I cannot fault the car in any way; uninspiring it may be, dated it may be, ponderous it may be, but it will not give up the ghost, even after nearly 300,000 miles. I bought it at 150,000 miles and it felt as if it had just been run in. No smoke, and clean emission readings (still). It has been serviced by a small local garage for the whole time I have had it, and the only problems have been related to normal wear and tear. The injector pump has been overhauled twice in its life (by a firm in Bristol that deals with truck systems) and a bearing has been replaced on the propshaft. The indicator switch fell apart (I dread to think how many times it has been clicked on and off) and brake discs have been replaced. Glow-plugs and injectors have been done twice (I think) but when you have had a car for this length of time, it is difficult to remember it all... At the moment the viscous fan coupling has given up (the car doesn't seem to mind) and the door locks are slightly frayed (they don't often see a key). It has slightly frilly wheel arches and more dents and scratches than a Beirut taxi. But it starts, every time, and runs all day. It will sit, cruising on a motorway for hours on end and returns just over 40mpg. Whatever I am doing. I sometimes wish it would explode, just so I know it has some failing or other. But it won't. Because I was advised that it wouldn't survive the latest incarnation of the British MOT system, I took the car to France. It passed the CT, with a headlamp change, and now resides in the South, where it continues to burble happily about the country. It gets serviced, provides a comfortable (but typically teutonic) ride, and serves me well still. It is over-engineered and unfashionably robust, and owes me nothing for more than ten years of service. And, because it weighs in at a ton and a third, I will eat well after it goes. If it goes. If I could find one thathad been serviced as assiduously, I would get another one at the drop of a hat.

I can't even put in that I bought this car new in 2000 since the dates don't go back that far, but yes, I've had it since new. It hasn't been inspiring, it isn't an interesting drive, I want it to give up the ghost so I can change but like a faithful old dog it wearily gets up in the morning and obediently starts and does as told. Mileage is now past 150,000, and the engine was run in at about 80,000 when I stopped having to add a litre of oil between services. Similarly fuel consumption improved and from around 32mpg it is now around 37mpg on average, with over 40mpg on a good run. In the 13 years of ownership few things have gone wrong. The aircon compressor failed costing about £800 including regassing; a front spring broke necessitating the change of both front springs, and finally I've changed three glow plugs and two injectors. Apart from that it has run faultlessly from day one. I've changed the gearbox and, since it was up on the lift, the diff oil once at about 75,000 and probably will again this year. Seems that may have well saved the tiptronic gearbox from what I read. No intermediate oil changes have been undertaken (as advised by some) but servicing has been every 12,000 miles. Exceptionally it seems, the car is not at all rusty and I can only put that down to a proper car wash with underneath jets at the end of each winter. She is in very rude health both mechanically and bodywise. She's used at times for towing a race car and can cruise comfortably with the rig at 70mph all day, returning about 25mpg.

I am now bored to death by the car, but there is a macabre satisfaction in turning the key (original battery) and it starting no matter what the weather. Unlike modern estates of this size, I can put a golf bag in transversely, in fact two and two trolleys without folding the back seat. It seems hewn from rock, shows no signs of dying, and it's worth zero as a resale now, but when the time come it is I who will carefully and lovingly officiate at the last rites. I owe her at least that.

I bought this car because I'd always fancied a Mercedes, and I didn't have the money for anything newer/better. It had full service history (non-MB), low mileage and no rust.
Driving it home was an eye-opener. I couldn't admit it at the time, but even for its size it was ponderous and slow. It will waft you along in comfort but don't expect brilliant handling, and the 1.8 engine gets you from 0-60 the same week, especially with the autobox. The 'box has two settings, S for standard and E for economy: I never noticed a huge increase in mpg in E mode but it can be useful for setting off in snow as it reduces the torque to the wheels. That said, even if I had wanted to drive in snow, I couldn't have because the electrics gave up when it got too cold. A recommended local auto electrician couldn't source the problem, and wd40 on everything made no difference. I had already changed the battery (it's in the boot under the floor, for some reason) but still everything was dead until the weather warmed up.
The exhaust needed replacing, I had this done along with a few other things before the fuel pump died and I scrapped the car.
Overall not terribly practical but very comfortable. I have a friend who has had three of these early C-classes with no issues, but he usually doesn't keep them for long. Maybe he has better luck than me?
I replaced this car with a vauxhall astra, and then went back to MB with a 190E. I recommend you either source a really, really good c-class or save some money and buy a 190E. Far better drive, quicker, better interior, more reliable and smaller so easier to park.
Oh, and what is mentioned in the 'bad points' about the headlights? Completely true. It's almost like driving with no lights on. They are useless, and it's quite frightening. When I got my 190E I changed the bulbs straight away to Osram Nightbreakers but even before I had done that the lights were way better than on the c180. I never tried better bulbs in the c-class, maybe that wouldn't help enough and you'd have to get aftermarket headlights but the lights were truly awful.

