will still reduce the mpg.

I have read here and there some comments about the car that it is jerking sometimes. I did not notice this but I only drove it on flat and relatively straight road.

I am keen to learn from the experts what type of maintenance I should expect from a car with about 80,000miles.

Are there any type of typical faults I should be aware of before buying it?

Can you please confirm the car as a timing chain and not belt as I was told.

Thanks a lot for your help and educating a newbie of MB.

Thanks
 
You cannot charge up the high voltage batteries via a plug-in nor from the diesel engine directly. The batteries ae only charged on braking or over run such as when the driver lifts off the accelerator or going down a slope via the cruise control.

If you drive the car off gently, it will start off in EV mode up to about 20 mph - quite useful in start stop City traffic. If you start off in a rush the diesel engine will kick in and the EV will boost it to so can be quite nippy.

I quite like my C300h and managed 70mpg on the on-board computer on a gentle run from London to Ashford (sticking to the speed limits and no more).
 
Hello,

the more I research, the more I have some doubt about being able to have a retractable/removable tow bar.
Has any one of you got a tow bar on your c300h or do you know if they can be fitted.
I talked to two sales man from two different mercedes garage and, guess what, they could not tell me!!!!
Thanks a lot
 
Does the plate on the door frame have weights shown for towing ? Think if not then the car model has not been tested and certified for towing. There are a number of threads on the forum regarding towing and this issue running currently
 
  • Like
Reactions: 219
Does the plate on the door frame have weights shown for towing ? Think if not then the car model has not been tested and certified for towing. There are a number of threads on the forum regarding towing and this issue running currently
Thanks Smart320. I managed to ring a towbar fitter who said it can be fitted. Now, I need a tow bar to install my Thules bike rack. So it should be ok.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 219
It seems that nobody knows if the car has a timing belt or chain, then.
 
Thanks Smart320. I managed to ring a towbar fitter who said it can be fitted. Now, I need a tow bar to install my Thules bike rack. So it should be ok.
It can be fitted physically but can it be fitted legally?
 

THanks AMGeed. I am glad to know I will at last have a chain :).
The part may be cheap but that is not something I'll do myself so a replacement would be a lot more expensive. Fortunately, normally chains have a much longer life expectancy than the car. So should never have to replace it.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 219
It can be fitted physically but can it be fitted legally?

Thanks whitenemesis. Good point, however, why would a fitter which has been fitting for years would start doing something illegal. ?

I have also just found out about towbarexpress and the car is listed there with several choices for towbars. so I think, I'll be OK ;)
 
Yes, a number of towing/caravan websites list the car and it's max towing weights.
 
  • Like
Reactions: 219
Hello,

the more I research, the more I have some doubt about being able to have a retractable/removable tow bar.
Has any one of you got a tow bar on your c300h or do you know if they can be fitted.
I talked to two sales man from two different mercedes garage and, guess what, they could not tell me!!!!
Thanks a lot
I recently bought a 2015 c300h estate which has a tow bar that is stowed under the bumper, which was a factory fit option and has a release button mounted in the rear tailgate.
 
I have recently purchased a 2017 c300h estate.
I have found that even at quite high speeds if you lift off the throttle then apply it gently it will maintain that speed using the battery alone.
I have a 7 mile commute across the centre of a large town and still average 44 mpg.
 
Hello everyone
I continue my search for the perfect c300h (second hand of course)
I am really getting confused between the different trim and of course the lack of accuracy of the info provided by the dealers....
Sport, Sport Premium, Sport Premium Plus, AMG, AMG Premium, AMG Premium plus.
It seems that the Plus provides the assistant assist and collision prevention but of course this could also be available on another trim when the buyer took it as an option. The Premium seems to give the electric memory seats and the Burmester sound system

Ideally, I would like to find the catalogue from 2015. When I go on MB website, of course it shows me the new c300de...

Also, I am keen to learn more about the option (quite rare to find) which is an adaptive cruise control

upload_2019-8-8_21-57-46.png


Does anyone of you know if this symbol means that the car will slow down or accelerate automatically in traffic and also come to a stop if the car in front stops ? Or when can I find the technical specs

Thanks a lot
King regards
 
Hello everyone
I continue my search for the perfect c300h (second hand of course)
I am really getting confused between the different trim and of course the lack of accuracy of the info provided by the dealers....
Sport, Sport Premium, Sport Premium Plus, AMG, AMG Premium, AMG Premium plus.
It seems that the Plus provides the assistant assist and collision prevention but of course this could also be available on another trim when the buyer took it as an option. The Premium seems to give the electric memory seats and the Burmester sound system

Ideally, I would like to find the catalogue from 2015. When I go on MB website, of course it shows me the new c300de...

