Mercedes Benz C Class C220 CDI Avantgarde Review

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★★★☆☆
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  • Reliability

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SteveTC's review of Mercedes Benz C Class C220 CDI Avantgarde

“My first encounter with a Mercedes started 18 months...”

★★★★★

written by SteveTC on 21/02/2008

Good Points
Good build quality
Great fuel consumption
Comfort
Prestige

Bad Points
Expensive Original parts

General Comments
My first encounter with a Mercedes started 18 months ago and I've never looked back...It's a car I've always wanted to own and the C class was just perfect in style, size, capacity, and badge carrying status....I have the 220 and it's about the right size for economy and power....Any smaller you would struggle for performance....any larger and you pay with heavy fuel usage.
I traded in my VW Passat after much deliberation as to what I was after...which was a bit of ooomph and comfort.....something both my Passat had ,...and some luxuries to boot thrown in for good measure...My test drive soon made my mind up after other test drives in similar sized motors,all failed that wow factor especially with the right foot and feed back to the steering wheel....Everything fell to hand after the initial seat and mirror adjustment and I felt right at home with it as if I had driven it for years.
The cabin might be a bit tight width wise for the larger rear ended person,but leg room and adjustment is huge to say the least and should accommodate the tallest of people or even the shortest....I'm 5' 8''....I own a 52 plate model and it's the one made in Germany itself as I have found out since owning it and it shows.....In the 18 months I have owned it I have NO electrical mishaps and no actual mechanical breakdowns either.....maybe one of the lucky ones from what I have heard from others.But I have found that the ones causing problems were those built outside Germany itself....what were Mercedes thinking of!
Mine had done some 70 thousand miles when I bought it...yet it showed no wear and tear (very careful owner as I understood) and serviced regular twice a year due to a fleet car for a young executive....thank goodness for that..and I have carried on the tradition,except now it's every 12 months as normal...Performance from the 2.2 diesel is great...not exceptional and although it's the auto with the TipTronic gear box you can change manual if you want to feel more in control....The Engine is very smooth for a diesel and I get a genuine 30/32 around town and I have achieved 49 on a run...and I was not tootling around either...I was motorway driving and doing more then I should be....that's one of the things that impressed me for such a heavy luxury car with a big engine....
The hand brake....or should I say foot brake...may cause some concern for manual gear box owners as it's quite awkward to release without going backwards....best stick with the Auto if clutch control is not your forte....It's as much at home around town as it is on the motorway and the use of the cruise control is great...but to be honest I have found it more useful around built up areas then actual motorway driving as you have to keep checking your speed more on the motorway and be more aware of your surrounding dealing with higher speeds...What is a nice feature is the 'Speed limiter'...set this to whatever the speed limit is your comping up to and have it prepared and as soon as you come off those 'National speed limit' roads hit the lever and you wont get a speeding ticket...The car will just not go past that speed you set....It can be a little frustrating the first time you use it,especially if you forget you have it on...you tend to to think the cars lost all it's power...then you feel a twit when you realise.
The other technical features that make it a cut above the rest are the anti lock brakes(nothing new there)..but with power assist and emergency braking it's that bit extra special...What does this mean....well...If you apply the brakes slowly and keep your foot at the same level pressure the car knows that you are slowing down and because you are not applying any MORE pressure it puts the brakes on even more automatically...something like predictive braking.....But the one feature of the braking which is VERY effective is when you apply the brakes rapidly for an emergency stop....Boy does that car stop quick and without no skidding either...The first time I tried it frightened me to death and the G force was tremendous....but it stopped the car on a dime.
One last special feature is the ESP..(Electronic Stability Control)..This device can be turned on and off ...although not completely off..This controls the cars wheels and brakes and fuel and basically takes over the car if you become some demon at the wheel and tries it's hardest to keep you on the road...To be truthful it does an excellent job and like the brakes....the first time it really kicks in it feels very weird as it brakes and applies the necessary forces to each wheel to keep you on the road...I like it myself..but I can imagine many will not and may not appreciate it's benefit in safety.
With all electric windows,air conditioning,electric door mirrors,automatic anti dazzle rear mirror,auto lights on and even auto rain detector...it has all the niceties that you could ever want...There's just enough,but not too much to play with so as not to be too distracted from what's in front of you on the road...everything on the car has a purpose and it does it very well...The one thing that did disappoint was the head unit for the music....what the hell were Mercedes thinking of when they put that in...it's rubbish and does not do justice to the speakers fitted in the car...and not even to a car of this calibre either...which by the way are not to bad when you fit a descent head unit with a good amp...The Mercedes unit on the CD player side does not even have a fast forward...huh?!....I fitted my own and I have no complaints now with the speakers themselves...they can handle 25W RMS each easily.
Leg room in the rear is generous as long as there's no giant in the front with the seat pushed right back, but I think this applies to most cars...They are almost like bucket seats to get into and can cause a little concern for those who are not to strong in the arm department in getting out,although you have the courtesy grab handles on tap.There is also a middle seat to carry that extra 5th person although it may be a bit tight a squeeze...after all it is a 4 seater by trade with a pull down arm rest which has a built in cup holder and for putting some small paper work in perhaps.
The boot is generous but not huge and it does not have any split seating either, so taking larger longer objects is going to be a problem...but I think Mercedes hadn't got carting heavy bulky loads in mind when the C220 was made.It is after all a prestigious car on a smaller scale....not that you get the impression of small when your inside yet you still feel as of you could park it anywhere and fit through most gaps,which you can in a lot of cases....The C class was designed to give those who just can't reach the heights of either the E or S class and at a smaller cost....Second hand value is the best way to buy one in my opinion as like all cars from new they loose such a lot in a few years....but the Merc offers a lot of car for your second hand money.
Throughout the car in general you will notice the build quality and it has that sturdy feel to it yet has that touch of luxury too without going overboard...The seating itself is firm but comfortable..I have a back problem and when I initially got into the car for my first test drive I was apprehensive as to the state my back was going to be in even after a short drive..but after a 30 mins test I got out the car still refreshed and this has proven to be the case even with a 4 hour drive...it's a delight every time I get in and just as happy when I get to the other end.
I'm not here to give you technical specs but what I have found as an 18 month owner driving the car and some of it's features...You can look the specs up on any good Mercedes site...My car is now coming up to 85 thou and still runs like a dream and the paintwork as bright and clean as it was when I bought it...I've had many a pleasant trip and have always regretted it when the journey has ended...that's how much comfort and enjoyment I have had from this Merc...If and when I do change it I will definitely be looking for another model like this one.
If you are looking for a well built respected car with a badge then the C class may be for you and at a decent second hand price..then go out and take a test drive...you wont be disappointed...Happy Motoring!

  • 2002

    Year Manufactured

  • 18 Months

    Length of ownership

  • 4

    Doors

  • Performance

  • Practicality

  • Reliability

  • Value For Money

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