Liking this.

[Darrell]

Is this the model with engine parts made from cheese?

Pardon our interruption...

 

[W1ghty]

Is this the model with engine parts made from cheese?

Pardon our interruption...

Yes M271 engine , entering the window of possible chain issues at 80k+ I believe . A few seconds of chain rattle at start is a hopeful warning sign . £1500 ish job at a specialist?

 

[Darrell]

Yes M271 engine , entering the window of possible chain issues at 80k+ I believe . A few seconds of chain rattle at start is a hopeful warning sign . £1500 ish job at a specialist?

Shame tbh cos it looks clean.

 

[W1ghty]

Shame tbh cos it looks clean.

Never know it may have had the chain and cams done already .

 

[tlzeebub]

Not sure that the paint colour on the front end matches the rest of the car, maybe a trick of the light but you never know

 

[Will]

Is a 17/18 year old M271 engined C180 saloon really worth £3.5k?

I’m probably out of touch with prices but thought at this sort of age/mileage it would be half that amount or something.

I’d be looking at W204s with that budget or for a couple of £k more there must be some early 205s out there which are leagues ahead of a W203 in every respect

 

[SpikyMikey]

Not sure that the paint colour on the front end matches the rest of the car, maybe a trick of the light but you never know

I wondered if it had had new wings, which wouldn't be unusual I guess.

 

[Darrell]

Is a 17/18 year old M271 engined C180 saloon really worth £3.5k?

I’m probably out of touch with prices but thought at this sort of age/mileage it would be half that amount or something.

I’d be looking at W204s with that budget or for a couple of £k more there must be some early 205s out there which are leagues ahead of a W203 in every respect

Who knows what its ’worth’
It’s worth what a buyer is willing to pay for it I suppose.

At the beginning of 2023 an RS500 Cosworth went for £600,000 odd at auction. Was that particular car worth over half a million notes?

 

[markjay]

It's the last year the W203 was made, so a well sorted model. It has Audio20, which isn't a problem because the optional COMAND NTG2 that would have come with it would be outdated now anyway (and neither model have built-in Bluetooth hands-free anyway).

The car does look nice in the photos, though it does appear from some angles that the front wings and bonnet may have been resprayed at some point?

The MOT history is full of fails and advisories over suspension parts, nothing major but certainly justifies checking the suspension properly before buying.

Other than the obvious looming timing gear issue, other typical faults are Front Passenger Seat Occupancy Sensor Mat, Steering Wheel Angle Sensor (aka 'clock spring'), wires inside the side mirrors (if electrically folding), split vacuum hose under the air cleaner box, thermostat (very easy job), and leaking Camshaft Position Sensors (aka 'hall sensors' or 'magnets').

I ran a near-identical car for 9 years, and absolutely loved it.

 

[markjay]

BTW, the brushed aluminium trim (instead of wood-effect) suggests that this is the Sport model, rather than the Classic.

If so, then it will have lowered and stiffened suspension, and staggered wheels set-up (where the rear tyres are wider than the front ones). However, the wheels will still be 16". From memory, it will have 205/55R16 at the front, and 225/50R16 at the rear

It will also have a slightly deeper spoiler, and more pronounced side-skirts.

Not an issue as such, and certainly visually more pleasing than the Classic, but personally I preferred the road clearance and ride comfort of the higher and softer car.

 

[MSG2004]

I had two of these of the years, ie my first MB's - both black
The first one was the se/classic model IIRC a 2003 car bought in 2004 and the second one was a 2007 model Avantgarde bought in early 2008.
I sold both cars with less than 50k on the clock
I sold The second MB (2007 car) several months after I bought my brand-new GLE in 2016. The 2007 C class, from 2010, until I sold it around Sept 2016, I only had oil and filter changes on it. It was a bit rattly on cold start but never let us down other than both had suspension problems etc - both were bought from MB (The Avantgarde models had the green tints and IIRC the classic had blueish tints)

IIRC, sold the 2007 car in 2016 for 3500 to WBAC - I was happy with the price as they paid me almost every penny of the advertised price.. What we must not forget is car prices have shot up, Eg, my GLE I paid close to 50k rrp, which was just shy of
52k IIRC - now the same model, ie amg line equivalent is around 80k .

I paricualry like the the part-leather seats as they were not as cold as leather in the winter or as hot in the summer.

 

[MSG2004]

BTW, the brushed aluminium trim (instead of wood-effect) suggests that this is the Sport model, rather than the Classic.

If so, then it will have lowered and stiffened suspension, and staggered wheels set-up (where the rear tyres are wider than the front ones). However, the wheels will still be 16". From memory, it will have 205/55R16 at the front, and 225/50R16 at the rear

It will also have a slightly deeper spoiler, and more pronounced side-skirts.

Not an issue as such, and certainly visually more pleasing than the Classic, but personally I preferred the road clearance and ride comfort of the higher and softer car.

It's like the car I had, mine was in black an Avantgarde model - the inside is exactly the same - I can't recall the alloys on it

 

[Darrell]

BTW, the brushed aluminium trim (instead of wood-effect) suggests that this is the Sport model, rather than the Classic.

If so, then it will have lowered and stiffened suspension, and staggered wheels set-up (where the rear tyres are wider than the front ones). However, the wheels will still be 16". From memory, it will have 205/55R16 at the front, and 225/50R16 at the rear

It will also have a slightly deeper spoiler, and more pronounced side-skirts.

Not an issue as such, and certainly visually more pleasing than the Classic, but personally I preferred the road clearance and ride comfort of the higher and softer car.

My sister had one new as her first company car in 2005. Hers was black though with a manual box.

We’d just bought a manual 202 which they were impressed with.

 

[Darrell]

We’re looking at early 204’s as well but this just caught my eye because it looked clean.

 

[markjay]

We’re looking at early 204’s as well but this just caught my eye because it looked clean.

Unfortunately the M274 replaced the M271 only in 2012, which makes it a face-lift model.

Having said that, the Turbo models of the M271 (CGI) in the W204 had a modified timing time, which actually failed as well... but not in the same catastrophic way as the Kompressor engine.

 

[Darrell]

Unfortunately the M274 replaced the M271 only in 2012, which makes it a face-lift model.

Having said that, the Turbo models of the M271 (CGI) in the W204 had a modified timing time, which actually failed as well... but not in the same catastrophic way as the Kompressor engine.

I’ll buy another Fiesta.