What got you into a Mercedes Benz?

[A.J.]

I agree Steve, and thanks for the advice. I will look into the 1500cc model. Seems a small engine for such a heavy car?

If you look for a 2018 or before it will have the 2Ltr engine as mine has. The 2Ltr still does in excess of 40mpg

 

[Srdl]

I agree Steve, and thanks for the advice. I will look into the 1500cc model. Seems a small engine for such a heavy car?

184hp apparently, 0-62 7.7 seconds

 

[A.J.]

184hp apparently, 0-62 7.7 seconds

That's interesting, mines a 2Ltr with 184bhp with a 0-60 of a quoted 7.2 seconds. I wonder how the 1500 will fair with four people on board. I would suspect the 1500 torque is a bit short of the 2Ltr

 

[Bay Leaf]

Im sure he will, and im sure I will too , but im still not convinced its the right car for him, probably does best part of 15 miles a day to and from work in city driving, he wants a Diesel, he wants an Auto, hardly does any motorway driving. Thats the dilema.

With that kind of mileage he's better off with a petrol engine.

 

[Jim2]

I agree Steve, and thanks for the advice. I will look into the 1500cc model. Seems a small engine for such a heavy car?

Would agree 100% with Steve's advice...petrol all the way for that kind of mileage.

 

[JohnOS]

Back in 2011 my young family needed a second car, as we'd just moved out of London to Malvern. "Time for a soft top" said I. "Just so long as it has four seats" said the missus. I never considered BMWs: they may be fine cars, but all their convertibles are ugly. Couldn't find an Audi at the right price, did a value search on some website, and a 1999 CLK230 Cab popped up. Cue 9 years of trouble free fun. All the family loved it. The missus nicked it whenever the sun was out, my daughter begged for top down school runs, the boys pestered me to have a go on private roads. Once you've had one you can't go back...

 

[MBDevotee]

I got the chance to drive a CLK when an ex was shopping for a car.

She was buying her own having come out of a company car.

Looked at BMW, Audi and Merc. The BMW drove well but the Merc was just so solid feeling....

Hooked ever since, not got one now, but it’s something I’ll come back to without doubt.

 

[davemercedes]

I was working in Europe and wanted a big lump to be able to carry lots of personal stuff and computer equipment. By fluke I came across a dirt cheap Daewoo (Ssangyong) Musso 4WD with a 2.9 diesel engine and took it for a run then bought it. It had huge, remarkably comfortable leather seats (they used to call them an armchair on wheels) and gave me an incredible 40 mpg average. At the time Derv was about 80p a litre in Europe compared to £1.10 which very quickly rose to £1.25 a litre back here while it stayed at 80p in Europe so in monetary terms I was getting the equivalent of 62 mpg!

Fast forward to a late retirement and I blew up the engine on the Musso.

I had driven a couple of Mercedes saloons that colleagues had (when we all ran company cars) but I've always had an estate or people carrier so I could carry a lot of luggage/transport the odd cupboard/fridge etc. While browsing, I came across the MB approved used cars web site and in February 2013 I went to try out a 2007 C Class Estate Avantgarde (S203). I must admit that I'd always liked the 3-pointed "gunsight" on the bonnet (and I do still prefer it) and felt that thing called "presence" on my test run. Considering it was priced around £35-38K when new, I was very happy to buy it with 12 months Mercedes warranty for less than £8500 with mileage at 62K. I had intended to upgrade it after a couple of years or even less but I soon found that I had a "keeper" so now I have a 13 year old car with 104K miles on it but still feels "new-ish" and is probably the best car I've owned. I browse the web every so often, looking mostly at E Class estates which I sort of fancy but after I've looked at a used E Class detailed spec, my wallet takes over and asks me why I should bother to change when I'm perfectly happy with what I've got?

A couple of things I would change:

1) the car I bought is half-leather. I should have bought full leather.

2) I detest the foot-operated parking brake and never understood why an up-market brand like MB stuck with it. SWMBO's run-a-round is a 2005 Renault Grand Scenic - the handbrake lever is almost the same as the release lever on my S203 but there the similarity ends - the Renault may be older and a much cheaper model but the handbrake is fully electronic !

 

[Jasandjules]

Or a BMW. Both are aspirational.
Sorry I do not know your profession to have "clients" but Dawn from Emmerdale has made this reference often.

Lawyer for my sins.. I used to go to meets/conferences etc with clients driving Mercs etc too and they would look down on me for it....

 

[Manc Rick]

Lawyer for my sins.. I used to go to meets/conferences etc with clients driving Mercs etc too and they would look down on me for it....

Sad but true. Some people do judge you according to the car you drive. I remember parking round the corner many a time so that my older, non premium car wouldn’t be seen.

Now, I get the comments “oh you must be making too much money”. Can’t win. They are of course wrong, I’m not making too much money, I just buy nice cars that are 3-4 years old.

 

[Jimbo1959]

Approaching my sixtieth birthday I thought it was time I stopped buying luke warm/hot hatches and started acting my age. My current car at the time a Suzuki Swift Sport handled like it was on rails and living out in the country and driving mostly 'A' or 'B' roads was great fun.

It came to feel like it had a target painted on the back when first, one poor woman, misjudged the traction available on snow and the appropriate stopping distance between her car and mine, banjo'd the back end when I had to stop and she didn't, then about six weeks after I got it back after being repaired, had the same thing happen again this time not in the snow by an absolute wazzock in a Qashqai, I never so much wanted to kill someone in all my life. Only the fact that my friends and neighbours would have frowned upon that course of action kept him alive, as I said an absolute wazzock.

