justinnum1

I know you guys must be thinking i am crazy, but it is a great car. They redesigned the front of it to make it look a lot more aggressive. The performance is a little better then the tsx because of more torque. i would get an automatic. Some of the things in the c230 that i love is the sound system. 1 touch all power windowrs. The interior is beautiful. The car sits a lot lower then my tsx. and the brakes are the most amazing i have felt. The handaling beause of the huge tires in the back. The overall tight feel that only a german car can offer. The things i wish it came with that my tsx has is zenons. and all the standard features that the tsx has. I know that the tsx is a better value but when you think about the benz it is awesome. Any input?

iamhomin

Nah, not crazy at all.

The new or old c230's look nice. The interior design, although bland, is perfectly "modern", the exterior styling can get a bit boring, but still looks nice from almost all angles.

Also the fact that it's rwd, you must be happy.

Anyways, g'luck with whatever you may be driving in the future.

jcg878

Definitely a great looking car If the Germans can bump up their reliabilty, they could have a defector in me one day. Germans just do the little things better... unfortunately, the big picture (longevity) can suffer.

xizor

If money and value aren't issues then its a good deal. The options add up really fast though. Also you might want to think about reliability in getting a Euro car (or is Benz an American car now?)

fdl

Would that make a difference in reliability?

iamhomin

Only mentally.

Jason

You're not crazy if you don't care about burning the money or vehicle reliability. The C class is nice looking and does all the things you say. I'd never buy one but that's me.

vitocorleone

Ditto. I think Mercedes makes the most beautiful cars on the road. I would go out and buy a c230 sedan today... if the brand wasn't rated as being less reliable than a Dodge or Oldsmobile.

blueingrid

erm, it's made by DaimlerChrysler.. partnered with Mitsubishi and Hyundai.

Need I say more?

ben1233

Justin, I'm in the same boat as you. I think the 2005 C-classes look much better with the new front end and more sculpted sideskirts. I drove a C230K with a manual and was really impressed with the torque. The interior felt like it was really well put together.
But reliability is the key - I'd be shaky spending 33K on a car thats going to have glitches. It really is a gamble.

I'm between the 2005 rsx, the tsx and the c-class. I'm 22 so I also want to choose the car that suits my age....

biker

Who else the parent company might own or be affiliated with has little bearing on what a specific model MB reliability might be.
Like the TSX I'd venture to guess that the 6MT sport model would be the better choice in the C class line up. And with the new C class coming up you might get buyers' remorse real fast.

bbbradley

If I am going German, it's a Bimmer. The Benz is nice...but a bit too "old-man car" for me. My dad has been in various MBs for the past 15+ years and loved them, but, he's old enough to be my dad.

You mentioned you want a slushbox, so I suppose performance is out, in which case the Benz may be a nice luxury ride, albeit small. I do agree that German cars have a feel, that very few cars match, although the competition is gaining rapidly! Now, if they would only make more RWD cars.


[edit] To agree with what a few others have mentioned, check the MB reliability/quality scores, they are abysmal, especially for the money. MB/DC has fallen off considerably. The notion of them being quality cars is all legacy, the newer ones are mid-pack at best. [/edit]
/bill

OTT-TSX

There is something about MB that I just can't get out of my mind and that is when you slam the door. The clunk just seems to scream well built. At least I thought that, till my buddy bought a CLK 320. He got to know the service manager really well.

DEVO

anybody have a nice side by side picture of the 2004 vs 2005.

robert_tsxgeek

helloha

I think 05's Interior is much sharper than 04. looks like TSX in my opinion...:P

2005 Interior



2004 Interior

jcg878

holy buttons, batman!

justinnum1

bbbradley, i think you are very wrong. my dad to has a benz and we both love the car. It is not a sports car like his porsche but a great comination of luxuary and sporty feel. Performance wise the c230 kills the tsx. It is a tighter suspension. The handaling is far superior and the brakes are stellar. Where i live everyone and their mother owns a 3 series and i think they are ugly. If i wanted a car for performance only i would get an evo but because the evo only offers an engine and some metal i dont like it. The c230 isnt the perfect car, but no car is. I am sure that you have not driven the new c230 so until you do please reserve comment.

robert_tsxgeek

no shit...all those buttons & dials yikes ! the Germans have lost the simplistic, austere touch....I am so spoiled by the TSX

jcg878

I don't support you anymore

bbbradley

I have not driven one, you are right, but MB does not cater to "sports car enthusiasts" so I am pretty confident that while the 2005 will drive like a vault, it will also corner like a vault. As for the c230 having it all over the TSX, for $7k price difference (when comparably equipped i.e. sunroof, leather) it damn well better! And, like you said the benz (and the TSX) are not pure sports cars, but they have some added pizzazz over a true vanilla sedan.

I do agree that the E46 is not the most attractive car, whereas the E36 was. That said, both of those cars will drive circles around the Benz. Around here I call the 3 series the Boston Civic, they are a dime a dozen.

In the end it's your money, and your car, but I am just giving the input you solicited.

