Hey everyone I'm new to this forum. I was wondering if 123,000 miles was too much on a used 2000 Mercedes C230? I hear the engines can last to 300,000 miles if well taken care of? Sorry if this is a noob question... I'm 20 years old and just saved my serving money for almost a year and got myself this mercedes for my first car! Just a little stressed about the miles, but I fell in love with it and had to get it... It wasn't too impulsive though, I got it checked out at a Triple A certified mechanic beforehand and they said it was well maintained and in good condition. Will just need an alignment later on. The carfax was clean and the pricing was about $2000 below Kelly Blue Book price. If anyone has any advice on taking care of the vehicle it would be SO GREATLY appreciated. I intend to take a lot of care of the car.

That works out to about 13,000 miles a year. That's pretty average for miles driven for an average American driver in most of the country from the surveys I have seen.


A Mercedes Benz tends to be a generally long lasting car, so if isn't a lemon, it should last a good long while, *IF* it's well kept up by its owner(s).

The build quality for the C230 is, unjfortunately, only average or below average, compared to other cars of the time, though, so I hope yours was one of the good ones.


They are very safe cars in accidents though, so for that reason it is a good choice to select a Mercedes Benz.

Isn't that one of those models that has no dipstick to check the oil and that FSS system on the dash that tells you when you should check the oil? I never trusted that kind of feature, I like to be able to check the oil myself.

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1991 560 SEC AMG, 199k <---- 300 hp 10:1 ECE euro HV ...

1995 E 420, 170k "The Red Plum" (sold)

2015 BMW 535i xdrive awd Stage 1 DINAN, 6k, <----364 hp

1967 Mercury Cougar, 49k

2013 Jaguar XF, 20k <----340 hp Supercharged, All Wheel Drive (sold)

The miles are not too high. What's more important is the condition and how well it's been maintained. Congrats and welcome, though I think you posted this in the wrong sub-forum. This should be in the Tech section.

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2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL

The miles are about right for a daily driver. And because it's a Mercedes, it will probably feel more solid than any other make with the same miles and age.

But after the honeymoon is over, you will have to deal with all of the odds and ends that wear out over time. Not sure what you do for a living, but keeping an older Mercedes in running condition can empty your wallet in short order unless you roll up your sleeves and learn to wrench on it yourself...an unexpected trip to the dealership for service could cost well over $1000!

You started on the right foot by discovering this forum. This is by far, the best place to learn about these cars...

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2009 ML350 (106K) - Family vehicle
2001 CLK430 Cabriolet (80K) - Wife's car
2005 BMW 645CI (138K) - My daily driver
2016 Mustang (32K) - Daughter's car

The C220/C230/C240's seem to be a very durable engine setup.....I know someone here on the forum has a C220 with 300,000+ on it running fine.

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-diesel is not just a fuel, its a way of life-
'15 GLK250 Bluetec 118k - mine - (OC-123,800)
'17 Metris(VITO!) - 37k - wifes (OC-41k)
'09 Sprinter 3500 Winnebago View - 62k (OC - 67k)
'13 ML350 Bluetec - 95k - dad's (OC-98k)
'01 SL500 - 103k(km) - dad's (OC-110,000km)
'16 E400 4matic Sedan - 148k - Brothers (OC-155k)

isnt the c class supposed to be one of the better cars mercedes produced latley?

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1984 300SD Orient Red/ Palomino
1989 560SEC
2016 Mazda 6 6 speed manual
1995 Ford F-150 reg cab 4.9 5speed manual

The first generation ones 1994-2000 are a terrable car I think. The 2001-2007 are better but the early ones suffered some electrical issues and the new ones 2008- I think are the best looking ones.

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2015 ML350 4Matic. Wifes DD
2015 GLK350 4Matic. My winter DD
2012 E350 4Matic. Road Trip car
2009 CLK350 Coupe Designo.Kleemann Tune For nice days/DD
2006 CL600. V12.Eurocharged Tune. Enough said
2005 CLK55 AMG Coupe.Kleemann Tune. For the sound and style
2004 CLK320 Cabriolet. 2005+ Interior swap. For the sunny Florida days & beach days

First of all, Welcome CaseyBaby to the forum and to the obsession

I would suggest that you join the Mercedes Benz Club of America (mbca.org) and attend your local chapter meetings. You will find people who know a lot about these cars and can join in tech sessions where you can learn how to do basic maintenance on your new baby.

