Door 'Chunk' or 'Twang' ???

[ddentrec]

• 1985 M-B W123 200T. 378,512 miles. Driver's door shuts with a solid 'Chunk' sound and feel.

• 2005 M-b W211 E200. 600 miles. Driver's door shuts with a pathetic 'twang' and even the top door frame (dare I say it) seems to wobble ever so slightly.

Discuss.

 

[blicky_1]

• 1985 M-B W123 200T. 378,512 miles. Driver's door shuts with a solid 'Chunk' sound and feel.

• 2005 M-b W211 E200. 600 miles. Driver's door shuts with a pathetic 'twang' and even the top door frame (dare I say it) seems to wobble ever so slightly.

Discuss.

I think you have answered your own question, it's all about the build quailty!!

 

[Dave Lewis]

Cars designed by accountants.

 

[guydewdney]

1997 W140 door shuts with a 'click, pssssssssssst, thonk'

unless you slam it - in which case its a "dooooooooomp"

 

[andy_k]

I wonder what sort of condition the W211 will be in 20 years and another 300,000 miles down the line?

Scrapped/ recycled/ knackered is my guess.

They don't make 'em like they used to because if they did very few people would be able to afford them.

I've said this before and it's worth repeating, 25 years ago a Merc was a prestige car and relatively rare sight on British roads now you can buy a new one for the same price as a Mondeo - I suspect a few compromises have been made at some point

Andy

 

[Robbo]

Another reason the cars have been made lighter and flimsier is most likely down to emission regulations and fuel economy. Thats quite important to a lot of buyers these days. A two ton tank isnt going to be great in this area unfortunately.

 

[996jimbo]

If you can buy a fake dump valve for a non-turbo engine maybe you can buy an electronic 'chunker' for the doors?

 

[KLP 92]

1997 W140 door shuts with a 'click, pssssssssssst, thonk'

unless you slam it - in which case its a "dooooooooomp"

Nicely put

 

[C240Sport97]

But a Merc is still vastly more expensive than a Mondeo ...

MB pricing is still higher than Audi or BMW or even Porsche (though like for like comparisons are difficult). It is still the most expensive 'mass market' luxury brand.

Truth is, MB is paying for the expensive Chrysler acquisition, the SMART hugely loss making venture and the disastrous 'investment' in Mitsubishi.

I've said this before and it's worth repeating, 25 years ago a Merc was a prestige car and relatively rare sight on British roads now you can buy a new one for the same price as a Mondeo - I suspect a few compromises have been made at some point

Andy

 

[C43AMG]

2000 C43 "chunk"

 

[Deleted member 2227]

2000 C200 still "chunk" after 90,000 miles

 

[Doodle]

1997 C250TD - definitely a chunk
1995 SL500 - "chunk"? It's like the vault door at Fort Knox.

 

[Flash]

The chunk/click noise on any of the MBs after W126 generation (except for the W140) in my opinion is not the same...

 

[Andyni]

1997 W210 : Squeak......... thud!! Must put some grease on that.

 

[glojo]

When we first had our 211 I was far from happy about how the doors closed.

The dealers looked at this problem on numerous occassions and stated it was acceptable!!!

One day I had occassion to call out Mobilio and during the repair the technician had difficulty closing the drivers door. He did not want to slam it, so the thing failed to close securely. (It only shut on the first 'notch')

I pointed this out and he then adjusted all four doors!!!! They now ALL close in that very solid kaa Donkkk... no, more of a donk noise

I once saw a very interesting documentary where a car manufacturer was spending large sums of money solely on making the door closing noise sound 'more solid', they also scent the leather to make it smell more 'expensive'

So my advice is if the door doesn't close properly or, sound like it isn't closing.....Get it fixed.

The door of the 211 is a heavy old beast with I believe tubular steel strengthening??? Our old 210 was rammed on its nearside, the offending Renault was wrote off, but both nearside doors of our 210 still opened and closed!!! Unbelievable, but very true, I have no idea how well the much better constructed older Mercedes-Benz would stand up to a similar collision, but I am very grateful to Mercedes-Benz for making such strong doors on their modern E-class and possibly saving my daughter from serious injury??

I totally accept that older Mercedes-Benz are very solid, but the newer ones are still extremely safe.

Regards,
John

 

[big x]

True to some extent,but remember total car weights are in fact increasing due to more electrical gubbins,increased class size,increased performance and crash test requirements.Modern body structures are far more solid per kg of metal employed than older cars due to better design.Take a look at the razor thin shut lines on many recent cars to see the increase in quality of the 211 over say the W210.

adam

I wonder what sort of condition the W211 will be in 20 years and another 300,000 miles down the line?

Scrapped/ recycled/ knackered is my guess.

They don't make 'em like they used to because if they did very few people would be able to afford them.

I've said this before and it's worth repeating, 25 years ago a Merc was a prestige car and relatively rare sight on British roads now you can buy a new one for the same price as a Mondeo - I suspect a few compromises have been made at some point

Andy