Just completed Euro Delivery of CLS550
09-11-2006, 02:18 PM
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Just completed Euro Delivery of CLS550
Just came back from Euro Delivery of a CLS550 and covered 2000 miles through Germany, Italy, and France.
Euro Delivery at the MB center is easy. They even have a room where you can take a shower and change as I arrived straight from the airport. The center delivers between 200-300 cars a day. They were delivering 215 on my day, with 20 being Euro Delivery for US customers. The other customers are from Britian driving it back, and the rest Germans. The Euro Delivery program is only for US and Canada, but they have much fewer Canadians who take advantage of it. The factory tour is fun, take advantage of the opportunity to ask lots of questions- you learn a lot more, and the tour guide seemed to like the fact that he had someone who was interested.
I ordered a CLS550 in Obsidian Black with Cashmere interior, High Gloss wood, and Premium II package. This is a beautiful car. I urge all of you who seem to buy black interiors to take a second look, the colors contrasts of the Cashmere interior are truly beautiful. The finishes in this car are simply outstanding. I always felt that the interior of the 2002 S430 I used to have was not as good as it should be. This interior is fabulous, and I could not find one are where I thought a part looked or felt cheap. The wood is just fabulous, beautifully done and finished. Those of you with recent Mercedes may have noticed that the dials on the ventilation controls seem loose and wobble, not on this new one. The small details have been sweated, and every single control and button seems smooth and solid. This is a VERY special interior, absolutely gorgeous.
The new engine is very strong, lots and lots of torque, linear power delivery, and very little drama. It catapults you up to speed very quickly with very little fuss, and this car definitely feels very waftable. The seven speed automatic is quite good, and runs amazing low revs at high speeds making for very relaxed highway cruising.
The brakes are very strong, and the brake assist plus function probably saved my *** when I was cut off by a very stupid woman going 30-40 mph slower than me and I am still amazed I did not hit her car.
The steering is still a bit overlight, but probably right for this market. Good feedback.
The suspension is excellent, comfort mode very smooth, sport 1 mode cancels out any wallow over bumps at high speed, and the car corners very flatly. Biggest problem are the touring tires, which simply do not keep up with the capabilities of the suspension. My car came with Michelin Pilot XWM or something touring tires, and the car really deserves better.
The car is quiet, the main noise being wind noise at high speed. My other big gripe was that it is governed to 133mph. Why? The tires are V-rated, and if the Euro models are governed to 155 and have better tires, why can't ours also. I found it very irritating to have such a capable high speed cruiser that was acclerating hard until it runs up against the governer.
The navigation system is quite good, easier than the older twist dial one, and found me an Indian restaurant in a small French town on my way back to Stuttgart.
This car still turns heads, and turned quite a few even in the rarified atmosphere of Saint Tropez.
This is a very special car, and with all the cars I have owned this is only one of two that I have truly loved from day one. The other is my 2003 Porsche 996 Cab.
Euro Delivery at the MB center is easy. They even have a room where you can take a shower and change as I arrived straight from the airport. The center delivers between 200-300 cars a day. They were delivering 215 on my day, with 20 being Euro Delivery for US customers. The other customers are from Britian driving it back, and the rest Germans. The Euro Delivery program is only for US and Canada, but they have much fewer Canadians who take advantage of it. The factory tour is fun, take advantage of the opportunity to ask lots of questions- you learn a lot more, and the tour guide seemed to like the fact that he had someone who was interested.
I ordered a CLS550 in Obsidian Black with Cashmere interior, High Gloss wood, and Premium II package. This is a beautiful car. I urge all of you who seem to buy black interiors to take a second look, the colors contrasts of the Cashmere interior are truly beautiful. The finishes in this car are simply outstanding. I always felt that the interior of the 2002 S430 I used to have was not as good as it should be. This interior is fabulous, and I could not find one are where I thought a part looked or felt cheap. The wood is just fabulous, beautifully done and finished. Those of you with recent Mercedes may have noticed that the dials on the ventilation controls seem loose and wobble, not on this new one. The small details have been sweated, and every single control and button seems smooth and solid. This is a VERY special interior, absolutely gorgeous.
