looking at buying a 2nd hand Mercedes-Benz C-Class C180 CGI Coupe

[happyfish123]

2 years or so left , is it worth it to buy and extend the coe ? has low mileage. would like to PM someone on this! first time car buyer hahahha

[happyfish123]

thank you very much for your detailed advice!  appreciate the time it took to help a newbie!

[rester]

Hi,

personally i just got a 2nd hand old merc. 

i just ended up getting a coe renewed car instead of a 2-3 year balance because i dint want to hedge on the coe price in 3 years time. to me it is pretty ok now..wish it was lower but least it is not on the high side. was thinking get 2-3 year balance at first than if a lot of issue just tahan drive and than scrap (depri i think around 13-15k) but than i realize if really a lot of issue i would spend a lot of money to repair so after that i also wont scrap =x

anyway here is my own car buying experience.

1) low mileage can be fake and finding a car with full C&C service record is really hard. but if u can find such a car than i think thats bulls eye. if not at least have outside workshop service receipt kept by old owner but still this is not foolproof. Than check the glove compartment for the service booklet. coz the first few servicing sure done in the authorized workshop with booklet. i saw 2 car at that time. one had 70k mileage but first 4 years of servicing hit 45k liao so unless owner posted overseas etc than technically the car should hit close to 100k at 10th year. The car had no servicing record too after the initial servicing. The other car had 90k mileage. first 4 years hit 30k mileage and the owner kept all the receipt. So end up i choose the higher mileage car. (also i did send both car to my own workshop for check and the lower mileage had more wear and tear issue for me to resolve). 

2) send to a workshop u trust to check. if dealer dont allow walk away

3) even after workshop check on the day of taking over remember to test drive the car both in car park and on expressway if can. i forgot about this as the day i took the car was abit hectic. when the first test drive i heard a whirling sound which i feedback. dealer say will solve for me. They brought the car to their workshop next morning and after that brought to my workshop check say no issue. but on the day i got the car the moment i hit 80km/h the noise came back. best thing during my initial test drive and the workshop check the suspension no noise but the day i took the car squeking sound was so obvious liao after driving less than 30 mins. call the dealer he say not his taichi my workshop check liao. i told him after my workshop check the car with them for almost a week + but so all i can say is test drive the car before taking over and reject if any issue.

4) related to point 1: the service booklet would have the old owner contact. so if u want to play safe snap a pic of it when the dealer salesperson not paying attention. go home send a nice and friendly text and pray the previous owner is a nice guy

5) beside low mileage i also look at number of owner and basically i targetted 1 previous owner only. just felt that the sale of the car would be easier when i am the 2nd compared to one that i am the 3rd or 4th owner.

 

 

[rester]

o ya a add on...keys! double check with dealer make sure u get 2 keys. the newer benz keys especially PI is dam ex. 

My dealer only let me know that they have 1 key on the day of delivery! lucky mine is older benz cost me about $350 to make a spare but the newer ones i heard cost $1k-2k plus especially if PI car.

[rester]

sorry another thing that just hit me. 

warranty....good and bad....ggood because u get peace of mind....well at least on the gearbox n engine...bad because u r tied to the workshop that give the warranty. my suspension issue = they charge double of what the market charges for oem parts...heck i can get original parts at a lower price...so i did not change lucky the sound recently went off only comes on once in awhile. got to endure to warranty over. 

The whirling sound...they found the problem and covered under warranty but say what part need to order and wait 3 week...nei nei outside workshop told me no issue just leave car morning evening can take liao.

so yeah warranty is a double edged sword.

[fesa704]

Hi

U do the right thing(s)by asking.

I see u mention first time buyer ,perhaps u mean first time contemplating a MB.

If u realli yr first time ,DUN,u needs to x’perience a bit to even attempt a Premium car,pays to learn as dey said,navigate the choppy water first.

Anwae the early C204 to give her the proper name comes with a Kompressor engine & is a good starting point.

•The veri first thing after checking out the car ,is to negotiate to go to yr choice of workshop for inspection(if u dun have,I can recommend)not those from STA/Vicom ones.

it’s not so straight forward cos some dealers wun let u.

and some dealers wans a deposit.

deposit is not realli an issue but some will tell u,if the workshop says it’s good ,u must BUY!

no no,tell him,I MUST have the final say,period.

•Factor in 2-3k ,on top of yr purchasing price to sort out the wear & tear part.

including a Blood transfusion(will x’plain later)

u might be thinking ,dats decent,yes Merks spares are alrite

•try to purchase from Republic ,a side kick of C&C where dey sells Mercs dat ppl trade in & onli the better ones

Cos the 204 got a electronic steering lock issue & the damage is 1k ,probably cheaper abit now.

try to covers dat on yr warranty.

