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Arrival: The Delivery Center is in a southern suburb of Stuttgart. They take nice care of you there, but keep in mind dozens of cars are delivered there every business day. This is the favored way to take delivery for Europeans, many of whom have been waiting much longer for delivery than Americans ever would even consider. So you will have a lot of company, but the deliv specialists are patient, and will take as much time as necessary to answer your questions and get you ready to drive the car. Many EU buyers load up on optional "stuff" like mats and wheels and souvenirs; US buyers are generally better off waiting until they return here to add anything.
Do take the factory tour and try to set aside enough time to head downtownish to visit the museum, which is world-class. Located at WHQ, it is near the soccer stadium in Stuttgart proper - the Deliv Center folks can give you directions.
Don't plan on heavy-duty driving on the day you take delivery - too much going on and you don't want to be rushed.
Touring: Remember to treat the green engine with some respect. Keep it at 4000 rpm or less for the first 1000 miles. This means you need to restrain yourself on the autobahn, though these days contruction, traffic densities, plain old speed limits, and weather can all conspire to hold your progress below the famous speeds that everyone likes to talk about. Some tips on driving there in general: EU drivers are far more disciplined, well-trained, and aggressive than the half-asleep and semi-competent boobs who share the road with you in this country. Stay sharp, have your route planned in advance, and remember to KEEP RIGHT EXCEPT TO PASS. No matter how fast you are going on the autobahn, SOMEONE ELSE WILL BE GOING FASTER, often one hell of a lot faster. Closing speeds can be deceptive. Check carefully before pulling out to pass, and get back as soon as it is safe. [If only Americans could follow this simple rule here, driving would be both safer and more fun for all of us.] You haven't lived until you have a truck driver jump in front of you at 180 kph, with a 911 closing from the rear at 250 kph. This is why German cars have good brakes - at least once a week, you are going to be awfully glad you have them.
Remember to activate both your front and rear foglights in rain, snow, or fog, DAY OR NIGHT. It is a sin that so many American MB drivers don't know the value of, or even how to turn on, the rear fog light that is standard equipment on these cars. It increases your visibility to the rear by 300% in crappy conditions.
End of Chapter One....more to follow....
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I agree with the folks that have noticed gawkers. When I got the LS back in April, there were few of them on the road and I would catch people looking once in a while. But this new C is a rubber-neck magnet! Every time I turn around someone is manuevering for a better look. I'll have to peek at this board a bit more often, as the Edmunds forum has been a great learning experience as well as a wealth of advice/opinion.
-A fellow motorist flashing his lights at you coming in the opposite direction is trying to warn you that there are cops around the next bend or at the next crossroad. Believe it. And return the courtesy when/if the time comes.
-Speed limits are increasingly ruthlessly enforced by cameras and radar; there are no appeals. In France, they pull you over at the next toll booth on the autoroute, and it's open- the-wallet-on-the-spot. You can usually take your cue from the locals about how fast is safe, but remember that your brother-in-law is not the constable in the next village. Better to err on the side of caution.
-Take a good tire gauge with you, and plan to use it. Make sure the tires are inflated to the factory levels appropriate to the speeds you plan to drive.
-DO NOT TALK ON THE PHONE, EAT, OR DRINK WHILE BEHIND THE WHEEL. It is regarded as dangerous and/or illegal, depending on the jurisdiction. Cell phone jabbering is in fact against the law in Germany while driving. Find a rest stop and pull out for these kinds of activities. If you want to know why the Germans resist making cup holders that Americans feel are adequate, it is because they are mystified why anyone wants to use their car as a restaurant.
-Have fun...I always look forward to my next driving stint in EU, notwithstanding the fact that every year it gets a little more crowded and a little more like "home", especially in urban areas, where you will find world-class congestion to rival anything we can conjur in LA or NY. Once away from the Big City, however, it is nothing but great, especially with a car as good as the one you will be driving.
