C350e owners club

[wivenhoe]

MO graded winter tyres are not really very good. They tend to be fairly old designs. You are better going away from MO. Continental TS860 are very good. I've used them for the last couple of years now. Current winter tyre review here:
2018 ADAC Winter Tyre Test 205 55 R16 - Tyre Reviews

Merc technical department advised me to run 225/50/17 all round on 7x17 wheels. I use these:
Mercedes-Benz 17 inch rims set of | C-Class W205 | 5-spoke wheel | vanadium silver

You will need a set of TPMS valves too. I got them from my local dealer.

I followed the link and the prices look great - for my E Class the winter wheels only come with Continental TS850 on 17" MB alloys - any idea if the TS860's are a massive improvement over the TS850P's ? Winter tyres for my standard fitment are restricted to only Hankook and Pirelli, neither of which come out very good versus the Continental TS860 - no idea against the TS850P.

 

[CaptainChaos]

I bought the rims only from Kunzmann and had the tyres of my choice fitted by the mobile tyre guy I use. The service from Kunzmann was excellent. I recommended them to someone else and they also had no trouble. In fact they remarked how much easier it was than dealing with their local dealer!

TS850P are good tyres, you won't have any bother with those. Are they now MO rated?
Continental WinterContact TS 850 P

 

[NickPlymouth]

I'm about to look at getting a proper home charger installed. Does anybody have any recommendations (especially around Plymouth) or things I should watch out for?
Thanks.

 

[tyler82]

I am thinking to buy an Mercedes-Benz C350e Sport for Private Hire job in London. However i am not sure how about the battery quality of this car. (My oter candidate is Toyota auris but that does mild hybrid) Also there is a big dilemma the plug-in hybrid system. -Comparing with the Toyota hybrid system.- For me personally much better if i can charge the battery "during work"(charging from combustion engine). The big question is that the plug in charge is just an OPTION or the ONLY WAY to charge the batteries on C350e Sport? Does this car do recharging batteries from the combustion engine?

 

[wivenhoe]

I bought the rims only from Kunzmann and had the tyres of my choice fitted by the mobile tyre guy I use. The service from Kunzmann was excellent. I recommended them to someone else and they also had no trouble. In fact they remarked how much easier it was than dealing with their local dealer!

TS850P are good tyres, you won't have any bother with those. Are they now MO rated?
Continental WinterContact TS 850 P

Yes I believe they are MO Rated (also BMW).

Swapping the tyres on the existing wheels restricted me to Hankook or Pirelli. The Hankooks are £ 550 on Oponeo and the SottoZero3's are £ 820. The latest Hankook gets reasonable reviews but for the 275 x 40 x 17" only the previous generation is available. Scary as in the dry according to Auto Bild the Hankook stops 5m after the Continental, albeit the TS 860 rather than a TS850. Kunzmann can deliver to the UK 4 17" with TS850's for £ 1,300. Seemingly the Continental is far better all round than the Pirelli so I have the choice of an extra £ 500 for better tyres and winter wheels or risk it with the Pirelli's !

 

[wivenhoe]

I'm about to look at getting a proper home charger installed. Does anybody have any recommendations (especially around Plymouth) or things I should watch out for?
Thanks.

I have had a Rolec for over 3 years and never had any problems. The installer can claim up to £ 500 on your behalf from the government grant - I would hurry as they are stopping the plug in grant on cars the end of Oct so may stop the wall box grant as well. All the info can be found here, including authorised installers :-

Grant schemes for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

 

[S111dpc]

I have had a Rolec for over 3 years and never had any problems. The installer can claim up to £ 500 on your behalf from the government grant - I would hurry as they are stopping the plug in grant on cars the end of Oct so may stop the wall box grant as well. All the info can be found here, including authorised installers :-

Grant schemes for electric vehicle charging infrastructure

I have a Rolec too which was installed just under 3 yrs ago. Really happy with it although it did blow a circuit board recently but was replaced free of charge.

 

[Dodgy]

I have a Rolec too which was installed just under 3 yrs ago. Really happy with it although it did blow a circuit board recently but was replaced free of charge.

Rolex here too. Not the most attractive charger, but well-respected.

