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C350e owners club

NickPlymouth said:
Hi all.
I'm going to need new tyres on the rear soon. I'm quite happy with the ones on there (bridegstone iirc) , but I wondered what others have fitted and would recommend.
Thanks .
Click to expand...
Hankook Evos were fitted on ours from new, just replaced the fronts at 14.5k miles. Paid £100 each fitted and balanced, was always happy with the performance so stuck with them.
 
My charger flap wouldn't close again this morning due to it icing up. I had this last winter. Does anyone else get this or is it just me living in the frozen Pennine tundra? On the back of the flap is a barbed prong. This locates into a socket next to the charging port. The mechanism in the socket freezes up so the prong has nothing to latch onto and the flap just springs open. I drove to work with the flap open and I've parked it in the sun to thaw out. I'll squirt some lube into the socket and see if that helps.
 
I’ve had it freeze shut before. Had to put a hair dryer on it for a while. Also had an occasion where it took a few tries to get it to latch closed, it having been open all night on a frosty one, but I sprayed some GT85 in there after that event and it’s been fine since.
 
Chris-S said:
I’ve had it freeze shut before. Had to put a hair dryer on it for a while. Also had an occasion where it took a few tries to get it to latch closed, it having been open all night on a frosty one, but I sprayed some GT85 in there after that event and it’s been fine since.
Click to expand...

Thanks Chris. It thawed out yesterday. I gave it a good squirt of lube and it was OK this morning.
The whole recharging flap design is poor really. We've said it before, but they've designed it like a filler flap which is opened occasionally for a few minutes at a time and not something which is opened regularly and left open.
 
CaptainChaos said:
Thanks Chris. It thawed out yesterday. I gave it a good squirt of lube and it was OK this morning.
The whole recharging flap design is poor really. We've said it before, but they've designed it like a filler flap which is opened occasionally for a few minutes at a time and not something which is opened regularly and left open.
Click to expand...

Spot on.
 
Well, mine is now in the dealer's waiting for a new starter motor after a malfunction warning.
Symptoms were that a malfunction would come up when the engine started (although not every time) and then it would refuse to drop into electric mode again
Anybody else had this?
Nick.
 
Yes, I had malfunction message and dealer said it was the starter motor, which was a relief as losing electric power got me worried about EV batteries It must be a known issue as they replaced it for free.
 
I confess I was disappointed when I found out it had a conventional starter and wasn't able to make use of the main electric motor for engine starting. No way round it though, unfortunately, and it seems to me that the starter is going to get a heck of a lot more more work than in a normal stop-start setup.

Something for me to look forward to then....I wonder if it can be argued to be part of the EV drivetrain??? Mine is 3 years old this December and as I do so few miles, it's not going to start seeing defects like this until way past the warranty expires.
 
Chris-S said:
I confess I was disappointed when I found out it had a conventional starter and wasn't able to make use of the main electric motor for engine starting. No way round it though, unfortunately, and it seems to me that the starter is going to get a heck of a lot more more work than in a normal stop-start setup.

Something for me to look forward to then....I wonder if it can be argued to be part of the EV drivetrain??? Mine is 3 years old this December and as I do so few miles, it's not going to start seeing defects like this until way past the warranty expires.
Click to expand...
I was surprised about the starting system too. For the first few months I didn't charge the car so the engine was on /off all the time. It's a bit better now as I can get to work and back on one charge (usually) so don't use the ICE much.
I'm not sure about the longevity of these motors but mine car is less than a year old and has less than 7k on the clock. So I'm hoping it's a manufacturing failure and will be a rare occurrence
 
Chris-S said:
I confess I was disappointed when I found out it had a conventional starter and wasn't able to make use of the main electric motor for engine starting. No way round it though, unfortunately, and it seems to me that the starter is going to get a heck of a lot more more work than in a normal stop-start setup.

Something for me to look forward to then....I wonder if it can be argued to be part of the EV drivetrain??? Mine is 3 years old this December and as I do so few miles, it's not going to start seeing defects like this until way past the warranty expires.
Click to expand...

