I am on record for voicing my opinion that the W202 C class is not the best car Mercedes ever manufactured. I know... I've owned a 1997 C230 for ten years and put 175,000 miles on it, this model has its quirks. Well this message is my salute to the W202 C class. Three days before heading out on a typical family trip, my wife had a fairly major fender bender with our excellent, trusty family cruiser, the S124 1994 E320 wagon. The body shop could not have her ready in time and a suitable (large) rental would have been a major expense. So we pressed the rarely driven, somewhat neglected C230 into service. Two new tires, new torsion bar clamps and bushings and a full tank of fuel, and we where off cruising at max load with two adults and two kids snug in the interior and and all our gear stuffed into the trunk. So 1,000 miles and ten days later, I have to say that, while small and a pain to load with gear, generally not comfortable for four people, and uninspiring (to say the least) to drive, the C230 is one tough, capable little car that returns remarkable fuel economy and gets the job done. The most amazing thing is that, fully loaded, the cruising range is 600 plus miles on one small tank of fuel.

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Michael

1988 300 SL (5 Speed)
1994 E320 Wagon
1997 C230