C350e owners club

[DubMerc]

@MikeInWimbledon in addition to raspy's post it would also be useful to look at eKatie's post on this thread #5960. While prices may vary greatly from country to country, she was quoted 14-15k for the battery to be replaced in Finland.

It would be worth getting a capacity test on the battery before purchase for piece of mind.

The other side of this is that battery failures (as opposed to gradual degrading) appear to be very rare. After 6,000 posts on this forum you would think we would have a good idea of the amount of work involved in and the cost of a battery replacement in the UK or Ireland. The fact that we don't is a positive imo.

 

[raspy]

Thanks for the candid reply. It's very helpful.

As I said, I'm interested in it primarily as a short-distance runabout, looking at it as a £15k five year old well-specified alternative to something like a C200 petrol.

I fancy dipping my toe into the water, but was just trying to understand if battery replacement is an alligator lurking under the surface.

Gives me something to think about. I have huge respect for Lexus and Toyota, but I just struggle with the detailing, from GS via RX to LS. Awe inspiring quality and reliability, but just...

@MikeInWimbledon I checked the C200 petrol prices. The new ones with 1.5 engine and mild hybrid tech, seem to be going for just 18k for a 1 year old car at a MB dealer and that's with 2 years free servicing thrown in.

I suspect the prices would drop closer to your £15k once the new C class starts deliveries this year. Apparently they are supposed to be better on petrol (around 40mpg) than before.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

The new W206 C300e (which should come this year) will have a giant 25.4 kWh battery and promises an electric range of 100km. I am looking at that model if the hybrid architecture is as efficient as the latest A250e.

This is where it could get confusing isn't it - make sure to get the right model!! 25.4kWh and 100km....mmmm Seems unlikely TBH but time will tell. At least having a battery that big means the overhead of heating etc is less significant by quite a margin which will really help on shorter runs.

The W206 C300e certainly looks a much more mature and accomplished product than our lowly W205 C350e I still wouldn't buy one though. I'm done with MB when this one is gone.

 

[J3TS3TT3R]

Hey guys,

New owner (3 days) to a C350E. Beautiful car. I'm still finding lots of cool things on the car (The app just cost me £180 in extras).

I wondered if anyone has any tips for a beginner on what to look for?

I have a C350E Sport - I'm aiming for the AMG look in bumpers.. .The rear for a C350E is so hard to find due to the charger hole.

Hey anyway! I'm looking forward to crawling through what you all have as your rides etc.

Edit:

One thing I was wondering - how do I get Live Traffic Information going? Mercedes Me doesn't really help try to find it?

 

[raspy]

This is where it could get confusing isn't it - make sure to get the right model!! 25.4kWh and 100km....mmmm Seems unlikely TBH but time will tell. At least having a battery that big means the overhead of heating etc is less significant by quite a margin which will really help on shorter runs.

The W206 C300e certainly looks a much more mature and accomplished product than our lowly W205 C350e I still wouldn't buy one though. I'm done with MB when this one is gone.

@Chris-S PHEV technology has evolved and MB has learned a lot. A250e owners (with just a 10.6kWh battery) are reporting 40+ miles on battery power in a single trip at 50mph in optimum conditions, so I don't see why a 25.4kWh battery in the new C class couldn't achieve up to the claimed 60 miles range.

 

[raspy]

Hey guys,

New owner (3 days) to a C350E. Beautiful car. I'm still finding lots of cool things on the car (The app just cost me £180 in extras).

I wondered if anyone has any tips for a beginner on what to look for?

I have a C350E Sport - I'm aiming for the AMG look in bumpers.. .The rear for a C350E is so hard to find due to the charger hole.

Hey anyway! I'm looking forward to crawling through what you all have as your rides etc.

Edit:

One thing I was wondering - how do I get Live Traffic Information going? Mercedes Me doesn't really help try to find it?

@J3TS3TT3R Welcome to the club. £180 in extras? What did you purchase in the app?