Toyota stop-start systems are out there in huge numbers. The Prius was launched 22 years ago - how is that possible - and these days a decent proportion of all Toyota and Lexus cars have pretty much the same system. I’m sure MB are playing catch-up, but they will have reverse engineered the market leading system. Fingers crossed!
 
After nearly 3 years of ownership my C350e goes back to M-B in 4 weeks. In that time it will have done 72000 miles with a an average of 40mpg (not tested but based upon some tanks at 34mpg and some at 46mpg on average).

I have not had many issues with the car until recently and none are due to the hybrid powertrain. My current issue is brake judder - the discs were replaced as part of my full maintenance contract just before Christmas however the problem re-appeared a week later on the run down to the Alps - just what you need on a 1700 mile round trip in snow and ice! Whilst they now accept there is an issue they need to investigate for a few days as it should not happen twice in a short period of time. Anyone else had this issue?

Whilst I have not had that many issue with the car the dealer support has been awful - I have used two different dealers and both have been just as bad. You would think that they would realise that the car has a tracking function and not try and bulls**t that they are working on the car when you know it has not moved for two days.

I am therefore opting out of Company Cars, mostly due to there being no PHEV's that are available at a price I want to pay, and buying a low mileage used X4 3.0d which will actually save me a bit of money when I factor in the mileage rates and salary increase. Maybe I will return to PHEV ownership one the tax rules change in a couple of years and the manufacturers manage to get real world mileage and charging times as current electric vehicles are not really viable for the types of journey I do.

I have enjoyed reading all the posts on here over the past few years and have made extra effort to make sure I do not snap the charging cover off. Good luck to all with their C350e's.
 
Thanks for the update Stuart. Your annual mileage is about three times mine!

Brake judder is often caused by keeping the foot brake on after hard braking e.g. after exiting a motorway slip road, or coming down a steep hill. The pads clamp to the hot disk and can either leave some residue behind, or in extreme cases warp the disk. However given how many miles you do, it's unlikely you have suddenly changed your driving style between one set of disks and the next. Will be interesting to see what they say. Good luck!
 
WINTER TYRES...….
Just in case anyone's interested I've got a set of Winter Tyres for sale, they've been used for one trip to the Alps, doing approx. 2200 miles and were then removed once I got home. I did a fair bit of research before going and these, although a 'budget' brand, performed very well on tests, eg came 10th out of 50 in an AutoBild test, coming 1st for value for money, in another review by Tyrereviews they came 9th out of 45 tested. From my own perspective I thought they were fantastic, drove well in al conditions and their performance in the snow was amazing, I can guarantee that I would have got stuck without them!
Tyres are as follows and were fitted to my C350e estate, I'd accept any 'reasonable' offer so come and grab a bargain!
Nexen Winguard Sport 2 225/45R18 95 V XL
Nexen Winguard Sport 2 245/40R18 97 V XL
 
stuartj said:
After nearly 3 years of ownership my C350e goes back to M-B in 4 weeks. In that time it will have done 72000 miles with a an average of 40mpg (not tested but based upon some tanks at 34mpg and some at 46mpg on average).

I have not had many issues with the car until recently and none are due to the hybrid powertrain. My current issue is brake judder - the discs were replaced as part of my full maintenance contract just before Christmas however the problem re-appeared a week later on the run down to the Alps - just what you need on a 1700 mile round trip in snow and ice! Whilst they now accept there is an issue they need to investigate for a few days as it should not happen twice in a short period of time. Anyone else had this issue?

Whilst I have not had that many issue with the car the dealer support has been awful - I have used two different dealers and both have been just as bad. You would think that they would realise that the car has a tracking function and not try and bulls**t that they are working on the car when you know it has not moved for two days.