Coming Home: You leave the car with the shipping agent [I assume they are still using Harms? These guys have been at this for 40 years or more.] They truck it or train it to the nearest port, where it is intermingled with the rest of whatever MBZ is shipping to the USA at the moment from the factories in Germany. From then until the dealer calls you to come pick it up, it is in fact nothing more or less than just another car from the factory...next stop, a VPC that serves your region, then trucked to the dealer and turned back to you. The VPC does all the same stuff they do for new cars: battery and fluid checks, put a splash of fuel in the tank, fix any body damage [yes, it happens...the VPCs have the best paint and fixit facilities outside the factories themselves...you'll never know if they had to repair something, unless they choose to tell you...doesn't happen often, but it does happen], and load it on the transporter to go to the dealer you designated. Thus, total in-transit time is heavily dependent on a number of random factors, like how your dropoff in EU was timed with the next ship departure, where you live in the USA [obviously the East Coast is a couple of weeks closer than the West], how backed up they are at the VPC when your shipment arrives, and how far away from the VPC your dealer is. Best case would be a couple of weeks if everything were perfectly timed for a metro East Coast dealer; worst case could be 6-8 weeks for an inland dealer in the West served by Long Beach, which is now doing the work of two VPCs, since they closed the one in northern Calif.
What else? Post any questions not addressed here. I did this the first time in 1968, long before the Delivery Center, and frankly well before it was the well-oiled experience they try to give you now. It still was our most memorable trip, and we've been back every other year since for driving vacations all over Western EU, mostly in rented cars with 100 hp or less. It never ceases to be fun, as long as you remember to keep your head in the game. March's weather can be all over the place - early spring, or late winter. Be prepared for a little snow if you hit any of the higher elevations on your route. Shouldn't be a problem with the traction control and ESP, though...and please report back to the Forum here when you get back to let us know how it went for you.
This will be my 5th trip to Germany, and I'm looking forward to it more than my first. I talked my father in to going with me, which is going to make it that much cooler (he's never been there). First night - Baden Baden, then spend a few days in Switzerland, head to the wife's relatives in der Odenwald, and drop the car off in Munich. It'll be a great chance to practice my German and cure all the bad driving habits I've built up over the past 20 years. I've made many trips on the Autobahn - never behind the wheel though. Another question: do you know of a good resource for learning the driving laws in Germany? (especially the signs - there's one for every possible eventuality, including 'frog crossing'). I'll let everyone know if the hard-braking thing cures the squeal, because if there's one place where you're gonna' slow from 120 to 0 in 1.5 seconds, it's the Autobahn....and if the dang trunk doesn't open, I'm driving it right back to the factory floor.
John,
While I agree with your assessment of how to drive (and survive) in Germany/Europe, let me add a few Deutschland-specific comments:
Remember to activate both your front and rear foglights in rain, snow, or fog, DAY OR NIGHT.
REAR fog lights are NOT made for use in rain or snow, but exclusively in foggy conditions with a visibility of less than 50m or 55yds/165ft. These conditions automatically mandate a maximum speed of 50kph/31mph . Ergo: Rear fogs equal slow speed! Non-compliance with this little twist in the law will get you a (hefty) ticket.
A fellow motorist flashing his lights at you coming in the opposite direction is trying to warn you that there are cops around the next bend or at the next crossroad. Believe it. And return the courtesy when/if the time comes.
Correct, but while you try to be nice, don't forget that this gesture is being considered obstruction of justice, and - of course - reason enough for another ticket. Solution hereto is to politely explain to the policeman that you were only trying to let the driver in front of you know that you were about to pass. For this purpose you are allowed to flash your headlights at him... ...seriously!
Cell phone jabbering is in fact against the law in Germany while driving.
As a matter of fact, only using a cell phone WITHOUT car kit is against the law, and fines will not be imposed before February 1, 2001.
May be you have wondered about those drivers in the leftmost lane on the Autobahn, continuously flashing their highs or using the left turn signal - it is basically a way for sorry characters to say I'M FASTER THAN YOU, STAY OUT OF MY WAY. Needless to say that cops will get you for this kind of behavior, too.
