I'm possibly still considering a new car, and one that may be of interest in a Mercedes E-Class Coupe. The model I'd go for is something like a 220CDI or 250CDI and I wondered if there are any ownership experiences on here? It's one of the few cars of the past decade that I saw on release and instantly wanted... now that they're coming down to reasonable money I may be able to look into one but good looking cars tend to be a bit crap, so what are your thoughts?
Assume you are talking about a used, pre-facelift E Class coupe?
Pick of the range is the E250Cdi Sport AMG but make sure it's got the 7G transmission as the earlier cars had a very slow, dim witted 5 speed gearbox. I ran one for a year nad it was faultless I must say.
Even the Sport handles like crap, had a test drive in one once, took a left hand corner I know really well at 60mph that all my other cars went round nice and tight (BMW), the Merc ended up on the other side of the road in a torrent of under steer.
It's an old mans retirement car for wafting to the golf club in, don't like the front headlights, interior is not very pleasant either. They have sorted the front end out on the new one though (2013 Model), look much better
I'd get the C class coupe, much nicer looking car
That's the one, although I'd prefer a manual so that's what I've found. I know that's Mercedes heresyOriginally Posted by Gareth-W
Exactly the sort of no messing review I wanted. I like a car that handles well and the e class doesn't sound ideal. The c-class is a tad more expensive that I've found but appeals so I will look into it. Thanks
I've got the c class coupe, Wayne- the c250 sport and can heartily recommend it. It is a great car, but manuals are quite hard to come by. I eventually bought one (new) after test driving a c250 auto and a c180 manual- thankfully the car arrived and I couldn't be happier!That's the one, although I'd prefer a manual so that's what I've found. I know that's Mercedes heresy
I got an e220 courtesy car when mine had its service in October and it seemed much bigger and a bit sluggish in comparison- preferred the c class by a country mile :)
thought you were selling your BMW to free up some cash?
If you are , I would look into leasing a merc Class coupe there were offers a few months ago for £250 inc vat a month for a new one on 10k miles per year
Thanks Thom. I've just found a very nice c class coupe diesel so have enquired. It only has half leather though and no heated seats which I believe is detrimental to merc buyers! Has loads of other kit though.
I was until the house we wanted fell through and we decided not to move for a while. Where were these deals you mention as it sounds interesting?
I think you will find you are incorrect about those C Class deals at the level you quoted/thought mate.
The headline rental was £299, plus VAT, and for business users only on a base C Class coupe and that is available until the end of the year. Anything less than that should be treated with extreme scepticism!
Last edited by Gareth-W; 12th December 2013 at 19:20.
Wayne,
Do not in any circumstances buy a Manual E Class or C Class coupe!!!!!!..........if you do you will have give it away when you come to change it........and MB manuals in the cooking versions are still not great at all......better than the past but still inferior to, for example, BMW's with manual gearbox.
As for heated seats I wouldn't have any car with leather (or the faux leather MB usually have in these cars) interior without that option. Not needed for resale but is for the ownership experience.
Gareth
I recently bought an e class coupe. As advised stick with auto if you're buying a merc. The manuals are hard to shift when it comes to sell. I love the 350. The 250 had some problems with the injectors but the 350 is pretty much bullet proof. If you're
after a sports coupe, you probably won't like the e class. If you want something that is relaxing, wonderful to drive etc then the e class certainly does fit the bill. I have the amg sports kit etc on mine so it looks a bit more aggressive. I couldn't be happier although my mates who are petrol heads have laid into me for buying a retirement car at 32.
It was £299 for the c180 amg sport with metallic paint (retail customers) this time last year. Was about £4k deposit.
I got a ridiculous deal on top on mine as well; they were giving them away!
As for only buying auto, yes they are more popular but I wouldn't compromise on what you want. Clearly there are people out there who want to drive manual mercs, less, for sure, as some are bound to buy into the 'auto mercs only' madness :)
Sounds like an Agility PCP deal, not a Contract Hire agreement....hence the larger (£4k+) deposit than the usual 3 or 6 months up front.
Drive a manual C or E class and you will only buy an Auto!!!!!!!
Thanks for all the thoughts. I have just realised that mercs use the stupid foot-controlled parking brake system and I can see hill starts being fun, so I guess this reason alone would emphasise the need for an auto ideally. Hmmm. There's always a major compromise somewhere hey.