I am therefore opting out of Company Cars, mostly due to there being no PHEV's that are available at a price I want to pay, and buying a low mileage used X4 3.0d which will actually save me a bit of money when I factor in the mileage rates and salary increase. Maybe I will return to PHEV ownership one the tax rules change in a couple of years and the manufacturers manage to get real world mileage and charging times as current electric vehicles are not really viable for the types of journey I do.

I have enjoyed reading all the posts on here over the past few years and have made extra effort to make sure I do not snap the charging cover off. Good luck to all with their C350e's.
Click to expand...

So your usage was about the same as mine. I had no real problems with the car plus Chelmsford Mercedes looked after me well - so well I have purchased my replacement from them.
The brake shudder sounds like warped rotors. New discs need a bit of 'running in' and if you had to take the car to an extremely cold environment and then needed a lot of braking (I am guessing both are true if motoring in the Alps) the new rotors could have warped due to the extremes in temperature.
I also couldn't wait for the next generation PHEV C-Class and didn't like/couldn't afford the E-Class. So I have ordered a C300d 4-Matic (not delivered yet). Does anyone have any experience of the new C300d??
 
stuartj said:
After nearly 3 years of ownership my C350e goes back to M-B in 4 weeks. In that time it will have done 72000 miles with a an average of 40mpg (not tested but based upon some tanks at 34mpg and some at 46mpg on average).

I have not had many issues with the car until recently and none are due to the hybrid powertrain. My current issue is brake judder - the discs were replaced as part of my full maintenance contract just before Christmas however the problem re-appeared a week later on the run down to the Alps - just what you need on a 1700 mile round trip in snow and ice! Whilst they now accept there is an issue they need to investigate for a few days as it should not happen twice in a short period of time. Anyone else had this issue?

Whilst I have not had that many issue with the car the dealer support has been awful - I have used two different dealers and both have been just as bad. You would think that they would realise that the car has a tracking function and not try and bulls**t that they are working on the car when you know it has not moved for two days.

I am therefore opting out of Company Cars, mostly due to there being no PHEV's that are available at a price I want to pay, and buying a low mileage used X4 3.0d which will actually save me a bit of money when I factor in the mileage rates and salary increase. Maybe I will return to PHEV ownership one the tax rules change in a couple of years and the manufacturers manage to get real world mileage and charging times as current electric vehicles are not really viable for the types of journey I do.

I have enjoyed reading all the posts on here over the past few years and have made extra effort to make sure I do not snap the charging cover off. Good luck to all with their C350e's.
Click to expand...

Timely post @stuartj , the lease on my C350e is up in May and I’m in the same position as yourself with no suitable PHEV company car on the immediate horizon to replace it.

Do you mind if I ask roughly how you’ve worked out the saving via opting out?

I cover about 30k PA currently so weighing up options and potential deals with work.

Thanks in advance
 
Lappintyre said:
Timely post @stuartj , the lease on my C350e is up in May and I’m in the same position as yourself with no suitable PHEV company car on the immediate horizon to replace it.

Do you mind if I ask roughly how you’ve worked out the saving via opting out?

I cover about 30k PA currently so weighing up options and potential deals with work.

Thanks in advance
Click to expand...
Hi

My savings are based upon the money not paid in company car tax for 2019-202 (£4,215.72/year) and the allowable mileage I can claim i.e. 40p/mile for 10000 miles and then 25p/mile after that based upon 22000 miles per annum (£7,500.00 per year) and then a pay increase which matches what the company were paying for the fully expensed and maintained car (£12,684.00 per year) less the £7,500.00 they will be paying me for mileage. Therefore the Company is no worse off.

My increase in salary therefore calculates at £ 5,184.00 per year extra.

The nett increase in my take home is therefore £ 7,200.00 made up from not paying the Company Car Tax and the increased wage after tax and national insurance deductions. Add on the £ 7,500.00 for the allowable expenses and this calculates to £ 14,700.00 better off from which I need to run a car over 25,000 miles.

The lease is £ 452.00/month and I have allowed £ 300.00/month for insurance, maintenance and road fund licence - approximately £ 9,000.00/year.