I have had a number of Mercs, and this was the one I liked the least, and kept for the shortest amount of time. It seriously lacked refinement, and felt a bit like a van to drive. Economy was not bad, but not that good, and dropped off markedly if you put your foot down. Build quality was poor, with some very infuriating rattles from the cheap plastic used in the cabin. But the final problem for me was that at 3 years old, there was rust developing on every single panel, and underneath the rubbers on the tops of each door. This was not immediately apparent, but could be seen as a spidering effect underneath the paintwork when you looked closely.

I think both the rust and the poor build quality were factors affecting the late models to a far greater extent, as I knew people with earlier examples who did not encounter this. Absolutely no mechanical problems whatsoever, but that was not enough to make me want to keep it.

Ever since I was a kid (40 odd years ago) Mercedes-Benz have always been my dream car. In 2005 & bought a 1998 C200 Elegance A/T from a 2nd hand car lot. The vehicle was in exceptional condition and had done 213,000 kms. For 2 years the car performed without fail. Then I had problems with the starter. After taking it into the Mercedes dealer, they diagnosed I needed a new ignition switch. It cost close on R 8,000 (+/- GBP 630) and took nearly 6 weeks to get it going again. The dealership was fantastic and lent me a car for the period. On top of that I still had to buy 2 keys!!! They weren't included in the price.

That being said - that was the only major expense I've had with the vehicle besides tyres (1 set a year) and servicing costs. I did have a close call in December last year when the fan belt shredded (I'd never replaced it) and took off the radiator hose. I was very lucky not to have "cooked" the engine. The warning light came on on the dashbaord and I thought it was the windscreen washer reservoir that was empty (blonde moment there)! The other minor niggle I had is the fan would stop working every 2 years or so I'd have to take the car to an auto electrician who'd take the fan apart and clean it out. I had the air con re-gassed about 18 months ago as it wasn't as cold as it should be annd replaced thae battery in June last year.

Fuel economy was satisfactory on a long run but around town was a bit on the heavy side

Fantastic cars. Now available for a fraction of their cost new. Comfortable, refined, quiet, classy. Great basic build quality, and capable of mega-mileages.

However, sadly the car has numerous flaws that can make the ownership experience more 'interesting' than you might hope. Problems are reasonably well documented but still dissapointing: bodywork corrosion (especially around wheel arches, doors and boot), electrical gremlins (numerous warning lights coming on without cause, instruments, intermittent electrical failures), windscreen wiper failure, trim falling off, wheel alignment, etc.

All this makes the car expensive to keep in tip-top condition, and achieve the mega mileages it is capable of.

Numerous less sophisticated, less comfortable, newer but inferior alternatives available at this price range. These won't be as comfortable or capable , but they do sadly make more sense to the motorist on a budget!!

great car with everything you need on it. would buy another, but with a bigger engine, 1.8 engine for the size of the car is ok, but would be better with more power for over taking. very comfortable easily fit 4 adults in the car. big boot, still got good looks for a car it this age. automatic's are best. only fault was airflow meter needing replaced, best to get one with good service history. these cars can cover many miles 250,000 easily if looked after and serviced. watch out for rust on wheel arches and grill area on the bonnet.

great car with everything you need on it. would buy another, but with a bigger engine, 1.8 engine for the size of the car is ok, but would be better with more power for over taking. very comfortable easily fit 4 adults in the car. big boot, still got good looks for a car it this age. automatic's are best. only fault was airflow meter needing replaced, best to get one with good service history. these cars can cover many miles 250,000 easily if looked after and serviced. watch out for rust on wheel arches and grill area on the bonnet.

great car with everything you need on it. would buy another, but with a bigger engine, 1.8 engine for the size of the car is ok, but would be better with more power for over taking. very comfortable easily fit 4 adults in the car. big boot, still got good looks for a car it this age. automatic's are best. only fault was airflow meter needing replaced, best to get one with good service history. these cars can cover many miles 250,000 easily if looked after and serviced. watch out for rust on wheel arches and grill area on the bonnet.

great car with everything you need on it. would buy another, but with a bigger engine, 1.8 engine for the size of the car is ok, but would be better with more power for over taking. very comfortable easily fit 4 adults in the car. big boot, still got good looks for a car it this age. automatic's are best. only fault was airflow meter needing replaced, best to get one with good service history. these cars can cover many miles 250,000 easily if looked after and serviced. watch out for rust on wheel arches and grill area on the bonnet.

'99 C240 Sport Auto Estate. Bought as family car at 4yo 55K and within 1 year was in Mercedes shop for rust treatment. merc did this for free. Rust now showing again at 10 years old but only surface I can keep at bay myself. Car now retired as 2nd car in family. Used daily & on family holiday to France for 6 years. Last was Scotland to St. Tropez @ 30mpg. Very comfortable, quiet cruiser & mile eater. Serviced at merc (expensive) until they started to get silly about non-existent faults. Service it myself now. Only 3 issues, Wiper motor (£600!) from MB, this lasted 4 years and was a false economy now has cheap pattern motor I fitted myself and if it lasts 4 years MB should be ashamed. Drive belt tensioner (£200) at indie and rear ABS sensor (200euro) at French MB dealer (Paris-Maine Nantes), who was a pleasure to deal with. Has had usual service items oil, brakes etc including rear springs (due to weight of French wine?). Now at 130K and we'll keep it. Does not have as much character as W124 but more of a merc feel than our 06 w203!