Mum's new C250

[Gianclaudio]

We're a BIG family! lol. My 2 cousins ended up selling a CRV and Mazda CX7 for two Lexus NX's. Their mum has a GLC on order.

Please be sure not to invite those two cousins to your next birthday, as an exemplary punishment. Besides people with that bad taste will give you ugly presents

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

LOL...they would have bought GLC's if their budgets allowed, so I can't hold it against them too much.

 

[sanpt7777]

How's the Burmester sound system on the C?

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

Excellent!

Better than:
Dads w212 HK
Mums w204 HK
My 8V s3 B&O
My F30 LCI HK (the least impressive of the lot)

 

[sanpt7777]

Excellent!

Better than:
Dads w212 HK
Mums w204 HK
My 8V s3 B&O
My F30 LCI HK (the least impressive of the lot)

I'm glad it's that way!
I have only heard great reviews from the Burmester equipped Porsches and S Class, but wondered how it was in a more affordable luxury car.

I hate it when a car has those little audio brand logos and the sound is meh haha

 

[mercpassion]

Excellent!

Better than:
Dads w212 HK
Mums w204 HK
My 8V s3 B&O
My F30 LCI HK (the least impressive of the lot)

it seems MB has been going all out recently with sound systems. However with that said, they have always been top drawer in sound anyway, but recently they have really amped it further with the Burmesters which are receiving superb reviews all round, really like the bass/trebble graphic rotary silver turn knobs, very high class..

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

The only issue I have with the Burmeister on mum's C is that there is a slight static/buzzing sound sometimes during mobile phone conversations.

 

[sanpt7777]

The only issue I have with the Burmeister on mum's C is that there is a slight static/buzzing sound sometimes during mobile phone conversations.

I can live with that haha

 

[Monster]

How does your mum find the ride of the car? It is a lot firmer than I expect. Also how do you guys keep the car clean?

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

Mum's C has airmatic, so it's quite plush unless there is a sudden ridge or indent in the road which causes it to thump a bit. I find 'sport' mode is the best compromise when it comes to a smooth ride, body control and minimising the sometimes sudden thump. Mum and dad love it in comfort mode where it has a slight floating sensation.

I had the car treated with 3 coats of Ceramic Plus, so it's gets hand washed once a month and high pressure soaped, no rubbing, whenever I have time between washes. It really helps keeping the car clean and the light colour plays a part too. I use armourall wheel protectant to minimise the brake dust and the bicolour black alloys again help massively in this respect.

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

Mum's car very recently developed creaking noises when driving over rough surfaces. I narrowed it down to the window seals as the noises would disappear when the windows were wound down and I have been through this on a BMW, Audi and VW. In all those cases the dealerships just kept on lubricating the seals. Mercedes however has confirmed they are replacing all of the seals.

Other than this issue this car has been pretty faultless to date in 2 years of ownership, which is nice especially considering my reservations regarding the solidity or certain parts of the interior.

My BMW 340i which is now just over 1.5years old has had the following issues:
1. Transmission failure leaving my then 6-8 month old son and wife stranded 3 hours from home. Put down to a 'software issue'.
2. A rear light fitting falling off. Put down to a known manufacturing defect and BMW ended up replacing both rear lights.
3. A faulty spark plug leading to rough running and left us in some sort of 'limp mode' on at least 3 occasions. It took them 3 attempts to diagnose this issue.

That said if the two cars are both sitting on the driveway I would grab the BMW keys every time. The turbo inline 6 rocks my world in a way a no 4 cylinder could ever hope to do.

 

[Monster]

Mum's car very recently developed creaking noises when driving over rough surfaces. I narrowed it down to the window seals as the noises would disappear when the windows were wound down and I have been through this on a BMW, Audi and VW. In all those cases the dealerships just kept on lubricating the seals. Mercedes however has confirmed they are replacing all of the seals.

Other than this issue this car has been pretty faultless to date in 2 years of ownership, which is nice especially considering my reservations regarding the solidity or certain parts of the interior.