Tarik
I went to my local Benz dealer in the Miami area. I was told that there are no C240's available now, and that I could sign up for a waiting list for the C240 when one becomes available. The wait could up to 8months, anywhere from 6-8months. He told me the demand is outweighing the supply nationwide. Is this true? is this the same in your area or town?
thanks
My salesman is Chuck Hardy at Hoehn MB in Carlsbad CA at 800-960-0236. Tell him you want the 'Ron Mendel' deal (split the price between list and invoice). I have referred several others that they gave that price to.
There are 41 MB dealers in CA, at least 20 within 2 hours of L.A. There are a ton of C's out here (and row upon row of new E's!). Hoehn seems to get 5-10 new C's every week. They are obviously a high volume dealer and are content (for now) making 3.5% plus holdback.
You can have a nice vacation out here and drive home a new C. Kind of like Euro-delivery without the boat.
After two weeks, my C320 (Black/Ash Leather,C2,K2a) has about 1000 miles and remains perfect. So far, I'm totally thrilled with the car.
-Ron
ron@superiorsoftware.com
glad to hear the satisfied c owners! for a while i was beginning to think i was the only one around enjoying my new car!
did a bit of driving in the snow last night in somewhat hilly ridgewood nj... i am really pleased at the traction the car has!i HAVENT been out on rt 80 at 50 miles per hr in 5 inches of snow.... but... would i want to be?????
* BMW vs. Mercedes: I think everyone would agree that the B-mer is a sweet machine; however, I totally agree with one of the postings that said the BMW interior has too much plastic. To me, it looks like an Accord on the inside. Don't get me wrong, I've had several Hondas and they were great cars, but they were still Hondas, right? Trade off: A great driving environment/good driving feel (MB) vs. an OK environment/great driving feel (BMW);
* Lexus vs. Mercedes: You can tell your friends you're driving a 'Lexus', but at the end of the day, it's still a Toyota (is there such a thing as the 'Lexus factory'?). Ditto on the Acura. Trade off: a good value vs. a truly beautiful piece of German engineering (yes, that goes for the B-mer as well);
* Maintenance $: I saw where someone a while back expressed concern about MB ownership costs. Well, when I was making the final decision on my C240, I really needed all the help I could get in making the new 50K service package appear to be a great value - let's just say it was for 'political' reasons. Sooo....I went back and looked at the records for my '97 C230 and realized that I'd laid out (on average) about $300 per year for the past 4 years. I can confidently say that my Hondas had cost me at least that much.
Final question for my fellow post-ers which I'm not sure I want to hear the answer to: When we got our C230 we went with the leather package because (as my wife so eloquently put it at the time) "the MB Tex interior looks like my dad's freakin' VW Bug". We were prepared to go with the leather on our new C240 until we happened across a C sans the leather package, and frankly, it looked pretty durn good (only difference was no folds in the door inserts). For those of you who went with the leather package, was it worth it? For those that didn't, was it a good decision? I warn you that I will rationalize any responses that make me doubt my decision to forego the full leather this time.
...and now you must excuse me, as I feel the need to visit the dealer and fondle one of the floor models to tide me over until mine is ready in March...
I noticed in 1991 and 1992 that in Germany, on the fastest (not all roads are fast) autobahns that in the far left lane, a car approaching another car ahead of it (traveling at 130-135 mph) were blinking their left turn signal as they got close to the lead car in the passing process. Every single time the lead car IMMEDIATELY moved to the right to allow the speedier car to pass. There did not appear to be any problem at all. One day we observed five big BMW's going at 130 mph or more - they seemed to be "racing." But, your post infers that this behavior pattern by the passing car (i.e. blinking the lights/turn signal) is verbotten and that cops would fine such behavior. I never saw anyone stopped and thought it was perfectly legal behavior.
We noticed that driving in France on their fantastic autoroutes (all toll roads) that there was absolutely no hectic pace anywhere as was the case on the German high speed roads. I considered driving in France a breeze. Switzerland also was not too bad. I would drive in Italy only if I had an M1-A1 tank!!
