almost ready to buy my first MB - Benzworld.org

unattainable · 04-09-2008, 12:50 PM

Ok I'm a young guy and I'm finally getting a little return for my years of hard work and college education. I've been driving a damn chevy cavalier around for 2 almost 3 years. Not that I don't like the car it hasn't had an issue since I bought it and I drive the hell out of it, but I think that this year I may be able to move up in the world. I'm looking at C230 sedans... I like them very much but I have a few questions.

1: If I get the 230 can I later drop in a C55 motor?
2: What kind of MPG do you get on the 2.3?
3: I saw one for sale that had a stick is that common?
4: how are they on reliability when in stock form with the manual?
5: What kind of power are you getting out of the 2.3 motor?
6: Who makes good power adders for this car?

I've been in the racing world for a long time and it's hard for me to let it go.. I want the benz so I can cruise around and look good but I also want something that can move on down the road when need be. My price range will be less than $20,000 so i need to think realistic about my choice of car.

I want something quick, classy and affordable.

BF_JC230 · 04-09-2008, 01:43 PM

Get a VW...

Welcome to the board, STF...BUT...

1: If I get the 230 can I later drop in a C55 motor?
NO. (Well yeah if you can do the whole w209 frond end swap to boot)

2: What kind of MPG do you get on the 2.3?
What year are you looking at? My C230 has a 1.8L M271 engine that gets up to 36 highway and mainly 30 around town.

3: I saw one for sale that had a stick is that common?
No, not in the US, I love my 6 speed.

4: how are they on reliability when in stock form with the manual?
Only bad known transmission issue is with the dogmatic built in cooler leaking in the radiator. The main engine issue (s) stays the same. Parts are becoming more available now for the w203 which is good for those of us that like to wrench.

5: What kind of power are you getting out of the 2.3 motor?
My 1.8L M271 is stock - See question 4.

6: Who makes good power adders for this car?
With your estimated budget there is not much, and not much for many in the Mercedes-Benz aftermarket world. See also – Question 4.

Jake

Black04C230 · 04-09-2008, 09:21 PM

I wouldn't plan on doing motor swaps in a mercedes as it can cost an extremely large amount of cash. If you want something fast I would just go with the C32 AMG straight off the bat. It would save you tons of money.
I have 1.8L engine with the 5spd auto. It will usually get about 25mpg for me and about 31mpg on the highway if I drive it normally.
As far as power goes these cars aren't rockets or anything. They are not going to be out running a lot of other cars on the streets or anything though. The 1.8L has 189 horsepower I believe.
If you are trying to add power the cheapest thing I think that I have seen has been like a K&N air filter, which won't really do much. Other than that I really haven't found too much besides over priced supercharger pulleys.
For about $18,000 you should be able to find a 4 to 5 year old car with under 50k. I just purchased mine a few months ago and it is a fun car to drive. I am pretty happy with it so far. If you are worried about horsepower though, you might want to consider a C32 or C55 because these cars are by no means rockets or could ever be.

KompressorMonkey · 04-10-2008, 12:17 AM

things to consider for the mercedes benz. servicing the car for A and B service can be expensive depending on how the dealer charges, for me its rims in my case i drive like a hooligan so " i just replaced 3 bent rims " thats my fault also you cant be cheap with a mercedes everytime i buy parts its either oem or from a recognized parts shop "renntech ,eisenmann ,lorinser ,HRE, tiens" like bfjc230 said theres not much for power in the aftermarket category for the c classes things you can possibly do renntech cf air box which would put you at an extra 25hp full exhaust intake cat blah blah you get the point pulleys for the supercharger and some big brakes but i dont think your gonna need that for the C but all in all your gonna be happy with the C you wont be dissapointed oh another thing when u want it to go its gonna go just dont put it in WIFE MODE and good luck on your purchase !

KompressorMonkey · 04-10-2008, 12:19 AM

i forgot you can also chip the ecu to gain probally an extra 20 hp so if i had to round it off you gonna be at mid to high 200s but be prepared to spend more then 5grand

Tri-Star · 04-10-2008, 08:32 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by unattainable

If I get the 230 can I later drop in a C55 motor?

I am also a young guy that came from tuning the hell out of cars from all motor to forced induction. No offense intended but this auto is a higher class. We're not talking about a civic bro. It would be more cost efficent to buy a damn ///amg ... only problem is the $ price $. Welcome to the wonderful world of Mercedes Benz.

If the c230 fits in your budget then get it. It's not gonna be the fastest car on the road but it'll be smooth and give you the luxery your looking for. If you plan to mod, maybe look at bmw because there are a lot more mods out there then MBZ.

unattainable · 04-10-2008, 09:24 AM

Quote:

Originally Posted by Tri-Star

I am also a young guy that came from tuning the hell out of cars from all motor to forced induction. No offense intended but this auto is a higher class. We're not talking about a civic bro. It would be more cost efficent to buy a damn ///amg ... only problem is the $ price $. Welcome to the wonderful world of Mercedes Benz.

