320i vs. C200 vs. a4 1.8T vs. CC 1.8T

[jennypenny]

haha.. i prefer smaller cars. i am not that big in size.

 

[charcoal]

haha.. i prefer smaller cars. i am not that big in size.

true oso..if for my winding and very narrow multi storeys office car park, the smaller the better..or else be prepared to scratch the walls, never mind the car hehehe

 

[jennypenny]

yes, especially older buildings, their car park is so so narrow. i will crawling through the bends very cautiously.

 

[tIANcI]

haha.. i prefer smaller cars. i am not that big in size.

Small cars are fun. So nippy to run around in. That is why I love my CRZ a lot.

 

[ongss]

I have both W204 and F30 328 luxury.

For handling, speed, driving, .. of course F30. W204 was designed and launched 4 - 5 years ago. Of course, it can't fight with F30.

But, for comfort, F30 is a bit disappointing. For W204, all the electric adjustment controls for the seats are located on the doors. Whether the drivers or front passenger can adjust easily. For F30 Luxury, the equivalent electric adjustment controls are beside the seats. Difficult to adjust, especially during the long distance driving. Furthermore, the W204 seats come with lumber support. But, for my F30 Luxury, no such feature!

 

[skycon]

Just pick up wifey's new 320i at Quill this evening. Despite the crazy jam due to after rain, was managed to have a bit of fun after traffic easing up. Again, it confirmed my earlier point that in term of handling my other W204 has no fight. At least this new baby can handle high speed in confident unlike the W204.

A bit disappointed with the 6.6" idrv display. The sport line padded sport seat is nice. Stock rim size a bit small but the RFT is not that harsh. Performance wise is adequate for lite city "fun" driving.

Maybe I am tired of the W204, but F30 (although mine is the lowest end variance) does bring back some excitement. Can't wait to get a M-sport kit for it.

 

[jennypenny]

Just pick up wifey's new 320i at Quill this evening. Despite the crazy jam due to after rain, was managed to have a bit of fun after traffic easing up. Again, it confirmed my earlier point that in term of handling my other W204 has no fight. At least this new baby can handle high speed in confident unlike the W204.

A bit disappointed with the 6.6" idrv display. The sport line padded sport seat is nice. Stock rim size a bit small but the RFT is not that harsh. Performance wise is adequate for lite city "fun" driving.

Maybe I am tired of the W204, but F30 (although mine is the lowest end variance) does bring back some excitement. Can't wait to get a M-sport kit for it.

congrats on your new ride!

just a question about your w204, is it the facelifted one (the one just launched late last year with 2000 new parts) or the pre-facelifted one?

i drove the w204 facelifted one, its actually really good. i'd say handling wise very good for a merc. because the f30 has become very soft compared to e90. i think the latest w204 is very close to f30.

 

[328Sport]

I just came back from another test drive of 320D, just 2 hours ago. According to the SA the power and torque delivery is better than the 320i, due to high torque.

My test drive on 328 was about 2-3 months ago.

Compare the 2, can't help but keep thinking that the 320i or 320D is a bit of disappointment on the kits count. Though price gap between 328i and the 320i/d is big, but that is the right car.

And I was in Munich last week, had been on 2 colleagues' car, one was 520D F10, another on was A5 coupe. Tell you what, A5 is a lot quieter than the F10 !! Colleagues told me only old man are buying Merc is Germany now ...... even their people move away from Merc, sigh.

Sad to hear as I am/was a long time Merc fan.

To summ up, maybe Audi or BMW is the right choice if you are not touching 50's yet. Better second hand value to come.

 

[willy5]

I have both W204 and F30 328 luxury.

For handling, speed, driving, .. of course F30. W204 was designed and launched 4 - 5 years ago. Of course, it can't fight with F30.

But, for comfort, F30 is a bit disappointing. For W204, all the electric adjustment controls for the seats are located on the doors. Whether the drivers or front passenger can adjust easily. For F30 Luxury, the equivalent electric adjustment controls are beside the seats. Difficult to adjust, especially during the long distance driving. Furthermore, the W204 seats come with lumber support. But, for my F30 Luxury, no such feature!