Anyway, I spotted the C207 Coupé at a customers garage and though "Hm... that's a nice bit of kit" I took it for a test drive and apart from a slight brake judder which in my arrogance I thought I could fix easily enough I found it quite stunning. The quality and comfort were sublime and the sound system, Command/Harmon Kardon, was exquisite. I had to have it. It did everything I wanted and was nippy enough to put a smile on my face. Sadly a combination of the brake judder which drove me to distraction, and the Covid consequences meant that I had to downsize.

If I could get one which stopped without juddering and was able to manage it financially speaking, I'd have another in an instant, perhaps an SLK diseasal. Nah, I'd miss that wonderful V6 too much.

 

[Blobcat]

Approaching my sixtieth birthday I thought it was time I stopped buying luke warm/hot hatches and started acting my age. My current car at the time a Suzuki Swift Sport handled like it was on rails and living out in the country and driving mostly 'A' or 'B' roads was great fun.

It came to feel like it had a target painted on the back when first, one poor woman, misjudged the traction available on snow and the appropriate stopping distance between her car and mine, banjo'd the back end when I had to stop and she didn't, then about six weeks after I got it back after being repaired, had the same thing happen again this time not in the snow by an absolute wazzock in a Qashqai, I never so much wanted to kill someone in all my life. Only the fact that my friends and neighbours would have frowned upon that course of action kept him alive, as I said an absolute wazzock.

Anyway, I spotted the C207 Coupé at a customers garage and though "Hm... that's a nice bit of kit" I took it for a test drive and apart from a slight brake judder which in my arrogance I thought I could fix easily enough I found it quite stunning. The quality and comfort were sublime and the sound system, Command/Harmon Kardon, was exquisite. I had to have it. It did everything I wanted and was nippy enough to put a smile on my face. Sadly a combination of the brake judder which drove me to distraction, and the Covid consequences meant that I had to downsize.

If I could get one which stopped without juddering and was able to manage it financially speaking, I'd have another in an instant, perhaps an SLK diseasal. Nah, I'd miss that wonderful V6 too much.

V6 SLK’s are available...

 

[Jimbo1959]

V6 SLK’s are available...

Petrol V6's are, unfortunately not diesel.

 

[Blobcat]

Petrol V6's are, unfortunately not diesel.

That, these days is a huge huge benefit. I wouldn’t be putting any money into a modern diesel as the risk of big bills is too high for me.
They don’t like short journeys and the emissions equipment is about as reliable as a salesman’s word...
I’m averaging over 31mpg from my 3.0 V6

 

[sonic]

Just coming up to 12 months in SLC250d, its done 47 mpg overall & only £30 a year road tax.
Its not that slower than the SLK350, 1 second to 60 & 1.5 seconds to 100. Plus the road tax is considerably cheaper, & its Euro 6.
All in all very pleased with it, & I much prefer it to the previous SLK200K.

 

[Conor]

I was in the market for something that would be accomodating of my outdoorsy tendencies.. wakeboarding and camping.

I started off looking at a van then started looking at X5s and Legacy/Foresters. A fleeting moment looking at some TTs (not practical at all).

I then happened upon a neighbour a few roads away from me who had a S210 320 Petrol. I was taken aback by the piece of furniture in the back and sold on it there and then.

I started to look at E Estates.. and from then on is history and documented here. Its been a delightful journey that far.

 

[sonic]

I was in the market for something that would be accomodating of my outdoorsy tendencies.. wakeboarding and camping.

I started off looking at a van then started looking at X5s and Legacy/Foresters. A fleeting moment looking at some TTs (not practical at all).

I then happened upon a neighbour a few roads away from me who had a S210 320 Petrol. I was taken aback by the piece of furniture in the back and sold on it there and then.

I started to look at E Estates.. and from then on is history and documented here. Its been a delightful journey that far.

We are fortunate having the 212 E350CDI for long journeys & holidays & the SLC for everything else. Plus I have the FJR1300 as well.

 

[Conor]

We are fortunate having the 212 E350CDI for long journeys & holidays & the SLC for everything else. Plus I have the FJR1300 as well.

Yeap, fortunate is a way to put it. It's great having multiple cars to fit various uses. What I gain in that, I pay back in DIYing most of the repairs myself.. sometimes it's not fun and becomes a chore, but overall I don't complain.

 

[Srdl]

Nah, I'd miss that wonderful V6 too much.

I wouldn’t be putting any money into a modern diesel as the risk of big bills is too high for me.

Those two comments about sum up my thinking - which is how I finished up in my GLC43

 

[denisandtessa]

We bought for Tessa a brand new C200 in 1997. First time we could afford the to us, luxury.
Wonderful car, our son still has it and it will not be long until on club plates.
We changed to an 1
A180 in 2008 a bit smaller in size but a hatch with a 2litre diesel engine that has still got less than 75,000kilometres on the clock today.
Just going to tart it up a bit with a media player to replace the Audio 20 and a reversing camera made wireless with a transmitter and receiver instead of passing the video cable the length of the cabin.
Took the A class from Melbourne to Noosa Heads, North of Brisbane for a good run in some years back. About 2100km with an overnight stop along the way. Average road speed about 90kph for the journey and not much motorway driving for the inland route.
Planting the foot to overtake a B double was an experience,
pull out at 110kph and pass the truck bonnet at 145kph in a blink.