My BMW 340i which is now just over 1.5years old has had the following issues:
1. Transmission failure leaving my then 6-8 month old son and wife stranded 3 hours from home. Put down to a 'software issue'.
2. A rear light fitting falling off. Put down to a known manufacturing defect and BMW ended up replacing both rear lights.
3. A faulty spark plug leading to rough running and left us in some sort of 'limp mode' on at least 3 occasions. It took them 3 attempts to diagnose this issue.

That said if the two cars are both sitting on the driveway I would grab the BMW keys every time. The turbo inline 6 rocks my world in a way a no 4 cylinder could ever hope to do.

Very interesting about the creaking seals, how loud is it and are the new seals in the same design as before?

As for your BMW, dam...I always thought and heard that BMW's reliability is less than solid but having all these issues is not acceptable really.

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

Hey Derek.

So they ended up replacing all the window seals. The service advisor did say that it was a known issue that surfaces on some vehicles and the replacement seals have a chamfered edge to get rid of the problem. The car is back to it's rattle/creak free quiet self.

I also noticed they pumped up the tyre pressure significantly during the service to about 290 all round and the ride seems to transmit less of the finer road imperfections. A notable improvement.

My run with the BMW hasn't been great, but I still love the car. I wouldn't hesitate replacing it with another BMW as the dealership is located conveniently enough lol.

 

[Monster]

Hey Derek.
So they ended up replacing all the window seals. The service advisor did say that it was a known issue that surfaces on some vehicles and the replacement seals have a chamfered edge to get rid of the problem. The car is back to it's rattle/creak free quiet self.

Interesting, so far I don't have such problem with my car yet, I will keep my ears out if that happens.

I also noticed they pumped up the tyre pressure significantly during the service to about 290 all round and the ride seems to transmit less of the finer road imperfections. A notable improvement.

I thought it was just me who felt the less busy ride after upping the tire pressure. Mine is at 285 kpa, from 250 kpa.

My run with the BMW hasn't been great, but I still love the car. I wouldn't hesitate replacing it with another BMW as the dealership is located conveniently enough lol.

IMO I will be less forgiving, these problems really shouldn't happen for any new car, especially for a $100k BMW.

 

[fortuner]

Interesting, so far I don't have such problem with my car yet, I will keep my ears out if that happens.


I thought it was just me who felt the less busy ride after upping the tire pressure. Mine is at 285 kpa, from 250 kpa.


IMO I will be less forgiving, these problems really shouldn't happen for any new car, especially for a $100k BMW.

Regards to tyre pressures I pumped my mom's C to 285 and 300 rear and I enjoy the ride more...Maybe run flats need more air ..

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

Mum's car very recently developed creaking noises when driving over rough surfaces. I narrowed it down to the window seals as the noises would disappear when the windows were wound down and I have been through this on a BMW, Audi and VW. In all those cases the dealerships just kept on lubricating the seals. Mercedes however has confirmed they are replacing all of the seals.

Other than this issue this car has been pretty faultless to date in 2 years of ownership, which is nice especially considering my reservations regarding the solidity or certain parts of the interior.

My BMW 340i which is now just over 1.5years old has had the following issues:
1. Transmission failure leaving my then 6-8 month old son and wife stranded 3 hours from home. Put down to a 'software issue'.
2. A rear light fitting falling off. Put down to a known manufacturing defect and BMW ended up replacing both rear lights.
3. A faulty spark plug leading to rough running and left us in some sort of 'limp mode' on at least 3 occasions. It took them 3 attempts to diagnose this issue.

That said if the two cars are both sitting on the driveway I would grab the BMW keys every time. The turbo inline 6 rocks my world in a way a no 4 cylinder could ever hope to do.

Further to the issues I have previously reported on my BMW, I now have the following errors. I wasn't aware my car was a convertible.

Jokes aside this is now getting a little ridiculous. Closing in on two years of ownership with 4 issues which have required the vehicle to be returned to the dealership, sometimes multiple times for the one issue.

