Spotted: W212 Facelift with Avantgarde Grill

[KillerHERTZ]

Just spotted this German Registered W212 Facelift outside my local Sainsburys.

Far better front end than the 'Sports grill' front end we got in the UK IMO

Nice colour too!

 

[daveenty]

Worst "I shop at Sainsburys" thread ever.

Are these grills available over here? Wouldn't mind that, along with the gunsight, on mine.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Should be available through any dealers with the part numbers to import over, however I believe you need the Avantgarde bumper aswell.

 

[renault12ts]

They should be available if you order a new car...but they are not. It's an MBUK thing.

You can get it in RHD if you buy in Ireland though.

Since all cars are built on the same line and all are different, it does seem MBUK are excessively controlling the "look" for this market.

 

[daveenty]

Shame that, I like the subtle look.

 

[def90cars]

They should be available if you order a new car...but they are not. It's an MBUK thing.

You can get it in RHD if you buy in Ireland though.

Since all cars are built on the same line and all are different, it does seem MBUK are excessively controlling the "look" for this market.

I know you probably know this, but they are NOT all build on the same line... maybe UK ones are

The problem is do do with Production Planning and sales forecasting. Removing any options from the process reduces the complexity of the process. It means in simple terms they can predict the demand more easily and there "pre-order" some production spots even before the car is sold.

They normally do this on a "how many ordered" vs. "how much does it cost" basis. I think you will find that they saw a) most people didn't want the "classic" look and b) the "sport" option was more profitable for them.

When I worked at Rastatt we calculated 5.4 TRILLION variants of the B-Class were possible. MBUK confirmed that 85% were dealer preorders and covered about 500 variants.

 

[renault12ts]

I know you probably know this, but they are NOT all build on the same line... maybe UK ones are

The problem is do do with Production Planning and sales forecasting. Removing any options from the process reduces the complexity of the process. It means in simple terms they can predict the demand more easily and there "pre-order" some production spots even before the car is sold.

They normally do this on a "how many ordered" vs. "how much does it cost" basis. I think you will find that they saw a) most people didn't want the "classic" look and b) the "sport" option was more profitable for them.

When I worked at Rastatt we calculated 5.4 TRILLION variants of the B-Class were possible. MBUK confirmed that 85% were dealer preorders and covered about 500 variants.

But are cars destined for Ireland then built on a different line>

 

[fab1975]

The W205 C Class (and probably even the current E class) is available with the classic grille and the bonnet-mounted star in at least the following countries:
- Australia

- Austria

- Canada

- China

- France

- Germany

- Italy

- Malaysia

- Mexico

- Netherlands

- New Zealand

- Poland

- Portugal

- Republic of Ireland

- Russian Federation

- Saudi Arabia

- Spain

- South Africa

- South Korea

- Sweden

- Switzerland

- United States of America

Why is the UK the only major market in the world where that option is not available? As you have seen, the above list includes both LHD and RHD models.
My car was built in South Africa, where local customers can still buy C as well as E class models with the classic grille.
I know I sound like a broken record, but for me this lack of choice in the UK is still an open wound (or a first world problem, if you prefer).

 

[KillerHERTZ]

Simple, virtually all W204s were ordered over here without the bonnet star. MB do what the market dictates and over here it seems customers prefer the 'sport' model

 

[Deleted member 37751]

Simple, virtually all W204s were ordered over here without the bonnet star. MB do what the market dictates and over here it seems customers prefer the 'sport' model

That's not quite correct and slightly misleading; Mercedes broke with tradition to fit the sport grille to a saloon/estate and also if the Sport model had come with bonnet star and Avantgarde grille I doubt they'd have sold any less.

 

[KillerHERTZ]

The non-sport avant-garde models started coming without bonnet stars also. It's supply and demand, bonnet stars just aren't popular here. I do remember reading an article about it, ME mag maybe?

 

[fab1975]

Simple, virtually all W204s were ordered over here without the bonnet star. MB do what the market dictates and over here it seems customers prefer the 'sport' model

Was it actually the case? No disrespect, it is a genuine question. The problem is that I have heard so many explanations on why the UK is so different from virtually any other market in the world, but none was really convincing. One year ago a MB salesman in Stockport went even further and told me that only 4 face-lift W204 had been sold with the classic grille here in the UK; as I don't have access to the official stats I have no option but to trust him, but it is curious that at least 3 of those 4 had been sold to people living in my small neighborhood

As for the E class, before the facelift the only option was the classic grille, so the above argument could have not applied anyway.

I like my car (otherwise I would have not bought it), but I feel like one of the most important customization options (like for example the engine or the colour) has been de facto imposed by MB UK.

 

[Deleted member 37751]

The non-sport avant-garde models started coming without bonnet stars also. It's supply and demand, bonnet stars just aren't popular here. I do remember reading an article about it, ME mag maybe?

Even though I don't agree with the change in direction, I don't think anyone can deny how by making them more sporty and Audi-esque that they've shed the fussy-duddy imagine to an extent and shifted a lot more metal especially to youngsters.

 

[Alf Barnet]

Beautiful, just beautiful. Personally I would have specced the grill had the option been there - was it any different to me ordering burr walnut or the petrol engine on the oddness scale?

 

[fab1975]

Even though I don't agree with the change in direction, I don't think anyone can deny how by making them more sporty and Audi-esque that they've shed the fussy-duddy imagine to an extent and shifted a lot more metal especially to youngsters.

That is exactly the problem: everywhere else in the world MB gives its customers the option to choose between a sportier and a more classic (IMHO classier) front, whereas in the UK the choice is made by someone in Milton Keynes who pretends to know what MY preference is

 

[renault12ts]

The non-sport avant-garde models started coming without bonnet stars also. It's supply and demand, bonnet stars just aren't popular here. I do remember reading an article about it, ME mag maybe?

Supply and demand determines price.

In this case there is no lack of supply and the demand is such as to not lead to additional cost. However...there is bad faith. It wouldn't cost MB a thought to supply what the customer wants if ordering from new.

 

[PhilLinda]

That's why I bought a pre-facelift S212 Sport. Much prefer the classic grill with bonnet star.


Sent from my iPad using Tapatalk

 

[gIzzE]

Mercedes UK needed to shift metal, remember how many C and E Classes that had sitting in fields across the UK back in 2008? It was 10's of thousands.
How do you shift metal? Make them cheap.
How do you make them cheap? Have very limited variations which keeps production at full pace and means when you slow down you can just make cars with pretty standard specs you know you will sell for customers who can't wait or into the lease companies.


Look at the price of a UK E Class compared to a German one, spec a German E220 SE to match UK spec and we are a hell of a lot cheaper, even with the euro at around 1.40 to the pound we are still cheaper, last year at 1.12 they were silly cheap.
UK car was £34k and the same car in Germany was €51,000.

I guess Mercedes have to try and get the prices to a point that the UK market will stand for, this is one way to do it.

Same as they are doing with packs at the moment.

 

[nick mercedes]

Heritage grille as it's known.

 

[190]

Quite a few pre-faclift W204's were supplied with the bonnet star and classic grill but many owners seem to want to change them to the sports grill. So if anyone wants a classic grill there should be plenty for sale. It would be interesting to have both and when the time comes to sell put out two adverts to see which sells the car.