I worried too, but it's a massive non issue! For a start, there is hill start assist. I am not a massive fanboy of manual mercs or anything (each to their own), but I worried about all these things and then wondered why I bothered!
Do not buy a Manual Mercedes end of you will be laughed at, as for the E class coupe very nice car, I have had Merc's A class C class S class E class they're great cars.
At present My wife has the E 250 CDI BE Twin Turbo Elegance AUTO to say it's fast is an understatement and frugal too.
Get one you will not go wrong as long as you do your homework, page one says do not buy a manual.
Quick pic today watching a DVD Captain America in the car.
Notice ^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^^Auto
Last edited by Fords; 12th December 2013 at 19:52.
Ah, right- that's the one! I did test drive autos and they aren't for me :)
I'd have gotten a three series if they were as cheap though lol
I currently have a manual 320d coupe and test drove a manual E250 coupe last month. I was pretty impressed with the gearbox - much better than Mercs of old and not a million miles away from the BMW. If you want a manual go for it, don't worry about what others think/prefer. I would have bought the car too, performance was excellent and although it didn't handle like a 3 series it was still a very good drive and felt like a step up. Sadly I dithered over the weekend and by the time I rang to say I would take it someone had beaten me too it!
Tim
Try a hill start.
http://forums.mercedesclub.org.uk/sh...ad.php?t=14357
Then try reversing from in between parked cars facing downhill then come back and tell me it's a great box.
The Question.
so you mean to tell me that i am on a hill in a stream of traffic.i cannot hold the car on a handbrake.(senario) i am in gear (i have a manual box) i cannot hold the car as my left foot is holding the bloody clutch in can someone talk me through this as i think its down right bloody dangerous. whats wrong with a normal handbrake as on my cossy 190
the response
Cant see the problem rollsroyce. Pull up on the hill, declutch as usual, right foot on footbrake as normal, select neutral, left foot off clutch, apply parking brake with left foot. When you want to move then left foot on clutch, select gear, find the "Bite" and pull the handle to release the parking brake and off you go...
An AUTO
Pull up apply footbrake. Go place on Accelerator.
The electronic hill brake activates on later models so it holds on a hill anyway without doing anything
Last edited by Fords; 12th December 2013 at 21:05.
It sounds a bit of a tricky one... do Mercedes drivers have an extra foot?I need to try it I guess.
I went from a 530 to an e280. Worst car I have ever owned, got rid after less than a year for another BMW. After that 1 series you have I think you'll be disappointed.
It is bad mate, really bad.It sounds a bit of a tricky one... do Mercedes drivers have an extra foot?
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Why don't you test drive an E class and make your own mind up?
Gosh, I wasn't expecting that... what makes you say that and why did you hate the car so much? Thanks
Thanks... I'm beginning to realise why most mercedes are autos... what a weird format for such a massive company to stick to.
There are none that are near enough other than more expensive variants and I just can't be bothered messing a garage around, with all the calls and chasing they do. It might become the only option though as the cars I'm finding are at least 200 miles away, and I'm super busy at the moment.
You can get them but long delivery and not so-good resale.
They are not on their own - BMW have a couple of models that are auto only, the new Porsche GT3 has no manual option to name a couple. There is a kind of nice feeling driving a competent, powerful and luxurious auto car IMO. When I drive our X5 it's great and relaxing - compared to the Cayman which is full on, old fashioned mechanical handbrake etc. Depends what you are looking for.
Your ultimate call mate.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
I know... to think I started off looking at a 2014 MINI Cooper! I think that would be a great car with the new 1.5 twin turbo petrol, but the lure of a Merc coupe is very appealing!
If it was me Wayne I would go and drive whatever the local dealers have rather than chase very specific things. This will give you a feel of the brand and the drive characteristics. See how you find the auto box of the generation you can afford and go from there.I know... to think I started off looking at a 2014 MINI Cooper! I think that would be a great car with the new 1.5 twin turbo petrol, but the lure of a Merc coupe is very appealing!
Good luck mate!