It's only the fact I love the way the car feels and drives that has prevented me from losing my shit so far, but I think that may just happen when I take it in this Thursday.

My wife is understandably fed up with the car as it's her primary vehicle.

If BMW Australia had released the pricing of the X3 M40i by now I would have placed an order for it so I could sell this now that baby #2 is on the way.

 

[Monster]

Further to the issues I have previously reported on my BMW, I now have the following errors. I wasn't aware my car was a convertible.

Jokes aside this is now getting a little ridiculous. Closing in on two years of ownership with 4 issues which have required the vehicle to be returned to the dealership, sometimes multiple times for the one issue.

It's only the fact I love the way the car feels and drives that has prevented me from losing my shit so far, but I think that may just happen when I take it in this Thursday.

My wife is understandably fed up with the car as it's her primary vehicle.

If BMW Australia had released the pricing of the X3 M40i by now I would have placed an order for it so I could sell this now that baby #2 is on the way.

I would have lost my shit by now and won't consider getting another BMW again. The car must drive really nicely for you to consider keeping it and getting another BMW. I still think you should give the GLC 43 a go.

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

I would have lost my shit by now and won't consider getting another BMW again. The car must drive really nicely for you to consider keeping it and getting another BMW. I still think you should give the GLC 43 a go.

I've become less OCD in my old age lol. Other priorities I guess, but I am now reaching the end of my tether.

I've written to the dealership already and will see how they respond. If the response is unsatisfactory I will contact BMW Australia to see what they say.

The current implementation of 'Command' in the GLC turns me off. It's too much of a step back from the iDrive in my 3. The SQ5 doesn't yet have Active Lane Keeping assistance and is a bit slow. The TDI SQ5 will also render the petrol a poor buy I think. The X3 seems to tick all the boxes and I'm thinking my 3-series perhaps is just a one off dud?

I'm at a crossroad. I should probably sell the 3-series before the new model launch becomes imminent, but there just isn't any vehicle that ticks all my boxes other than the X3 M40i which BMW Australia will probably only release pricing in 4-6 months, and I've got 9 months or so before a replacement becomes absolutely necessary.

@Merc1 how has your BMW ownership experience been?

 

[SDNR]

Further to the issues I have previously reported on my BMW, I now have the following errors. I wasn't aware my car was a convertible.

Jokes aside this is now getting a little ridiculous. Closing in on two years of ownership with 4 issues which have required the vehicle to be returned to the dealership, sometimes multiple times for the one issue.

It's only the fact I love the way the car feels and drives that has prevented me from losing my shit so far, but I think that may just happen when I take it in this Thursday.

My wife is understandably fed up with the car as it's her primary vehicle.

If BMW Australia had released the pricing of the X3 M40i by now I would have placed an order for it so I could sell this now that baby #2 is on the way.

This is what happens when you venture over to the dark side.
I hope this BMW-phase has taught you some lessons.
Come back to us soon MM.

 

[Merc1]

I've become less OCD in my old age lol. Other priorities I guess, but I am now reaching the end of my tether.

I've written to the dealership already and will see how they respond. If the response is unsatisfactory I will contact BMW Australia to see what they say.

The current implementation of 'Command' in the GLC turns me off. It's too much of a step back from the iDrive in my 3. The SQ5 doesn't yet have Active Lane Keeping assistance and is a bit slow. The TDI SQ5 will also render the petrol a poor buy I think. The X3 seems to tick all the boxes and I'm thinking my 3-series perhaps is just a one off dud?

I'm at a crossroad. I should probably sell the 3-series before the new model launch becomes imminent, but there just isn't any vehicle that ticks all my boxes other than the X3 M40i which BMW Australia will probably only release pricing in 4-6 months, and I've got 9 months or so before a replacement becomes absolutely necessary.

@Merc1 how has your BMW ownership experience been?

It's great car to drive, but after that ignition coil went out ($1200) I have been feeling some kinda way about it. Only 38K on the clock and engine issue is unacceptable. Then it gets fixed and the car runs like new. Overall pretty good experience, but not perfect.

M