Choose the 32A option, even though the Merc can’t use it. The 16A version is no cheaper and won’t be much use in the future.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

I am thinking to buy an Mercedes-Benz C350e Sport for Private Hire job in London. However i am not sure how about the battery quality of this car. (My oter candidate is Toyota auris but that does mild hybrid) Also there is a big dilemma the plug-in hybrid system. -Comparing with the Toyota hybrid system.- For me personally much better if i can charge the battery "during work"(charging from combustion engine). The big question is that the plug in charge is just an OPTION or the ONLY WAY to charge the batteries on C350e Sport? Does this car do recharging batteries from the combustion engine?

You can charge the battery with the ICE, but it’s not a very economical way to do it. It has 4 modes of operation. Hybrid (uses whichever power source is most appropriate), Charge (does what you’d expect, uses the ICE to power the car and charge the battery), EMode (uses only battery, until you ask for more power than the battery can provide, and/or it runs out of charge) and ESave (uses ICE to save charge remaining for use in urban locations. Use of the satnav helps these modes to figure out how to best achieve a balance.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

Rolex here too. Not the most attractive charger, but well-respected.

Choose the 32A option, even though the Merc can’t use it. The 16A version is no cheaper and won’t be much use in the future.

Absolutely. Same here, and the same reasoning used. No point in going for the 16A version unless you have no choice due to constraints on your house electrics. Chances are, you may well end up with a full EV after having a hybrid.

 

[CaptainChaos]

Yes I believe they are MO Rated (also BMW).

Swapping the tyres on the existing wheels restricted me to Hankook or Pirelli. The Hankooks are £ 550 on Oponeo and the SottoZero3's are £ 820. The latest Hankook gets reasonable reviews but for the 275 x 40 x 17" only the previous generation is available. Scary as in the dry according to Auto Bild the Hankook stops 5m after the Continental, albeit the TS 860 rather than a TS850. Kunzmann can deliver to the UK 4 17" with TS850's for £ 1,300. Seemingly the Continental is far better all round than the Pirelli so I have the choice of an extra £ 500 for better tyres and winter wheels or risk it with the Pirelli's !

If funds allow, I would go for it. Much easier swapping wheels than tyres, and if you get rid of the car they fetch decent money on Ebay so you will claw that £500 back.

 

[wrighty senior]

I am thinking to buy an Mercedes-Benz C350e Sport for Private Hire job in London. However i am not sure how about the battery quality of this car. (My oter candidate is Toyota auris but that does mild hybrid) Also there is a big dilemma the plug-in hybrid system. -Comparing with the Toyota hybrid system.- For me personally much better if i can charge the battery "during work"(charging from combustion engine). The big question is that the plug in charge is just an OPTION or the ONLY WAY to charge the batteries on C350e Sport? Does this car do recharging batteries from the combustion engine?

The answer from Chris S covers your question but I would add that there is (in my opinion) no comparison between the C350e and the Toyota Auris. The Toyota is more of an Economic solution. The C350e is much sportier in nature. If you want economy it is essential that you charge the C350e regularly from a mains charger. The batteries are of very good quality but have limited capacity. Careful driving will give you about 10 - 18miles of pure electric power (and on short journeys very good mpg with mixed driving). However, on longer journeys the battery is only really there to give you more power when you really want it. Economy will drop to about 40mpg. If you can plug-in the C350e to a charge point every 20miles or so you will have a very fast / very economic solution.

 

[wivenhoe]

If funds allow, I would go for it. Much easier swapping wheels than tyres, and if you get rid of the car they fetch decent money on Ebay so you will claw that £500 back.

It got better - I used my Ltd Co to buy and they too the VAT off at source so I got 4 MB winter alloys complete with TS 850P's for £ 1050. MB Colchester quoted £ 1450 excl VAT today. Many thanks for the info.

 

[CaptainChaos]

It got better - I used my Ltd Co to buy and they too the VAT off at source so I got 4 MB winter alloys complete with TS 850P's for £ 1050. MB Colchester quoted £ 1450 excl VAT today. Many thanks for the info.

Excellent. Glad it worked out.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

For those with long memories....

The Motor Ombudsman appears to think my bitch about the hybrid warranty was worthy of an adjudication. They have notified me of same and are contacting MB.

I'm glad for the obvious reason of course, but also because I hate to waste people's time....and the fact they are making an adjudication says they don't think it was a waste of their time...which is nice.

You'll know when I do.....

To give a very brief summation of the issue - a lot of us who got these saw a document showings details and specs that said the entire EV powertrain, battery and electronics were covered for 6 years. A question came up here and I began to doubt my sanity for a bit...then we found the document again and sure enough, it said it was covered, I contacted MB for clarification and then the trouble started. After much back & forth they accepted that battery and electric motor were covered, but not the power electronics. Then at their suggestion, I went to the Ombudsman.

