Which COE car should I buy?

[keechiu]

5 hours ago, awhtc said:

What is missing in your story is whether the COE car has 5 or 10 year COE. 

My experience that makes my COE Vios feel new again at a budget of around $1,700 with highest impact on top.

1. A fresh coat of paint that also helps to remove minor dents: $800+

2. Repair of seats and door panels leather: $200+

3. New head unit and reverse camera: $300+

4. A smart dash front+back camera with screen: $200+

5. A new set of carpet: $50+

I spent another $4k+ over next 2 years to change of wear and tear mechanical parts (e.g. engine mountings and wheel bearings) and full servicing (e.g. spark plugs and air-con compressor oil).  For Mercedes, it should cost a lot more.  You need to save up for these additional expensive repairs as ageing parts eventually will need replacement.

 i purchased a 10 year renewed COE w204 c180k at a good price. Happy with the purchase. Will now move into the modification phase. 

[Naimed]

12 hours ago, keechiu said:

 

Future plans for the car. (if anyone got good lobang, please let me know).

1) change to c63 bodykit. either paint or wrap the car

2) paint the brake calipers ( wondering if there is a need to change the brake kits. any advice?) 

3) install fibre optic and ambient lighting

4) replace stock speakers with something better

5) install android headunit 

1) Most probably wont pass annual inspection with wide body-kits for w204 these days.

2) IMO, waste money on painting. Can opt to change to original 4-pot AMG BBK but need to upsize rims to 18". One of the better items to upgrade if you tailgate a lot on Lane 1.

3) OK, if wife or Small 3 likes it.

4) Many direct replacement in the market, if you don't intend to change other items.

5) Currently at 12.3" (~$1k). Makes you meddle a lot with the screen, busier than driving.

[awhtc]

2 hours ago, keechiu said:

 i purchased a 10 year renewed COE w204 c180k at a good price. Happy with the purchase. Will now move into the modification phase. 

Enjoy your car 🤗

[Naimed]

2 hours ago, keechiu said:

 i purchased a 10 year renewed COE w204 c180k at a good price. Happy with the purchase. Will now move into the modification phase. 

I will still advocate going to another workshop to have a Xentry scan. Just to make sure there is no other pending issues after fixing "at dealer's workshop". You can do this during your next servicing or mod. 

[Ct3833]

8 hours ago, awhtc said:

What is missing in your story is whether the COE car has 5 or 10 year COE. 

My experience that makes my COE Vios feel new again at a budget of around $1,700 with highest impact on top.

1. A fresh coat of paint that also helps to remove minor dents: $800+

2. Repair of seats and door panels leather: $200+

3. New head unit and reverse camera: $300+

4. A smart dash front+back camera with screen: $200+

5. A new set of carpet: $50+

I spent another $4k+ over next 2 years to change of wear and tear mechanical parts (e.g. engine mountings and wheel bearings) and full servicing (e.g. spark plugs and air-con compressor oil).  For Mercedes, it should cost a lot more.  You need to save up for these additional expensive repairs as ageing parts eventually will need replacement.

The parf value of merce  is high, most people will pay for 10 years COE, the write off over 5 years is too costly .

Edited January 17, 2021 by Ct3833

[Ct3833]

13 hours ago, keechiu said:

This is the much awaited post on my purchase journey of the Mercedes Benz w204 C180k, avantgarde 2010 model, 5 previous owners, 120,000km mileage. I would like to thank many of you who have given me advice on the threads and also via private messaging. 

Background

I've been researching on buying cars for about 2 years on fb, carousell, sgcarmart, ucars and other forums before I started browsing mycarforum in October 2020. The plan was to buy a 5 year renewed COE car such as Lancer EX or Civic 1.6/1.8. Budget was $35k to $40k. I met 2 dealers from 2 different dealerships. Spoke to both for about 2-3 hours each. Both told me not to buy Lancer EX or Civic 1.6/1.8 because both were known to be problematic cars. I was told by both to either buy a 5 year COE vios or cerato instead. Both also told me to consider increasing my budget cos it made financial sense to get 10 year COE car instead of a 5 year COE and also to consider looking at continental cars. Only one went further and  suggested a COE mercedes cos its a reliable machine. After the meetup with these dealers, I didn't think much about buying a car and entered a 'cooling period'.