Not sure how to help regarding getting AMG bumpers. Sounds expensive!

In Mercedes Me, when I login, I see the option to renew a bunch of services including Live Traffic Information, for 1, 2 or 3 years. I personally don't see the point of paying Mercedes for traffic data when I always use Google Maps on my phone for navigation and finding out where the traffic is.

 

[J3TS3TT3R]

@J3TS3TT3R Welcome to the club. £180 in extras? What did you purchase in the app?

Not sure how to help regarding getting AMG bumpers. Sounds expensive!

In Mercedes Me, when I login, I see the option to renew a bunch of services including Live Traffic Information, for 1, 2 or 3 years. I personally don't see the point of paying Mercedes for traffic data when I always use Google Maps on my phone for navigation and finding out where the traffic is.

Thanks, looking forward to learning from you guys.... already stumbled up on the battery replacement discussion eeekk!

I purchased the theft package, comfort and battery and something else lol (89,39,29,29)

Weirdly, I don't have anything under live traffic information. I'm trying to get my merc to replace the Google map needs as it displays on the main screen.

Here's what I get:

 

[raspy]

Thanks, looking forward to learning from you guys.... already stumbled up on the battery replacement discussion eeekk!

I purchased the theft package, comfort and battery and something else lol (89,39,29,29)

Weirdly, I don't have anything under live traffic information. I'm trying to get my merc to replace the Google map needs as it displays on the main screen.

Here's what I get:

@J3TS3TT3R Try logging in to Mercedes Me via the desktop on your computer's browser, rather than the app. Maybe it will show up there as an option?

 

[Deleted member 126969]

@Chris-S PHEV technology has evolved and MB has learned a lot. A250e owners (with just a 10.6kWh battery) are reporting 40+ miles on battery power in a single trip at 50mph in optimum conditions, so I don't see why a 25.4kWh battery in the new C class couldn't achieve up to the claimed 60 miles range.

I’d be really (really!) surprised if a hybrid gets better range per kWh than a pure EV, and 4mile/kWh is better than the very best EV by a good margin. 40km, maybe, and impressive if true.

......ETA, just did some digging and I see the battery is 14.6kWh, not 10.6. That makes 40 miles more believable. It’ll never be as good as a pure EV while it still drives through an auto gearbox though. Good to see they did away with the conventional starter too. Be interested to see if the W205 C300e adopts this or not.

 

[Deleted member 126969]

Hey guys,

New owner (3 days) to a C350E. Beautiful car. I'm still finding lots of cool things on the car (The app just cost me £180 in extras).

I wondered if anyone has any tips for a beginner on what to look for?

I have a C350E Sport - I'm aiming for the AMG look in bumpers.. .The rear for a C350E is so hard to find due to the charger hole.

Hey anyway! I'm looking forward to crawling through what you all have as your rides etc.

Edit:

One thing I was wondering - how do I get Live Traffic Information going? Mercedes Me doesn't really help try to find it?

Welcome.

My admittedly limited experiences of the COMAND version Nav using live traffic was that it’s a blithering idiot. I say limited as I hardly do any miles. On every occasion that I had a route set and there was congestion, it completely stuffed up, sending me on pointless detours and more than once, totally and utterly the wrong way, on others, literally in circles. I stopped trusting it pretty quickly. Google maps is, by comparison, utterly superb! Sadly, no Carplay. When used as a basic Nav it’s fine of course. If I was commuting, I think I’d probably install one of those Android based after-market displays that have Carplay.

The app is OK when it works, but I’ve always found the comms very flakey. I can only recall one occasion when setting pre-entry climate that it worked first time. It usually takes at least 3 attempts to get it to accept a departure time.

MB have also removed features over time, so it’s not as accomplished as it used to be either. It's prettier though, so there’s that....

 

[raspy]

I’d be really (really!) surprised if a hybrid gets better range per kWh than a pure EV, and 4mile/kWh is better than the very best EV by a good margin. 40km, maybe, and impressive if true.

