[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

During most part of it’s life, the car used to sit without moving for 3-4 months stretches and used sparingly rest of the time, does this affect the tyres and the exceptionally bad ride quality i’m experiencing?

What’s your other drive . Sometimes it’s relativity.

On the tyres, when was the last time you changed? Can you try to drive somewhere longer, at a faster speed rather than in the city? And did your E has a rear air suspension or regular one? If the ride is very harsh/ noisy, you will have to get the suspension checked. Tyres alone can’t be the reason.

[katil.garage]

Originally Posted by Turbanator

What’s your other drive . Sometimes it’s relativity.

On the tyres, when was the last time you changed? Can you try to drive somewhere longer, at a faster speed rather than in the city? And did your E has a rear air suspension or regular one? If the ride is very harsh/ noisy, you will have to get the suspension checked. Tyres alone can’t be the reason.

It’s a C, so it doesn’t have air suspension, I have got a heavy right foot (an understatement actually ) and mostly drive on the highway with lots of acceleration and braking. They are the OEM-supplied turanza RFTs that came with the car and have done 25K.

Last I got the car serviced, the service advisor suggested I get the rear tyres changed and said the suspension was fine.

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

They are the OEM-supplied turanza RFTs that came with the car and have done 25K.

Last I got the car serviced, the service advisor suggested I get the rear tyres changed and said the suspension was fine.

I don't think changing the tyres will be any good unless there is a need due to the condition of the tyres. Maybe try another car of similar vintage and see. Maybe you are having the itch to upgrade

But if that's not the case, I will get the suspension rechecked. This is only if you find a major deterioration over what your drive used to be before.

Switching to regular tyres like PS4S will surely help if everything else is fine.

[sgm]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

It’s a C, so it doesn’t have air suspension, I have got a heavy right foot (an understatement actually ) and mostly drive on the highway with lots of acceleration and braking. They are the OEM-supplied turanza RFTs that came with the car and have done 25K.

Last I got the car serviced, the service advisor suggested I get the rear tyres changed and said the suspension was fine.

On my 2019 C-class, I changed the OEM Turanza RFT at 36k mark as two of the tires were worn out and the other two had only some more miles left. I changed to Pilot Sport 4 ST and there is a noticeable difference in the road noise. I feel till around 60-70kmph, there is absolutely no road noise. Sometimes I wonder if I have gone deaf Completed a road trip last weekend with the new tires and I'm quite happy with the overall performance.

[Cresterk]

Originally Posted by nareshtrao

All, I need a different kind of advice.

I plan to upgrade and sell the current C-Class. However, I understand the dealers' Pre-owned divisions do not offer a great value as a buy-back or exchange.

Which are the better channels to sell the old car and realize a better value than going for an exchange and differential payment.

This is for Bangalore. Any advice deeply appreciated.

Just curious, what price did the dealership offer for it and what price did you finally sell it off for?

[nareshtrao]

Originally Posted by Cresterk

Just curious, what price did the dealership offer for it and what price did you finally sell it off for?

I have not yet gotten to it as waiting periods for the models I was looking at were exceeding 5 - 6 months. I am not aware of the current situation though.

I will get to it in Dec. break and update once I close.

[Mission_PGPX]

An interesting update on my W204 2014 pre-owned C-class:
We decided to have a spiritual drive to shirdi, Shani and Trimbakeshwar followed by Stay at The source by Sula. I prepared the car for the trip, did 2 part service in MB service center in ahmedabad. Had to change the brake-pads and read disks since it was due. We started early morning, spent couple of hours at saputara and finally moved to Shirdi. Just 15 kms before our hotel, we stopped at a traffic signal and car lost power. It doesnt move. I restarted it, and famous CEL came on but car can now move in D1 only. Basically it was in limp mode as MB calls it. Somehow managed to reach hotel limping at 30-40 kmph.