Almost 3 months on and I got my reply. Confused though.

At first read, I didn't spot that they are now accepting that the power electronics are covered?? "I can confirm that during the Plug-In Warranty Period, the Battery Certificate covers any technical malfunction of the associated plug in components (electric machine and power electronics) arising from an inherent manufacturing fault."

This is what I wanted to hear in the first place, so I'm utterly confused now. Although, that does assume(!) that "electric machine" means electric motor/generator unit.

So, I appear to have it in writing, at last, that what was in that document we saw is in fact true, although the 'Battery Certificate' I have doesn't actually say it.


"Thank you for your patience whilst I reviewed your case. I have now received both sides of the story and I have made my decision. Please see my decision below.


What You Say



As submitted to TMO (a copy can be provided upon request)




What The Business Says



Thank you for your patience whilst I have investigated Mr X’s concerns.

I can confirm that during the Plug-In Warranty Period, the Battery Certificate covers any technical malfunction of the associated plug in components (electric machine and power electronics) arising from an inherent manufacturing fault. I would advise Mr X that this information is readily accessible within the ‘Owners Area’ on our websitewww.mercedes-benz.co.uk, along with further information on the Mercedes-Benz Cars UK Limited Battery Certificate for Plug-In Hybrid and Electric Drive Vehicles equipped with High Voltage Batteries (also attached).

I would recommend that moving forward, the customer ensures all information sourced on his vehicle and any future purchases are sourced directly from Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd. rather than online forums or other online sources.

My Decision



I am unable to uphold this complaint for the following reasons. Warranties are in addition to your legal rights. They are a legally binding contract and the Warranty Administrator would set out the terms that would apply and govern the warranty. Unfortunately, you are not able to source the terms from the internet and try and bind the administrator to comply. The internet is unsolicited and so internet-based evidence is usually frowned upon.


The terms and conditions are usually set out, as advised by the administrator,and communicated to you directlyvia their chosen platforms which may be hardcopy literature or the link Mercedes Benz have provided above.


Therefore, I am satisfied that MB UK have acted accordingly and will not be making any further recommendations.


Next Steps



For the above reasons, I am not upholding this complaint. If you wish to submit somenew informationexplaining why my decision is wrong, then I will consider the case further. If my decision does not change, you can appeal to the Ombudsman for a final decision within5 working days.


Regards,"


So, MB don't admit that the document we all saw and some of us have copies of, and was used by sales staff to sell the car, was legitimate, but that the ones they tell us are legitimate ....are. A fight nobody is ever going to win.

Still, despite that fact I seem to have lost....we all won. Battery, power electronics and 'electric machine' are indeed covered for 6 years/62k miles.

Make of that what you will, and hope we never need to try and make a claim.

 

[wivenhoe]

To give a very brief summation of the issue - a lot of us who got these saw a document showings details and specs that said the entire EV powertrain, battery and electronics were covered for 6 years. A question came up here and I began to doubt my sanity for a bit...then we found the document again and sure enough, it said it was covered, I contacted MB for clarification and then the trouble started. After much back & forth they accepted that battery and electric motor were covered, but not the power electronics. Then at their suggestion, I went to the Ombudsman.

Almost 3 months on and I got my reply. Confused though.

At first read, I didn't spot that they are now accepting that the power electronics are covered?? "I can confirm that during the Plug-In Warranty Period, the Battery Certificate covers any technical malfunction of the associated plug in components (electric machine and power electronics) arising from an inherent manufacturing fault."

This is what I wanted to hear in the first place, so I'm utterly confused now. Although, that does assume(!) that "electric machine" means electric motor/generator unit.

So, I appear to have it in writing, at last, that what was in that document we saw is in fact true, although the 'Battery Certificate' I have doesn't actually say it.


"Thank you for your patience whilst I reviewed your case. I have now received both sides of the story and I have made my decision. Please see my decision below.


What You Say



As submitted to TMO (a copy can be provided upon request)




What The Business Says



Thank you for your patience whilst I have investigated Mr X’s concerns.

