New Merc owner .. unsure what to expect ..

[mickster]

Hello Guys,

I'm about to buy my friends 2005 Blue C220 Diesel Elegance Saloon with 70k on the clock.
It's been garaged for almost 10 years and taken out on the road every 3 weeks or so.

Looking forward to having an auto box again but have heard some horror stories about these cars in the snow.

To that end for this coming winter I will be fitting Nokian Weatherproof Tyres (these are not winter tyres but winter rated all season tyres ). ... we had similar on our cars in Canada for years (now back in the UK) .... anyone fitted them to a W203?

Also are these reliable cars ?

I've removed the DAB Pioneer unit from my old car but understand that the Merc only has a rear window aerial.

Has anyone drilled & fitted and new external DAB antenna or is there a better way to go.

I almost feel guilty getting rid of my old runaround as it has been so reliable .... is that normal

Its a low mileage diesel Fiat Sedici / Suzuki SX4 4x4 that has been well maintained.

I don't think that my mate has had the transmission serviced lately on the W203 .... it's probably a good idea to get it serviced .... thoughts please ?

Also any ideas what it might cost ... is there a recommended oil to use etc .....

Any other tips or recommendations would be greatly appreciated.

take care

Mick

 

[W1ghty]

Gearbox service , yes , every 40k miles . Cost at Independent £200 ish for the 722.6 gearbox 5g
Under £100 diy , which is an ok job on the 5g .
Fuchs atf 4134 from eBay .
There is plenty on YouTube and the forums diy section buddy
Yes Winters/all seasons up North are the way to go

 

[Sweetooth]

Hi and welcome

 

[Chrishazle]

You're lucky that it's a 2006 as that means you're clear of a lot of the rust and paint problems that early 203's were prone to. My first MB was a 2001 S203 C270, the ATF was not changed until about 70k, and even then it was only the box (4l of ATF) and filter as also changing the TC fluid (so 7l not 4!) on a 203 is a PITA. The box was only slightly smoother after the ATF/filter change, so I don't agree with Wighty's "every 40k miles" comment, my S204 C220 with the same 5 speed box had its first ATF change at almost 100k and again the difference was negligible. 203's are useless in snow unless you have winter tyres, don't know if in North Yorkshire all season tyres will be adequate. My 203 first winter I had almost new Falkens, could not even get off the swept driveway so bought a set of winter wheels/tyres (over £800 from MB), following winter did not even need to sweep the driveway to get out!

IIRC the box only ATF/filter change on my S03 was about £160 at a respected local indie (stay away from MB main dealer, get local recommendations on here or you'll get your wallet raped!).

As for what to expect - late 203's are good cars, I would still have my S203 except that, while getting my winter wheels changed back to summers at our local main dealer, they had an S204 on their forecourt that was just about everything I was looking for but not expecting to find at that price for another couple of years, so I rapidly went from killing time to negociating cost to swop as IMHO the cabin of the 204 is much nicer than the 203!

Thinking a bit more, how much service history do you have with the car? For education, the service interval for your car will be 2 years/15.5k miles but there are items that are time dependant (brake fluid 2 years, air and fuel filters 4 years etc) so Google MB ESS to compare what has been done against MB recommendations. I'd hazard a guess that for peace of mind you may be wise to get the car to a respected indie for a full B service including air and fuel filters, possibly brake pads and discs, as well as the ATF/filter change, so a bill for £600+, but that engine is pretty bullet proof if well maintained so should give you many years of trouble free motoring and 45-55+MPG depending on use.

 

[mickster]

This is all great info guys .. thank you.
Anymore thought on whether to go for a magnetic dab windscreen mount antenna or some kind of derivative

Or take plunge, drill a hole and mount a proper dab aerial ?

thangs again

Mick

 

[MrGreedy]

I never had any problems with my V6 manual gearbox if you were careful in the snow. I have a little experience of driving in the snow (every winter for 10 years, up to 10 years ago). Maybe the auto box is different.

The w203 is often getting pretty unloved these days, so that means you can probably pick up a set of second hand alloys for peanuts and get a set of winter wheels with proper winter tyres, if you have the space. Then summer tyres for the rest of the time.


The biggest problem on these cars rust wise will be brake pipes, subframe and rear wheel arches. Galvanised or not, the large lip on the wheel arch can retain surprising amounts of mud, and therefore over winter act as a reservoir of wet, salty liquid. I recommend very regular cleaning of the wheel arches. Get a pressure washer/hosepipe j-shaped end/long reach nozzle to give them a good rinse out before washing.

 

[Gollom]

Welcome!

Keep the runabout for snowy weather. As others have said and will say, RWD Mercs even with winter tyres are total rubbish in the snow (I used the Ka my wife had then!)

As for audio, I'd leave it original with maybe upgraded speakers. Unless you are a real audiophile the Audio 20 (guessing that is what it has) is not too bad at all (IMHO)