C Class - must try harder. Info wanted plze

[mercrocker]

What do we think of W202 Mercs? 

 

Its possible I might have to think about replacing Mrs R's 190E, at least on a temporary basis.   Its become another old car with old car issues which it has every right to do but she needs something to drive while I put it up the barn and forget about it mend it.

 

A tolerable modern smoker for her would be the following C Class model but I know nothing about them - she has driven some apparently and thinks she could live with one.    Wish she had told me that when a neighbour sold his minter back in the summer, but hey....

 

Any hints/irreverent comments welcomed.    Oh, I already know they rot for Jesus.

[skattrd]

This was mine ... http://autoshite.com/topic/18152-merc-w202-c250td-estate-sold/?p=632369

 

Sold it a few months back, and apart from air in fuel lines (eventually traced to pre-filter) it was pretty much troublefree and a reliable workhorse. Comfy for long runs and took me up and down the country many times. I would have another but prob a 6-pot petrol, oh and never a manual.

[NorfolkNWeigh]

I didn't think these were as rot prone as CLK/EClass or later Cs.

I rember all the magazines raving over how refined they were compared to the 190e and W124, Steve Cropley, I think, ran a long term one for Autocar and thought it nicer than an S-Class , or some such bollocks.

Never owned one but driven a few, including a 1.8 Auto that should have been dire, but I loved it and tried to convince Mrs N to keep, she couldn't get over the lairy bright red seats- it was a black Sport or whatever the low spec sporty one was, before Avantgarde ,I think.

[Jimmycrackcorn]

Loved my W202, had immobilizer issues that killed it in the end.

[They_all_do_that_sir]

A lot of people think these are they very last of the 'proper' mercs. The w203 that replaced it rots for fun but the w202 isn't anywhere near as bad.

Ive driven a couple and I think they are far far nicer with the auto box.

Diesels capable of big mileages too.

 

I think they look really handsome, have a nice solid feel.

[Jimmycrackcorn]

I had the dieseal and ran it on veg, bloody brilliant. Air in the fuel lines can be an issue and it's worth replacing the o-rings on the fuel lines for viton seals.

[Jimmycrackcorn]

Oh and if you buy one with a knackered alternator and missing it bonnet mascot I have them.

[Jikovron]

These tend to rot superficially as the outer sill panel looks to be a token bit of tin compared to the inner structures.

 

I bought a c250td on a whim and thought it was absolutely brill.

despite distortion to the rear suspension mounts and rampant rust issues underneath the plastic sill skirts it still drove in a fashion that belied its 250'000 hard miles to the extent that it just seemed to compliment the earlier w124/w201 driving experience with sensible refinements rather than gimmicky all new improved features

 

I suspect the lumps hammers in a slow washer noise the 5 cylinder made was by far the best aspect of it, very smooth running although somewhat extreme sounding mechanical noises from the inline injection pump while idling

 

fuel lines tend to leak in air through aged o rings as mine did making it difficult to start and flattening the battery trying ,the key is a mad IR digital thing and if the battery goes near enough flat while locked the manual key probably wont work through lack of use so results in the need to jack it up and connect to the battery wire on the floorpan bulkhead terminal as I found out

5gtronic autos tend to leak ATF up the control loom via the plug behind the bellhousing and causes limp mode errors like holding whatever gear it last knew about or random neutral selection and it needs the special merc auto box oil as its different to dextron stuff however a cheap source of the oil is comma ATF to MB236.10 spec

 

also just remembered pointlessly the 722.6 box is rated to 722NM of torques and has 2 reverse speeds for ultimate needless excellence

[Ghosty]

Old Man nearly did that, was going to replace his 190E 1.8 with an N-reg C250TD Avantgarde, but all the panels were bubbling away, door bottoms, keyholes, indicators etc. That was when they were still everywhere - if memory serves the earlier cars are a lot worse for rot than later ones. I think all the worst of them are dead now. I quite like the look of the end of the line ones myself.

