C Class Haynes Manuals

[mkinspain]

Can anyone advise before I purchase a manual if they offer value for money as every time I get a fault it can only be solved by a diagnostic machine .

 

[Cole@MBS]

Waste of money from what i have heard!!!!!

 

[Stuart2106]

Haynes manuals in the past were good. Now, I agree they are a waste of money. I suspect that progressive modern managements in Haynes have cropped off sections and R&D budgets to the point where the resultant product isn't a patch on what it was during the seventies.

Eventually, these modern management ideas will destroy the company and they will move on, to no doubt offer their poor management skills to other unsuspecting family firms.

My advice, forget Haynes, use the forums.

 

[BillyBoy]

I have to agree - Modern haynes manuals seem more like "Janet and John do car maintenance" than serious manuals. I can well remember stripping down the engine of my Cortina and completely re-building it from the old style Haynes when they were proper workshop manuals.

(Plus of course they only cover half the modern cars nowadays anyway!)

Cheers,
Bill

 

[grober]

Knowledge is power!

Got to completely disagree sorry . The HAYNES manuals for the W202 and W203 ( YOU DON'T SAY WHICH??) are reasonably comprehensive. They cover routine servicing operations and the mileages you need to do these at. The many illustrations help the owner to locate the many components and systems in the car. They cover many such non standard / extra cost operations such things as changing brake pads/ discs shock absorbers light units bulbs etc . Basic wiring schematics are given together with fuse locations and ratings. I can say without hesitation that using the information for only one DIY operation will easily repay the initial £20 outlay. Even if you only use the book for a broader understanding of the various systems in the car it will put you in a more knowledgeable position when negotiating with garages about repairs/services on your car.

 

[S.Speed]

The main thing I have noticed with Haynes manuals over the years is the crap quality of paper they now use..
Because its so like blotting paper now the photos are very poor quality..
Many years ago they really were so very much better.....
Pity

 

[stevesey]

As grober says the 202 manual is useful for the basics, but in general haynes manuals are not what they used to be.

The deciline has been going on for years so I don't think it's a management related thing, possibly more related to the increaing complexity of cars and the size of the manual. If they covered everything in as much detail as they did in the 70s the manual would be 6 inches thick (even with the thinner paper).

Going back a while I have had very model of Cavalier and several Astras, my original Cavalier Mk1 (RWD) haynes manual had far more detailed information on the carburettor than any later manuals for the Mk2 cars. They were the same carburettors so Haynes had all the information, but chose to publish in less detail to allow more space for something else. Hence I'd use the Mk1 manual to adjust the carbs on the later models.

 

[nickcc101]

Got to completely disagree sorry . The HAYNES manuals for the W202 and W203 ( YOU DON'T SAY WHICH??) are reasonably comprehensive. They cover routine servicing operations and the mileages you need to do these at. The many illustrations help the owner to locate the many components and systems in the car. They cover many such non standard / extra cost operations such things as changing brake pads/ discs shock absorbers light units bulbs etc . Basic wiring schematics are given together with fuse locations and ratings. I can say without hesitation that using the information for only one DIY operation will easily repay the initial £20 outlay. Even if you only use the book for a broader understanding of the various systems in the car it will put you in a more knowledgeable position when negotiating with garages about repairs/services on your car.

I bought the W203 manual a few weeks ago and found most of the info helpful, the one exception being the M111 engine. Most of the engine illustrations are for the Turbo/supercharged 271 engine or the Diesel. All the other chapters cover most repairs that the keen diy owner will carry out.

 

[Silverspa]

Can anyone advise before I purchase a manual if they offer value for money as every time I get a fault it can only be solved by a diagnostic machine .

Am a complete novice, so don't know what my opinion is worth, but just bought the W203 one off eBay as it was a bit cheaper than Halfords. It is probably rubbish if you have more than an absolute teddy-bears knowledge of cars, but for me, I found it quite interesting! The pictures could be a bit better tho - who the hell prints in b/w these days?! Cheapos!

 

[gibsones135]

Am a complete novice, so don't know what my opinion is worth, but just bought the W203 one off eBay as it was a bit cheaper than Halfords. It is probably rubbish if you have more than an absolute teddy-bears knowledge of cars, but for me, I found it quite interesting! The pictures could be a bit better tho - who the hell prints in b/w these days?! Cheapos!

Well I agree with you and Grober. I don't claim to be even remotely interested in the dirty oily bits- I'll leave that for those that are that way inclined and garages. I bought the W203 manual when it came out and have found it a riveting read - not the complicated, hard bits but the more superficial stuff: bodywork, fixtures and fittings, changing bulbs/fuses and the like. I believe that for a basic overview and to understand a little of what the mechanic is on about I would highly recommend it
Just for the record I think your opinion has the same value as anyone else's

 

[Stuart2106]

Grober, I will concede that they are still probably worth the outlay and also that you make some valid points. But do you seriously consider them to be as good as they were in the past?

I am not alone in watching the quality of the illustrations and general technical detail decline. I will now say which, W202, I don't find it that useful. Not many illustrations bear any resemblance to my vehicle.

However, I do of course respect your differing view.

 

[mercmadjim]

Grober, I will concede that they are still probably worth the outlay and also that you make some valid points. But do you seriously consider them to be as good as they were in the past?

It would seem that nothing is as good as it was in the past, bread, TV, bobbies on the beat, family values, the list is endless, and that includes Mercedes!!

 

[Number_Cruncher]

>>But do you seriously consider them to be as good as they were in the past?

You could argue that Haynes manuals are accurately following demand.

The number of people who are going to undertake major overhauls on modern cars who don't have access to motor trade sources of information is very small. How many threads do we read where people are talking about how they stripped down an engine, a gearbox, or an axle? They do crop up, but, they are quite rare in comparison with more routine work.

On the other hand, people wanting to know how to get that bit of trim off, how to replace that particular dash light bulb, how to do very basic tasks safely are legion, and it is to these that the modern Haynes manual is more squarely aimed.

 

[Rappey69]

I bought one for my w203 and dont regret it. Learnt a lot about the car from it and it clearly lists what has to be done on A and B services so saving a lot of money if you are into diy.
I would say buy one, its only £20 and can still help loads by describing how to remove items and what has to be removed to get to these items.

 

[grober]

a curates egg?

Grober, I will concede that they are still probably worth the outlay and also that you make some valid points. But do you seriously consider them to be as good as they were in the past?

I am not alone in watching the quality of the illustrations and general technical detail decline. I will now say which, W202, I don't find it that useful. Not many illustrations bear any resemblance to my vehicle.

However, I do of course respect your differing view.

I have to admit I do miss the old chapter format and I am not so enamoured with the generalised routine maintenance and servicing sections at the front. BUT lot's of folks seem to like it? Haynes manuals were always good in some ways and quaintly deficient in others. They would go into great detail how to strip and rebuild a gearbox ( if you were insane enough to try this) and devote a mere page+half to the exhaust system which almost everyone has to repair/replace and is a DIY job most home mechanics could tackle. Still they are an almost unique ( low volume by today's standards) publication and if quality has to suffer a bit to allow them to publish at a realistic marketable price then I guess we will just have to put up with its deficiencies. In this era of sophisticated vehicle electronics maybe its the best we can hope for?