Having driven a previous gen E350 loaner car for a week, it was even less fun that the C300, more like big Buick. I drove a current gen Prius on vacation for a week last summer, now that was really slow and no fun.

I also own a Lexus IS350 that is truly very quick and gets exactly the same gas mileage as C300 even though it has 34% more horsepower, amazing what direct injection does. No doubt Lexus luxury equipment and leather/interior quality is far better than competing MB or BMW. Lexus chassis engineering is not quite as good as MB or BMW.

2008 C300 is plenty quick at 228hp (refer to instrumented testing by various publications, 0-60 around 7 seconds, certainly a lot quicker than any Prius), but a couple things impact first impressions during short test drives. Mercedes throttle travel is long with dull or tepid tip-in throttle response (which accommodates smooth driving, doesn't feel very responsive). Also the transmission adapts to driver style, so downshifts may be delayed or hesitant until the tranny adapts to a more aggressive driver. I have experienced an average of 22 mpg for first 60K miles of driving a C300.

I hope above helps a bit since my driving experiences with E350/Prius/LexusIS350/MBC300 ranges from a few hundred miles to several thousand miles.

 

Both riceater and MB-SV, you should get your hands on a 2012 C350CGI, with 15% more HP and 20% better gas mileage. Plus the interior is supposed to up the bar, certainly over the BMW and perhaps equal the Audi. Although my Belgian-manufactured Ford is even nicer in interior materials. Get the MB Tex, in a light color. Comfortable, cool and durable.

If the performance isn't enough, then only the AMG does it for the moment. MB has to get forced induction into a 3.0 to 3.5 L engine, the performance of the new C250 1.8L turbo has more torque than the current C300 engine, and excellent gas mileage.

The Mark Levinson system is manufactured by Harman Kardon (HK owns the brand, probably much of the amps and speakers are the same), and should not be different than the HK install in the W204. One can only judge sound quality with both systems FLAT, using the same original CD as a reference (MP3 is highly quality compromised) and at the same volume, so take a dB meter or use your iPhone. The HK system is far from mediocre, as it is probably the finest factory install one can get (better by far than Bose, B&O etc).

 

Although MB-SV states that the C300 has "enough" power, my main gripe with the C300 is the lame performance of the 7G transmission. If riceater had problems with a merge, it is due to the time it takes the seven different data sources that generate the response from the TCU. Although there are workarounds.

The 2008 has a kickdown switch on the accelerator pedal but the 2011 does not. The 7G TCU is "adaptive", who knows why. In the 2008 the shift button is marked "C" (Comfort) and "S" Sport. On the 2011 I understand the "C" is "E" for Economy, however no one has ever conclusively proved that "E" provides better gas mileage than "S".

There are many treads about 7G issues. There are some things one can do to improve response and performance (2 different things). One is to do an accelerator reset, I recommend pushing the pedal only half way down not to the floor. Another is not to fully floor the pedal, the TCU takes longer to judge extreme parameters. Once the accelerator is reset, a quick half-way-down push gets a very quick first downshift. Then pushing down some more gets the second quick downshift. Flooring it makes the 7G think a while between a 1 gear or 2 gear downshift, and two-gear downshifts take longer because of the slow synchronization time. Lame. Not like the AMG 7G transmission.

So there are ways to improve the shifting response, and coax better performance from the C300, its a learning curve. I now find the C300 power is enough, and have no real issues with the drivetrain. My sons, one who has a 330i and another with an M3 variant, are impressed with the C300 performance, together we developed some strategies to make the most out of the 231 HP (Euro spec). In the end you can get about the same response and performance as they get from their respective BMWs. BUT it should be easer, MB!!!!! My V12 has a "regular" and a "sport" mode. "Regular" is like track day and "sport" is like a supersonic rocket. ZF transmission. It should be that easy, period.

The torque band is most impressive, flat at max 221 lb-ft from 2400 to 4000 RPM. This means that if you keep the revs low (under 3000 RPM) and the transmission at the edge of its shift point you can get excellent gas mileage at over 100 MPH. (7th gear, 2950 RPM). At 3550 RPM you get a nice, economical 125 MPH and about 27 MPG. You have to be precise to not downshift to 6th, which deteriorates the MPG while providing no torque advantage. I have run the C300 at its limiter (in Euro spec 150 MPH) for some long stretches however the gas mileage goes down drastically.