Always used to be a lot of early kippered ones in south Manchester... 

[Lacquer Peel]

I went to view this with my friend and drove it back when he decided to buy it, it's a bit of a shed with rusty cancer developing almost everywhere and loads of corrosion in its MOT history but it drives well, shagged rear shocks apart. Love the agricultural 5-pot diesel, it sounds like a beast, especially with a holed silencer.

[mercrocker]

Hmmm...some food for thought here, thanks for all the replies.   I did manage a 150 mile blatt in the 190E today and forgot how much I liked it.   C Class makes a lot of sense as a cheap fill-in though so I may now start looking......

[EssDeeWon]

Reading some of these posts begs the question for me, time and time again...

 

How can a brand like Mercedes-Benz build such strong well built cars then somehow go backwards and start building cars that are prone to rot in the late 90s onwards?

 

The 190's are great as are the early C class cars but anything from about 2000 now looks rusty. Were they dipped in salt before painting, or something?

 

An early C class with low owners and S/History FTW.

[andrew e]

It was the water based paint process, rather than the cars being inherently rust prone I believe.

[rantingYoof]

Didn't the E-Class variant also collect water on the inside of the doors, meaning that at some point the bottom of the door would fall off?

 

An S430 of 2003 vintage wafted past work the other day. It had rust all along the bottom of the driver's door.

[sawdustman]

Watch out for electrical gremlins on the early ones, such as lying fuel gauges, dodgy window switches, indicator stalk. And make sure all the keys work. Especially if it's got the stupid red and green light immobiliser which makes getting replacement keys a complete bastard.

 

Avoid the late ones (1999 onwards) because they switched to water based paint instead of oil and it was a few years before they realised they'd have to galvanize the panels. Also the later automatic gearboxes go computer senile.

 

They are a good old banger for the price, but the 190e is a much better car, in every way but crash protection.

[RoadworkUK]

A C230K, approx R Reg, with the sport package and auto (of course) is a Very Nice Thing.

 

The kind of thing you end up keeping forever.

[mercrocker]

The down-turn in MB quality seems to have neatly coincided with my sudden lack of interest in the world - about 1999.   Anyhoo, the opinions of those of you who assisted in my mental wrestling have confirmed that I am not mad to spend a couple of grand on my 190E and maybe half a bag on a C Class to keep Mrs Rocker mobile in the meantime.   I totally understand Roadwork's sentiment above but for me I think my 190E (or a direct replacement) would represent my "forever" car.    Since I started this thread I have had a good chat with the specialist that works on my car and, for me, I don't think anything that has followed the W201 has represented any kind of progress that makes sense to me.   

 

So, rear window repair, dent repair and continued high-mid range budget servicing (plus a few sovs in the kitty toward eventual HGF) will probably do for me, long-term....

[barmatt]

I had this c250td for a while when I needed something more economical than the 6 pot coupe

 

 

I bought it very cheap as the owner said it would occasionally go into limp home, so I took a chance that it needed some atf and it turned out I was right, 2l of merc atf later and it ran bang on for the year I had it. Had the usual spots on the arches but drove lovely, enough power that you could have a little fun if you wanted and was super comfy for the long drives returning 40mpg.

 

Go for it.

[greengartside]

FATHA_GG has a W202 C200 'Elegance' Auto estate on a T-plate, in Mercedes Silver.

 

Bought it in Sep 2011 and has only had to replace a couple of tyres and wiper blades for an M.o.T.

 

There are a few niggles with it though - rust being the biggest thing. Water-based paint wasn't a smart move when they made these. Other points is that the rear diff is making a whining noise but it's been like that ever since he bought it, I think he's done about 25,000 miles in it and there is a loud squeak coming from the rear seats area, can't pinpoint it. And the cig lighter doesn't work for some reason, tried replacing the fuse but it made no difference.

 

I'd quite like one myself because they do drive beautifully, auto gearbox is nice and smooth and the power steering is light as a feather.