New Car Ordered

[Ron240]

In these completely unprecendented times for the motor industry it has been heavily on my mind in the past couple of months, so I went into my Mercedes dealer a week ago to enquire about a new car.
I currently have a CLA 250 Premium Plus and enquired about a CLA 35 Premium Plus.
I found out that my dealer has a CLA 35 Premium model ordered for dealer stock scheduled for December 2020 which can still be changed for colour and interior trim, but will not take a change for Premium Plus which would be at least Feb/March 2022 or most likely later.
I weighed this up with the Premium Plus model costing £3500 more and will not come with the standard multibeam led due to the global semiconductor shortage.

I have placed an order for a CLA 35 Premium in the AMG exclusive colour of Sun Yellow with the no cost option of red/black leather that my current car has.
Due to the semiconductor shortage my car will not come with the standard Premium spec and above keyless entry, wireless charging and possibly "Hermes unit". It will also have a standard Mercedes sound system and not the upgraded one.

When I first seen photos of the new CLA back in 2019 I fell in love with it and wanted one. The model that was being promoted at the time was a CLA 35 in Sun Yellow which up until at least early 2020 was a free colour along with Polar White (my current colour), but is now charged at £595.
The CLA was originally in short supply and when I was able to get one in June 2020 I couldn't justify the extra expense of the 35 model so went for the top spec 250.
Fast forward to now and my dealer has guaranteed a trade in of £1000 more than I paid for my 250 with a revaluation closer to delivery, which means at the very least I will have had completely free motoring for 18 months.
All signs are positive that current used values will remain high up until the end of the year so I should be in an even better poition.
The only downside is that my new car will be subject to the rip off additional VED rate which currently totals £490 and rising every year, compared with my present car of only £155.
I go into this with my eyes open though, and to balance it I will have an extra 82PS and all wheel drive over my current car which at times can make a very significant difference.
Just to quantify my last statement I previously owned an Audi S3 so can appreciate the difference that the extra power together with AWD makes.

 

[SmartAmg]

Good write up, and lovely motor your getting, pics when you get it please.

 

[JBell]

Sounds a good deal to me, 4Matic will be useful as well where you live

I would go all black on the interior though

 

[Ron240]

Yep thats the colour I'm getting.
I'm still a bit miffed that Mercedes changed it from a previously free colour to £595 the same as the metallics, even though it is a solid colour.
That photo shows a Premium Plus model but apart from different wheels and no panoramic roof mine will look more or less the same.
Regarding the interior...naturally it comes down to personal taste but I currently have the red/black leather and think it looks great. It gives the cabin a much brighter look than just plain black, and with the new car not having a panoramic roof I didn't want all black.

 

[JBell]

Naturally it comes down to personal taste but I currently have the red/black leather and think it looks great. It gives the cabin a much brighter look than just plain black, and with the new car not having a panoramic roof I didn't want all black.

Absolutely, I was just thinking about the yellow exterior and Ronald McDonald came to mind with a Red interior

Will look like this then, I really like the wheels, my neighbour has them on his C43 AMG WAgon

 

[Ron240]

I was just thinking about the yellow exterior and Ronald McDonald came to mind with a Red interior

Well my name is Ronald.

Yeah I know what you mean...and funnily enough my dealer did say they might struggle to sell a stock car with that combination (I dont believe that for a minute ), but I am the customer and I know what I want.

I actually prefer the wheels on the Premium model too...easier to clean and I have never been overly keen on multi spoke designs anyway.

 

[JBell]

I actually prefer the wheels on the Premium model too...easier to clean and I have never been overly keen on multi spoke designs anyway.

They look bigger than the wheels on the PP (more open) and having seen some they are lovely and I hate cleaning wheels so I agree on that point

 

[the director]

That'll look quite nice once they've sprayed the top coat of paint over that yellow primer.

 

[Ron240]

That'll look quite nice once they've sprayed the top coat of paint over that yellow primer.

Ive heard that joke many times about the recent popularity for non metallic grey cars...but I've never heard it about AMG yellow.
You could equally apply the same logic to white cars, but let's be honest about it...it only really works with grey cars.

