I talked to the local dealer and he said the Weber Genesis Gold C
(probably all genesis models) have some slight changes this year.
solid (versus mesh) shelve on bottom, cosmetic redesign of hood and
handle, etc

Has anyone researched the changes to see if there is any benefit to
buying 2004 model versus 2003?

The Gold C on Amazon is $499 - which is a good price - but probably a
2003 model

thanks