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Mercedes-Benz C-Class Sedans

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Comments

  • bingusabingusa Member Posts: 22
    It is hard to believe a legitimate dealer does not register and use its own domain name. If you look at their web-site host - www.netfirms.com, it provides FREE domain name hosting services for any business. If you click its "contact"; button, its email address is estateautohaus@gmx.net. The gmx.net offers FREE email services like Hotmail. It may be true that a business uses its hosting company's domain name for its web-site, but doubtful they would use a different email host. The way Estate Auto is doing does not make business sense.
  • driver36driver36 Member Posts: 57
    I went to the site and have found the first car listed an Audi RS4 Avant sells for $43,890;
    The Audi do not make the RS4 available for the US market. There is no way the RS4 can get into the state. And they(estateauto) keep saying all the cars are US mod unless otherwise specified. So, be very careful when you dealing with them, coz they ask for the shipping charge up front !!!!
    Jerry320, please tell us update!
    Thanks!
  • kenyeekenyee Member Posts: 738
    Sorry...I can't believe this place either. Are they set up in the Cayman islands where you can't hunt them down and string them up after they swipe your money? :-)
  • jerry320jerry320 Member Posts: 27
    I guess there are 8 hours time difference between UK and California, and I will see if they reply my mail tonight. I asked so many questions in my inquiry. Warranty issues, roadside assistance, does navigation work in US, what about free maintenance, does my local dealer service these imported vehicles, etc.. However, according to their web site, you only pay the shipping charge at first, and they COD you the full amount by delivery. I wouldn't trust their on-line financing, so I told them I will be paying cash when I see the car. Also contacted friends at US custom, and they will find out how much do I need to pay for import duties. Maybe our government is tax these cars too much, so the total amount will come out same as we buy them locally. Anyway it worth a TRY!!!
  • jerry320jerry320 Member Posts: 27
    http://dataweb.usitc.gov/scripts/tariff/0110c87.pdf


    So $XXXXX for the car 12.5% of the cost for customs Plus shipping and local tax/fees


    That is still much cheaper than buying them here. I checked netfirm.com, and it is a free webhosting based in Canada. In addition, the web name estateauto.com is still available to purchase. Audi RSA4 Avant is not US speced, and ML430 is made in Alabama. ??? Maybe this is a big joke afterall.

  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Is cars like the 911 GT2, C32 AMG, etc. will carry hefty premiums if/when people can get their hands on one. Why would anyone do this? That's what I'd really like to know.

    Are we sure they aren't 1/16 scale models?
  • drew_drew_ Member Posts: 3,382
    Heh heh, maybe 1/10 models, considering the price :-). In any case, a great topic for us to discuss tonight in the MB chat.


    Drew
    Host
    Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    Evern if there is no waranty its a good deal and I'm up for the Porsche or the M5!

    How many things do you expect to go wrong with the cars, besides you are saving so much.

    I'm emailing them today too!

    Robert
  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    I cant even make the chat tonight!?!?!?!?

    ARGH
    Robert
  • drew_drew_ Member Posts: 3,382
    is on now! (6-7pm Pacific/9-10 pm Eastern). Hope to see you there!

    http://www.edmunds.com/chat/mercedeschat.html




    Drew

    Host

    Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket and Accessories message boards

  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    Hey for $400 I go get it at the port! More time to enjoy the car...

    I'll place it on the AMEX which usually gets the Money back from the merchant!

    Still doing research on it. . .

    robert
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    When going at faster speeds (mid-80's to 90's), I hear a whistling-wind sound that might be heard if a window was not completely closed -- it seems to be coming from the sunroof, but it appears to be properly shut. I do not have the slider (or whatever it is called) pushed forward to cover the glass portion.

    I am wondering if this is normal and if others have noticed it. Or does it really matter anyhow :)?

    Miki
  • ahostahost Member Posts: 36
    It seems that in my C320, the memory seats only work when easy exit/entry is on. When I change key without easy exit/entry on, only mirrors and steering wheel move to the last position, but the seat does not move at all. With easy exit/entry on, also the seats move to the correct position. Is this how it's supposed to work?
  • dalfruindalfruin Member Posts: 8
    I have just got a C320 in UK (May 2001 build). I has an intermittent problem at idle (sometimes feels as though it is going to stall, sometimes just runs rough) when in gear. I have read through most of the 3k+ posts here but would like some direct feedback from anyone who has experienced this problem.
    I have returned the car to the dealer and will only take it back if they guarantee it is fixed. I would like to go in with as much info as I can get.