/bill

iamhomin

Yeah seriously, waht's with the buttons?!

toddstuh

I too like the C Class, and almost bought one.. I get fairly extensive test drives of the 6 speed C180 "Classic" while renting them when overseas in Germany on business. Though this is the very sedate version of the C class, the engine is the same 1.8 supercharged 4 cylinder that is in the US version C230K. It's not bad, it feels like a small 6 cylinder off the line but definately sounds like a 4 cylinder.
It also eats lots of gas if you floor it using that blower. It generally tops out at 225-230kph or about 140 mph, the turbo diesel C220CDI is actually faster I found. I will have to admit that the brakes on this car are it's best feature. I was engulfed once on the Autobahn and realized that my (Ausgang) exit was next. No problem with these brakes hauling you down from 140mph.
After having owned the TSX , The C class cabin with it's traditional high cowl feels narrow and somewhat cramped inside. The six speed has been improved but is no match for the smoothness of the TSX gearbox. If you want xenon headlights without a loaded vehicle, they hit you with charge of like a grand to get it configured ala cart. They're built in Germany at the Sindelfingen plant but don't plan on ordering one because the C class assembly line just went on strike due to Mercedes wanting to move the C class line to its more efficient cost effective factories in Bremen and S. Africa.
I like the C230K too but when it came to living with it. My nearest dealership was 40 minutes away, whereas in comparison the Acura dealership is maybe 3-5 miles. I even have an Acura dealership 2 miles away from work. Since the likelihood of visting the dealership was all that much higher with the C230 vs the TSX, I opted for the latter.

euroStyle

Audi and BMW had been working on realibilty and they are abit better then they were years ago.

bob shiftright

To an extent it all depends. How long do you keep your cars? If you tend to trade cars within the 4-year or 50k mile original factory warranty, it shouldn't matter. A Benz will hold it's value at least as well as an Acura. If you plan on keeping the car for 150,000 miles, then go Japanese.

The conundrum has been exactly the same for the last 25 years - nothing beats Japanese reliability and nothing beats the driving dynamics of a German car. What the world really needs is a Japanese car designed by the Germans, or a German car built by the Japanese.

Saintor_RENAMED

Yes, at 33K$ get a TL. Or a 325Ci; at least it has a 6-cyl.

bbbradley

There are fantastic 4-bangers (Honda S2000), just as there are lousy 6 cyls. Don't dismiss a car based on the number of pistons, hell the RX8 (IMO) is a great car, and it doesn't have any pistons!

/bill

ben1233

Yeah I just saw some pics today of the next C-class. I wouldn't want to drop off a truckload of cash to be driving an outdated car in two years. But the same could be said about the 3 series as well. But didn't the current C-class debut in 2001? That means the design (which has been recently refreshened) is only 3 years old. Wouldn't it be around for at least another 3?

Getting the "freshest" model design is very important to me.

jcg878

I dunno... buying a 3-series now could be an investment if the next one is suitably Bangled

blueingrid

Erm, I'll be the first to admit that I haven't done my homework, but I'm afraid that last I heard, MB/Mits/Hyundai were all designing/sharing engine technology.

What can you surmise just from that? That's up to you. However, I've seen enough crap cars from all three of those manufacturers to steer myself away.

gavinn58

I looked at the c230k when i was shopping around for a new car. Honestly, when I sat in it I thought it was crap. I didn't even bother test driving it because I knew I couldn't live with the interior. The gauges looked like surplus from the 80's and the seat was so hard and uncomfortable.

But it is a very nice looking car on the outside and I don't doubt the performance aspect of it.

ostrich

I love the looks of the C class. It's absolutely beautiful. I didn't consider it because:

1. It's too small
2. It seems to be for the older folks
3. Its reliability issues scared me
4. Driving a Mercedes to where I work is a bit too much... just not the image that I want to portray...

Now, if these are not your issues, then go for it!!!

biker

I think you are getting bad info. DMC has only a marginal association with Mits/Hyundai and shares next to nothing with them. Actually other than giving them a few left overs, MB shares little with Chrysler for now.
And what you will find in most cars nowdays is that most problems don't come from drivetrains - it's all the other crap that they stick into cars that are failing.

biker

If that's the case, you don't want a C class. About the freshest design that you can get that will be around for a while will be the E90 3 series BMW that should arrive next summer.
The TSX is about 1.5 years old and will be around in its current form for quite a while.

TSX noob

justinnum1: just like you we traded our 1 1/2 month old TSX(2877 miles) to a 2005 C230 kompressor with navigation and paid $37,500 OTD ($34,550 + fees), last Saturday 7/17, the dealer took our TSX for $22k and we added $15500 to pay off the car, the car is a lot more quieter inside and it feels more solid in cornering plus it came with cross drilled rotors in front. Couln't be more happier.

jcg878

Hmmm... seems to be a trend. Mind if I ask why?


jcg, who's most happiest of all

dom

For almost 10 grand more it better be quieter inside.

jcg878

Now, now, let's not get defensive... to each his own.

dom

Talking to me? Not gettting defensive at all, I really like the C series Benz's. Great interior and overall styling IMO. I've never driven one so I can't comment on the ride and performance but fact is, its a Benz and its costs considerably more than a TSX. So I would expect more refinement.

I've said it before and I'll say it again. The C is my eyes is'nt competition for the TSX. Maybe its because I live in Canada where a comparable C is more than 10K the price of a TSX.

biker

Well, it is an entry level luxury 4 door sedan with a 4 cyl engine.