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Originally Posted by Michael Kerley
I have a 1997 C230 that I used as a work car from 1999 to 2006 really racking up the miles. Great little car. Personally, if I had it to do over again, I'd do the M112 V6 over the M111 inline four. The V6 will give smoother power and almost the same fuel mileage around town. (The M111 will far exceed in highway mileage, though). I love that the M111 pulls hard torque wise and gives great mileage, but to be honest it's kind of agrarian (read rough) compared to a six.
The W202 is a world class chassis but not without its problems. To me it's a blend of the old and new Mercedes eras. Both electrical and mechanical issues will crop up: water pump, belt tensioner, climate control oil (coolant) leak, AC compressor, engine cooling electronics, valve cover oil leak, paint that chips if you look at it funny, MAS, transmission valve body (which most likely will crap out even with regular fluid changes), wiper transmission, and the list goes on. Just because it's the baby Benz of that era does not mean it's without costly or laborious issues. It will be nearly as expensive to run as its contemporary E or S class brothers.
Great car, though. Handles well. Very safe and solid. Pretty roomy inside. Good outward visibility. Awesome brakes. Pretty DIY friendly. Reminds me of a 240D with twice the torque and three times the HP.
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approx. 26mpg city, 30 on the highway, at 75mph for me (m111). As far as costly repairs, I purchsed mine 7 years old with 61k miles, used-certified (then Starmark). I complained about every slight potential issue, and probably had $6k in warranty repairs done to mine (squeaky wheels gets the oil ya know). Mostly, I complained proactively, hinting toward certain issues and parts, and all my engine seals were redone, front suspension bits replaced, all trans electronics done. That said, the car never was troublesome, there were just minor issues I looked out for because of the advice from this forum! Those seals (incl head gasket) that were replaced? All because of a dime-sized drop on the driveway one week. AC was acting odd at times, fan somewhat intermittently running slower than it should when cranking down the temp, so I got a new climate ctrl brain. Was it cooling perfectly? Yes. The trans electronics werent even needed, though I DID get updated parts, which is good. MB spent over $1000 on those parts, when all it needed was a screw reattached in the linkage (this for erratic and harsh shifting). So, you can spend a lot to make it perfect, or spend a little, especially if a DIYer, and have a great car. Mine is the most reliable and dependable car ever owned, including 2 Hondas. It just runs. 100k in 3.5 years, never left me stranded. In fact, the only failure-repair I have done in the last 60k miles is a water pump. Get a 4-cyl, spend $5-$7k. Preferably, one with over 100k miles AND/OR extensive service history, things like bushings being replaced, oil changes every 5k or less, transmission service, gaskets, etc - since a low-mile decade-old car with original, dry-rotted rubber is what you DONT want.
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Originally Posted by MB DOC
The 1997 is the best of the W202 C230's.
Less complicated & MORE reliable than the 1998 & later ones!
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Well, have to agree with that last comment. Last 202 without the CAN bus, and despite what you hear about the first year of the 722.6 trans, mine is still grabbing strong at 160k miles. I think the m111 is very easy on it; not as much torque to eat away at it, but that said, the motor, to me, is not at all rough as Kerley says. In fact, my decade-old motor mounts still seem to be doing the isolation job very well