If the c230 fits in your budget then get it. It's not gonna be the fastest car on the road but it'll be smooth and give you the luxery your looking for. If you plan to mod, maybe look at bmw because there are a lot more mods out there then MBZ.

Yeah you got me nailed here! lol I am from the world of motor swaps forced induction and drag racing... I know that the MB isn't the car for that behavior! I've looked at VW and BMW but the cars just don't have the class I'm looking for. BMW's are great cars I use to have an E36 M3 convertible and it was quick but not really the luxury cruising car I want. The A4 is the closest thing to what I'm trying to find, I've been looking at c320's and those look appealing. So I honestly think that I need to build a race car for racing and have a nice car for driving.. The c230 gets good mpg and that's something to enjoy in today's world!

New set of questions...

1: Can I do a C55 AMG body conversion to the 230?
2: Is it just the bumpers and side skirts that get replaced?
3: Is there an aftermarket company for that stuff?
4: How big of rims can I stuff under the car?
5: In alot of pics I've been looking at the rear seems lower than the front is that the case or is it that the rear wheel well is smaller?

Thanks for all the replies guys this is a big deal for me and I want to pick the right car since I'll be keeping it for a few years to come!

Joey2Times · 04-10-2008, 09:29 AM

I gotta agree with Pjay - MUCH more "stick on" parts for BMW.

Mods on benz's are not for the faint of heart/wallet.

If you got stacks then you can look for mods like....

Kleeman supercharger kits - 10,000$ just for parts, that is likely more then half of the price of the car. Around 70-100hp gain

Engine swap? Look to Brabus but expect 15-20,000$ range which is likely going to end up costing more then your car did. Anywhere up to around 400+ hp motors

As for other mods ?

A CF intake box will set you back a ~ 1500 maybe more and your increase ? +7hp if your lucky heh...

underdrive pully setups - 900$ at least. frees up something like 8-12 hp if your lucky

Exhaust and shit like that is guna be more cosmetic then anything else.

MBZ is the wrong car to pick for modding purposes...
With a C class - Non AMG - Expect to spend 1/2-2/3's of what you paid for the car if you expect any good boost from mods.

Although you could always put in a 150 shot of spray and pray juice -
but then dont expect your tank to stay in one piece for very long.

Joey2Times · 04-10-2008, 09:39 AM

1: Can I do a C55 AMG body conversion to the 230?
Yep alot of people do it. I think its more a C32 look I cant remember off hand if anything is that different on the C55 and the C32 besides the ZOOM

2: Is it just the bumpers and side skirts that get replaced?
AFAIK you just get the AMG body kit and you will look the part, maybe the AMG trunk lip too

3: Is there an aftermarket company for that stuff?
You can buy from AMG directly, or though your dealership or you can buy Replica stuff - The replica stuff is made by random companies but they look like the AMG made kits - Check Erebuni they make tons of shit

4: How big of rims can I stuff under the car?

20's but you will look silly 20x8 8.5 or 9even look like pizza cutters and it lifts the car up in a ugly way. For some sick reason it reminds me of Guido's on Long Island who have blowouts and wear wifebeaters to clubs in the middle of winter... Its just trying too hard to be cool

hahaha
19's will look good and will fit - if its the same (which i think it is) as mine you can get away with up to 19x9.5 in the rear which is meaty. I still need to lower my setup but that makes me nervous haha

5: In alot of pics I've been looking at the rear seems lower than the front is that the case or is it that the rear wheel well is smaller?

Not sure what you mean. Suspension wise I do see what you mean but I don't understand the wheel well concept. My rear wheels are the same size and a inch wider and they fit.

Thanks for all the replies guys this is a big deal for me and I want to pick the right car since I'll be keeping it for a few years to come![/quote]

Tri-Star · 04-10-2008, 09:52 AM

The c55/c32 comes with the sport bumpers as well as does the c230 so ultimately you already have the amg look with the c230 just not the power.

You will however have the sport suspension that the c320 lacks.

The c320 has a 3.2L engine with nice torque and a 6 gear touchshift tranny which is fun. It has elegance (luxery) bumpers and suspension set up. In addition to some other interior options like wood etc. I plan on dropping in sport suspension and eventually getting an amg bumper.

Quote:

Originally Posted by Joey2Times

For some sick reason it reminds me of Guido's on Long Island who have blowouts and wear wifebeaters to clubs in the middle of winter... Its just trying too hard to be cool

hahaha

Look forward to chilling with ya next weekend. I'm hoping for some nice weather so we could get some ill pics. I'm still having problems with my rims. I hope I figure it out before the autobann.