W204? W202? W201? WHICH MERCEDES-BENZ IS WHICH?

Car guys are a different breed. We like to talk in acronyms, we quote model numbers and engine codes to describe different cars, and we even shorten these numbers to make the conversation flow quicker. When you’re kicking it at a car meet and you hear someone ask what motor’s running in the E46 M3 parked on display and the reply comes as “2JZ”, you can usually tell that the person answering is a little newer to the game. If it was “2J”, they’ve probably been around a bit longer. Also, the knowledge of these codes and acronyms is usually limited to the specific brand the person is a fan of. In my circle of friends, a conversation could contain phrases like EA888, K03s or DQ300 and everyone involved in the chat will know exactly what the conversation is about - everyone is a Volkswagen or Audi fanatic. If the conversation moved over to Mercedes-Benz codes, more than a few of us would be a little lost for the simple reason that it’s not our wheelhouse. If you’re at a park-off and there’s some tasty Mercs around, you’re likely to hear things like W204 or W124 come up in the chat. I’m well aware they’re Mercedes-Benz-specific things but if I wanted to have any meaningful contribution to what’s being said, I’d either have to ask someone or I’d do a sly Google search while no one’s looking. I figured that I’m not alone in this, and so here’s a little info to help you navigate the world of Mercedes-Benz fanatic talk when it comes to different models by their chassis codes. There’s a bunch of meaning for all the letters used, but it’s the W-listed codes that are most commonly used. The W codes are used for the regular Mercedes-Benz sedans, but you also get V for long-wheelbase models, R for roadsters, C for coupes, S for the wagons, A for convertibles and X for the SUVs and one lonely bakkie. These can be combined to denote things like a convertible sedan, so it would have W and A in the code, but that’s higher-grade stuff for now. Some SUVs also have a W designation just to throw a spanner in the works, we’ll ignore those too. Sedans in the C-Class it is then, by picture.

Take a look at the YouTube video that helps explain the differences between the most commonly bought and modified Mercedes-Benz models in the C-Class range - you know, the ones that have that W chassis code: Understanding Mercedes W Model Codes & Numbers | KillerHERTZ Mercedes

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