......ETA, just did some digging and I see the battery is 14.6kWh, not 10.6. That makes 40 miles more believable. It’ll never be as good as a pure EV while it still drives through an auto gearbox though. Good to see they did away with the conventional starter too. Be interested to see if the W205 C300e adopts this or not.

@Chris-S Right, according to the MB ebrochure (see page 71) that I just downloaded from the UK website, they only state one battery capacity for the A250e of 10.6kWh which is cited as usuable capacity. Most reviews seem to cite a battery capacity of 15.6kWh which I'm guessing is the capacity before they buffer the top and bottom.

Here is the link to the A class club where people are discussing different ranges achieved with the A250e A250e range

Regarding pure EV efficiency, owners of Ioniq and Soul report getting 4.5m/kWh or more, depending upon journey.

 

[MikeInWimbledon]

@MikeInWimbledon I checked the C200 petrol prices. The new ones with 1.5 engine and mild hybrid tech, seem to be going for just 18k for a 1 year old car at a MB dealer and that's with 2 years free servicing thrown in. I suspect the prices would drop closer to your £15k once the new C class starts deliveries this year. Apparently they are supposed to be better on petrol (around 40mpg) than before.

To clarify, I was comparing highly specified blue 2015 estates. which seem to be offered - not necessarily sold - at around the £15k level - which is £30k less than the list price of a highly specified C350e estate in 2015.

Sadly I can't afford new cars. "I'm just a poor boy from a poor family sparing my life from this monstrosity...." (called depreciation)

 

[Deleted member 126969]

@Chris-S Right, according to the MB ebrochure (see page 71) that I just downloaded from the UK website, they only state one battery capacity for the A250e of 10.6kWh which is cited as usuable capacity. Most reviews seem to cite a battery capacity of 15.6kWh which I'm guessing is the capacity before they buffer the top and bottom.

Here is the link to the A class club where people are discussing different ranges achieved with the A250e A250e range

Regarding pure EV efficiency, owners of Ioniq and Soul report getting 4.5m/kWh or more, depending upon journey.

Some impressive results on that A class thread. Some crap ones too, which does go to show how sensitive these things are to journey and driving style. If they are genuinely getting 4 miles/kWh then that really is impressive for a hybrid.

I got 8 miles on a charge yesterday from the C350e, pretty typical this time of year, so about 2 miles/kWh I reckon.

Hyundai are certainly getting the best efficiency by a good amount. Amongst the worst are Audi, Jaguar and...MB for EVs

 

[raspy]

To clarify, I was comparing highly specified blue 2015 estates. which seem to be offered - not necessarily sold - at around the £15k level - which is £30k less than the list price of a highly specified C350e estate in 2015.

Sadly I can't afford new cars. "I'm just a poor boy from a poor family sparing my life from this monstrosity...." (called depreciation)

@MikeInWimbledon Noted. I wouldn't pay much attention to list price when working out how much a car has depreciated. I don't know anyone who paid list price for a MB or BMW brand new in last 10 years.

In fact, I checked for a C200 brand new, and dealers are offering 27% discount of £10k on them, taking them from a list price of £37k to a price of £27k, and that's identical for cash or PCP.

 

[MercPassion]

@MikeInWimbledon My understanding is that battery warranty relates to miles travelled, regardless of what proportion was electric vs petrol.

I don't know anyone who has a battery replaced. Maybe they are cheaper (used ones on ebay etc for £1,500-£2,000)? Although, not sure how much labour is required to fit a replacement battery? That may be the expensive bit?

Bear in mind that the C350e in particular (like any PHEV) was designed as a compliance car in terms of being able to get lower company car taxes etc - and as a car alone, it has compromises, the biggest one being the extra weight, which affects the ride and handling even though they fitted airmatic. Secondly, the 2.0 petrol engine itself is rough and relatively thirsty, and I find the hybrid powertrain to be clunkier and worse at regen of energy than my 2016 Prius. I find the car is lovely at two extremes, either at very low speed on battery power in urban areas or cruising along on the motorway (I love the airmatic at high speeds)

Also note that in colder temps (like right now), range (like anything with a battery) drops considerably. In coldest winter, I might get 4 miles on battery power.