In Holland on a bus tour, our driver was pulled over by the Dutch police - for no apparent reason. The cop ordered our driver to follow him - we ended up in a police compound. The driver was ordered to show the cop his little round disk - which records the speed for that entire day.
Since he had exceeded the speed limit at some point during the day - he was fined the equivalent of $100 U.S. dollars. The tour director explained the disk history. We passed the hat and covered the fine. The excess speed was at approximately 2 miles over the limit. The disk procedure applies to all trucks and busses. Can you imagine what the American Trucking Association would do if we tried to get that process into place in the U.S.?
Thanks for your post.
Tarik
One of the main thrills of that trip was it being the first opportunity for me and the other 2 to drive over there, specifically on the Autobahnen.
We caught on to Autobahn etiquette early. Driving a little 42 HP car, it was not the ideal situation for speed, but we managed to maintain an indicated 150 km/h most of the time, with the occasional wind assist/hill assist to 170 or so.
Anyway, we also noticed at the time the convoys of the "big boys" in their Benzes and BMW in the left lane with their "winki"-lights permanently on. We thought it looked pretty cool, but 'cause our car was so slow, we couldn't join in the fun...
One of my buddies on that trip committed a sin while on the A5 - he was on a speed run, with road works approaching, and a 100, then 80 km/h limit looming, but he tried to pass one last car before the lane closed...surprise, as the car in front merged right, there was a nice radar trap and he was doing at least 145. He got a ticket with a large on-the-spot fine. He proudly framed the ticket later, bragging to people back home that he'd got nabbed for speeding on the Autobahn (sounds impossible, doesn't it?).
There were lots of radar traps in East Germany too (we drove to Berlin) - their speed limit was 100 km/h.
BTW, we'd never seen so many BMWs burning oil as we did on that trip. It was most evident when one was on a speed run, then had to do a brake stand to avoid a Romanian trucker (or similar) pulling out to pass another at 99 km/h. Great billowing clouds of blue oil smoke would pour out on the overrun, quite hilarious. All of them seemed to do this.
We returned to Canada on the day John Lennon was shot (bloody hell), and a week later while driving to Mount Baker on Hwy 1 out of Vancouver, we decided to try the left-winki trick. there was a convoy of little Euro-cars that day in the fast lane with the left t/s permanently on, driving at 160 km/h - the locals didn't know what to make of us. I still occasionally use it when there's someone asleep in the passing lane here in Canada, but half the time they don't get it.
Since the 1980 trip, I've logged over 100,000 km of driving over there (in slightly faster cars, woo-hoo), and although the left t/s is still often used by the "big boys", my best friend in Germany reports that it is strictly illegal. The only worse thing is to flash the brights at someone in order to pass - people are often ticketed for that offense.
About rear fog lights, it is strictly forbidden, as Tarik writes, to use them unless visibility is <50 m. A lot of Volvo and Audi drivers in Canada use them nearly all the time in normal weather, the bozos; luckily my French car has one too, so if I get in front of them I flash mine a few times hoping theirs will be turned off.
Sorry about the long-winded, off-topic post. Please don't hate me.
Thought since I had not posted using the new software I'd give it a try:
Got our 99 C280 back from the dealer (Orlando FL) for the Flex B service today. $327 all told. Mileage was 23,590 so the estimate for flex mileage by MB must be pretty accurate. Tyres were down to 4 mm front and rear; anyone have any suggestions for replacing the Goodyear Eagle RSA OEM on the car with something more performance oriented?
