W204 spec level change

[wezza36]

I popped into the local dealership this afternoon to enquire about a new C350 CDI and was told by the salesman that the spec levels are changing for June production.
I was wondering if anyone else was thinking of getting a new C Class and if so are they aware of this change.

 

[st13phil]

Although not in the market for a new car, I remain friendly with the salesman who I bought my W212 from last year and he told me a week or so back that for the W204:

• The Elegance trim option is being dropped
• All W204's are to have the large star three-bar grill
• The range will become: SE, Sport, Sport Plus
• Sport will be on 17's
• Sport Plus will be on 18's and have extra kit (I don't know what)

Your dealer should be able to tell you exactly what the differences are - they've been briefed already.

 

[Rayza]

I just picked up my c class 250cdi sport and dealer did mention that from June it will not have the ils system and have 17 " wheels. Sport plus will have them along with spoiler. Not sure about pricing or what other options/ changes there will be.

 

[redbaron]

All mercs models have spec changes every june - some years it is big - some years it is a tweek... sounds like they are countering the new 3er....

 

[grober]

Although not in the market for a new car, I remain friendly with the salesman who I bought my W212 from last year and he told me a week or so back that for the W204:

• The Elegance trim option is being dropped
• All W204's are to have the large star three-bar grill
• The range will become: SE, Sport, Sport Plus
• Sport will be on 17's
• Sport Plus will be on 18's and have extra kit (I don't know what)

Your dealer should be able to tell you exactly what the differences are - they've been briefed already.

Typical ----MB UK f***ing up choice for the British market again. Pretty soon the only colours you will be able to order will be Iridium silver or Obsidian Black! That's what happens when you let accountants run companies -- tunnel vision simply doesn't do it justice.

 

[redbaron]

Why is losing Elegance an issue - it is a kiss of death resale wise?

It is not as if suspension is an issue as car can be specced without sport suspension at no cost.

 

[grober]

Why is losing Elegance an issue - it is a kiss of death resale wise?

It is not as if suspension is an issue as car can be specced without sport suspension at no cost.

It goes to lack of customer choice. For the W204 I want the choice of a traditional grille with an emblem on the bonnet thanks. As for specifying comfort suspension on any Sport model forget it- it's not an option. You can always uprate suspension but with very few exceptions down rating is not an option. E class Avantgarde spec can be downrated to comfort spec I believe possibly a sop to the fact the Elegance trim model is not available in the UK Are you aware there are cheaper/alternative spec versions of the C class coupe available in other markets for example. Its MB UK who decided we all wanted the expensive blinged up boy racer version. Its not rocket science all these cars are made on the same production line you just stick on a few different bits when you are assembling them. Its the fact that MB UK are deciding what their customers want rather than their customers deciding for themselves that's so annoying . Their motivation is to make more money-- the result-- loss of potential customers. Idiots!

 

[redbaron]

It goes to lack of customer choice. For the W204 I want the choice of a traditional grille with an emblem on the bonnet thanks. As for specifying comfort suspension on any Sport model forget it- it's not an option. You can always uprate suspension but with very few exceptions down rating is not an option. E class Avantgarde spec can be downrated to comfort spec I believe possibly a sop to the fact the Elegance trim model is not available in the UK Are you aware there are cheaper/alternative spec versions of the C class coupe available in other markets for example. Its MB UK who decided we all wanted the expensive blinged up boy racer version. Its not rocket science all these cars are made on the same production line you just stick on a few different bits when you are assembling them. Its the fact that MB UK are deciding what their customers want rather than their customers deciding for themselves that's so annoying . Their motivation is to make more money-- the result-- loss of potential customers. Idiots!

Did they decide or did the market? The customers as a whole "want" larger wheels / sport / bling. Merc UK / dealers try their best to sell what punters want... Dealers cant sell elegance models.. they can sell sport models. It has been this way for years.. run out 203's were the prime examples.. Classic SE without sport pack was a tough sell. Elegance without sport pack was "difficult" - throw a sport pack at either and they disappeared out of the showroom as if by magic.. the run out sport editions (with the 6 spoke wheels) sold like hot cakes.. even though the new E90 3er at the time was a fundamentally better / cleaner / low tax car.

 

[grober]

It always comes down to the "chicken and egg " argument. If dealers only stock sports models then that's what people buy. When they come to analyse the sales figures the figures tell them "everybody buys the sports models " so they then only take sports models [ in black or silver the most popular colours ] into stock What starts as a justifiably popular model becomes the only model . Mercedes used to make cars that were distinctive from BMW and Audi. It would appear that that now they just wish to emulate them. That spells disaster as the market share figures in recent years show. How many times do you read in reviews Mercedes have made a much better handling car-----but the BMW [ substitute the appropriate model line here] is the better drivers car. The way to sell cars in the long term is to offer customers variety --something different --something individual---- not simply a clone of something else. Especially if the other clones are better!

