W202 Merc C Class. It's showtime! Including pics from Middlesbrough Classic Car Show 10/8

4,810 · February 7, 2024

This is the post from the last time I owned a W202 C Class. All things considered, it wasn't a bad car for the small amount of money I paid, and went on to be a bit of a forum bike.

After a fraught two and a half years with a W203, which looked like it was going to cost about three times what it was worth to get it through it's next test, I was on the lookout for a nice, simple "an car" and have a rest from slightly old Mercs for a while.

Yeah, I did well there, more to follow...

4,810 · February 8, 2024

So, after six 190Es, two W202 C Classes and one W203, I was going to give Mercs a rest and was happily shopping for a nice, simple uncomplicated FWD hatch among Astra H and Js and MK2 Focuses (Focii?). I soon found 2 grand or so still doesn't get you a hell of a lot, and I started fancying something that was a bit retro but still usable. I started looking at MK1 Skoda Octavia VRSs again, my old black one was one of my favourite cars I've ever had, as well as one of the most reliable. Sadly, trying to find a nice, original one of those that hasn't been de-catted, with "300 brake pop & bang remap M8", and rattle canned knock-off Audi S4 alloys is near impossible, especially finding one that wasn't hundreds of miles away.

Then, while looking at older cars, I noticed that there were a lot of low mileage, tidy looking W202 C Classes coming out of the woodwork, now that a lot of the old rusty sheds are starting to die off. On the whole, apart from predictable rust issues, I hadn't really anything bad to say about the ones I had previously owned,

2.0 Esprit manual. Owned 2006-2008. Replaced a 190E. Low mileage, nice to drive and mechanically trouble free. Needed rust repairs at 8 years old! Replaced by another 190E...

Another one in Azurite blue, 2.0 Elegance auto. Owned 2018-2019, was a temporary car to get me out of the shit when the Octavia failed it's test. Was a great winter beater, and went on to be owned by a few more shiters on here.

And I fancied an older car again to do things like Drive It Day, and a few local shows. There's an old car show near me they do a couple of times a year, that you just turn up to and park up on the show field, and they're not snobby or arsey about what they let in. I fancied a car I could maybe take there. Now the oldest W202s are over 30 years old, they're just about starting to be regarded as a classic-in- waiting, rather than a rusty disposable shed (and prices seem to be reflecting that.)

Problem was, there were still no prospective cars anywhere within a few hundred miles...

Until this showed up on eBay, in Stockton, 5 miles away! C180 Elegance manual.

Now, it was a grey, miserable day when I took the photos of this car., so they don't really do the colour justice. There were a lot of early W202s finished in red, but the old Imperial red is a bit darker. The later Magma red is so much brighter and more vibrant, I've only ever seen the Sport and Esprit models in this, it's such an unlikely shade for an Elegance, I love it!

Yes, something needs to be said about the comedy ride height. The previous owner took it in to a local garage late last year for a service and new discs and pads. They advised him that the (original) front coil springs were starting to show some surface corrosion and the PO had them fit a new pair.

So something has gone awry, my guesses are either,

1) using generic, non -genuine springs with the wrong rating for the bottom spec 1.8 engine.

2) front wishbones have been torqued up on a ramp with the wheels off the ground

or

3) Front shocks on their way out, I've seen it happen on these and 190s, as the springs are so long and under so much tension, when the shocks are knackered, the springs push the front of the car right up.

Does seem like something to do with those new springs though,

This is a pic from the dealer that the PO bought the car from a year ago and it looks a lot happier on its original springs. I'll get it in to my tame mechanics soon and get it looked at . (That dealer was asking 5 grand for it, although it only had 44k miles on then. I certainly didn't pay that!)

So, it's a three elderly owner, 50,000 genuine mile example. Real giffer spec for one of these, someone really wanted a top of the range C Class but weren't prepared to tick any of the option boxes, so as well as the non-metallic paint, we have,

Manual gearbox,

No air-con (leccy sunroof though),

Cloth seats. Check out those mint bolsters though!

Ordered new from North Riding Garages of Pickering (Bangers & Cash country!). Pleasingly, the original dealer plates remain, old style font FTW!

It does have history to back up the mileage, although it does seem to have been serviced on a mileage basis, rather than time. It also seem to have spent some periods being laid up, and has also obviously spent a lot of time being garaged as the paint is in really good condition, still vibrant, shiny, largely fade free, and no laquer peel whatsoever.

Bodywork is, really really good for one of these, probably near-mint in fact. Considering how 1998-onwards cars like to eat their own front wings, this front wing is near perfect apart from some slight bubbling behind the mudflap, hasn't broken the paint yet though.

There's a small area of bubbling (less than fingernail size) at the very leading edge of this wheel arch, right above the bumper.

Door bottoms are mint, even on the inside

Rear arches are as clean as a whistle, even inside the inner lips. Want to get this thing Lanogarded to within an inch of its life though.

Drivers side lower dogleg section has a thumbnail sized area of bubbling that will need sorting.