The dealership loaner car was a Toyota Camry; v. interesting to drive vs the MB for the day. Light/numb steering, mild understeer, quick throttle response, but in sum a quiet and uneventful ride. I sure do understand how they sell bazillions of these things...Oh yeah, why does it seem to me that all recent Accord/Odyssey/Camry driver's seat bases are too short? I am five foot seven and I can fit the whole width of four fingers between the back of my calf and the front of the seat on these cars. Makes for an uncomfortable seating position in my view...Anyway, back to the plot:
spndx:
We have the MB tex, my brother's 98 C220 has the full leather. It looks nicer, but active four year olds and chocolate ice cream do not mix, so we opted to stay with the MB tex. I got 2xcustom seat covers from Rocky Mountain sheepskin for the fronts, and just tidy up the rears when the spills happen. I admit my brother's interior sure does look nice with the accents and all, but hey you pays your money and takes your choice.
Driving in EU:
We spent five years living in the UK and driving several times in France. British roads are poorly maintained (my view), but drivers are *very* sharp and courteous; French roads seemed better/faster/less crowded than in Blighty...Rear fogs are mandatory for all cars manufactured after (forget year) and must be used in conditions in which vis is less than (forget distance -- 100 yds?) One of my favourite things about American cars is the US fascination with FRONT fog lights...the whole problem is the idiot driving into you from behind, and NOT seeing or illuminating the road in front of you. Can't recall how many times I've seen folks driving those really nice plastic-body-clad Pontiacs (*) with the "cool" looking fog lights on the front blinding the oncoming traffic. Wish more US carmakers realised this...
Take care all...ta ta for now...
Richard
(*)//aling/ctic/jrtc Post Certification Number 54322A:/Classification: Humour/Subclass: Irony/
Accompanying Statement of Political Correctness:
"No offence to Pontiac owners, former, current or future intended. Pontiacs are great cars. My brother once owned a Pontiac Starchief with a welded chainlink steering wheel (hey, it was 1973). It broke my other brother's Austin Healey 3000 car jack when he tried to get it in the air to replace the Thrush mufflers. I am not making this up. Your mileage may vary." //endtext.//
There are 2 reasons why the remote won't open the trunk.
1) Valet feature has been activated. (To deactivate the valet feature use the metal key embedded in the remote; insert into key hole above rear license plate and turn)
2) Time delay. If you press and release the remote button quickly it will not open. The button needs to be pressed and held 2-4 seconds.
Happy Driving!
Drew
Townhall Host
Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
I too had to replace the stock tires on my '99 C280 at 20K. I was disgusted at the lack of treadwear life. Having the sport pkg, mine came with the Continentals. I replaced mine with the Michelin MXV4 (255/50/16) I believe. I always got 50-60K from the Michelins on my 525 and found the performance more than adequate.
Has anyone found a good deal on a CD changer for the C class?
Thanks,
Rob
Drew
Host
Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
Now that I have made my decision, I was wonderind if there was scope to negotiate on the the price of the car, or is it pretty much fixed to the MSRP and the figures that are displayed on the web-site. I went to my local dealer in Mclean, VA..and he basically quoted me the same prices that I got of the web-site. Has anyone had luck (I saw one post from someone in CA who got a split between the invoice and MSRP) ...can one haggle on the sticker price? and the price on options...or is this pretty standardized my MB?
Thanks a bunch....
Also reading the many postings here has really helped a lot...thanks to everyone for their contributions.
Good luck and keep us updated!
Drew
Host
Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
make that 205/55/16's on the Michelins. What a sight the others would be.
Aaaaah, this is where your affinity to french cars (your beatiful 404 Coupé) originates...
The "continuous left turn signal" and "flashing high beams" (called "give him the Christmas tree") behavior is subject to EXTREMELY strict enforcement by German police, in order to prevent road rage from forming. No such luck, though, you can witness 1000s of watts blinking their way down the Autobahn at any given day.
Cops monitor the Autobahn from overpasses, equipped with radar and video cameras. In the left lane before EVERY bridge in Germany, there are two white lines at a distance of 50m. According to the law, this is the safe following distance at 100kph. By reading your speed and tracking your distance to the car in front, they can figure out very easily that you are too close - equals ticket. Understep this mandated distance and flash your head lights at an idiot, who kept you behind for 5 miles, and you are in for A MONTH WITHOUT LICENSE!!!
