[sgm]

Originally Posted by RajeevMD

Sounds interesting. Thought Mercedes Me is an inbuilt system. Could you share more info on that adapter that enabled this feature for you ? Thanks.

Hi RajeevMD, Mercedes Me is not a built-in unit and as @nitrogary mentioned, it is an OBD adaptor.
I think I was wrong about the navigation information, looks like it is not dependent on the adapter as such. I stopped using the Android App long time back and still the navigation option works fine in the MID screen. What I remember is, it never used to work and it started working after getting the adapter connected, so probably some software update also happened during the visit to the service centre.

Anyways the current models of GLC, GLE, GLS, A-class etc come with MBUX which can interface with your smartphone and it gives a lot more features giving a true connected car experience. Mercedes Me adapter can provide only a fraction of those controls and I don't find it very useful.

Originally Posted by nitrogary

It's just like the OBD 2 adapter - ELM 327. You can connect it to the app on the phone and get vehicle data, etc. I like the ELM 327 and torque better.
Good point, i will check on the GLC and report back to the forum.

Thanks nitrogary

[sgm]

Completed the first year annual service recently. Got the rattles from the sunshade of the sunroof and the front passenger seat fixed. There is still some vibration from the passenger side speaker when Bass is more. Though I mentioned this, I think the service guys were not able to detect the issue or they ignored it. As the car was picked up and dropped, there was no way to demonstrate the problem, so may be some next time. I think a small tape should fix the issue once the door pad is opened and checked. The car has been a joy and I have really enjoyed ownership and hoping this will serve for many more years without any major issues.

[Puneet0051]

Originally Posted by sgm

Completed the first year annual service recently. Got the rattles from the sunshade of the sunroof and the front passenger seat fixed. There is still some vibration from the passenger side speaker when Bass is more. Though I mentioned this, I think the service guys were not able to detect the issue or they ignored it. As the car was picked up and dropped, there was no way to demonstrate the problem, so may be some next time. I think a small tape should fix the issue once the door pad is opened and checked. The car has been a joy and I have really enjoyed ownership and hoping this will serve for many more years without any major issues.

Is it a persistent issue in C, coz i have had similar rattles in my car as well.... Though extremely minor but since you wrote I remembered.

Your review was really helpful, I was thinking of putting a review myself but all is covered already on the forum

[sgm]

Originally Posted by Puneet0051

Is it a persistent issue in C, coz i have had similar rattles in my car as well.... Though extremely minor but since you wrote I remembered.

Rattle may not be the right word it was minor even for me and there was no issue on smooth roads. On undulating roads, the passenger seat used to shake mildly and some nut-bolt tightening fixed this. The sealing material strip was changed to fix the sun screen vibration. My wife had never noticed the sun screen vibration and when I asked her to pay attention, she wondered if I was nit-picking. I'm super sensitive to irritating noise

[sgm]

Time flies. It will be two years soon since the newest member joined us. It has been a joyful journey so far.







Likes:
Compact size for the city usage
Adequate performance and handling for Indian road conditions
Good FE, 1000km range on a full tank for road trips
A good family cruiser
Host of comfort features (other Germans have reserved many of these for higher segments)



Dislikes:
Usable boot is small with “space saver” in place.
Expensive services (compared to other Germans)


Usage and experience:
Thanks to the lock downs and partial WFH options, the city usage has come down and the visits to home town has increased. The usage has been like 50:50 so far. I avoid taking C-class while going to congested places and unknown corners of the city to minimize any surprises.
I don’t have any long term experience with other diesel vehicles, so I don’t have a direct comparison. Compared to our Corolla Altis petrol, I see that C-class is much quieter at higher speeds. It is only while accelerating that the diesel growl is noticed and at cruising speeds, it is silent enough. Wind noise is very minimal at triple digit speeds but tire/road noise is definitely heard. If you drive like a saint with smooth and slow acceleration and going below 100, then the drive is quite serene and I have achieved close to 22-23kmpl FE on a 500km trip but it is really boring to do so. The 9G-tronic is very smooth and I have very rarely noticed any shift shocks.

