Newbie here! c-class coupe ! which one and why?

[jonthebarber]

HI FOLKS ! I WILL HOPEFULLY SOON BE IN THE MARKET FOR A C-CLASS (SECOND-HAND) COUPE (WITH PANORAMA ROOF) . WHICH IS THE BEST MODEL AND WHY ? ALSO WHAT ARE THE BEST OPTIONS TO LOOK FOR ? IS IT WORTH TRYING TO GET LEATHER ? GEARBOX , WHATS THE BEST AUTO OR MANUAL ? TRY TO CONVICE ME TO PART WITH MY BELOVED LEXUS IS200SE . MANY THANKS IN ADVANCE .

JON.

 

[jon_harley]

HI FOLKS ! I WILL HOPEFULLY SOON BE IN THE MARKET FOR A C-CLASS (SECOND-HAND) COUPE (WITH PANORAMA ROOF) . WHICH IS THE BEST MODEL AND WHY ? ALSO WHAT ARE THE BEST OPTIONS TO LOOK FOR ? IS IT WORTH TRYING TO GET LEATHER ? GEARBOX , WHATS THE BEST AUTO OR MANUAL ?

You're definitely right to get one with the sunroof. That'll keep the resale value up. I would also stay clear of the base version (non-metallic paint, steel wheels, casette instead of cd - assuming anybody ever bought one of those!) The Evolution/AMG versions more so I would guess, but the differences are mostly cosmetic apart from the harder suspension.

Second-hand I would steer cleer of diesels - on the new cars, the diesels cost vastly more than the petrol engines (a far bigger difference than other marques I looked at) and would only be cost-effective for someone who did very high mileage. Go for a kompressor engine.

In my opinion the best gearbox is the sequentronic - all the fun of manual driving, just without all that tedious clutch use. And it has an automatic mode for lazy days. The fully automatic box tends to change up much too early for my taste. If I hadn't got the sequentronic I'd have gone for the manual.

And of course insist on the full service history.

 

[jonthebarber]

CHEERS FOR THAT JON , THE SECQUENTRONIC BOX , WHICH I PRESUME LOOKS TO THE UNTRAINED (WHICH I AM , ALWAYS BEEN A MANUAL MAN MYSELF) EYE LIKE A AUTO , WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR ? EG -IS IT LIKE A NOMAL AUTO BUT WITH A "+ & -" NEXT TO THE STICK ? I DON`T WANT TO TRAVEL MILES IN MY SEARCH FOR ONE TO FIND THE DEALER HAS NOT TOLD ME THE "TRUTH" .

 

[jon_harley]

CHEERS FOR THAT JON , THE SECQUENTRONIC BOX , WHICH I PRESUME LOOKS TO THE UNTRAINED (WHICH I AM , ALWAYS BEEN A MANUAL MAN MYSELF) EYE LIKE A AUTO , WHAT SHOULD I LOOK FOR ? EG -IS IT LIKE A NOMAL AUTO BUT WITH A "+ & -" NEXT TO THE STICK ?

Not quite. Rather than the usual park-reverse-neutral-drive linear stick, the sequentronic has three positions: N (neutral), R (reverse) and A/M (automatic/manual). Forward driving is done in the M/A position. In automatic mode, the box behaves like an automatic (though the gear change isn't quite as smooth because under the bonnet, it's a manual box - just electronically controlled). In manual mode, you nudge the lever forwards to change down or backwards to change up. The stick is well weighted and pleasant to use. You can also *hold* it forwards to change down to the lowest available gear (i.e. within safe revs range) when you know you're about to overtake.

I read that MB have said that doing the gear changes electronically rather than manually with a clutch saves 2-3% on fuel consumption.

On the C-class coupe at least, the sequentronic has A/M-N-R on the gearstick knob, but the automatic has P-R-N-D alongside the base of the stick.

 

[jonthebarber]

Cheers for that Jon ! but what about engines , is it worh getting the 230 or will i be ok with the 180 ? I know they are all supercharged , But how does it feel ? I used to have a turbo (many years ago) and found it quite addictive , If a touch brutal !! My Lexus has vvt-i , Which can "sing", Onced revved ! Is it like that ? Are the reliable (The superchager) ? Do the belts need changing often ? If so when ? Is it a main dealer job ? Sorry for all the questions , But knowledge is power ! (Well when it comes to buying cars )

 

[jon_harley]

Cheers for that Jon ! but what about engines , is it worh getting the 230 or will i be ok with the 180 ? I know they are all supercharged , But how does it feel ? I used to have a turbo (many years ago) and found it quite addictive , If a touch brutal !! My Lexus has vvt-i , Which can "sing", Onced revved ! Is it like that ? Are the reliable (The superchager) ? Do the belts need changing often ? If so when ? Is it a main dealer job ? Sorry for all the questions , But knowledge is power ! (Well when it comes to buying cars )

I can't answer the reliability questions as I haven't had mine long enough - maybe someone else here can comment.

As for engine choice, I guess it depends on how sporty a sports car you want. I haven't driven the 230 but on paper it's much faster than the others (with accordingly higher fuel consumption and price tag), so more like a proper sports car. I have driven the 180 and it's fine for ordinary driving. One advantage it has is that it slips into a lower CO2 band so the tax disc costs less. Personally I took the middle road and went for the 200, which has more than ample power. It makes a very nice noise when you rev it up, but sounds strangely gravelly when cold. Maybe that's just in comparison to my previous car which was a 16V.

I've also owned a turbo in the past and the supercharger does not feel very similar. Instead of the power kick at high revs, it delivers more torque across a much wider range of revs. It's a bit like driving a diesel in that sense, just with more power. You can hear it whine with the window open (not dissimilar to a turbo whine).

 

[Caj]

I own a 2002 C180k Sports Coupe Evolution Panorama. I looked at the performance on paper and noticed not much difference between them all except cost. This was my first automatic and I must say i'm glad i went with the auto.
Also when you need that extra push to overtake i knock it down a few gears built the revs up and then put my foot down. I don't nudge it up a gear as the car will automatically do that when it hits the blood-line. I find it better than kickdown.

 

[jonthebarber]

Cheers for that lads ! Anymore people want to throw there "2 pennth` in ???"