Carousell 

Late one night few weeks later I saw a merc c180 listing on carousell. i liked the listing so i msged the dealer. he was prompt and detailed in his replies. I met him a few days later and saw the car. He gave me a tour of the car and answered my queries satisfactorily. We went back to his office and we discussed the important details such as price, warranty, what the previous owner had done for the car with proof of receipts etc, next steps if I do go ahead with the purchase of the car etc. 

Why did I pay the deposit for the car?   

I) the dealer had good reviews on his carousell account. I was comfortable with him and my intuition told me to trust him. He also did not charge admin fee. He provided a 6 months warranty. As you read on, you will see that he is indeed a reliable dealer who kept his word. 

2) the previous owner had sent his car to Elite Car Ventures for servicing and repair/replacement works. I saw the company's logo on the receipt when the dealer showed me proof of works done by the previous owner. I was somewhat pleased because I knew about Elite Car Ventures about a year ago on fb and they had about 300++ positive reviews.

3) After the dealer had explained to me the breakdown etc, I asked for 15 minutes to go out and make a few calls. I called my wife to update her on what had transpired so far. I then called a friend who has been buying continental cars all his life and messaged 3 strangers on carousell who had bought mercedes from other dealers who replied me immediately. All of them said to proceed with the deal however they asked me if can get a further discount given that there were already 5 previous owners and that the  mileage was 120,000km.

4) the dealer gave me a good discount off the listed selling price.

5) his insurance quote was also the lowest among the other companies.

Mistakes I made

1) I viewed the car in the basement carpark of the building which was dimly lit and did not drive out of the premises for a test drive. I only drove a few rounds in the carpark itself.

2) I did not negotiate for an in-car camera and android headunit to be included in the sale price of the car

3) I did not arrange for the car to be sent to a workshop for a pre-purchase inspection.  

Terms of the purchase agreement

1) $2000 to be paid upfront as deposit.

2) The deposit will be returned if the STA report comes back with anything other than Grade B. 

Problems with the car

1) on the day that I collected the car while driving back, the engine light came on. I contacted the dealer and he asked me to send to his preferred workshop. Turns out the valve compressor was dirty and they cleaned it up. The engine light still came on few days later and the dealer replaced the valve compressor at no cost to me. 

2) the in-car camera which I purchased from the dealer is an iroad x5. It doesn't have a screen so I wouldn't know if its recording or not. A couple of times, the camera prompted that there was no memory card inside but actually there was already one inside. 

https://i.i-sgcm.com/products/items/1/2019/10/13507_1.jpg

Repairs

Based on the STA report, there were 4 minor problems with the car so naturally I got a quote from Elite Car Ventures for the repairs since the previous owner also sent the car to them. They gave me a reasonable quote so I decided to engage them for the repair works. They also charge $118 for each servicing so I will go to them too.

If I could do it all over again, what are the steps I should have taken? (first time buyers, please take note of the following).

1) view the car in a place where there is natural light/daytime and drive out onto the main road, expressway etc.

2) negotiate with the dealer to have an in-car camera with a screen to be installed instead of iroad cameras which doesn't have a screen.

3) if possible, negotiate with the dealer to throw in an android headunit. 

4) car to be sent to a workshop for pre-purchase inspection so that I know I won't be buying a lemon. Elite Car Ventures charges $50 for this inspection and with 300++ positive google reviews, I don't think it's bad idea to get them to do the pre-purchase inspection.

Future plans for the car. (if anyone got good lobang, please let me know).

1) change to c63 bodykit. either paint or wrap the car

2) paint the brake calipers ( wondering if there is a need to change the brake kits. any advice?) 

3) install fibre optic and ambient lighting

4) replace stock speakers with something better

5) install android headunit 

Conclusion

I was fortunate that the dealer is a reliable person who did not sell me a lemon or ditch me when the engine light came on. However it could have turned out for the worse had it been some crappy dealer that we often read horror experiences about in forums, on fb, word of mouth etc. But I too made mistakes as mentioned above so if it did turn out for the worse then I also should shoulder part of the blame. I hope that my post will assist future first time buyers to not imitate what I've done. The ramifications can be quite devastating emotionally and of course financially. 