Bangalore city has lots broken roads with nasty pot holes and the ride is not great over broken patches. Even on rough patches, it is better to take it easy. GC is adequate if you slow down and take care. The bottom graces on some occasion even a medium sized hump if you do not slow down enough.

FE so far : 13.9 kmpl


AdBlue/BS6:
C-class comes with a 25L AdBlue tank and it should be good for a 15K Km service interval. During the first service it was refilled to about 90% and I could run 13k KM, with only 500km left, I had to schedule an early 2nd service.
The regen happens without the driver’s intervention or knowledge and while driving you cannot make out when this happens. The only indication is, even when auto start-stop is activated, the engine won’t shut off at a traffic signal in Eco mode. Suppose the regen happens towards the end of the journey, 2-3 times, I have noticed that, when you turn off the car and come out, it continues to do something and there is some noticeable sound from under the hood for about 5min.
Once the AdBlue level goes below 1500Km, warnings start appearing regularly for your attention.


Niggles:
I was in for a rude shock to start the journey with an ABS sensor issue right out of showroom and after getting it replaced, it failed again within a week. The concealed reverse camera while getting retracted inside when “R” is disengaged was making a whining noise and this also was fixed by changing the whole camera/motor assembly. All these happened when the car was brand new, so I got an extended warranty as a good will from MB and the journey has been quite joyful. I pray that it will continue to be smooth for many more years.

Bloopers:
Once I got a tiny nudge on the rear bumper due to a brain fade moment from me. I decided to get some DIY job and got Com-Paint. The color didn’t exactly match and to make the work look more cohesive, I had to make a much bigger patch and the whole DIY turned out to be a disaster.


Services:
During the 1st service, I had opted for a “5 year unlimited mileage Compact service” package and it costs a whopping 2.3L. “Compact” covers only your fluids and filters for each of the service. I opted for this plan thinking that the regular services costs way more.
Every odd service is called A service and the other even service is called the B service. A typical A service costs about 30k and B service costs about 35k. Based on the usage, during your 4th or 5th service, the ATF change also will be covered under this. Unless the usage is around 20k KM/year, this plan doesn’t work out.

1st service @ 7500km
Regular A service
Sun shade rattle fixing for the sun roof : 1.5k

2nd service @ 20400km
Regular B service
Brake pads: 37k
Wheel alignment & balancing: 5k

The following link gives an idea about the cost of pre-paid service plans before tax.
https://www.mycarhelpline.com/index....1618&Itemid=10

Wear and tear parts:
Tires are holding good and it should go for another 15k KM. Though I was asked to replace the brake pads during 2nd service, I was not fully convinced that nothing was left in them. I had chosen the convenience of sending car using pick/drop service and there was no way that I could check anything

Our triplets, yes they celebrate their birthday on the same day

[sgm]

Everything is going on smooth and fine. No issues faced except that one of the key fobs started behaving strange. After replacing the battery, the issue disappeared.

Here is the step by step guide for the same

https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=4Nfiskpa-5Y

Last service was at 21k KM and after covering 10k, got the tire rotation, wheel alignment and balancing at Madhus after reaching 31k KM. Some more life is left on the tires.

[sgm]

40k/3year update of my C220d

No news is good news and no updates from me mean only one thing: this car performed well and has been reliable. Here is the 40k update. The ODO had crossed the 41000km mark after the year end vacation drive and at present it has just completed 42000kms in a span of 3 years and 2 months.

I have found the car to be quite enjoyable to drive, with more than enough power for my daily needs, but also good enough for some occasional spirited driving. The car still drives very well, no rattles or squeaks even after running more than 40,000kms.



DPF:
No trouble with DPF even with lots of city running. Normally, a refill during regular service will last for around 15k kms. C class comes with a 25L AdBlue tank.

Services:
Though the service interval is 15k/1 year, the first two services were done with comparatively low running due to COVID restrictions.
3rd service was done a few months back when the ODO was at 34k. Nothing other than the regular service was performed.

New tires:
Changed all the tires at the 36k mark. Moved from the run-flats to tubeless for a plusher and quieter ride.