Also, I am keen to learn more about the option (quite rare to find) which is an adaptive cruise control

View attachment 88047


Does anyone of you know if this symbol means that the car will slow down or accelerate automatically in traffic and also come to a stop if the car in front stops ? Or when can I find the technical specs

Thanks a lot
King regards

I think so. I have this symbol on mine and I have Active Distronic+ or whatever they called it in 2017.
I also have the solid Star logo on the front grill with the Radar etc in for this to work :)
 
My car does that in Distronic Plus mode. You can click it around to change the follow distance. The silver button changes it to another Distronic mode, I think it’s the one to follow the speed limits.
 
Hi @Wabby and @Atavus thanks for your responses.

So yes the car has the solid start logo at the front and also on the cruise control lever there is a logo showing the back of a car and the front of another with an arrow in between. So it must have some type of distronic.
What I am unclear with is if this particular car will be able to stop on its own or if the speed goes below a certain speed there is an alarm and the driver must take controls.
It seems to be a significant difference between Distronic Plus and Distronic. Here I am talking about a C class C300h from 2016, It could be the E class or higher model have better functionality.
I have found on wikipedia this table


upload_2019-8-11_8-35-42.png


Adaptive cruise control - Wikipedia

and Distronic seems to be partial cruise control and not a full range adaptive cruise control. In other words it will not bring the car to a stop if the car in front stops (eg in a traffic jam).
I understand a car with a manual gearbox will not offer a full range but the c300h is an automatic so I would hope this is full range.

Unfortunately, the seller has no clue, the car is too far away to simply go for a test drive.
I have also learnt that the full specs could be given from a VIN number but failed to find the Vin number from the reg. All the websites I have found seems to have removed the info. I guess with a VIN and reg some criminal can create a new car ID (a bit like your own private personal info that your keep secret :) ).

If anyone has some recommendation to find out what specs the car I am looking at , that would be greatly appreciated.

Thanks a lot
Best regards
 
Mine stops for you. Only requires you to touch the throttle to reset off before continuing in auto mode.

I have options (Related to this I think):

233 AUTONOMOUS INT. CRUISE CONT. PLUS (DISTRONIC PLUS)
266 DISTRONIC PLUS CROSS SUPPORT (DTR+Q)
268 EXPANDED BRAKE ASSIST (BAS+)
269 BRAKE ASSIST PLUS CROSS TRAFFIC (BAS+Q)
 
Last edited:
Ask the seller to run the VIN through the usual site and email you the spec that comes out.
 
Hi @Wabby and @Atavus

I managed to get the VIN number from the seller and ran it through Mercedes-Benz VIN Decoder and got this


233 AUTONOMOUS INT. CRUISE CONT. PLUS (DISTRONIC PLUS)
266 DISTRONIC PLUS CROSS SUPPORT (DTR+Q)
268 EXPANDED BRAKE ASSIST (BAS+)
269 BRAKE ASSIST PLUS CROSS TRAFFIC (BAS+Q)
271 AUTONOMOUS BRAKE INTERVENTION/WARN. FOR PED. PROT.

and from Free online Mercedes-Benz VIN Decoder : MBDecoder

233 Adaptive cruise control Plus (DISTRONIC PLUS)
266 DISTRONIC PLUS with Cross-Traffic Assist (DTR+Q)
268 Active Brake Assist with cross-traffic function
269 BRAKE ASSIST SYSTEM PLUS CROSS-TRAFFIC
271 AUTONOMOUS BRAKE INTERVENTION

So it would therefore seem that it has the full package as we have discussed above. I hope all this luxury won't transform me in a middle lane driver lol

I am glad I have sorted this and this is thank to you, so thank you very much.

When looking at the full list, there is something that still puzzles me. The car has also 360 camera but I see no reference in the VIN list from Free online Mercedes-Benz VIN Decoder : MBDecoder but on
here it is under 501 360° camera. So very strange one list it, the other website does not. Is there gonna be a 100% really website?

Finally, I thought all the c300H were a 2.1l engine with 99g/km but this one is 2.2l with 104g/km so tax will be £20. Not the end of the world but I do not understand the difference as the power is still the same (well seems to be in the listing ie 204bhp). Does anyone know why they change the motor ?

Thanks a lot.
 

Users who are viewing this thread

Back
Top Bottom