My R170 has been sold - I am looking for some help/advice on a W203/204

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Hi again Umble. Yes I was immediately attracted to the colour albeit I have a natural propensity towards the Royal Blue that is often seen on these cars - my birthstone is Sapphire.
Interestingly I have also located a rather tidy 2007 Silver C220 CDI also with 99,000 miles and a fully stamped service book that appears to have a fully loaded list of extras and an absolutely immaculate interior but upon closer examination of the dealers 68 sales images there appears to be a small amount of bubbling paintwork on the NS arch were it meets the short length of trim.

The Silver one is a tempting buy albeit £300.00 more than the Maroon one also the car is a 15th March 2007 registered example as opposed to the 2nd February 2006 of the Maroon one albeit the small pocket of corrosion should not be a major issue in the right hands/body shop.
Neither car will come any less in cost because of the current situation reducing the input of new stock.

 

[JBell]

View attachment 63323 The Silver one is a tempting buy albeit £300.00 more than the Maroon one also the car is a 15th March 2007 registered example as opposed to the 2nd February 2006 of the Maroon one albeit the small pocket of corrosion should not be a major issue in the right hands/body shop.
Neither car will come any less in cost because of the current situation reducing the input of new stock.

Buy the silver one and have the bodywork done

 

[grahamcol]

Yes, my money would be on the silver one l think. Small point on the red one, it looks like the headlight lenses need a refurb although maybe it's just a reflection from the indicators. Good luck.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Buy the silver one and have the bodywork done

Hi JB. Initially the silver 07 plate one is the most desirable and on balance has the better interior albeit there is a small area of damage on the driver seat backrest bolster which is being looked at and fixed by a travelling motor trim magician.

The Maroon 06 plate one has been identified as a facelift variant so on that basis apart from the individual toys there should be little or no difference in the mechanical spec.

My worry with the silver one is the position of the bubbling paintwork being that it is very close to the rear door jamb and could spell trouble around the area of the NS rear seat deck/boot floor.

I will speak with the seller tomorrow morning (Monday) and ask for better images of the trim damage and the bubbling paintwork.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Yes, my money would be on the silver one l think. Small point on the red one, it looks like the headlight lenses need a refurb although maybe it's just a reflection from the indicators. Good luck.

Hi Graham. Yes the slight issue with the headlights was identified on a video that the seller sent me - that is being addressed.

Both cars are circa 120 miles away and not do-able on the same day especially if I travel by National Express Coaches but driving to see/drive both cars is perfectly feasible subject to the silver one still being available.

One is in Tamworth and the other is in Leicester - I am in West Lancashire a short-ish hop from J26 of the M6

The Red/Maroon one has minor dings and blemishes on the paintwork which will be getting sorted on Wednesday and non of what I have seen raises any eyebrows.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

Looking at the photos on the LE7 sales site it looks like both rear wheel arches need work

 

[umblecumbuz]

The bubbling paintwork around the front of the rear wheel arches is a common fault with this model. On its own it is not a big problem because that small area is a separate panel that, if needed, can be replaced.
The bigger problem arises if the rust had spread to other nearby areas, which is why I earlier recommended examining the underside for rust.
If i was considering buying a 203, I would get the vendor to put the car on a ramp so that I could inspect the underside, especially at the rear of the car, before making my decision. Well worth doing with these.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Looking at the photos on the LE7 sales site it looks like both rear wheel arches need work

Hi Malcolm. Thank you for your observations - I have scanned all of the images again and can only see bubbling paint damage on two images which actually appear to be the same area - image #43 & image #68.
Just in front of the rear NS wheel following on from and just above the small piece of door trim.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

The bubbling paintwork around the front of the rear wheel arches is a common fault with this model. On its own it is not a big problem because that small area is a separate panel that, if needed, can be replaced.
The bigger problem arises if the rust had spread to other nearby areas, which is why I earlier recommended examining the underside for rust.
If i was considering buying a 203, I would get the vendor to put the car on a ramp so that I could inspect the underside, especially at the rear of the car, before making my decision. Well worth doing with these.

Hi again Umble. Looking again at the images of the Maroon car and the WhatsApp video that was sent to me there does not appear to be any current issue in the same region as the Silver one with this car - the video was provided before the car was/is considered ready for sale.
The ding/dent man is due on Wednesday and I have said that I will go down on Thursday late morning/lunchtime with a phone call beforehand.