FE:
I'm getting an average of 14kmpl 60:40(city:highway) and FE has been improving year on year. The reason could be that I have changed my driving style to extract more FE and to be relaxed for those long drives. After the 3rd service, 8000kms have been done and FE is averaging 15kmpl.




Planning to keep the car in top shape as long as possible and no plans to change it any time soon. 40k kilometers was basically just a warm up

Random shots from highway runs:





Random shots from different road trips during 2022:
It was a year of road trips to compensate for all the missed trip during COVID days

[Puneet0051]

Originally Posted by sgm

40k/3year update of my C220d

New tires:
Changed all the tires at the 36k mark. Moved from the run-flats to tubeless for a plusher and quieter ride.
Attachment 2405335

Congratulations Sgm, How much of a difference did these Tubeless Pilot sport 4 has made
1) In terms of highway driving.
2) Corner/Spirited driving.
3) In terms of potholed filled city roads.

Is the difference day and night or marginal for the above criterias.

Did you also consider PST 4 or Yoko advans?

Thanks

[sgm]

Originally Posted by Puneet0051

Congratulations Sgm, How much of a difference did these Tubeless Pilot sport 4 has made
1) In terms of highway driving.
2) Corner/Spirited driving.
3) In terms of potholed filled city roads.

Is the difference day and night or marginal for the above criterias.

Did you also consider PST 4 or Yoko advans?

Thanks

Hi Puneet,
The difference is very minimal for my style of driving. I don't push the car to test any limits other than doing decent speeds on straight good roads. I tend to keep the tire pressure on the higher side to take care of those occasional miss of potholes on high ways, but it results in very firm ride. I think these tires are a bit quieter and a little bit more comfortable than the OEM run-flats. If you go with Michelin run-flats 3ZP, they should be better than OEM Bridgestone run flats.
Here is a link to Dr ADs recommendation on Primacy 3 ZP
https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/long-...ml#post5381066

I neither considered Yoko nor Michelin Primacy ST. I was interested between Pilot Sport 4 and the run-flat Primacy 3 ZP(zero pressure).
The stickers had a marking "ST", not sure if these are the silent version of PS 4 known as PS4 ST(silence tuned)

[sgm]

Originally Posted by sgm

40k/3year update of my C220d

No news is good news and no updates from me mean only one thing: this car performed well and has been reliable. Here is the 40k update. The ODO had crossed the 41000km mark after the year end vacation drive and at present it has just completed 42000kms in a span of 3 years and 2 months.

Missed giving a brief of various costs so far in the previous post. This may help someone looking to get into C/3/A4 etc. The costs should be in similar range

Service history and other expenses
Mine is a MY2019 model and the car delivery happened in November 2019. Before the first service, I had opted for a 5 year “Compact” plan for unlimited mileage which is a basic service package compared to the other “Compact Plus” plan. The basic package didn’t include any wear and tear items like brake pads/disc, wipers, etc. The plan costed 2.29L. This scheme with unlimited mileage allows you get more services done if running more. I guess I was wrong as my usage is less than what I anticipated.
What is covered in Compact Package?
• On board electronics check via XENTRY – an advanced diagnostic tool
• Replacement of Engine Oil, Transmission Oil, Brake Fluid and Coolant
• Replacement of Oil Filter, Air Filter, Cabin Filter and Transmission Filter

https://www.silverstar.mercedes-benz...y-service.html

1st service at 7500Kms:
Regular service under service plan. Based on the invoice, the amount would have been around 35k for this odd year service.
Extra works carried out
1) Fixed the issue with vibration from front passenger seat. It was just tightening some nuts and bolts and this was done under warranty.
2) Fixed the vibration issues of the sun shade for the panoramic sun-roof. Cost : 1400/-
2nd service at 21000km:
Regular service under service plan: Covered under service plan.
This even year service would have been around 40k without the service plan.
New brake pads and sensors for front and rear: cost 37k
Wheel alignment & Balancing : 5k
3rd service at 34000km:
Regular service: Covered under service plan. This would have been around 35k
No extra work

If I look back, I'm definitely not going to recover the amount I paid for the service package. I expect the 4th service to be much more expensive as Transmission oil and ATF will also be changed. The service pack covers the same. If anyone is taking a service pack, it should be for 4 years or 5 years as 4th or 5th service can be expensive compared to the previous ones.

