What are the pros and cons of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250?
By
Vroomouk
This blog will list all the pros and cons of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C250 and explain each of them.
What are the pros and cons of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250?
The pros and cons of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250 are listed in the table below:
| Pros | cons |
| Engine start-stop system (ECO) | ABS/ESP Malfunction |
| 7 G Tronic Plus transmission | engine check light |
| Engine performance | water leak inside the car |
| New design | Poor Media system |
Mercedes Benz launched the facelift model of the C class W204 in 2011 with Classic, Elegance and Avantgarde trims. Let’s take a look at all the pros and cons in detail.
The pros of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250 are explained below:
Engine start-stop system (ECO)
The 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250 has an engine cut-off mode. The engine can automatically turn off when the driver comes to a complete standstill at turn signals or stop signs. When the driver lets go of the brake and touch the accelerator pedal, the engine is started automatically.
When the Eco start-stop system is active, drivers are notified by a green ECO symbol in the instrument cluster. The ECO mode can also be turned off via a dedicated button on the lower control panel in the centre console.
The C 250 has two batteries, one is the main battery that is used to start the engine and the other is an additional battery. The additional battery is used only when the vehicle is switched off in the ECO mode. Power supply from the auxiliary battery is provided to the vehicle’s onboard electrical systems through an additional battery relay. It is located next to the additional battery in the luggage compartment of the vehicle.
ECO mode is very good for conserving fuel, especially in the city traffic. The additional battery capacity is 12 V 200 A, it is powerful enough it keep the onboard systems like air conditioning blower motor and music system functional when the main battery is used to start the engine,
7 G Tronic plus Transmission.
The 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250 came with a 7-speed 7G-Tronic automatic transmission. Mercedes Benz revised the gear ratio in order to improve fuel efficiency. The torque converter was also equipped with a lock-up clutch.
The lock-up clutch created a direct connection between the engine and the input shaft of the transmission for transferring maximum torque. The electro-hydraulic transmission control unit actuates the torque convertor lock-up clutch during gear changes.
The 7 G Tronic transmission plus transmission also has an electrical auxiliary oil pump. It is powered by a 12 V main battery. The auxiliary oil pump supports the main pump in maintaining the required oil pressure in the transmission.
The electrical oil pump is also essential for the ECO start-stop function as the main oil pump inside the transmission is not working.
Engine performance
The C 250 is powered by a 1.8-litre M271 petrol engine, it is turbocharged with an air-cooled intercooler. The power output of the M271 is 201 horsepower at 5500 RPM and 310 NM of torque. The M217 came with the camshaft adjustment technology that allowed for variable valve timing.
The intake and the exhaust valves can remain open simultaneously during the inmate stroke to allow for internal exhaust gas recirculation. Therefore, the generation of the NOX is reduced and the exhaust gas catalytic converter can take care of unburnt hydrocarbons.
Mercedes Benz used the Blue efficiency badge on the 2012 C250. Blue efficiency was only used on the most economical and eco-friendly passenger cars in the Mercedes Benz line-up. The fuel economy of C 250 is 37 MPG (US) on highways as well as in city driving conditions.
The top speed of the 2012 C 250 is 240 km/hr (149 mph) and acceleration from standstill to 62 mph in 7.2 seconds.
The cons of the 2012 C 250 are explained below:
ABS/ESP Malfunction
The C 250 suffered from ABS/ ESP malfunction due to an incorrect signal from the wheel speed sensors present on the front left and right wheels. As the wheel speed signal is not within the specified range of 0.0 km/he to 250.0 km/hr; the ESP control unit cannot function correctly and a fault code is registered in the diagnostic trouble code memory.
The faulty wheel speed sensor can also cause the unwanted application of brakes as the ESP control unit interprets it as wheel spin. The C 250 cannot be driven in such a state and it must be towed to the authorised workshop for the repair work.
Engine check light
The M271 petrol engine used camshaft adjustment for improved cylinder loading and better torque curve. But the camshaft adjuster fails and it leads to customer complaints like long cranking of the engines.
The engine also makes abnormal noise during cold start and the long cranking means the main battery gets discharged more easily. The repairs are also expensive as the camshaft adjusters can cost up to 1000 USD to replace the faulty adjuster.
Water leak inside the car
The C250 has a sliding sunroof mechanism, there are two water drains located on either side of the sunroof. The sunroof drain gets blocked due to the dirt and foliage and water does not get drained from the sunroof channels.
The water gets saturated in the floor of the vehicle and causes corrosion to the electrical couplers and control units. Multiple warning lights stay active as the control units cannot communicate over the CAN network due to excessive resistance.
Mercedes Benz issued a field measure to modify the sunroof drains on the C 250 but the sliding roof design still collects dirt and foliage if the vehicle is parked outside.
Poor media system
The C 250 was available with a command Navigation system and audio 20 media system. Both the systems were very sluggish to operate. The sound amplifier in the luggage compartment had the tendency to overheat.
The speaker output gets reduced as soon as the amplifier starts to overheat. The media system had Bluetooth telephony however it was not possible to play audio from a Bluetooth audio device.
Other articles about Mercedes Benz you may be interested in
Mercedes Benz C Class Vs Mercedes Benz E class
Can you drive a Mercedes every day?
Conclusion
This blog listed all the pros and cons of the 2012 Mercedes Benz C 250 and explained each of them in detail. The facelift C Class has LED lights in the headlights as well as taillights with a revised front and rear bumper design. It is a good car but suffered from reliability issues.