You should also search this site for all the information you can get. Use the advanced search function.

Please put your car in your signature and your location in your profile so we know what you are driving and if we can help out locally. There are a bunch of great people here and this board can become a second home...

Have fun and good luck!

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"I have no convictions ... I blow with the wind, and the prevailing wind happens to be from Vichy"

Current
Monika '74 450 SL
BrownHilda '79 280SL
FoxyCleopatra '99 Chevy Suburban
Scarlett 2014 Jeep Cherokee
Krystal 2004 Volvo S60
Gone
'74 Jeep CJ5
'97 Jeep ZJ Laredo
Rudolf ‘86 300SDL
Bruno '81 300SD
Fritzi '84 BMW
'92 Subaru
'96 Impala SS
'71 Buick GS conv
'67 GTO conv
'63 Corvair conv
'57 Nomad

You should expect at least 200,000 miles out of it. But'll cost you...

either way keep us (me) posted cause I've got one with 50,000 miles on the ticker and am interested in seeing what happens with higher mileage.

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1982 240 D, 308,000 - 321,127 miles (sold)
1982 300 TD,166,500 - 226,000 miles
1998 E 320, 120,000 - 144,000 miles
2005 C 230 K, 26,000 - 77,000 miles (sold)

The C's are nice little cars, the 4's seem a little rough but not bad.

Doesn't that car have the 722.6? If so time to get the trans fluid changed, I'm doubt its been done.

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1999 SL500
1969 280SE
2023 Ram 1500
2007 Tiara 3200

At that mileage it probably already had the wiring harness replace if that model year is affected.

maybe even new front 'shocks' .

The archives on this forum can give you plenty of info but don't get paranoid with other people's problem posts.

enjoy it and roll the dice !

pics?

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1979 300D 220 K miles
1995 C280 109 K miles
1992 Cadillac Eldorado Touring Coupe 57K miles SOLD
********************
1979 240D 140Kmiles (bought for parents) *SOLD.
SAN FRANCISCO/(*San Diego)
1989 300SE 148 K miles *SOLD

Harness was in '95 Solved by '96

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

They got better through the years. My '98 is extremely reliable in many areas.

Weak points: Suspension components, One arm wonder-wiper, some electrical components, LCD displays on climate control and radio.

The engine is bulletproof.

Mine has NEVER failed to start and run smoothly for 5 years I have owned it. I can say that about no other car I have ever owned. And it gets excellent mileage. 30+ on the highway easy.

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1998 C230 330,000 miles (currently dead of second failed EIS, yours will fail too, turning you into the dealer's personal human cash machine)
1988 F150 144,000 miles (leaks all the colors of the rainbow)
Previous stars: 1981 Brava 210,000 miles, 1978 128 150,000 miles, 1977 B200 Van 175,000 miles, 1972 Vega (great, if rusty, car), 1972 Celica, 1986.5 Supra

I just put a new hood star on a friends 2000 C230. She has around 180k on hers. She does regular maintenance (she is NOT a gearhead-shop does all the work). Car runs like a top.
Take care of the car and drive it forever. Keep good records. Put a real shine on it inside and out then take a ton of pictures (and post some here). In the nasty event than someone drives over your car, they will help in dealing with the insurance companies.

For a 2000, that's low miles. It's just broken in...

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Michael LaFleur

'05 E320 CDI - 86,000 miles
'86 300SDL - 360,000 miles
'85 300SD - 150,000 miles (sold)
'89 190D - 120,000 miles (sold)
'85 300SD - 317,000 miles (sold)
'98 ML320 - 270,000 miles (sold)
'75 300D - 170,000 miles (sold)
'83 Harley Davidson FLTC (Broken again) :-(
'61 Plymouth Valiant - 60k mikes
2004 Papillon (Oliver)
2005 Tzitzu (Griffon)
2009 Welsh Corgi (Buba)