There was no underbody rust/corrosion observed during the last two MoT's on the Maroon one but it was reported on the last MoT for the Silver one.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Hi to you all out there. Well having spoken with the seller in Leicester about the NS rear arch and having had my suspicions confirmed that at least the one arch had been had remedial work carried out and then having received images that confirmed my suspicions I have decided that the Maroon W203 is the one to pursue on Thursday.

The damage to the Bolster on the driver seat backrest is not something that I believe will be a successful long term repair (based upon my trade experience of non-leather (faux- leather)repairs.
I believe that the covering is a 'man-made' leather alternative to a Nappa leather which is basically a polyurethane sprayed onto a tightly woven background cloth such as cotton or a polycotton weave. See the tell-tale white showing at the point of damage.
The seller was proposing a surface repair on the bolster damage (A Cold Vinyl Weld using chemicals and a graining block) but would not entertain the idea of a repair on the arch.

 

[grayb]

What will C220CDI feel like to drive after a BMW 330i??? A lot less smooth and quiet, I would wager...

 

[Chrishazle]

As well as a lot less get up and go. At least being an MB, other road users should be more polite to you!

 

[grahamcol]

I agree on the less get up and go. However, the Om646 220CDI is supposed to be very reliable and good for massive mileages. You pays your money and takes your choice, l guess. I've got used to mine and l just drive it the way it seems to want to be driven, but I'm not a boy racer any more. I've got the SLK for that!
On the silver one, that arch rust looks bad. Unfortunate but hey ho and I'd run a mile. Good luck John on the maroon one.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

What will C220CDI feel like to drive after a BMW 330i??? A lot less smooth and quiet, I would wager...

Hi grayb. Having driven one some12 years ago when I first contemplated dipping my toes in the MB brand - I would say 'Stately'. or perhaps 'Pace with Grace'.

My 330i Touring Auto is rather rapid (it is certainly no slug) and has a slightly wroughty burble when under power.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

I agree on the less get up and go. However, the Om646 220CDI is supposed to be very reliable and good for massive mileages. You pays your money and takes your choice, l guess. I've got used to mine and l just drive it the way it seems to want to be driven, but I'm not a boy racer any more. I've got the SLK for that!
On the silver one, that arch rust looks bad. Unfortunate but hey ho and I'd run a mile. Good luck John on the maroon one.

Hi Graham. In truth I could not believe just how rapid my little SLK 230 Auto was,in fact it was just a little more rapid than the BMW 330i Touring Auto. At 75 years young my 'boy racer' days are long behind me but I do/did occasionally enjoy seeing the fronts of some boy racer machines at the traffic lights.
My 1997 Volvo V70 T5 CD Auto was a beast to behold and only a smidgeon faster than the SLK 230 0-60 time considering the extra weight that it had to move + the fact that it was front wheel drive.

 

[ARoosterinaRoadster]

Hi again to you all. Well after a load of searching through the images that I eventually received from the seller of the Maroon C220 CDI Auto Estate now that it is declared ready for sale I am faced with three choices.
!) Buy it On-Line and pay for delivery.

2) Buy it on line and travel down there and collect it myself.

3) Wait until Lock-down has ceased and physically go down there and examine the car and see for myself what has been done and arrange delivery.

The uncertainty of buying blind I find quite unnerving.

There is however now a forth option - find one much nearer to home albeit they have all been Silver and few with leather interiors.
I have located a 15th March (07) plate with 118,500 miles with full service history that I can go and see/drive on Saturday morning.

 

[grahamcol]

Well John you have a bit of a dilemma. Personally l'd never buy a car without examining and driving it. Others may take a different view but l'm rather fussy and l can virtually guarantee I'll find something fairly obvious that needs resolving. My recently purchased CLK is a case in point. It was supposedly more or less perfect, but after travelling well over 100 miles to see it, l immediately picked up on two quite noticeable dents in the bonnet (subsequently rectified foc). If I'd had already agreed a sale it would have been a little more awkward getting them dealt with foc. To be fair, in my case the seller has an excellent reputation but why take any chances? Good luck and l hope it all works out satisfactorily in the end.

 

[malcolm E53 AMG]

^+1 I’d want to see the car especially buying at that age of vehicle. I bought my BMW unseen with a deposit but it was 4 years old with 6k miles on the clock from a franchised dealer and I had the option to refuse the car when I picked it up from them.

Not a good time to buy at the moment I’d keep the BMW a while longer and take your time finding the right car. I think you’ll miss the 330i engine a bit thirsty but if you do few miles a petrol is a much better choice IMO

Good luck whichever way you go