I can confirm that during the Plug-In Warranty Period, the Battery Certificate covers any technical malfunction of the associated plug in components (electric machine and power electronics) arising from an inherent manufacturing fault. I would advise Mr X that this information is readily accessible within the ‘Owners Area’ on our websitewww.mercedes-benz.co.uk, along with further information on the Mercedes-Benz Cars UK Limited Battery Certificate for Plug-In Hybrid and Electric Drive Vehicles equipped with High Voltage Batteries (also attached).

I would recommend that moving forward, the customer ensures all information sourced on his vehicle and any future purchases are sourced directly from Mercedes-Benz UK Ltd. rather than online forums or other online sources.

My Decision



I am unable to uphold this complaint for the following reasons. Warranties are in addition to your legal rights. They are a legally binding contract and the Warranty Administrator would set out the terms that would apply and govern the warranty. Unfortunately, you are not able to source the terms from the internet and try and bind the administrator to comply. The internet is unsolicited and so internet-based evidence is usually frowned upon.


The terms and conditions are usually set out, as advised by the administrator,and communicated to you directlyvia their chosen platforms which may be hardcopy literature or the link Mercedes Benz have provided above.


Therefore, I am satisfied that MB UK have acted accordingly and will not be making any further recommendations.


Next Steps



For the above reasons, I am not upholding this complaint. If you wish to submit somenew informationexplaining why my decision is wrong, then I will consider the case further. If my decision does not change, you can appeal to the Ombudsman for a final decision within5 working days.


Regards,"


So, MB don't admit that the document we all saw and some of us have copies of, and was used by sales staff to sell the car, was legitimate, but that the ones they tell us are legitimate ....are. A fight nobody is ever going to win.

Still, despite that fact I seem to have lost....we all won. Battery, power electronics and 'electric machine' are indeed covered for 6 years/62k miles.

Make of that what you will, and hope we never need to try and make a claim.

Chris. I was one of the guys providing the document so I will be biased. The TMO obviously didn’t follow the link given by MB as on that site I cannot find any reference to the hybrid warranty. That aside, this is a climb down by MB as originally they took the position the battery cert covered only the battery - now they accept the motor and associated plug in components. I hope I don’t have to test it (got E350e now) as I can see a battle over whether the defects is a result of an inherent manufacturing fault rather than just being a defect. It strikes me (cynic that I am) that MB are trying to get themselves into a position where any defects have to be a manufacturing one so they can claim all the costs back from their (manufacturing) supplier.
Well done for sticking with this and getting a result.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

I’m really not sure if it’s incompetence or plain dishonesty. I generally lean toward ****-up over conspiracy, but honestly, one shouldn’t really accuse the likes of MB with incompetency, so that just leaves the alternative that it is all just cynical manipulation/disinformation/whatever it takes to keep on selling PCP packages and making money.

One thing for sure, I’ll never buy another MB.

At times, I bloody hate capitalism.

 

[Hairy]

MO graded winter tyres are not really very good. They tend to be fairly old designs. You are better going away from MO. Continental TS860 are very good. I've used them for the last couple of years now. Current winter tyre review here:
2018 ADAC Winter Tyre Test 205 55 R16 - Tyre Reviews

Merc technical department advised me to run 225/50/17 all round on 7x17 wheels. I use these:
Mercedes-Benz 17 inch rims set of | C-Class W205 | 5-spoke wheel | vanadium silver

You will need a set of TPMS valves too. I got them from my local dealer.

Thanks, do you have approval from your insurance company for that set up?

 

[grober]

I’m really not sure if it’s incompetence or plain dishonesty. I generally lean toward ****-up over conspiracy, but honestly, one shouldn’t really accuse the likes of MB with incompetency, so that just leaves the alternative that it is all just cynical manipulation/disinformation/whatever it takes to keep on selling PCP packages and making money.

One thing for sure, I’ll never buy another MB.

Which begs the question - would you have been treated any better if you had purchased one of Toyota/ Hyundai/Mitsubishi/Jaguar/BMW/Nissan products?

 

[Deleted member 126969]

Which begs the question - would you have been treated any better if you had purchased one of Toyota/ Hyundai/Mitsubishi/Jaguar/BMW/Nissan products?

Honestly, I have no real idea. That said, a chap I used to work with that had a Lexus was treated increadibly well, and still is, 11 years down the line.

It’s more a case of fool me once, shame on you, fool me twice, shame on me. Or, keep doing the same thing and expecting a different outcome is madness.

I get that others feel that they have had and continue to have great service from MB and are more than happy to keep buying them. That’s fine with me, more power to them I say. Sadly, that’s not been my experience.