The Lexus interior, it is archaic, much like the touch and feel of a 1960's Cadillac (IMO). Although one son dubbed the C300 dash as the "Basketball Benz", after checking out everything (I too was disappointed at first), the materials are not too different than the Audi, and far superior to the current BMW 3 materials. The 2012 however, people say that it is certainly an upgrade. Hope you can try a 2012 C350CGI soon.

 

Its pretty simple, if you are going to post and rip on the C300 and how it doesn't compare to the IS350/GS350 then perhaps the proper comparison should be made...Go drive a C350....

 

Additionally, you might eat your words a bit wrt reliability. The W204 C-Class has some off-the-charts reliability ratings compared to its peers.

Moreover, I'd love to hear how you got a C300 to 47k. You'd be a fool to pay that much. And if you've got even a bit of fight in you, you wouldn't. A C350 with the options you mentioned, sure. But not a C300. Especially if it wasn't a 4Matic.

Look at pricing threads here. A lot of folks have gotten very well optioned C's for less than 40k. So it renders your entire comparison to an GS moot. Especially considering that 47k number is gonna be your base sticker on that GS.

 

Like encoder says, one can even check out the E-class E350 which starts at $49,400 list. Compare THAT to the Lexus.

 

Who knows what this thread is good for lol.

 

Yep, sounds like a MB hater with only 3 lousy posts! I'm very satisfied with my 2011 C300 4 matic sport. Performance is much better than my 02 Audi A4 1.8T with 5 speed manual, interior is much nicer, handling is close but more compliant in the Benz, overall quality isn't even close! I also payed 37K for mine with Premium Pack 1, Steel Grey, heated seats, I pod interface, burlnut wood trim. A fully loaded Maxima would have been about the same price.

 

The new to us '08 300 luxury has the great quality seats we have been spoiled with by MB. We really enjoyed the 320 that it replaces and we realized going in that buying used-- we were not going to find an all-leather C300.

We had the opportunity to take it out on a 600 miler over the weekend and I will concede I like it better than the '02.

I am new to the 7g but like the 5g all it takes for responsive acceleration is a tap on the shift knob. What is different there however is that it now taps down from the gear that it is in whereas the 5g was from the top gear.

The 300 engine is more powerful than the 320. And the 320 pushed around a 5000 ML while towing a boat. It is a stump puller. I see no real need for a 350 but still I would really like to have the new direct injection 350 in the 2012.

 

At the end of the day, a Mercedes-Benz is still a Mercedes-Benz. Whereas a Lexus/Acura/Infiniti is just a fully loaded Toyota/Honda/Nissan. This is coming from someone that owns BOTH brands (a MB and an Acura)

 

I agree. Back in 1995 I test rode both a C320 and a Acura Legend GS. I ended up buying the Acura based on two things, price (last model year so great deal) and FWD. I ended up keeping it for 9 mos. It was terrible in the snow even with the FWD and handled like a pig. I ended up buying a 1996 4 runner based solely on snow and being an emergency worker. That truck was great in the snow and I will leave it at that. SO far, this C300 is the nicest car I have ever driven. Well, except for a 2011 C63 I test rode. :thumbsup:

 

A p.s. to the above... the MPG was as expected--i.e., similar to the C320 the C300 did manage 30 mpg over moatly 2- and 3-lane fwy with a lot of it with speeds of a posted legal 70 mph.

 

I noticed the C300 wasn't a 911.

 

This generation of MB's v6 motor definitely has a unique character that perhaps results from the dampening effect of the counter rotating balancing shaft with the high torque at a low rpm that makes it seem like the engine is not having to work very hard to generate a lot of power--almost like a little v8... which, of course... it is--i.e., MB's v8 with 2 cylinders hacked off.

 

I noticed, at higher RPMs (4000+), the engine is not that smooth.

 

Mine seems smooth up to 4500 rpm. I won't go above that until 1000 mile breakin. Much smoother than my Audi A4 Turbo and at least as smooth as my wife's FX35. I would expect my car engine to smooth out even more with more miles. Only 100 now. Have you always felt this? Are you do for a service? What kind of gas are you using?

 

Maybe because I am used to BMW engines.

 

More likely you have a clogged air filter or your fuel pump is blinky.

 

Im sorry you came out disappointed with a C300, perhaps you should test drive a C63? i think it will change your mind

 

Sorry to bump an old thread but this one came up as I was googling C300 transmission issues.

I recently purchased a 2009 C300 and I wish I had noticed the transmission issue during the short test drive. She has been at the dealership a couple of times now and eventually today they told me "they are all like this, we can't fix it". This is a certified used Mercedes so I am very disappointed.

