It is true that C++ does have a speed and memory overhead compared to plain C. For myself, I have not found that to be a problem. However, others have had the same experience as James.

At the end of the day, I do not believe in "fixing" something that meets requirements. I would rather get on to solving the next unsolved problem. At least from the company's perspective, there is more value-added in that approach. For the code at hand, one would have to evaluate its fitness in light of existing requirements.