Fuel over 25,000 miles at 45mpg at £ 5.85/gallon works out at £ 3,250.00 so my total outgoings are approximately £ 12,000.00 which makes me £ 2,700.00 better off.

It all depends on the salary increase and if the company will pay the mileage rates as opposed to having to claim them back in tax but works for me and the company.

Hopes this makes sense.
 
wrighty senior said:
So your usage was about the same as mine. I had no real problems with the car plus Chelmsford Mercedes looked after me well - so well I have purchased my replacement from them.
The brake shudder sounds like warped rotors. New discs need a bit of 'running in' and if you had to take the car to an extremely cold environment and then needed a lot of braking (I am guessing both are true if motoring in the Alps) the new rotors could have warped due to the extremes in temperature.
I also couldn't wait for the next generation PHEV C-Class and didn't like/couldn't afford the E-Class. So I have ordered a C300d 4-Matic (not delivered yet). Does anyone have any experience of the new C300d??
Click to expand...

I did run the brakes in being very gentle over the first few hundred miles however the judder appeared on the way prior to any cold or heavy braking. I have taken the car there before and had no issues and have not had any warped discs since I had a vauxhall many many years ago.

The technician said that they had a few issues on C Classes and they think it is due to softer steel being used but I will find out this week.
 
stuartj said:
Hi

My savings are based upon the money not paid in company car tax for 2019-202 (£4,215.72/year) and the allowable mileage I can claim i.e. 40p/mile for 10000 miles and then 25p/mile after that based upon 22000 miles per annum (£7,500.00 per year) and then a pay increase which matches what the company were paying for the fully expensed and maintained car (£12,684.00 per year) less the £7,500.00 they will be paying me for mileage. Therefore the Company is no worse off.

My increase in salary therefore calculates at £ 5,184.00 per year extra.

The nett increase in my take home is therefore £ 7,200.00 made up from not paying the Company Car Tax and the increased wage after tax and national insurance deductions. Add on the £ 7,500.00 for the allowable expenses and this calculates to £ 14,700.00 better off from which I need to run a car over 25,000 miles.

The lease is £ 452.00/month and I have allowed £ 300.00/month for insurance, maintenance and road fund licence - approximately £ 9,000.00/year.

Fuel over 25,000 miles at 45mpg at £ 5.85/gallon works out at £ 3,250.00 so my total outgoings are approximately £ 12,000.00 which makes me £ 2,700.00 better off.

It all depends on the salary increase and if the company will pay the mileage rates as opposed to having to claim them back in tax but works for me and the company.

Hopes this makes sense.
Click to expand...

Excellent answer @stuartj , I have some homework to do now lol!

Good choice on the X4 3lt, drove one myself prior to Xmas.

Thanks
 
Well I’ve passed the mid-life crises (bought CLS55), had an E300TD, an E270cdi and an E250. For the last 3 years I’ve had a lovely CLS350cdi and now I’ve turned old and left wing - getting a C class milk float. Why? Well it’s not the BIK, but boring practicalities. Tyres are big, short lived and expensive on the CLS along with a set of rims when you crack the OE’s because of the 35 profiles. I don’t pay tax or congestion on the float and it fits into parking spaces easier. I do like the air springs, the tech and the car all round is decent - I’ve the P+. Niggles so far are the the “upgraded” hi-fi is nothing special (crappier than a CLS basic), I think the socket on the boot should be illuminated and finally a clock would be handy rather than random digits located on either screen. It’s an interesting fall from grace, but not as painful as I thought. The CLS had just passed 100k and I was in the market for something different.

I want to work out how the timing is optimised to allow for a pre-heat and full charge before I leave, and I’m fiddling with the driving to optimise the mpg - a sure sign of senility and future voting intentions.

The CLS is on eBay if I can shamelessly plug it - just search for the CLS with 50photos (black/porcelain), in West Kingsdown (Brands Hatch).

So please accept me into the tree hugging frat. My name is Tim and I’m a recovering oil burner...
 
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