I called SAs at MB but no one answered. Nearest MB service station was in Nashik, where i called and receptionist informed that she will arrange a callback from service advisor, which i never got. Called my FNG guy and he suggested to let the car cool down 25-30 minutes and then reset the gearbox. I allowed the car to cool for the night and next day morning reset the gearbox and fired her up. The CEL was on. I slotted in D and started to move it started changing the gears and i thought it must be a malfunction of some sensor, took 2-3 kms ride and parked her back in hotel but CEL was bothering me so I started a search for laptop and diagnostic tool in Shirdi. Luckily found a guy who had Delphi for diagnosis, he came later that night and scanned. The error code was P2767, speed sensor malfunction. He erased the code which made the CEL go away and I thanked god before going to much required sleep.

Next day morning we started early to reach Nashik, just 15-18 kms in our drive and car went in limp mode again. CEL came on and now it was time to put her on flatbed. Nashik was still 70 kms away. Luckily found a good rest-stop on highway where I parked and a bus was leaving from rest-stop to Nashik. I asked family to hop on and reach to hotel in Nashik so I can think at peace

Towing was a good option, though time consuming but certainly safe. The wait was over 2.5 hrs, which made me search for FNG in Nashik. I finally found one "Ideal Automotive Engineers", photos of bmws and mercs were convincing enough to trust the guy. Called him and his response was straight it can be fixed by him, the sensor or solenoid valve may have failed in TCM. Hence, I decided to reach there instead of MB service station. I needed a quickfix and he seemed to be the guy.

Reached his workshop at 3 pm, he immediately took the car on ramp and opened the gear oil chamber parallelly scanned the error. It was "y23xx sensor faulty". Now diagnostic was clear, the sensor needs replacement which he ordered from Mumbai. I had to extend the stay one more night which I happily did. Next day the car was ready, I was asked to change the tranny oil once every 50000 kms. My ODO was at 87000 kms and according to him it was never changed. While MB service record states that it was changed at 57000 kms as a part of routing maintenance. Apparently my car was on lease program and was maintained at MB for four years. The Trust comes very costly

Anyway, We could reach home safe and sound enjoying the drive more than ever, the shifts feels smoother now and GB feels more relaxed. Total dent on pocket including towing on flatbed is 29000/-.
Lessons learned:
1) Never panic. **IT happens. Happens for good teaches you something in life.
2) Explore your options before you decide. I could only explore option of FNG thinking that if MB has service station in Nashik, there must be alternate. Eventually end up finding one. Had I thought of it a day before, i may not have to extend the stay by one more night.
3) Once CEL come on, accept that there is something wrong. Dont rely on your luck or spurious sensors etc etc. Get it diagnosed and do the repair.

After this, I started believing more and more on FNGs rather than company service stations. Yes, the standards may not be that high, but atleast you know what is getting done on your car.

[androdev]

Glad it worked out reasonably well, given the usual worst-case scenarios with these type of breakdowns. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Originally Posted by Mission_PGPX

Next day the car was ready, I was asked to change the tranny oil once every 50000 kms. My ODO was at 87000 kms and according to him it was never changed. While MB service record states that it was changed at 57000 kms as a part of routing maintenance. Apparently my car was on lease program and was maintained at MB for four years. The Trust comes very costly

I think the tranny oil change is once in every four years and MB gearboxes are pretty reliable. Is this 5G or 7G? Early C classes came with 5G I think. I find it hard to believe that MB did not do oil change if the service record says it has been done. It would be helpful if you could share how the mechanic concluded that oil was not changed.

Also it's a relief to know that this error is repairable. Most of these brands tend to replace the whole gearbox or similar expensive parts when a tiny child part fails.

[Raj55]

There is a reason why most people do not go back to the German car brands such as Mercedes, BMW, VW, Porsche etc, after owning one. They are usually expensive to buy, expensive to maintain, reliability is a big question after the guarantee period, the response and service from their dealer workshops are probably the worst in the car branch. Their attitude is one of that they are doing you a big service and favour by selling and servicing your car. They always come last in all the consumer garage relationship and service survey in almost every European country. My personal bad experience was with BMW and VW, but I hear my colleagues having similar experience with Mercedes and Porsche. When troubles and cost with the car rise, the fun of driving and trust for the company disappears.