Other expenses:
Tires: 50k
Wheel alignment & Balancing: 2300 * 2 (2 times from Madhus)

Insurance costs:

I managed to transfer the NCB from the previous car to this one, so I got a refund of 50% on the OD premium, though the process took a couple of months, it was worth the effort. TP was covered for 3 years as it the norm now.

2nd year insurance:
The 2nd year basic OD premium was also covered as per the discount existed at the time of purchase, so I paid around 24K for Add-ons
TP and basic OD : By dealer
Add-ons : 24k
3rd year insurance:
For the 3rd year, OD was already available. I opted for top but one below package and I took it directly from Tata AIG and not through the dealer and I saved around 10k for the same package.
Premium for OD +Add-ons : 44k

4th year insurance:
Opted for the top most package directly from the dealer
Premium for OD+TP+Add-ons : 53.5k

50% NCB from the very first year has helped me to keep the overall insurance cost down by 20k/year on an average.

Niggles:
The car has been trouble free for the last three years except for the blip in the first month. There was an ABS sensor issue, not just once but twice in the first month itself There was also a minor issue with the rear view camera. When the camera retrieves back, the motor was making a noticeable sound. Yes, complicated German engineering, the camera remains hidden when not in reverse “R” gear and it pops out when “R” is engaged. The entire camera assembly was also changed. MB India gave an extended warranty for 4th and 5th years as a good will for all the trouble I went through with a new car. Sometimes things happen for a better reason, and the sorrow turned into joy in the long run and thus making sure that the car will remain under warranty for 5 years instead of the standard 3 years

[sgm]

The car has been running trouble free with no major issues and celebrated its 4th birthday quietly. The ODO just crossed 52000KM



4th service: The 4th service was carried out after 14000KM from the 3rd service and nothing was done other than the regular service. The brake pads also were changed during the same and they lasted 27-28k KM, though still some life was left in them. I realized that the driving style matters a lot as many have to change the brake pads around 20k KMs.

Usage: This is my daily driver to office, so most of the week days, the car is being used. As the traffic situation is getting worse in Bangalore, once in a while there will be a new minor scratch from two wheelers squeezing through small gaps while waiting at the signal. I try to leave an adequate gap from the vehicle in the front but can't help if the guy behind doesn't leave enough gap

The highway usage has come down a lot compared to previous years as I’m trying to minimize solo long drives.

Minor issues:

Recall: There was a recall for an EGR update.

DPF issue: Encountered my first DPF issue around 46k KM mark. There was a DPF system error and it was root caused as a blocked DPF sprayer issue. The blocked DPF sprayer was cleaned and the issue was fixed.

[xtremeshock]

Congratulations on a Stress Free Ownership.

Your posts relating to Service is definitely helping, I have also purchased a C-Class, definitely going in for the extended warranty but for the service package will take it as it comes. I would be doing definitely less than 10k a year.

Yes the interiors are something else, so far happy with the purchase, hoping it to be stress free. It's got enough grunt to keep you entertained.

[sgm]

Originally Posted by xtremeshock

Congratulations on a Stress Free Ownership.

Yes the interiors are something else, so far happy with the purchase, hoping it to be stress free. It's got enough grunt to keep you entertained.

Congratulations @xtremeshock on the latest addition.

Wishing you lots of happy miles and a trouble free ride.

[sgm]

There is a white cute stray cat near my home and we have been feeding the same, but see what has happened now
There is an army of kittens and the mother cat happily watches them from the top of my car. Every time when the car is taken out, we have to make sure that no kittens are playing under the car

[lordrayden]

Originally Posted by sgm

Every time when the car is taken out, we have to make sure that no kittens are playing under the car

They don't just sit under the car!

I've had personal experience where one kitten climbed into the engine-bay from underneath and just wouldn't come out! Took us 45 mins to coax it out before we could use the car.