Of course, being engaged in this tête-a-tête, you won't notice the powers watching from above until the mailman delivers the surprise package. You have one month to pick a good time to surrender your license to your local police station (make sure you don't go there with your own car - how are you going to make it home...?).
The real problem is, if you maintain correct distance, other cars will squeeze into the gap all the time, which makes life on the Autobahn somewhat exciting - am I going to get away today?
Passing on the right is not allowed, and it wouldn't be possible because of the huge speed differences.
To make it "topically correct", imagine this:
You are tooling along the Autobahn at 130mph in medium traffic (no problem) with your brand new C-Class (!). Then, someone a few hundred yards ahead of you pulls into your lane to pass (usually at 67.3mph). You let off the gas pedal and extrapolate that the moment you are (still) at a safe distance behind him should be about the point in time where he has moved over again, allowing you to re-engage your criuse control ;->. Instead, he feels intimidated by your three-pointed star, which he didn't see coming. Now, of course, he will teach you a lesson - Germans can be VERY "teacherly" in that respect. Knowing that anything else wouldn't do any good, you back off and wait, but how far does your patience last? A mile? 5 miles? The story goes on and on... I have passed cars in the right lane after wasting (too much) time waiting, but you need to aware of unmarked police cars, big brother is EVERYWHERE!
And, as a footnote:
For some reason, the "creeper" is never at fault, courts ALWAYS decide in their favor, "speeders" are (almost) every judge's enemy #1.
More later...
Tarik
Drew
Host
Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
Of course I missed MotorVision again, but I will try to remember (not easy at my age, LOL) at 11 EST.
As to unmarked police cars, they use different types like 5-Series BMWs, C and E-Classes, Passats, Opel Vectras and Fords. Depending on their location, police try to patronize local manufacturers. The giveaway is their choice of color, usually something most car buyers in their normal state of mind would never consider, like plain gray, white, or some ugly hue of blue. Since hardly anyone else drives any of the above cars with a rear sunshade, but without aluminum rims or lowered springs, this is suspicious, too. On Autobahnen around Stuttgart you will even have to face a few PORSCHE police "cruisers"!
Poor old police men, no secrets there. Tickets for speeding are usually not enforced on location, but mailed to you directly. Since some of the stationary radar devices are mounted underneath an overpass, you can easily miss them and not have a clue until THE LETTER arrives in the C-Class driver's mail. Funny that US-approved radar guns are banned by German law for their inaccuracy (go figure...). As opposed to police here, in the old world you need to be presented evidence of your wrong doing, like a picture clearly showing the car, the front license plate and the driver's face. The notification is always mailed to the car's owner, no matter who harvested the ticket. In lieu of proper identification of the person behind the wheel, the owner will even be fully responsible for the fine!!!
May be the high-speed-grass is not always greener on the other side of the ocean...
Victim Tarik
The ticket will obviously be mailed to the rental car company, which will disclose the driver's address to police. Since you (hopefully) rented the car with a non-EU drivers license, police will (for a change act financially responsible, and) not further pursue the incident.
How MB Stuttgart handles these cases if you cause a nice snapshot of you in your new C-Class, which you picked up under the Euro-delivery program, I couldn't tell you.
Disclosure Statement:
This information is not intended to endorse speedy passing of lawfully operated assemblies with the sole purpose of assuring safety of public traffic.
Please remember:
There is no substitute for safe driving.
Wise Tarik (ROF)
Aid malfunction light each time the iginition is turned off. ( I understand the latter is a soft ware problem, and since the Tele-Aid system continues to work, I've ignored it.) However, today, a more concerning electronic problem developed. The trunk has taken on a mind of its own and continually wants to open itself. After finally thinking it was closed, I returned to the mall parking lot to find it open and awaiting my purchases. (Fine for the first stop, I guess, but not so great if you plan further stops) Then it was a struggle to get out of the lot without the trunk opening on its own. Finally I seemed to have it tricked, only to have it fly open the first time I used the directional blinkers enroute home. By speeding up on the freeway, the trunk would close, only to open in a minute or so, with the information screen turning red suggesting one stop driving and fix the problem.. I made it home and fiddled with the trunk switch and remote all to no avail as the trunk insisted on opening..It now has a 25lb. sack of salt on it to keep it closed and hopefully the battery will survive until it can be delivered to the dealer, which by my schedule will be a couple of days..I called Tele-Aid and it was a head scratcher for them on Sunday anyway. Anyone have such an experience so I might advise the technicians as to what to expect?? I seem to remembe an earlier post re trunk problems, but I think that was a problem in getting it to open.. Right now I'd be willing to trade for that one :-)
Good luck!