    Any advice gratefully accepted, Ronnie
  • dalfruindalfruin Member Posts: 8
    I just got a call from my dealer - they say they have fixed the fault, the salesman took the car for 24 hours and the fault has not recurred. Although the fault was intermittent, it happened every time I drove it, so if the fault has disappeared it is possible it is fixed.

    They claim to have adjusted the in gear idle speed, previously they had adjusted the neutral idle speed. Anyone had this done to their car?

    Did it fix the problem?

    Thanks.
  • ghaysghays Member Posts: 8
    Remember that the easy exit/entry feature only returns the components to the position they had when the key was removed, not to the programmed memory position. This is confusing in the manual, but it is indeed the way it works.
  • matthew23matthew23 Member Posts: 11
    is Mother Nature's way of telling you to slow the heck down. What are you driving 90 mph for anyway? Although, I must admit that it is very easy to get up to high speeds without even realizing it -- the ride is just too dang smooth for you to notice.
  • mleskovarmleskovar Member Posts: 171
    The weekend mechanic in me says if the idle goes rough all the time it needs adjustment. If it goes rough, almost dies, then speeds up it's the fuel pump problem that's been reported by several people.
  • nankynanky Member Posts: 75
    Miki - The whistling-wind noise you hear when the slider is not pushed forward to cover the glass is normal, as long as it's faint. It is a sound I hear in both my Accord and the C and believe the same may be true for other cars. Push the slider to cover the glass the next time you hear it and there should notice a decrease in the sound level. It could be just me and my ears but it appears the audio system in the car even sounds a tad better when the slider covers the glass. In my little mind, it could be explained that a retracted slider compromises the roofing insulation by leaving just the glass between you and the elements thereby making the wind noise a bit more audible. Isn't the C smooth and steady at those high speeds?
  • gottabeegottabee Member Posts: 10
    any more conclusions about the validity of this place?
  • dalfruindalfruin Member Posts: 8
    Dealer had adjusted idle in gear speed - picked car up this afternoon after salesman had put 90 miles on it and tech had also driven it with no problems - and within 2 miles it did it again. It then almost stalled a further twice on the return to the garage. I took the salesman and technician out in it and after about 15 minutes it finally did it again. Now they know exactly what it feels like.

    I told them about the fuel pump fix from here. I am now waiting for MBUK to call me this week to discuss. This is not the first time I have had a problem with MB - previous W202 was swopped out after an autobox fault and A class has had intermittent problems that took weeks to fix after 4 separate breakdowns.

    I am not sure I will be driving this C320 again, fortunately they have given me their C320 demonstrator for the interim period.
  • drew_drew_ Member Posts: 3,382
    A while back, a couple of people had similar stalling (and then surging) problems with their C240s. Apparently the problem was that in warm weather and low speed driving, there wasn't enough fuel going to the engine due to "fuel filter/valve" issues. The computer would detect the car just on the verge of stalling and hence would quickly dump some fuel, causing the slight surge. Are you currently having fairly high temperatures in your area? The message linked below may possibly be of use to you and your MB service department.

    rmelk May 14, 2001 11:07am

    Good luck and please keep us update!

    Drew
    Host
    Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
  • dalfruindalfruin Member Posts: 8
    Unfortunately I live in Scotland and it never gets warm here!

    Temp today was 14C..... It does get warmer than that, but then it rains.....
  • drew_drew_ Member Posts: 3,382
    Sounds like Vancouver ;-)
  • mleskovarmleskovar Member Posts: 171
    Post from a forum.......

    I sent an email to them yesterday inquiring about their cars and this is the
    reply:

    Thank you for your inquiry to our automobile sales.

    Most the BMW's and Mercedes Benz's that we currently have in-stock are new, purchased from factory, USA models and are covered by factory USA warranties, honored at
    any authorized dealer or service shop. The only exception to this is the CLK 55 AMG and the C32 AMG, which are US conversions, complete at the factory at the time of
    original manufacturing. They are covered by a limited factory warranty as well as an additional AMG warranty.

    Most of our stock is factory order cancellations, none are returns. They are all new, have no mileage and still have factory protective coating. None have ever been
    damaged in anyway.

    We mark up our vehicles under 2% to what we actually pay, this method has helped us become one of the leading European dealerships and the leading USA importer. (The
    normal dealership markup is 47-59%)

    There are no hidden charges or fees.
    You only pay for the shipping fees prior to delivery and pay for the vehicle once it is delivered. Ample time will be allowed to have the vehicle inspected at your
    local dealership.

    We update and edit our site hourly, so yes all prices are correct.

    Thank you for your inquiry. Please excuse me for not replying with more details, but we are currently receiving over a hundred emails an hour since we mistakenly
    listed our sales on yahoo and excite and it is a bit overwhelming.