•while tha car is inspected,get the wshop guys to go for a spin & ask them to list down all the finding & their price .

so u can gauge the cost of sorting out.

and plse ,it’s an old car ,dun be too Anal abt it.

•once it’s done ,sign seal & delivered .

go for yr Blood transfusion ASAP preferably to the same wshop.

B.T is to drain all fluid,u mean all ,engine oil,coolant ,gearbox oil & dun forget the axle oil,cos the 204 is a Rear wheel drive.

Dun forget to replace yr Brake fluid oil as well.

•B.T must be done FIRST,u wun noe how long those liquid is in the car & might fails on u,u can replace those parts pick up by the inspection together or the next pay day.

Enjoy yr ride first & can repair later but REPAIR u must.

But Anwae it shouldn’t be a lot ,or u wun b buying it in the first place.

engine mount,rotor ,pad probably some oil leak ,the usual.

•Once its been sorted ,u get almost a brand new car without the cost & it’s a Premium make after all .

Enjoy.

*Dun worri abt the mileage,most mercs are being tweak in the industry,Anwae.

Some wshop can dig out the true mileage by poking in the OBD,which dey should.

CHEERS.

u can contact me,if u wans more info & plse update us,dun juzz take everything here & disappear!

 

[kepiting1sg]

Guys for actual mileage check on your used car.

I am told the Mercedes Xentry Diagnostic checks will reveal the actual mileage on your ride even though the odometer can be tampered.

Before you buy your preloved ride, get a reliable workshop to do a full Diagnostic Xentry checks which will likely to reveal any faults in your ride and the actual mileage of the ride.

[rester]

On 11/15/2020 at 8:00 AM, fesa704 said:

Hi

U do the right thing(s)by asking.

I see u mention first time buyer ,perhaps u mean first time contemplating a MB.

If u realli yr first time ,DUN,u needs to x’perience a bit to even attempt a Premium car,pays to learn as dey said,navigate the choppy water first.

Anwae the early C204 to give her the proper name comes with a Kompressor engine & is a good starting point.

•The veri first thing after checking out the car ,is to negotiate to go to yr choice of workshop for inspection(if u dun have,I can recommend)not those from STA/Vicom ones.

it’s not so straight forward cos some dealers wun let u.

and some dealers wans a deposit.

deposit is not realli an issue but some will tell u,if the workshop says it’s good ,u must BUY!

no no,tell him,I MUST have the final say,period.

•Factor in 2-3k ,on top of yr purchasing price to sort out the wear & tear part.

including a Blood transfusion(will x’plain later)

u might be thinking ,dats decent,yes Merks spares are alrite

•try to purchase from Republic ,a side kick of C&C where dey sells Mercs dat ppl trade in & onli the better ones

Cos the 204 got a electronic steering lock issue & the damage is 1k ,probably cheaper abit now.

try to covers dat on yr warranty.

•while tha car is inspected,get the wshop guys to go for a spin & ask them to list down all the finding & their price .

so u can gauge the cost of sorting out.

and plse ,it’s an old car ,dun be too Anal abt it.

•once it’s done ,sign seal & delivered .

go for yr Blood transfusion ASAP preferably to the same wshop.

B.T is to drain all fluid,u mean all ,engine oil,coolant ,gearbox oil & dun forget the axle oil,cos the 204 is a Rear wheel drive.

Dun forget to replace yr Brake fluid oil as well.

•B.T must be done FIRST,u wun noe how long those liquid is in the car & might fails on u,u can replace those parts pick up by the inspection together or the next pay day.

Enjoy yr ride first & can repair later but REPAIR u must.

But Anwae it shouldn’t be a lot ,or u wun b buying it in the first place.

engine mount,rotor ,pad probably some oil leak ,the usual.

•Once its been sorted ,u get almost a brand new car without the cost & it’s a Premium make after all .

Enjoy.

*Dun worri abt the mileage,most mercs are being tweak in the industry,Anwae.

Some wshop can dig out the true mileage by poking in the OBD,which dey should.

CHEERS.

u can contact me,if u wans more info & plse update us,dun juzz take everything here & disappear!

 

 

The blood transfussion u mentioned got to be careful. Just nice my car got issue on day of collection so i went down to the dealer workshop where the warranty is given. Nothing to do so talk to the staff....apparently they void the warranty if u do it outside sia. so got to check with the dealer workshop (not dealer coz dealer everything also ok before selling).