On the lumbar support, buy the net thinggy and attach to the seat, cost RM12.00 from Tesco, only color is black so with your luxury spec beige seats maybe maybe wont look so nice. My seats are black so they don't appear so obvious. So much for JOY haha..

 

[jason]

I have both W204 and F30 328 luxury.
But, for comfort, F30 is a bit disappointing. For W204, all the electric adjustment controls for the seats are located on the doors. Whether the drivers or front passenger can adjust easily. For F30 Luxury, the equivalent electric adjustment controls are beside the seats. Difficult to adjust, especially during the long distance driving. Furthermore, the W204 seats come with lumber support. But, for my F30 Luxury, no such feature!

On the lumbar support, buy the net thinggy and attach to the seat, cost RM12.00 from Tesco, only color is black so with your luxury spec beige seats maybe maybe wont look so nice. My seats are black so they don't appear so obvious. So much for JOY haha..

Just some questions:

1. May I inquire if you had the chance to test drive the F30 before buying your cars? Was the lumbar support available during your test drive? And did you only discover that there was none when you received your cars.

2. Same question on the position of the seat controls, were the position of the controls changed after your decided to buy your car?

Jason

 

[willy5]

This is my 4th BMW over a period of 20 years, and this is the first one I found lacking in lumbar support, all the others did not have adjustable lumbar support either but were well designed enough as is. Just shows that the designs are slacking....

Lumbar support, good or not, is hard to feel over a 20 min test drive.

 

[logicdy]

a red a4 tailing me tonight, wanna challenge me to race. im just a 320d...i ignored him but he kept tailing me.

 

[tIANcI]

a red a4 tailing me tonight, wanna challenge me to race. im just a 320d...i ignored him but he kept tailing me.

That guy thinks he is the Road Warrior mah ...

 

[_M_]

May be bcos he knows you r the Road Warrior!

 

[Juan Powerblow]

That guy thinks he is the Road Warrior mah ...

Is the number 666...? If it is, she's a hot model who used to be in this forum when she had a fierce E46 325i and this girl can really drive, heh!

 

[jennypenny]

to be honest. the F30 is really poor in terms of kit.

the pros:
- superb power (245hp for a 2 litre? awesome acceleration)
- 8 speeder is smooth (once you are used to the gearbox)
- better fuel economy (coming from 325i)

the cons:
- kit count is really really low (when competitors are increasing)
- QC is poor (below average of its competitors)
- handling has soften. its closer to the C class now.

 

[TheTinkerer]

Never know that C200 is that good. Even in terms of driving dynamics it is comparable to F30? That is pretty impressive.

 

[_M_]

C200 is good. But in terms of driving dynamics its nowhere as good as the F30. Only the suspension of the F30 has been soften, the axle set-up remains the same and the body has in fact been stiffen by 26% compared to the E90. Steering precision & feedback remains superior with Sport mode. Those combined with the perfect 50:50 weight distribution makes the F30's handling awesome!

Try some spirited driving on B roads with both c200 and 320 and u'l clearly notice the difference.

On the otherhand, the difference in terms of driving dynamics between the 328i and C250 (which comes with the handling package) is not that glaring. However since the 328 got much more bhp and Nm, it can deliver more joy and driving pleasure.

W204 is good. F30 is better. Thats why i ditched my w204 after havin it for less than 2yrs. :burnout:

 

[jennypenny]

C200 is good. But in terms of driving dynamics its nowhere as good as the F30. Only the suspension of the F30 has been soften, the axle set-up remains the same and the body has in fact been stiffen by 26% compared to the E90. Steering precision & feedback remains superior with Sport mode. Those combined with the perfect 50:50 weight distribution makes the F30's handling awesome!

Try some spirited driving on B roads with both c200 and 320 and u'l clearly notice the difference.

On the otherhand, the difference in terms of driving dynamics between the 328i and C250 (which comes with the handling package) is not that glaring. However since the 328 got much more bhp and Nm, it can deliver more joy and driving pleasure.

W204 is good. F30 is better. Thats why i ditched my w204 after havin it for less than 2yrs. :burnout:

328i's power is really really addictive. however, if they have 328i with M-kit suspension. then C250 will just be a distant memory.

 

[TheTinkerer]

Small cars are fun. So nippy to run around in. That is why I love my CRZ a lot.

How does the CRZ handles? Does it has ample power?