[Mission_PGPX]

Originally Posted by androdev

Glad it worked out reasonably well, given the usual worst-case scenarios with these type of breakdowns. Thanks for sharing your experience.

Thanks for your kind words. Sharing experiences is the whole idea about this forum, isnt it?

Originally Posted by androdev

I think the tranny oil change is once in every four years and MB gearboxes are pretty reliable. Is this 5G or 7G? Early C classes came with 5G I think. I find it hard to believe that MB did not do oil change if the service record says it has been done. It would be helpful if you could share how the mechanic concluded that oil was not changed.

It is a 7G. He saw the color of the oil once drained. It was brown black which he believes should be bluish. Even i have no idea since this was the first time i saw oil getting drained from GB. He could be wrong though. But i still wonder, is 87000 kms a point at which such sensors starts to fail?

Originally Posted by androdev

Also it's a relief to know that this error is repairable. Most of these brands tend to replace the whole gearbox or similar expensive parts when a tiny child part fails.

Yes, thats the learning that I want to share. Typically we only rely on MB service center, which would have never replaced a sensor or solenoid valves, but most likely would have replaced the TCM. New TCM would need to be coded and may have ended up an expensive affair.

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

During most part of it’s life, the car used to sit without moving for 3-4 months stretches and used sparingly rest of the time, does this affect the tyres and the exceptionally bad ride quality i’m experiencing?

Tyres could become hard & could develop flat spots from where the car was resting.
If you see a lot of downtime, invest in a trickle charger and if possible jack the car up + keep pressure on the higher side.

[katil.garage]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

Tyres could become hard & could develop flat spots from where the car was resting.
If you see a lot of downtime, invest in a trickle charger and if possible jack the car up + keep pressure on the higher side.

It used to be the case earlier, now it’s mostly driven at least once every week. I got the ContiContactSport 5’s installed from the dealer.

During installation, i noticed one of the tyres was more than a year old. On pointing it out, the issue was resolved eagerly and my experience was quite positive, something i’m sure wouldn’t have happened at a third party.

As per my experience, the premium paid for the service at ASS was definitely worth it and i’ve never had a more pleasant experience with a service centre.

As for the tyres, the ride is definitely more supple and quieter but they don’t inspire the same kind of high speed confidence as the stock RFTs.

After getting the new tyres, i got the suspension and shockers also checked and they were all fine, finally i’ve come to accept the C class just doesn’t have a good ride quality

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

As for the tyres, the ride is definitely more supple and quieter but they don’t inspire the same kind of high speed confidence as the stock RFTs.

After getting the new tyres, i got the suspension and shockers also checked and they were all fine, finally i’ve come to accept the C class just doesn’t have a good ride quality

That unfortunately it does not. Neither the previous generation W205, nor the W205.
Regarding the high speed handling, is there any reason you feel so?
I am very happy with the high speed handling in our W205 C220D running the same.

[katil.garage]

Originally Posted by lamborghini

That unfortunately it does not. Neither the previous generation W205, nor the W205.
Regarding the high speed handling, is there any reason you feel so?
I am very happy with the high speed handling in our W205 C220D running the same.

Till about 110kph, you can’t notice much difference, post that with the same drive mode selected for both the tyres, on the same route, the steering isn’t as confidence inspiring as before, and the car tends to wobble a bit more than earlier at those speeds. Just what I felt, i may be wrong, though.

[lamborghini]

Originally Posted by katil.garage

Till about 110kph, you can’t notice much difference, post that with the same drive mode selected for both the tyres, on the same route, the steering isn’t as confidence inspiring as before, and the car tends to wobble a bit more than earlier at those speeds. Just what i felt, i may be wrong though.

Do get the alignment and balancing checked again. I've had this issue on other cars where at higher speeds only you could feel the difference post tyre change, etc.

I am sure more technical members maybe able to point out if any suspension parts should be checked out as well.