And the usual top corner of the number plate recess (TADTS).

So far though, that is it for bodywork blemishes. I think that for a 25 year old one of these, it's one of the better ones out there.

Wheels were refurbished late last year, when the car was serviced, tyres were replaced at the same time, they're off-brand (Tracmax. No, me neither...) but are all-weather apparently....

The grey cloth interior is again, practically faultless. The seat pattern is still vibrant, carpets have been protected by the original ribbed Merc mats and rubber mats on top of those.

Vibrant orange instrument needles! always used to be a cause of excitement in 190 circles in showing that a car had been garaged away from UV rays...

Nice period window stickers, still in good condition. I do want to find a nice, period Blaupunkt stereo for it eventually, the modern Pioneer one currently fitted is good, but a bit out of place. Interesting how Blaupunkt re used their old stickers by just laying a picture of a keycard not very subtly over the old "CODE" logo...

Nice and clean under the bonnet,

And inside the boot.

So, unexpectedly, back in an older Merc, but so far, small niggles aside, I'm very happy with it..

1,235 · February 8, 2024

That looks fab.... Well bought 👌

7,907 · February 8, 2024

As the owner of a dog dick red c126 in Redcar it's good to see another Merc of actual colour in the area! It looks very clean, I hope it's a good 'un.

4,129 · February 8, 2024

That looks great! I'm a big fan of this era Benz, clean fuss-free styling.

11,879 · February 8, 2024

that's lovely.

3,008 · February 8, 2024

The fact even a top spec one of these didn't have air con or leather as standard blows my mind!

18,570 · February 8, 2024

That looks great, take a coil off each of the front springs and it'll be reet.

4,810 · February 8, 2024

1 hour ago, yes oui si said:

That looks great, take a coil off each of the front springs and it'll be reet.

I have been thinking along the lines of H&R springs for it. Over the last 25 or so years, every car I've had, bar one, has had either factory sports or aftermarket lowered suspension. Now though, with approaching a landmark birthday and suffering from gout and sciatica, especually in the weather we're currently having, I'm quite liking driving a car that "floats". Compared to the W203 which has the AMG sport suspension pack and 17" wheels, driving over a loose stone in the road feels like going over a brick in that

This one definitely needs that front end to come down somehow though.

18,570 · February 8, 2024

27 minutes ago, AndyW201 said:

I have been thinking along the lines of H&R springs for it. Over the last 25 or so years, every car I've had, bar one, has had either factory sports or aftermarket lowered suspension. Now though, with approaching a landmark birthday and suffering from gout and sciatica, especually in the weather we're currently having, I'm quite liking driving a car that "floats". Compared to the W203 which has the AMG sport suspension pack and 17" wheels, driving over a loose stone in the road feels like going over a brick in that

This one definitely needs that front end to come down somehow though.

In my experience they float just the same with a coil off, they just sit a little lower.

It'd even out the ride height and only costs you some time and a couple of slitting discs. Go half a coil at a time and make sure you're using the proper compressors.

4,810 · February 8, 2024

Thanks all for all the positive comments so far! Having had the three generations of baby-Benz, I can say this one feels more "classic", owing a lot more to the 190s than the W203, with almost identical front and rear suspension, and a steering box, as on a 190.

The way the doors shut, and things like the big steering wheel, the short throw and lovely mechanical feel of the manual gearshift, the font on the instruments and the leccy window switches on the centre console all take me back to the feel of the 190s too.

To drive, it's no ball of fire, (it lacks the supercharger and about 30 horses of the newer car), but it doesn't get left behind either, and the ride is lovely. It's an older Merc in looks and feel but still eminently usable as an everyday car.

I'll probably miss Aircon in the summer, but at least there's a fully operational sliding sunroof there. I'm pretty sure late in '98, for the '99 model year, all C Classes got Aircon and leccy windows all round as standard, so this will have just missed it. By then, I don't think there was much in it between the top and bottom of the range, barring alloy wheels. The Elegance was just the Ghia of the range with extra chrome trim and more wood inside. Its been mentioned often that with the 190 and early C Class, Mercedes built a Sierra, and having driven many Sierras for a living back in the '90s, its not far wrong.

2,471 · February 8, 2024

That's a lovely thing.

I had use of a Manual Esprit(?) one as a company hack when these were new. The foot pedal parking/handbrake was a bit of a pain, but only in rare situations.

They definitely feel more related to the 190 that the W203.

1,422 · February 8, 2024

OOOF Love it

4,810 · March 16, 2024

On 08/02/2024 at 00:15, AndyW201 said:

So, this is how it looked in last time. That arch gap had to go, didn't it Mr Crowther?

I don't have the correct Mercedes spring compressors, and with my dodgy back being how it is right now, rolling about under a car on the driveway is the last thing I can be arsed with right now.

So I paid a visit to my favourite scary bearded garage guy, with a replacement pair of front springs. Couple of hours later, this is how it was looking,

Miles better, more or less factory standard now. I would like it lowered a bit, but the speed bumps in our area are a piss take.