The expect 2nd car dealer to throw in HU and in car camera is quite unlikely,  so you have no loss from these 2 items. 

My suggestion is to drive your car for a period of time before deciding to do any addtional mod.

[latisern2]

to be fair i think the best decision you made was to choose mercedes among all the other german brands considering the relaiblity reputation of the all 3 i owuld say merc is the best.

it's an underpowered car .

dont waste money on body kit, maybe just spend the money on bigger brakes.

i wouldn't be too quick to say the car has no issues, i mean german cars love to leak oil to a certain degree. so just get ready in hand to spend a few grand to fix those problems up.

based on my experience, problems usually only arise after 2-3 months of driving especially if the car has been sitting at the used car dealer for awhile , things like bushings, gaskets will only start to show their wear and tear after u start using the car especially so if you're daily driving it.

[Mkl22]

3 hours ago, Naimed said:

1) Most probably wont pass annual inspection with wide body-kits for w204 these days.

2) IMO, waste money on painting. Can opt to change to original 4-pot AMG BBK but need to upsize rims to 18". One of the better items to upgrade if you tailgate a lot on Lane 1.

3) OK, if wife or Small 3 likes it.

4) Many direct replacement in the market, if you don't intend to change other items.

5) Currently at 12.3" (~$1k). Makes you meddle a lot with the screen, busier t

A fallacy to think that a BBK makes a difference if you tailgate. 

[Ct3833]

2 hours ago, latisern2 said:

to be fair i think the best decision you made was to choose mercedes among all the other german brands considering the relaiblity reputation of the all 3 i owuld say merc is the best.

it's an underpowered car .

dont waste money on body kit, maybe just spend the money on bigger brakes.

i wouldn't be too quick to say the car has no issues, i mean german cars love to leak oil to a certain degree. so just get ready in hand to spend a few grand to fix those problems up.

based on my experience, problems usually only arise after 2-3 months of driving especially if the car has been sitting at the used car dealer for awhile , things like bushings, gaskets will only start to show their wear and tear after u start using the car especially so if you're daily driving it.

I have been driving old merce for 5 years, from w211 e class  to w204 c class back to  w212  e class, the engine oil of all the 3 models could last for 15k km servicing interval without having to top up. Unless there are other leaking that i am not aware.  

[Naimed]

2 hours ago, Mkl22 said:

A fallacy to think that a BBK makes a difference if you tailgate. 

In jest. But stock vs Alcon, I will take the Alcon any day.

[Ct3833]

9 minutes ago, Naimed said:

In jest. But stock vs Alcon, I will take the Alcon any day.

I just need a set of low dust brake pads that  will fit my stock caliper😥

Edited January 17, 2021 by Ct3833

[Mkl22]

25 minutes ago, Ct3833 said:

I just need a set of low dust brake pads that  will fit my stock caliper😥

USA guys seem to go for akebono

[Ct3833]

13 minutes ago, Mkl22 said:

USA guys seem to go for akebono

yes this is a popular ceramic pad,  but i am hoping to find low dust non ceramic pads. Japanese cars have very little dust problem, like my Altis, i have hardly wash the rim but they dont get dirty so easily, the rims on the merce will get very dirty in  less than a week, 

[Naimed]

13 hours ago, Mkl22 said:

A fallacy to think that a BBK makes a difference if you tailgate. 

Hyundai bro definitely blessed by the gods. No 340mm 6-pot BBK would have saved us - this is divine intervention!

If I had some 400mm rotors and stickier tyres, maybe he would have ramped into me...

[Mkl22]

i think it is easier to change to a japanese car. 😁. don't have to think and search so hard.

Edited January 18, 2021 by Mkl22

[Volvobrick]

12 hours ago, Mkl22 said:

USA guys seem to go for akebono

I am on Akebono ceramic. No dust! 

[keechiu]

19 hours ago, Naimed said:

I will still advocate going to another workshop to have a Xentry scan. Just to make sure there is no other pending issues after fixing "at dealer's workshop". You can do this during your next servicing or mod. 