    If you wish to proceed and place the order, you can do so by simply replying to this email or going to our website and placing an order.
    We are unable to hold vehicles until deposit has been made.

    Thank you for your interests.

    Estate Autohaus
    Website: Estateauto.netfirms.com

    With that email, I did a little digging and found out the IP address of the computer used to send me the email is 202.183.170.31. The origin of this IP is from
    Bangkok, Thailand.

    inetnum 202.183.160.0 - 202.183.191.255
    netname CSCOM-TH
    descr C.S.Communications Co., Ltd.
    descr Shinawatra Group - Internet Service Provider, Bangkok, THAILAND
    country TH
    admin-c PK2-AP, inverse
    tech-c TS4-AP, inverse
    mnt-by APNIC-HM, inverse
    mnt-lower CSCOMS-NOC-AP, inverse
    changed hostmaster@apnic.net 20000217
    source APNIC

    It's official. It's a SCAM from Thailand.
  • nankynanky Member Posts: 75
    Good investigative work, mleskovar!!! Assuming a 2% mark up on the '02 C32, their invoice ($32k)is still a good $9k lower than what the dealer paid for my '01 C320. I find it hard to imagine let alone believe. I wonder what their response would be if one offered to travel to travel to London to inspect the car and personally see to its shipping. With that kind of savings, it would be well worth the trip. Could the computer have been originally installed in Thailand and then, for whatever reason, moved to London or would it have registered a different IP address?
  • kenyeekenyee Member Posts: 738
    nanky:
    That's not the way IP's work. :-)
    I find nothing wrong w/ mleskovar's analysis.
    It would be fairly amusing to say you would like to inspect the car before putting the money down and then offer to drive it away ;-)
  • mmcbride1mmcbride1 Member Posts: 861
    Pick one of the rare cars that their site says is in stock (911GT2 would be a good one as, except for press vehicles, they aren't even in the States yet). Email him back and tell him you're ready to sign on the dotted line, but your bank wants a VIN before they'll approve the loan. See how he responds. They claim that they have 2 911 GT2's in stock, so he should be able to get you a VIN right away. I'll bet you never hear back...
  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    I believe that my Server is a UK address as well but I'm not running any scam.

    Ken, if my server is over there they will see a UK address right?

    Robert
  • nankynanky Member Posts: 75
    Realizing it's after hours in London, yet out of curiousity, I dialed the number on their website. I find it odd that a 28 year old reputable company, let alone one that does business with the likes of Mercedes, BMW, and Porsche, has a computer generated voice greeting. I stand corrected. It's a computer voice instruction message that prompts you to leave a message without even identifying the company. This is way too good to be true for me.
  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    Did you leave a message?

    I bet they turned the machine on given the amount of calls and emails that they would be getting because of the postings.

    Rpobert
  • kenyeekenyee Member Posts: 738
    Yes, if your mail relay server is out there and you send mail through it, that would be the "source" of the email.
    If your version of Outlook is set up to send email without using an SMTP relay server, the IP that shows up will be the connection you are connected to for Internet access.

    It would be reallllly weird to put a server in Thailand because the cheapest Internet access is in the US.
  • mleskovarmleskovar Member Posts: 171
    According to another forum (where I copied the email reply from Autohaus) they were reported and shut down.
  • rexconde1rexconde1 Member Posts: 278
    Curious, what is this other board?

    Robert
  • acco20acco20 Member Posts: 211
    Do you have a cell phone antenna on your rear window? These have been known to cause whistling noise at higher speeds, if pointed straight up. If you do have one, and if it is the cause, it helps to tilt the antenna back so it is facing rearward at sort of "half mast". Good luck.
  • nankynanky Member Posts: 75
    >>Did you leave a message?
    No, I didn't leave a message. I called twice just to make sure I dialed the right number.

    >> they were reported and shut down.
    This may explain the message I received a few hours ago when I tried to access their site. Although the home page was up, clicking on anything brought up a message that said something about current information not being available.
  • nycanyca Member Posts: 232
    The best spy photos for this yet (the edmunds board for this appears to be gone?):


    http://mbspy.bacosys.be/r230un.htm


    Now if only the stock market would recover.......

  • mga3mga3 Member Posts: 51
    As you suggested, I re-synched the sunroof following the manual instructions, and now the sunroof is working normally.

    Talking to my dealer in NJ, they said they would have done the same thing. If it continues to happen, they then suggest to bring it in.