So much better to drive now too! It used to be quite vague and wandery on my daily dual carriageway commute, requiring constant steering corrections. Accelerating from a standstill, it used to squat quite badly and the front would go skywards. It would make pretty scary banging noises occasionally too, over speed bumps, Mick the mechanic reckons it was because the front was so high, there was virtually no travel on the shocks. Now it's lovely and smooth over bumps and a lot flatter when accelerating and cornering

I wasn't taking any chances when selecting which springs to get, with this being almost Colin Chapman "add lightness" spec for an Elegance, (small engine, manual box, no Aircon, no leather,) I went for a pair of springs for the Esprit model, which were about 10-15mm lower than standard, and slightly uprated. I figured this would make up for the lower spec of the car. It's certainly helped the handling.

There's a local classic car show in a couple of weeks, which I fancy taking this to. So while it's nice and clean, I'll be getting it jacked up tomorrow if the weather's nice again, or next weekend, and cleaning under the arches as the body colour can be seen under there, but a good scrub should have it gleaming. I'll have to see if my old, old stock of Auto Glym resin polish and sealant wax is worth using too.

11,879 · March 17, 2024

looking much better. I just noticed its on a Hull reg which I would have thought was too far out from North Riding so wonder if it sold as an approved used out of there rather than new

4,810 · March 17, 2024

3 hours ago, wesacosa said:

looking much better. I just noticed its on a Hull reg which I would have thought was too far out from North Riding so wonder if it sold as an approved used out of there rather than new

Yeah, never thought of that, and I used to pride myself on being a bit of a reg number area geek! KH does seem a bit down the coast for N Yorks,

However,

According to the original invoice, it does seem to have been supplied new by North Riding Garages. Strange...

11,879 · March 17, 2024

oh right..cool. maybe they register them at a bigger dealer or shift stock around to meet customer demands

4,810 · March 17, 2024

5 minutes ago, wesacosa said:

oh right..cool. maybe they register them at a bigger dealer or shift stock around to meet customer demands

That's what I was thinking. From old pics I've seen of North Riding garages, (it's not there now), it seemed like a small rural garage, rather than a big plate glass dealership like you'd expect from a Merc main dealer. Much like our Sprinter vans at work, they get ordered from the main dealer in Stockton, but always arrive with Newcastle reg numbers, probably from their site in Killingworth.

4,810 · July 20, 2024

One quick wash and brush up later, awaiting it's MOT slot.

Not the most salubrious of surroundings, but I've known Atma for over 20 odd years since I used to rent a hackney taxi from him, and I'd never go anywhere else.

Will it pass? Prace bets now!

4,810 · July 20, 2024

The reason I like to use this garage? Atma is an old car nut, and knows and understands them.

This Rover is his current project, 1 local owner and 33k from new! It's totally mint, both on top and underneath.

The Mini is his even longer term project, he's owned it over 30 years, and de-seamed and de-guttered it himself. All sills (inner and outer), floors and subframes have been replaced, its got a tweaked 1275 MG Metro motor and about to receive a luxo-spec interior with leather retrimmed Seicento Sporting seats, full width custom dash and gauges a-plenty.

And the Merc news is good! Not bad for a 26 year old Merc. Bolt on ball joints on these, so no biggy. Seems all is good underneath, just surface rusty in places but no rot, so out with the Lanoguard during the holidays.

12,040 · July 20, 2024

35 minutes ago, AndyW201 said:

The reason I like to use this garage? Atma is an old car nut,

This Rover is his current project, 1 local owner and 33k from new!

In all its leather and red carpet glory.

Very nice Sterling there. A 2.5 KV6 nonetheless. Exactly like my old one:

Sold a year or so ago to a breaker as by then most of the body honestly had the consistency of weetabix held on by paint. It was very rusty when I had it but still fairly solid and that was some years ago.

Love the W201 C-Class. I utterly regret not buying the one sent to me by Red5 after my S124 estate got smashed into and written off.

4,810 · August 10, 2024

Hmm, great weather for it...

But after being cancelled earlier in the year, the Middlesbrough Classic Car Show is finally happening, so the C got a bucket of water and some off-brand detailing products thrown at it,

As expected, zero interest so far, although a couple of guys have took pictures of the engine bay since I popped the bonnet!

Well worth the quick wipe over I gave it.

Still filling up at the moment, but a good, diverse mix of cars, as shown by our immediate neighbours,

The S Cargo is unsurprisingly getting a lot of interest! More later.

4,810 · August 10, 2024

So yes, a good mix of cars and some nice people to have a natter with,

Nice, clean low spec 25,

And this Nova was a little sweetie,

Not many old yanks, but this Packard was a stunner,

This 1300E was an absolute minter, local reg too,

Crossflow engined Moggy...

Brown Nova saloon, mmmm!

Lovely patina on this Dodge,

Dont mind 20" rims when they look like these...

This Maestro van was beyond mint, 1.3 A series with 4 speed box and 14,000 miles from new. Bought so the owner could put his mobility scooter in the back and still go to shows.