4 month wait for new C class

[John Laidlaw]

which is what I have now done. Cheesed off and tempted to try Audi BMW Jaguar Volvo or Range Rover next time.

 

[John Laidlaw]

Test drove the Range rover evoque today. Really surprised quite brilliant!
great kit, build quality and generally sorted.....guess what?

 

[Grotbag]

Test drove the Range rover evoque today. Really surprised quite brilliant!
great kit, build quality and generally sorted.....guess what?

Still not as good as a Merc?

 

[John Laidlaw]

correct! However, and with some regret, I am moving on. Audi A6 Ultra Black Edition Avant ordered today..Dakota Grey metallic, full leather S Line seating, panoramic full length sunroof, electric seating and mirrors, heated with memory.
that's apart from the very well specc'd list anyway. Delivery 1st September.
I will miss Mercedes for a couple of years (although if things go right in the next 12 months I will be looking for a 'hobby' SL alongside the 'work' car)

 

[nickcbutler]

Sounds nice but all new audi models coming out this year and next and word is they look awesome. Might be worth waiting

 

[grober]

Sounds nice but all new audi models coming out this year and next and word is they look awesome. Might be worth waiting

When you mentioned AUDI and ALL NEW alarm bells started to go off. I would seriously be wary of buying any "all new " model from any prestige German manufacturer. Increasingly manufacturers, seemingly desperate to get new product on the market before their rivals appear to be content to let the customer perform their undeveloped product testing in the first few years of ownership. Usually they manage to get most of the teething troubles fixed by the time the mid life facelift models come along!

 

[nickcbutler]

I think they know what they're doing by now

 

[John Laidlaw]

true. The new A6 won't be until late 2017, so at least mine won't date too quickly. By then I will likely be back in an E

 

[grober]

I think they know what they're doing by now

Like Mercedes knew what they were doing with Piezo injectors, their M272 balance shaft gears and Sensotronic brakes ? Like AUDI knew what they were doing with the first dry clutch DSG gearboxes or their CVT transmissions? Like BMW knew what they were doing with their N47 ENGINE timing chains? These were all trumpeted as "state of the art/fully tried and tested " developments when introduced but destined to be replaced or subject to much modification during the model's lifetime. This isn't trivial stuff- these are major failures putting relatively new expensive cars off the road for weeks.
All I am saying is that new models often incorporate new and relatively untested technologies. "Early purchasers" have to realise that increasingly they are functioning as guinea pigs for this stuff that's all.

 

[nickcbutler]

That's why you get a minimum three year warranty. I'm on my fifth new Mercedes... Touch wood never had a problem

 

[Maniac]

I guess I was lucky to get my new C Class (estate) within 7 weeks then. Ordered end of Jan and delivered third week of March. Managed a great discount too.

7G auto, AMG Line, C200 petrol, premium plus, ILS etc yada yada. All to my spec. Lovely looking car, very comfy on AirMatic.

However, I'm just not getting on with it. The 7G has terrible shifting when cold, D2 to D3 is a real neck jerker when cold and you've anything but the lightest throttle. Twittering from the dash that seems to be keyless related. Paint nibs on the inner sills. Wind noise from the tops of the doors above 65mph.. and a few more niggles like silly COMAND design and SatNav that tells me to turn left when I want to take a right hand exit from a round about. I'm sure they could all be put right in time but I've been here before with BMW and its a huge faff on to get things like this sorted. If the finance is right, I'm considering handing it back and looking elsewhere.

 

[John Laidlaw]

Sorry to hear your woes, doesn't sound good at all.
Only one thing I can comment on which might help a little on the 7G, which is that it 'learns' your driving style.I had issues with mine dropping back to 4th. when I first got it, and after a few weeks I had altered my driving style a little and it was fine. You may find that some numpty shunting it around the docks, on and off transporters etc was particularly uncaring about the 'style' and taught the gearbox bad habits in the short term.
I am sure you could teach it better!
Of course having said that if it doesn't improve it could indeed be a fault.
I have found mine pretty smooth after the first few weeks, then for the past 20 months since.
The Satnav and the other stuff needs a dealer sort, but then if you're generally not happy with the car...
Looks great by the way, good choices of colour and leather and wood.

 

[Maniac]

It is indeed a lovely car, but there are some real niggles like the gearbox and wind noise that have really put me off. I'm just not enthusiastic about the car at all which is a real shame.

I'm very glad I didn't trade in my last car for it, I kept my BMW e89 which is a car that I've had issues with also, but love.

 

[John Laidlaw]

It is indeed a lovely car, but there are some real niggles like the gearbox and wind noise that have really put me off. I'm just not enthusiastic about the car at all which is a real shame.

I'm very glad I didn't trade in my last car for it, I kept my BMW e89 which is a car that I've had issues with also, but love.

that is a class machine indeed sir!

 

[turbopete]

sorry, but the merc is FAR better looking!

 

[Maniac]

Which isn't the point of course.. Not that it matters as I own both. My post is about the fact that there are far too many issues with the Merc and it's simply emotionless to drive.

 

[turbopete]

as you have airmatic and an auto gearbox, it WILL be emotionless to drive. to bring emotion, you need to be engaged, involved in the drive. a friend of mine had 3 BMWs one after the other. each one took around 9 months to sort out the niggles (water leaking into the car was 1 i remember) and he only kept his car a year at the time!
ive just parted company with a 2001 C220cdi with a manual gearbox. it was the soggy elegance spec, tiny little 15 inch wheels etc BUT it was as much fun to drive as anything else ive ever driven shy of ridiculously quick (for their time) hot hatches (300bhp escort cosworths etc) and the ride quality made the BMW's seem like someone forgot to fit any suspension at ALL!
the comparison between BMW and Mercedes is like comparing a ferrari and a fiesta when you need a car to do 50mpg. they are, in many respects, completely different cars.
also, as the 205 is a relatively new release, many of the niggles are still being ironed out. all the testing in the world cant compensate for what joe public might do that the manufacturer never realised was even possible

 

[NP46]

My car had wind noise from new, turned out the rear door seal was faulty.
Replaced but still not perfect, prestige motoring for you

My previous car was a Range Rover Sport which also being a 'prestige' car had its issues :cry:

For my next car I'm considering a Skoda Octavia Vrs with dsg

And I'm being serious.

 

[Maniac]

It's quiet as a mouse up to 65.. Then a flutter starts above the drivers and passenger door. Faster than that and it's a full on overall whoosh over the entire front of the car. It don't think it's much worse than most cars but because the rest of the car is uber quiet it stands out. Having said that the other halfs Toyota iq is quieter at 70!

It's a disappointment. Lovely but flawed. If I keep it they'd better figure out why a 40 grand car makes such a noise and can't shift gears properly.

 

[NP46]

We've recently sold our IQ, the cheapest and least hassle car to run we've ever owned.
Great little cars!

It's quiet as a mouse up to 65.. Then a flutter starts above the drivers and passenger door. Faster than that and it's a full on overall whoosh over the entire front of the car. It's no worse than most cars but because the rest of the car is uber quiet it stands out. Having said that the other halfs Toyota iq is quieter at 70!