There are people who use the C350e (and other PHEVs) for short journeys on battery power and go quite a long time between filling the petrol tank up. I don't think the MB extended warranty is exactly the same as the manufacturer's original 3 year warranty, but it's fairly comprehensive and I pay £516 a year for my car.

I do not trust the MB hybrid system in terms of longevity (contrast MB to Toyota who offer extended hybrid battery cover up to 15 years from date of registration, provided you have an annual hybrid check) and whilst I've enjoyed my C350e (I bought privately for financial advantages in certain parts of London as well as hoping I could reduce my emissions on short journeys) I struggle to recommend it as a used private purchase as a 5+ year old car, unless you are happy to accept the compromises (of PHEVs in general) and are willing to take on the risk of the MB hybrid system causing problems later in the car's life.

I’ve only owned my C350e 66 plate 48K miles for 1year and just done 4K miles,my question is there anyone who has owned this car for many years and done plus 60,80,100K miles and what their overall experiences have been?

 

[MercPassion]

I’d be really (really!) surprised if a hybrid gets better range per kWh than a pure EV, and 4mile/kWh is better than the very best EV by a good margin. 40km, maybe, and impressive if true.

......ETA, just did some digging and I see the battery is 14.6kWh, not 10.6. That makes 40 miles more believable. It’ll never be as good as a pure EV while it still drives through an auto gearbox though. Good to see they did away with the conventional starter too. Be interested to see if the W205 C300e adopts this or not.

’ve only owned my C350e 66 plate 48K miles for 1year and just done 4K miles,my question is there anyone who has owned this car for many years and done plus 60,80,100K miles and what their overall experiences have been?

 

[MercPassion]

@MikeInWimbledon in addition to raspy's post it would also be useful to look at eKatie's post on this thread #5960. While prices may vary greatly from country to country, she was quoted 14-15k for the battery to be replaced in Finland.

It would be worth getting a capacity test on the battery before purchase for piece of mind.

The other side of this is that battery failures (as opposed to gradual degrading) appear to be very rare. After 6,000 posts on this forum you would think we would have a good idea of the amount of work involved in and the cost of a battery replacement in the UK or Ireland. The fact that we don't is a positive imo.

’ve only owned my C350e 66 plate 48K miles for 1year and just done 4K miles,my question; is there anyone who has owned this car for many years and done plus 60,80,100K miles and what their overall experiences have been?

 

[Deleted member 126969]

’ve only owned my C350e 66 plate 48K miles for 1year and just done 4K miles,my question is there anyone who has owned this car for many years and done plus 60,80,100K miles and what their overall experiences have been?

Can’t help you there. Bought ours new December ‘16 and it’s currently just under 8700 miles. About £3 a mile depreciation so far.

 

[zipdip]

Well not sure what help you need,I suspect you bought the C350e because it seemed great value,lets fact it a £40 grand plus car down to 15 grand for a 66 reg must seem like a good deal,but as I suspect you will find in this thread,that repairs can be expensive,and the distance you can drive on the electric is small,the car itself is fine,but always you have the thought that the battery may well need replacing or at least expensive repairs to the system that runs it, all that leaves the trade stone cold,and so the depreciation is great.
Just a thought but at £15 grand for a 66 plate just what is the trade buying them at,given that they might have to repair something and give a warranty most of the cars they get are ex lease or from main dealers so £13 grand is my guess.
But for those willing to take the risk it is a lot of car for the money.

 

[MercPassion]

Can’t help you there. Bought ours new December ‘16 and it’s currently just under 8700 miles. About £3 a mile depreciation so far.

Wow, great nice very low mileage there! so in these past 4years have you had any repair problems, even if covered under the 3yr warranty?