When you said rear sunshade, do you mean the mesh kind that one can get as an option in the C, E, CL and S-class? What is it for anyway? Wouldn't tinted glass be just as effective and more inconspicuous?
My understanding is that Euro. delivery C-classes have temporary plates. Plates that one can keep as a souvenir after dropping the car off (and taking the warning triangle in the trunk lid, as well as the German-spec first aid kit; both are apparently removed if you don't take them then). Do you think these temp. plates are registered to MB? I wonder if the police would even bother to pursue the matter.
WRT radar, I take it that radar detectors are banned in the "old world"? Since you mentioned that one is usually not stopped and mailed the ticket, is there anything that would prevent one from bringing a Valentine One there and using it in the rental car (other than the consequences if one is caught)?
All very interesting...keep it coming! :-) BTW, what do you (and John) think of this European delivery experience? There are some great tips there, and not only on driving: http://www.curtrich.com/tableofcontents.html
Drew
Host
Vans and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
When similarily optioned, the prices are surprisingly pretty similar.
Drew,
When you said rear sunshade, do you mean the mesh kind that one can get as an option in the C, E, CL and S-class? What is it for anyway?
Yes, this is the mesh-type, and it is supposed to protect from the sun (you knew that). In unmarked cars, it will cover their radar equipment, hats and whatever else cops take along. Understand that window tint is only accepted by younger folks (<30) in Germany, but considered too fancy by all others. Now, imagine a non-mag-wheel (but plastic wheel covers instead), non-lowered, mouse gray <i>C-Class with tinted windows - that would be like posting signs "Caution, police is out to get you" all around the unmarked car (not a bad idea, after all).
I wonder if the police would even bother to pursue the matter.
I don't think police would dare to hold them (MB) responsible, since there are probably too many bands between local government and MB as the BY FAR largest employer in the region (get the drift...?).
WRT radar, I take it that radar detectors are banned in the "old world"? Since you mentioned that one is usually not stopped and mailed the ticket, is there anything that would prevent one from bringing a Valentine One there and using it in the rental car (other than the consequences if one is caught)?
Brother, that would be walking on no ice at all. Technically there is nothing wrong with your idea, but since a few months even the OWNERSHIP of a radar detector is punishable (almost a felony). Again, they consider it obstruction of justice, like in deliberately trying to exceed limits. I wonder what kinds of consequences a tourist would face.
CurtRich's story sounds very knowledgeable and is entertaining, but he seems to be another one of those people who are stunned by the fact that DJs of a German radio station speak, well, German!
Off to watch Speedvision now, talk to you tomorrow...
Law obeying Tarik
By the way, I decided against the C320. I ordered a Volvo S60 T5 with 5 speed. I did give a lot of consideration to the MB though.
Good luck with your cars (and please wish me the same---I never considered a Volvo before.., and hope it will be reliable!).
Tom
I find it quite interesting that more people haven't done European Delivery - it seems like a great deal. Taxi transfer from the airport or Bahnhof, lunch at the factory, a tour, two free nights for two at your choice of eleven 5-star hotels in Germany and Switzerland, and last but not least, no inland freight charge (for me, $645). I've been told that many dealers don't really know much about it.
I'll keep reading your posts until March 14th, and will report back on my experiences on the 23nd - can't wait!!
Enjoy!
http://www.geocities.com/MotorCity/Speedway/5350/w203sportc.htm