Seattle Cl-S

I know last week I was interested in an '00 M5 but this week I saw a loaded '03 C32 w/ some sweet 18" HRE's for $36,900 obo (personal sale). 36k miles w/ Navi. I'm pretty sure the engine is stock.

The deal sounds good but what I'm not sure of is the mod potential of this car. Is it easy to load it up w/ some Rentech goodies and bump RWHP to around 350? I assume a pulley/chip/exhaust would work.

Thanks!

BigCoupe

yup, friend of mine has an '02 C32. he's modified it a bit and its pushing 380whp. nice car, but the BMW absolutely blows it away. even my 540i will give it a run for the money. i would go BMW all the way on this one. C32 is a nice performance car for the $ though, but its still just a C-Class.

Red-CL

M5 owns C-class.

I'd still get the M5.

How many miles on the M5?

GOTTSPD

Have you driven one? They are already quite fast. That being said, they are apparently pretty expensive to maintain...

mrsteve

iTrader: (1)

In this case

C32 > M5

3 years newer, plus very easy to reach that 350whp mark you are talking about.

S/C > 2 more cylinders

NSXNEXT

iTrader: (2)

Wrong forum.

Seattle Cl-S

Sorry, this new format has me confused half the time. I can't find anything. Looks pretty though

Seattle Cl-S

Haven't driven one. I'm pretty sure I'm putting down equivalent power right now in my CL though and I'm itching for more.

farberstyle

Where is ronnie?

He traded his CL-S for a C32 last year.

Seattle Cl-S

The C32 is still easily in warranty while the M5 is not...not sure of the # of miles yet on the M5.

I don't think maintenance on the M5 would be any cheaper.

Anyone know what the M5 and C32 dyno in stock form? I run the 1/4 identical to the C32 and just a tad slower than the M5. If I had better traction I think I'd be faster than the Mercedes. That's why I'd like to know the mod potential.

Car-Stats.com Report for 2003 Mercedes-Benz C32 AMG
Obtained from C&D May, 2003
0-60: 5.2 Transmission: Automatic
1/4 Mile: 13.6
1/4 Speed: 106

Car-Stats.com Report for 2001 BMW M5
Obtained from MT March, 2001
0-60: 4.8 Transmission: Manual
1/4 Mile: 13.1
1/4 Speed: 107

legendaryCL98

to me.. the M5 looks alot better!

but.. maybe im still too young.. hahaha

mercedez is TOO classie for me

mattg

i think the C32 is a hot car. a nice blend of luxury and speed.


don't forget to call me whan it's time to strip the cl-s down.

mantis23

The c32 hauls ass. Got to ride in one on a closed course.

Very fun car.

rezurex

c32 is damn nice. 32k huh?

Allout

ronnie0738 has a C32 AMG with some serious mods. He hangs out in the Sacramento Meet thread. Here's a copy of his signature:
2002 Silver C32 AMG Fully Loaded
Powerchips flashed ECU, SL55 Y-pipe, ODPS (17psi boost), IC upgrade, Supersprint headers, Aquamist Water injection system, Stoptech SS Brakelines, Carlsson RS-Sport Coilovers, Flat Hood Emblem, SL55 pedals, euro bixenons w/ Philips 6k Ultinons, clear side blinkers, V1 Hardwired

System: Boston Z6 Components, Diamond M361i rear fill, Helix HXA400 MKII, JL 10W3v2, JL250/1

This thing throws down some serious power and is a very nice ride. He ran a SL55 up to 130mph and it couldn't pull on him.

BoostedM3

Wow, is this the car Capri blue w/19" HREs going for $35,900?
http://forums.mbworld.org/forums/showthread.php?t=94530

Well, these are my views.

In stock form, i've seen dynos from 273whp to 300whp+. I would say average is about 285-290whp. I've run against 6MT & SMG E46 M3s and have won by ~1 car in stock form. The 6MT was my buddy's, so we even switched cars but the outcome was the same.

Performance specs reported by MT are as follows:

2003 C32
1/4 mile = 13.24 @ 106.86
60-0 = 117
Lateral accel = 0.85

2000 M5
1/4 mile = 13.2 @ 107.4
60-0 = 117
Lateral accel = 0.87

You can see they are pretty close in acceleration, braking, and handling. I think if you want a MT, go with the M5 but if you dont mind a very good IMHO 5AT and are looking to mod, then the C32 is a good choice. My only grip was that the stock suspension is a bit soft and body roll was more than my 01CLS with CT springs & sways. Coilovers fixed that right up.

As Allout has stated in his post , lots of mods can be done, but be warned that they are much more expensive compared to comptech prices for the CL (ex. supersprint headers run $2,200). Renntech & Kleemann have upgrade kits, but are quite expensive. Evosport, the mods that I have, is a much cheaper alternative. Their stage I kit which includes the over-drive pulley upgrade, remapped powerchips ecu, and upgraded IC can gain about 50whp. With that kit + SL55 Y-pipe & less restrictive air filter, I dyno'd ~340whp/wtq. Stage I is the best bang for the buck ($2700), but they also have stage II (360whp) & III (400whp).

I've been running high boost for over 1 year now and I've had no problems. :hammer: I've only gone to the dealer ONCE for warranty work (sway bar bushing creeking).

thedream21479

It's funny that nobody has mentioned the fact that the M5 is a manual transmission vs. the C32 is an auto. Does this factor into your decision? My family (myself included) have owned a variety both, the AMG cars and the M cars, including the M5. I'm on the wait list for the next M5 myself. Stock to stock, the AMG cars are a bit "softer" than the M cars, especially the handling and "feel". In the M cars YOU drive the car, whereas in the AMG cars, the car drives itself. The Mercedes ESP is much more obtrusive, and the braking feel isn't as good, though the actual braking is excellent. At 9/10ths the C class is excellent, but beyond that, and it's "flaws" start to show up.

The M5, whilst older, is aging very gracefully- though not inside the cabin. It's starting to look a bit dated, but nothing that would dissuade me to purchase the car. Not to mention, it's a collectors item!

By the way, the M5's V8 sounds wicked with an exhaust

I'd take the M5, as it is more overall vehicle than the C32AMG, but it's certainly not a bad couple of cars to choose from. Good luck with your decision.

By the way, why not look for an E55 AMG or a CLK55 AMG? Those would be more comparable to the M5. The C32AMG is more along the lines of an M3.

BoostedM3

I believe I mentioned the tranny difference in my post. If he's looking to mod, I believe those "flaws" can be more than compensated for.

Seattle Cl-S

Wow, thanks for the info Ronnie! That is the link I saw. The guy is down in Portland so it wouldn't be much of a drive.

340whp for $2700 doesn't sound too bad. $40k for a car that would put a stompin' on a stock M3 or M5.

But...can I beat MattG's 100 shot??

mattg

most likely.

but will you be able to hang when i'm putting down 400 whp with s/c + nitrous?

BoostedM3

There's only 1 way to find out.

- best 1/4 mile time i've seen STOCK is 12.983 @ 107.3.

- with my mods, SL55 cant pull on me from a 60mph roll to 130mph and they trap mid 110s in the 1/4.

- stage III C32 dyno'd over 410whp and ran low 12s in the 1/4 at 2000ft elevation.

I'm hoping to have a new dyno done soon.

Seattle Cl-S

Do you have a website for the Stage I-III mods?

Seattle Cl-S

Nevermind...Evosport.com

BoostedM3

haha, they used to have dynos online but i think they just redid their website so it's not on there right now.

http://www.evosport.com/product/default.aspx

stage III is not in production yet, my info is from talking to the owner & the info he provided via mbworld.