Merc B class - Manual -v- Automatic, Diesel -v- Petrol

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Sat 7 Aug 2010 17:11
Merc B class - Manual -v- Automatic, Diesel -v- Petrol - mjk43

We’ve tried some cars and read up on others and the only one still In the frame to replace my wife's 7 year old Toyota Corolla Verso is the B class Merc despite it being a bit expensive.


We had thought we wanted a manual petrol car. The salesman is insistent that Mercs with manual transmission have very poor resale value as everyone wants an automatic. Also, he says that 95% of the cars they sell are diesel. This car will be used mostly for short journeys of a couple of miles. Every 2 months it will get an 80 mile motorway run. Total about 6,000 miles/year. Even so, the salesman insists that there are no problems (DPF or glow plugs) with modern Merc diesel engines and that as petrol and diesel cars cost the same, the diesel works out cheaper to run.


We’d be very grateful for any advice on those two questions for the B class:

Manual –v- Automatic

Petrol –v- Diesel

With many thanks

Edited by Avant on 07/08/2010 at 22:04

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Sat 7 Aug 2010 17:24
Merc B class - Manual -v- Automatic, Diesel -v- Petrol - Collos25

It depends how long you intent to keep it and how many miles you will do.

Theres more to go wromg on a diesel but if its under gaurantee its not so great a problem but I would sooner put a new clutch in a older merc than have to change the autobox for example.It is certainly true larger mercs with manual boxes are harder to sell than autos but when they reach a certain age the reverse is true.

Its a nice car in either trim a petrol will be heavier on fuel than a diesel but how does it compare in the purchase price at the end of the day the driver has to be happy with the car.

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Sat 7 Aug 2010 18:14
Merc B class - Manual -v- Automatic, Diesel -v- Petrol - 659FBE

The M-B B class diesel is the noisiest diesel of recent manufacture I've encountered. I would imagine as an auto, it would be insufferable drone.

The salesman is quite right concerning auto vs man, diesel vs petrol in terms of popularity and resale value. The conclusion to be reached however, is that you should buy something else from another maker.

A product from the Toyota range might well provide cheaper and more reliable transport, lower servicing costs and a much greater degree of transparency concerning the correction of defects.

659.

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Sat 7 Aug 2010 22:11
Merc B class - Manual -v- Automatic, Diesel -v- Petrol - Avant

Absolutely, 659. I had a B200 CDI automatic for nearly two years - until I could stand the drone no longer. The combination of 4 cylinders + Mercedes diesel + CVT transmission is not one I'd ever like to come across again.

For 6,000 miles a year you don't need a diesel and you'll never recover the extra cost, and I'm not sure even the better resale value is enough to make up for this. If you particularly like diesel, there's nothing wrong with another Verso, which I think can be had as an automatic.

If your wife is set on a Mercedes, make sure you get a long test drive in the exact model: I made the mistake of accepting too short a test drive and thinking I could live with it.

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