 

[JBell]

Ive heard that joke many times about the recent popularity for non metallic grey cars...but I've never heard it about AMG yellow.
You could equally apply the same logic to white cars, but let's be honest about it...it only really works with grey cars.

Audi are the kings of Battleship Grey on cars, really don't like it

 

[Ron240]

Audi are the kings of Battleship Grey on cars, really don't like it

Im not keen on it either and would never buy a car in this colour.
I first became aware of this type of solid grey colour when Ford offered it as an ST exclusive option called Stealth back around 2015. I went for 'Tangerine Scream' so I am no stranger to yellow cars.

In regards to the jokes then yes with grey I believe it is justified, but to say the same about any other colour of new car amounts to little more than petty jealousy from a person who posts extremely infrequently on this forum...in fact first post this year.

 

[LostKiwi]

I quite like that interior. Not so fussed on the yellow as it's "not very Mercedes" but it's your car.
I personally think yellow looks better on smaller cars (I had a yellow Punto Sporting years ago and loved that yellow on the Punto) and the Fiat Coupé suits it well too.
Yours will probably look better in the flesh than in pics.
That all said it's a lovely car - enjoy!

 

[kotecki]

Beauty is always in the eye of the beholder and we all simply 'like what we like'

I do however understand the comment by that salesperson about

they might struggle to sell a stock car with that combination

As long as you are happy and as long as the dealer has a non-refundable deposit, then who cares? Rolls -Royce will probably supply a car in any colour our wallet will tolerate, they might not be as quick to take the vehicle back at a reasonable price when trading it in....

I like your choice in colour but would simply suggest it might not be your typical modern-day Mercedes colour?. Well done

 

[Rob7seven]

Whether I liked that yellow or not, it's out because my wife would exercise her veto by refusing to sit in it. She'd get away with that too, even though she'll have no monetary input. and how can anyone assess the value of a reasonably peaceful home life? I wouldn't need very much persuading though, especially with that red and black interior, but each to their own.

Couldn't agree more about that increasingly prevalent battleship grey colour, must be the most unattractive choice possible, surely no manufacturer actually charges extra for it?

 

[JBell]

Couldn't agree more about that increasingly prevalent battleship grey colour, must be the most unattractive choice possible, surely no manufacturer actually charges extra for it?

Ford charge for White paint now!!!!

Audi don't charge for Nardo Grey

 

[A.J.]

Whether I liked that yellow or not, it's out because my wife would exercise her veto by refusing to sit in it. She'd get away with that too, even though she'll have no monetary input. and how can anyone assess the value of a reasonably peaceful home life? I wouldn't need very much persuading though, especially with that red and black interior, but each to their own.

Couldn't agree more about that increasingly prevalent battleship grey colour, must be the most unattractive choice possible, surely no manufacturer actually charges extra for it?

Awful isn't it, I just can't imagine why it is so popular, it looks, well, just awful.

 

[kotecki]

Awful isn't it, I just can't imagine why it is so popular, it looks, well, just awful.

Certainly a few ships painted in that colour so it must be fairly popular. I wonder if they would paint F47 on both front doors and maybe the tailgate

 

[Ron240]

Ford charge for White paint now!!!!

Audi don't charge for Nardo Grey

Yes Ford have been charging for their Frozen White solid colour for quite a while now...I paid extra for it on my 2012 Focus. Many manufacturers do charge for white simply because it is one of the most popular colours for cars.
Mercedes are one of the few that do not charge for solid white, although every manufacturer does (or should) offer at least one free colour option.

'Stealth' grey was the Ford ST exclusive colour which was also a no cost option, but has been discontinued now with red being the only free colour.
A workmate has a Mk.3 ST in this colour but it is not to my taste.

It's good that we dont like the same things, otherwise we would all be driving around in the same colour of cars.

 

[JBell]

It's good that we dont like the same things, otherwise we would all be driving around in the same colour of cars.

I do like my Grey car

 

[JBell]

Yes Ford have been charging for their Frozen White solid colour for quite a while now...I paid extra for it on my 2012 Focus. Many manufacturers do charge for white simply because it is one of the most popular colours for cars.

Easy money for them