    The resynching on my own,saved me a trip from Manhattan.
    Again,thanks for the tip.
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    Just a thought -- do you have Key Dependent setting configured to "on"? This is needed if more than one key is used.

    Miki
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    >Miki, maybe that whistling sound
    >is Mother Nature's way of telling you to slow >the heck down. What are you driving 90 mph for >anyway?

    Matthew -- Every now and then, the little devil within makes me do bad things :) I shall try to overcome! But as you wrote, the speed sneaks up so silently that one hardly notices.

    Miki
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    I appreciate your taking the time to reply to my post, but I do not have a cell phone antenna on the car. Your suggestion will benefit someone who does, however.

    Miki
  • drew_drew_ Member Posts: 3,382
    Actually Miki, you do have a cellphone/GPS antenna on your rear window, pre-wired for the COMAND, integrated cellphone, and TeleAid system. However, because it's aerodynamically designed and extremely stubby, it only causes very minimal wind noise, if any perceptable at all!


    Drew
    Host
    Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    >The whistling-wind noise you hear when the >slider is not pushed forward to cover the glass >is normal, as long as it's faint. It is a sound >I hear in both my Accord and the C and believe >the same may be true for other cars. Push the >slider to cover the glass the next time you hear >it and there should notice a decrease in the >sound level.

    Nanky,

    Thank you. My little mind did not want to use the slider, but experimenting to see if the whistling decreases is a good idea. Feel better to know I am not the only one with a car that whistles :)

    Your theory about audio sounding better with the slider closed sounds right to me! -- like listening to music in a padded cell. :)

    Oh yes, indeed, our "kids" are smooth and steady at high speeds. If you ever see a twin driving around, you will know it's your C's sibling by my license plate.

    Miki
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    >Actually Miki, you do have a cell phone/GPS >antenna on your rear window

    Drew -- Daaaaah! Of course I do! Another blonde moment! That's what comes from too much dancing and sleep deprivation. Next time I hear the noise, I will stick my head out the window to listen -- and I will become the blond joke of the week :)

    Miki
  • ahostahost Member Posts: 36
    > Just a thought -- do you have Key Dependent setting configured to "on"? This is needed if more than one key is used.

    Thanks. Yes, I have put key dependent on. And if both keys have "easy entry/exit" on it works fine. If I switch easy entry/exit off, then clearly when I remove and insert my own key again, the seat does and should not move. But I still thought than when I insert my wife's key, it should move to her position, even without "easy entry/exit" on. I asked the dealer, but he was not sure either how it should work. He will try on one of the other cars.
  • benz747benz747 Member Posts: 91
    just heard that there is difference in 2001 and 2002 prices they shoot up by $600 - any body has more information on this ?
  • dalfruindalfruin Member Posts: 8
    Good news, MB have agreed to replace my car. I should find out what is within the UK dealer network over the w/e or at the start of the week.

    It helped that I got the previous C class model swapped out for a new one 4 years ago - intermittent auto box fault. Same process as this one, they say it is fixed, it isn't - repeat ad nauseum.

    This time round I would not repeat ad nauseum, so I involved MBUK immediately, even so the car had been in the dealership to get fixed 3 times in the first week.

    Now I get to figure out what colour I want again, no more Jasper Blue (the really bright blue) although I may want the AMG alloys back....

    Decisions, decisions.....

    My advice to anyone with serious problems - be very nice, be very reasonable and be determined.
  • mleskovarmleskovar Member Posts: 171
    Had my second replacement key ordered Wednesday. "Not common for keys to fail like this". It's replacing a key that was replaced three weeks ago. Sigh. Only irritation so far.
  • michhalamichhala Member Posts: 375
    Because the board seems so quiet, I decided to update all on my drop-in visit to my Service Advisor yesterday.

    Re my windshield distortion -- after he and several others sat in all the C's they had, I was told that all of them had some distortion but mine seemed to have more waves and distortion. Since I have four years to replace it, I decided to wait until the very last of the warranty when it most likely will have acquired some damage.

    Re my Xenon -- I wanted to have them raised a little, but it requires leaving the car overnight. If their position meets the required specs, they cannot change postion. Very strict regulations in USA for these lights. They have to put the car on a level ground to work with them -- sounds seriously delicate :)

    Re my 5000 miles oil change -- one service advisor says not needed, but mine said I don't need, but it could not hurt. The sensors are made to detect the sludge and metal stuff. They are still under contract to Penzoil, which is Mercedes approved. I asked about Mobil One and he told me that I can bring my own (as others on the board have done with their dealers). He said this is the only instance
    they will work with a customer with an outside product.

    I will wait until the oil change to have the Xenons checked out.

    Miki
This discussion has been closed.