The issue is that there's a 1-2 second delay before the gear engages when shifting from 'D' to 'R' or vice versa.

I realize the 2009 Mercs downshifted very slowly, making quick lane changes impossible - I think this was the original poster's complaint. I drove a Hyunday rental car in the 90's ones and it was about the same.

This is my first Mercedes and will probably be my last one.

Warranty and the 'Certified' status do not mean anything.

If I'm lucky, a tree will fall on my car and I get some of the money back from insurance

 

If something is wrong, take to another Mercees dealer.

 

Advice please

I am sorry to bump an old thread and to continue to complain. I am not a troll. Sorry to post negative comments but I am seeking advice.

I posted earlier about the transmission problem with a 2009 C300. The dealership worked on it twice but nothing changed, there is still a 1-2 second delay when shifting from 'P' to 'D' or 'P' to 'R' etc. The transmission shifts very slowly in general. They told me they are all like that. I am aware of the software update and told them about it - to no avail. Eventually I settled for it and decided to buy a different make pretty soon. Live and learn.

... until about 6 months later one day on my way to home from work there was a message on the console, something like 'next time when refueling check oil level'. Hmm, ok, will do. When I got home, the rear of the car was covered with oil and no oil in the engine.

The engine was completely busted and replaced under warranty, nice. Thank God for warranty. (although at this point I was dreaming of a normal car to be honest).

According to the paperwork after the engine replacement, the leak had occurred where the engine is attached to the transmission. Possibly due to the transmission work they had done earlier.

Now the transmission makes a loud howling noise especially on the 1-3 gears. There is still a few months of extended warranty left.

I already complained about the noise but according to the clerk at the service desk, who also drove the car a little, it is 'pretty normal'.

I don't think your average Corolla or Civic makes noise like that even after 200k miles so I don't think it is normal. This is a more expensive car and only has 55 k miles at the moment. The noise started when the engine blew up.

I am embarrassed every day to drive this car. The slowness of the transmission may be a normal Mercedes feature but just to get rid of this car at a reasonable price, I'd like to know if there is a way to get rid of the noise.

My question is: can a noise like that be considered normal and how to communicate with the dealership to get it fixed while there is still warranty? Maybe contact Mercedes USA or Germany? I realize it's a lower price vehicle and second hand but I am very disappointed.

Thank you for any information and sorry about the negativity - I like Mercedes but I am very disappointed with this vehicle and Mercedes in general.

 

I am sorry to bump an old thread and to continue to complain. I am not a troll. Sorry to post negative comments but I am seeking advice.

I posted earlier about the transmission problem with a 2009 C300. The dealership worked on it twice but nothing changed, there is still a 1-2 second delay when shifting from 'P' to 'D' or 'P' to 'R' etc. The transmission shifts very slowly in general. They told me they are all like that. I am aware of the software update and told them about it - to no avail. Eventually I settled for it and decided to buy a different make pretty soon. Live and learn.

... until about 6 months later one day on my way to home from work there was a message on the console, something like 'next time when refueling check oil level'. Hmm, ok, will do. When I got home, the rear of the car was covered with oil and no oil in the engine.

The engine was completely busted and replaced under warranty, nice. Thank God for warranty. (although at this point I was dreaming of a normal car to be honest).

According to the paperwork after the engine replacement, the leak had occurred where the engine is attached to the transmission. Possibly due to the transmission work they had done earlier.

Now the transmission makes a loud howling noise especially on the 1-3 gears. There is still a few months of extended warranty left.

I already complained about the noise but according to the clerk at the service desk, who also drove the car a little, it is 'pretty normal'.

I don't think your average Corolla or Civic makes noise like that even after 200k miles so I don't think it is normal. This is a more expensive car and only has 55 k miles at the moment. The noise started when the engine blew up.

I am embarrassed every day to drive this car. The slowness of the transmission may be a normal Mercedes feature but just to get rid of this car at a reasonable price, I'd like to know if there is a way to get rid of the noise.

My question is: can a noise like that be considered normal and how to communicate with the dealership to get it fixed while there is still warranty? Maybe contact Mercedes USA or Germany? I realize it's a lower price vehicle and second hand but I am very disappointed.

Thank you for any information and sorry about the negativity - I like Mercedes but I am very disappointed with this vehicle and Mercedes in general.

Sorry, I forgot to mention, after the engine replacement there also was a transmission oil leak and the transmission slipping due to a transmission oil leak. The dealership added oil and replaced a gasket.

 

What noise?