Anyone know where I can get one for a decent price and whether it can be imported legally to California? (Legal = DOT safety standards [check], over 7,500 miles, and ...?). If not legal for California, I can register it to my residence in Texas. Looking for any diesel B-class.
You would have to wait until 2030 to import one legally to the USA. The Canadian cars are all gasoline; the diesel version pollutes too much to be certifiable in North America.
Consider also that - if you really like the B 200 body style - you can import a gasoline car from Canada with few if any problems. So either wait until 2030 or get the gasser - now. We have a B 200 Turbo owner on this forum who lives in CA USA and got her car in Canada.
Modern diesels tend to have EGR problems on North American fuel due to ash content (not sulphur). I think that had the CDI been offered here, I would possibly have taken the gasser over it anyway. The maintenance schedule is more intense with the diesel and compared to the B 200, the engine is far more complex and therefore likely more costly to repair when something does go wrong.
However diesel is the prefered option for vehicles doing high mileages, with engines usually last far longer than petrol ones. I'm sure the Bs being used as taxi's in Germany are mainly diesel, though, admitedly they may not have your ash content diesel to contend with.
The pollution aspect has been discussed before on this forum & depends on what you consider is more pollutant. The CO2 figures are far better on the diesel but N/A tends to ignore this aspect of pollution unlike Europe & many other countries.
I am also waiting for MB to sell the B 200 CDI in Canada as I plan to be one of their first customers for the diesel.
Note to MB Canada: What the hell are you waiting for? VW, Audi, Honda and others will be introducing diesels in Canada within the year. A 2 litre Golf / Rabbit with a DSG and 140 HP diesel getting 50 MPG should be keeping you up late at night worrying about market share.
California DMV Technical Compliance division told me last fall that we could import a 49 state diesel into California if it had 7,500 miles on it and unlike a gasoline car no smog test was necessary. The only way to import a car that is not made for the US market is if it meets Federal safety and emissions standards however it still has to have at least 7,500 miles on it before it comes to CA to register it. I don't have a clue as to get this information.
I’ve been told by a few people who’ve tried to import a B from Canada that they can’t find an importer to handle this as the car is not on any list of approved vehicles for the US so finding one to bring it in from Europe might be even more difficult and not worth the effort. I don't know how my importer did it but my B is here legally.
My non-turbo B 200 is averaging over 31 US MPG. I found theTurbo to drink a little more, about 27 MPG US on my driving circuit. CA-B200 can give you a longer-term Turbo average, no doubt!
I would also purchase a diesel if it was available. I think the main issue is that the diesel fuel in Europe is different (cleaner burning) that the diesel in the USA and Canada. This would require Mercedes to modify the diesel engine in the B-Class to allow it to work in North America. I don't think you can use a European version without issues...
To be specific, Western Canadian crude oil is low grade and is full of ash etc, which clogs up EGR valves. The cetane rating is low too, usually 20% less than in Europe. the BlueTec cars in the US and Canada will probably be a handful over time, run on this fuel.
VW diesels work just fine on our dirty diesel - without injecting urea. Their 2009 model Jetta / Rabbit will offer a 2 litre 140 PS diesel option. The 140 PS would be enough grunt for a B class.
Seems odd that MB cannot, or will not, match VW technology?
I want to buy a B---CDI 
Their 2009 model Jetta / Rabbit will offer a 2 litre 140 PS diesel option. The 140 PS would be enough grunt for a B class. 
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