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
The Mercedes was just a bad experience. When we went to pick it up from the dealer (Mercedes Leeds) it was pissing down so "you don't really need to do a walk around because it's an approved car" I insisted and found scratches in the front wing (visible from 2m). Glow plugs needed replacing after 1k and not covered by warranty. Constant problems with the headlights. Failed it's mot as they were badly aligned. Not converted by the Mercedes warranty (only covered for the adjustment to get it through the mot and I really should replace then @£1500). I can forgive mechanical problems if it was a decent drive. Utterly lifeless in "real" driving conditions.
Try and get one for a decent test drive I'm sure you'll be disappointed.
I've an E220CDI Estate and SWMBO has a 118d m sport convertible. They're like chalk and cheese. Mine's great for long journeys, hers good for hustling about locally.
Each one is great for what it's used for but can do the other job at a push.
I shouldn't worry about the handbrake, you soon get used to it.
I'd definitely recommend auto and probably the c class as they are a bit more sporty; the E class is for the old farts like me!
Not an E but I have a C220 Sport Estate auto.
A very very good car in every respect. I have put 98k in two and half years on the clock and its never missed a beat.
Highly recommend the brand.
I have the E220 on order for spring delivery. £463 plus vat for 33k miles a year on a lease. Cracking.
Had an e class 220cdi cab and although nice, handling is poor. Now have a new M3 Cab and I will not have another Merc again. Alright it is an M3, but I am so impressed with the whole package, best car I have ever owned.
Rubbish. I've had a manual C250 for over 2 years and 45000 miles. The foot brake is a non issue. I deliberately went for a manual as I don't enjoy autos and don't regret it. Only criticism is its a bit unrefined against the wife's 325D (but that is a 6 cylinder engine)
My opinion V your opinion.
Mine = they are bad and the footbrake situation is pants in a manual car.
Yours = a non issue.
When you look long into an abyss, the abyss looks long into you.........
Absolutely +1
People who own the car don't seem to have a problem :)
Foot operated hand brakes are out of the ark, you don't even use it in an auto as you just sling the gearbox into Park
They are however great for handbrake turns !
This man talks sense Wayne.
I really cannot believe you can't get into a car locally that will give you a very good impression of the options you want to/need to try here......it doesn't have to be the specific car/spec you are interested in.
20 mins in a car will be enough to know if it's for you or not. I've had both a C Class and E Class Coupe and loved them both....all auto's and both had their own merits. The C is a little more sporty but the E is more elegant/refined.
What's your budget here??
I run a busy business so it's the time I can't find right now Gareth. I'm only making enquiries right now via the phone but wanted people's opinions on here. Thanks.
Fair enough Wayne.
But if/when you find the time (and before Xmas if you can) you will find it the best time of year to do a deal on a new/used car..............so is well worth finding the time if you're seriously in the market to buy one really.
Good luck!
Mercedes are doing some fantastic deals on new cars anyway, for example the CLS250 has a dealer deposit contribution of £11k+ which is almost 25% of the RRP.
Isn't the E-Class Coupe based on the C-Class chassis so in theory handling should be much the same? I had a E-Class Cab when the C63 went in for a service and was quite impressed
Different platform Alex. And all the dimensions are very different too.
http://www.autoblog.com/2009/05/19/2...ss-underneath/
I got a new e class convertible auto and think its awesome, handling has been sorted now and front looks a lot better. It's got enough power for me and when I drove from Manchester to East London 450 miles I did it on £55...
I'm not getting into the merc vs bmw argument as I've had (and still have both) they drive differently and I guess appeal to different people. Test drove an a5 convertible before getting the merc and was really underwhelmed. The technology on the mercs these days is awesome...
I'm only round the corner if you wanna have a look Wayne...
out of interest what did you buy???
Thanks for all the replies.
Great offer, thanks but I managed to get sorted out with a BMW today. Couldn't be happier although I will look at Mercs again in the future I'm sure.
The BMW brand just always seems to work for me in terms of price, spec and how I like a car to drive :-)
I went ahead with a newer one series, which was the last car I expected myself to go for!
Out of intrest what engine variant have you got.
E220 cdi but I believe that the 250 might be even better
That's what I've been told also just little more thirsty but still returns about 40 mpg apparently.
I've managed 46.1mpg on my 350
I've got about 55mpg on a motorway trip driving conservatively but it averages about 40 ish on my daily comute
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