I might be buying a C230k 1999 which is alpine white. The paint is in immaculate condition. I hear stories of how white paint is a chore but looking at it I dont think its near as bad as black. With black you see swirls, dust and every little scratch.

Whats the pros n cons of white?

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

Living in the deep south, white is the only way to go.........you'll be surprised how clean it still looks when it is dirty,,,,,,,,buy it you'll like it!!

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Eric Boyles
1980 450SL

Pro- White paint is the lowest maintenance, easiest to maintain color there is. White is cool in hot weather. White vehicles are easy for other drivers to see.

Con- There is no dramatic transformation when you wash and wax a white car. White does not show off the lines of the car as well as other colors.

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Bill Wood - Retired Webmaster
My Personal Website
1998 Mercedes E430
2010 Toyota Sequoia
My Photo Albums

Sounds good!! Whats everyones opinion on a artic white C230 with limo tints?

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

Agree to the above posts. White is very easy to take care of, water mark is almost invisible unless close inspection. My SL is white and I love it!!

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95 R129
04 Infiniti G35.5 BS
10 X204

haha I can probably just wash it and dry only the windows!

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

I have a glacier white 2000 E430.

It is easy to keep clean, much easier than a dark color, like black, dark green, or burgundy.

The benefit is that the paint always looks good. Even if there are surface scratches, they are barely noticeable.

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Paul S.

2001 E430, Bourdeaux Red, Oyster interior.
79,200 miles.

1973 280SE 4.5, 170,000 miles. 568 Signal Red, Black MB Tex. "The Red Baron".

With white you have to keep it waxed otherwise over time it badly oxidates and little speckles of rust start appearing. But those can be removed by a quick buff.

Every 2 years or so you need to remove oxidation.

Peter

I always wax regularly anyways. I sure waxing frequently would keep it shiny?

How does rust speckles come about?

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99 C43
98 S420
99 C230K
01 C240

I've owned white cars for the last 17 years. I wash my cars every two weeks and wax them twice per year (spring and fall) and I have yet to see any speckles of rust. I do encounter little speckles of tar which comes off when I wash my cars.

The only down side of white cars is that tar shows up like dirt on a black car and they tend to blend in with snow on the ground.

The advantage of white cars is the ease of keeping them clean and much more comfortable getting into a white car in the summer then a black car.

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Ray
1998 Mercedes E320, 200K Miles
2001 Acura 3.2TL, 178K Miles
1992 Chevy Astro, 205K Miles

The rust speckles comes in over time on mostly any car. If you look closely on white cars you can tell but on no other color. I detailed for a year in toronto and every single white car that was 5 years and older had speckles already and a few low end cars had them even after 2 years.

Its nothing to worry about since the are pencil tip sized dots and irregularly spread across the surface. It comes off very easily with a polish and wax.

Peter

White is far better than ANY darker color to keep nice looking. Thats why so many comercial vehicles are white. Like my father said.....White paint can hide a multitude of sins.

Meaning it will hide a LOT of flaws in the body.

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
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Section 609 MVAC Certified
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"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

Pro:
- hides dirt and grime well, and in the winter, salt spray.
- cooler in the summer
- more visible at night


Cons:
- rust spots are very visible
- very visible to laser guns

Yellow cars are the worst, followed by red.....

the cops will pull those cars over regardless of who the gun clocks on....and the guns are color blind...

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Proud owner of ....
1971 280SE W108
1979 300SD W116
1983 300D W123
1975 Ironhead Sportster chopper
1987 GMC 3/4 ton 4X4 Diesel
1989 Honda Civic (Heavily modified)
---------------------
Section 609 MVAC Certified
---------------------
"He who fights with monsters might take care lest he thereby become a monster. And if you gaze for long into an abyss, the abyss gazes also into you." - Friedrich Nietzsche

I didn't like Arctic white at first, but if clayed and polished, it's great. Doesn't show dirt as badly as you might think. Tar is annoying but at least it's easy to find and you have to remove it anyway!

No color masks color mismatches and body imperfections as well as white.

Strange problem: Where I live, bugs are somehow attracted to it! Bug poop - poop, not splatters, little brown dots are a daily chore to clean up in the summer.

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86 560SL
With homebrew first gear start!
85 380SL
Daily Driver Project

http://juliepalooza.8m.com/sl/mercedes.htm