The dealer's workshop in Defu Lane rectified the valve compressor issue. The workshop I went to is Elite Car Ventures in Kaki Bukit which the previous owner of the car also went to.

17 hours ago, latisern2 said:

to be fair i think the best decision you made was to choose mercedes among all the other german brands considering the relaiblity reputation of the all 3 i owuld say merc is the best.

it's an underpowered car .

dont waste money on body kit, maybe just spend the money on bigger brakes.

i wouldn't be too quick to say the car has no issues, i mean german cars love to leak oil to a certain degree. so just get ready in hand to spend a few grand to fix those problems up.

based on my experience, problems usually only arise after 2-3 months of driving especially if the car has been sitting at the used car dealer for awhile , things like bushings, gaskets will only start to show their wear and tear after u start using the car especially so if you're daily driving it.

I agree with you. The engine light came on again twice but has since not appeared. This time the error code states 'the throttle valve actuator does not reach the specified position'.

Anyways, when I visited Elite Car Ventures I had the copy of the STA report which I showed to the boss. He took a picture and his admin gave me a quote based on the problems stated in the STA report. I was comfortable with the quote and Elite will be doing the following works.

- timing cover gasket

- inter cooler hose

- transmission oil, oil sump and gasket

- rear absorber stopper and dust cover

- engine oil dipstick

Elite Car Ventures also gave me a quote for the current error code but since the car is now with them, I've asked the technician to check the car first and advise me when I go down to collect the car, before I make any decision.

14 hours ago, Ct3833 said:

I have been driving old merce for 5 years, from w211 e class  to w204 c class back to  w212  e class, the engine oil of all the 3 models could last for 15k km servicing interval without having to top up. Unless there are other leaking that i am not aware.  

For those that were asking, Elite's servicing is at $88 for Asian cars and $118 for continental cars.

ECV Oil servicing package price for Asian cars is 3 + 1 free at $264.

ECV Oil servicing package price for Continental cars is 3 + 1 free at $354 and includes 

- engine oil shell helix 5W40 Fully synthetic @ 4 litres

- engine oil filter

- QC check for 15 points (General Safety Issue).

Is this good enough for a w204 c180k?

[Naimed]

20 hours ago, keechiu said:

The dealer's workshop in Defu Lane rectified the valve compressor issue. The workshop I went to is Elite Car Ventures in Kaki Bukit which the previous owner of the car also went to.

I agree with you. The engine light came on again twice but has since not appeared. This time the error code states 'the throttle valve actuator does not reach the specified position'.

Anyways, when I visited Elite Car Ventures I had the copy of the STA report which I showed to the boss. He took a picture and his admin gave me a quote based on the problems stated in the STA report. I was comfortable with the quote and Elite will be doing the following works.

- timing cover gasket

- inter cooler hose

- transmission oil, oil sump and gasket

- rear absorber stopper and dust cover

- engine oil dipstick

Elite Car Ventures also gave me a quote for the current error code but since the car is now with them, I've asked the technician to check the car first and advise me when I go down to collect the car, before I make any decision.

For those that were asking, Elite's servicing is at $88 for Asian cars and $118 for continental cars.

ECV Oil servicing package price for Asian cars is 3 + 1 free at $264.

ECV Oil servicing package price for Continental cars is 3 + 1 free at $354 and includes 

- engine oil shell helix 5W40 Fully synthetic @ 4 litres

- engine oil filter

- QC check for 15 points (General Safety Issue).

Is this good enough for a w204 c180k?

OK, good that you went to your own workshop for checks after the repairs is done by dealer's workshop.

The rear absorber stopper and dust cover is not really critical - not sure how much they quoted you on parts and labour but you can have those changed out together when you are replacing your shocks in future as mentioned by a bro here - to save on labour cost. 

For engine oil, make sure they use MB Approved oils. Shell Helix Ultra 5w40 is 229.5 and you need around 6L. One WS is offering Motul X-clean 5w40 6L (229.51) with original MB oil filter for $168 (1 service) or $138 (if you buy 5 services). Obligated to tell you that Shell Helix Ultra 5w40 is selling for around $30/4L at Giant sometimes.