The trend in many car designs now is "individualisation" where prospective buyers can choose from a wide variety of finishes and trims external and internal to personalise their cars- witness the Citroen DS3 and Fiat 500 Alfa Romeo Guilietta and the forthcoming Mercedes A class as examples . Not suggesting Mercedes goes the whole hog this way but reducing customer choice in a competitive market is a suicidal move imho. It smacks of the reductionist thinking so typical of people trained in an "accountancy view" of the world.

 

[st13phil]

The customers as a whole "want" larger wheels / sport / bling. Merc UK / dealers try their best to sell what punters want... Dealers cant sell elegance models.. they can sell sport models.

This customer doesn't want larger wheels / sport / bling, so I'm with grober on this.

The argument about dealers having to unload less popular variants is specious. Dealer don't stock every possible variant of every model - that would be ludicrous - so it's up to them to stock what they believe they can sell. Other options can and should be available for factory order. What baffles and infuriates me is that MB-UK won't let the customer order what's available for other markets.

 

[wezza36]

Typical ----MB UK f***ing up choice for the British market again. Pretty soon the only colours you will be able to order will be Iridium silver or Obsidian Black! That's what happens when you let accountants run companies -- tunnel vision simply doesn't do it justice.

Calcite white is being replaced with Polar white and 3 new colours are being added to the line-up, 1 being Dolomite brown or as some might choose to call it Dog****e brown

 

[st13phil]

1 being Dolomite brown or as some might choose to call it Dog****e brown

True story:

Back in the 1990's BMW Motorrad introduced the R1100RT touring motorcycle. One of the colours for the UK was a horrible reddy-brown colour. This was due to the simple fact that the guy in BMW UK who was responsible for deciding which colours were available for the UK market was colour blind. You just couldn't make it up

 

[redbaron]

This customer doesn't want larger wheels / sport / bling, so I'm with grober on this.

This customer doesn't want a an understeering gimmer spec - wood and hubcaps car that looks like it came from Avis...

 

[Aletank]

I've never been a Elegance kinda guy but yesterday there was a W204 Elegance 61 plate facelift model in Tesco car park, I really liked it !
I got home and looked them up on Autotrader and the new ones looked lovely, the interiors with the wood really look the part and the exterior is what originally caught my eye !

 

[st13phil]

This customer doesn't want a an understeering gimmer spec - wood and hubcaps car that looks like it came from Avis...

How very wrong you are. It's that kind of arrogance that loses sales. You may like the "thrusting sports saloon" image and the carp ride and opressive black interior that comes with it, but I and many others don't. That makes your preference no less and no more valid than anyone elses.

As an aside, I noticed that in the JD Power UK "Driver Power" survey for 2012 that the E-Class has been voted Best Executive Saloon. And that, despite the motoring press telling everyone that the 5-Series is best and the A6 next best. Perhaps if the importers paid less attention to the out-of-step journo's and more to what their customer base is telling them, we'd get cars that we really want rather than those we're told we should have.

 

[redbaron]

How very wrong you are. It's that kind of arrogance that loses sales.

How does my arrogance lose Mercedes sales?

 

[grober]

This customer doesn't want a an understeering gimmer spec - wood and hubcaps car that looks like it came from Avis...

This customer doesn't want a Pimp My Ride Spec that looks as if came from acewhips .net--- the hunt for that "big wheel look "can only end in tragi-comedy as this vid illustrates. Chevy Camaro

But we are missing the point here---- nobody wants to deny anyone their choice of spec of Mercedes except apparently MB UK.

 

[st4]

Sport plus spec sounds awesome....

Not an elegance fan but sad the choice is going.

 

[redbaron]

But we are missing the point here---- nobody wants to deny anyone their choice of spec of Mercedes except apparently MB UK.

And the customer can order a car with normal suspension and 16" wheels if they want with the new specs - it is called SE.. IF they want to then add bits to an SE to make it like an old Elegance they can...

The choice is still there.. the only bit that has gone is the star on the top of the bonnet... but aero / crash regs was always going to get it in the end....

And ebay will no doubt supply one for those owners that really want it....

Am unsure why I'm being vilified as a demon for pointing out that most people in the market for a 4dr exec saloon want a sport spec.. I note the letters SE after my daily driver in my profile... and it has std 50 profile tyres

 

[grober]

My guess the "new" sport with 17inch wheels = the old Avantgarde spec car which we didn't get before ---- the " new" Sport plus = the old AMG kitted car with some red sewing on the seat trim PLUS a price hike. However that's speculation till we see what''s on offer ---or not in the case of the Elegance. I still haven't heard a decent justification as to why a model line available in other markets--- so the components to build one readily exist on the production line ------is not to be offered to customers in the UK?