The new engine is very strong, lots and lots of torque, linear power delivery, and very little drama. It catapults you up to speed very quickly with very little fuss, and this car definitely feels very waftable. The seven speed automatic is quite good, and runs amazing low revs at high speeds making for very relaxed highway cruising.
The brakes are very strong, and the brake assist plus function probably saved my *** when I was cut off by a very stupid woman going 30-40 mph slower than me and I am still amazed I did not hit her car.
The steering is still a bit overlight, but probably right for this market. Good feedback.
The suspension is excellent, comfort mode very smooth, sport 1 mode cancels out any wallow over bumps at high speed, and the car corners very flatly. Biggest problem are the touring tires, which simply do not keep up with the capabilities of the suspension. My car came with Michelin Pilot XWM or something touring tires, and the car really deserves better.
The car is quiet, the main noise being wind noise at high speed. My other big gripe was that it is governed to 133mph. Why? The tires are V-rated, and if the Euro models are governed to 155 and have better tires, why can't ours also. I found it very irritating to have such a capable high speed cruiser that was acclerating hard until it runs up against the governer.
The navigation system is quite good, easier than the older twist dial one, and found me an Indian restaurant in a small French town on my way back to Stuttgart.
This car still turns heads, and turned quite a few even in the rarified atmosphere of Saint Tropez.
This is a very special car, and with all the cars I have owned this is only one of two that I have truly loved from day one. The other is my 2003 Porsche 996 Cab.
09-11-2006, 05:53 PM
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CLS 550 Black AMG pkg. E55 Platinum Blue Monte Carlo Blue Acura NSX-T Desert SilverBMW 650
I know how you feel about the car i have had mine for about 2 weeks picked it up from Beverly Hills dealership and drove it back to Vegas and its night and day from the 500 power power power. the interesting thing is that mine came with Pirelli P-Zero's
09-11-2006, 07:01 PM
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He has the AMG pkg. Can not agree with you more on interior quality, night and day over the e320 I had. Welcome, and the best of luck!
09-11-2006, 09:06 PM
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Congrats on your new purchase!
What route did you take and what cities did you visit?
We saw the S class building, which did you get to see?
We picked up our CLS 55 back in May at the factory, 1500 miles Stuttgart, to Lake Como Italy, to Venice, to Rome, to Florence, then over to Monacco Monte Carlo.
Click my sig below for all of the factory pics, and tour
Does this look familiar?
What route did you take and what cities did you visit?
We saw the S class building, which did you get to see?
We picked up our CLS 55 back in May at the factory, 1500 miles Stuttgart, to Lake Como Italy, to Venice, to Rome, to Florence, then over to Monacco Monte Carlo.
Click my sig below for all of the factory pics, and tour
Does this look familiar?
09-12-2006, 12:03 AM
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That building looks very familiar! The tour took us to the e-class and cls-class assembly line.
I went south towards Florence to do some shopping. I stopped the first night in Parma, when I got tired, using the navigation system to find me a local hotel. I went over to Lake Como, and stayed at the Villa d'Este for a couple of days, and then went headed to the French Riviera. I stayed in Monte Carlo overnight, and then went to Saint Tropez for several days. On the way back, I went up through France, and looped around the other way. It's a bit longer, about another 100 miles, but is all highway rather than some of the secondary roads through Switzerland. Overall, I put 2000 miles on the car!
Interestingly enough, Tire Rack has the 2007 CLS550 listed on the site, and has all of the OEM tires for it. I somehow ended up with the least agressive of the lot, and if they had the listing back then, I might have insisted that they switch out the tires before I took the car. C'est la vie, I probably will buy new tires and sell these on ebay later in the year. I don't need the all season rating here in SoCal.
As an interesting aside, I ended up running with a new ML63 on the way to Monaco. We were running at 100+ mph. What a fantastic sounding engine, better than the 55s. Whenever he stepped on it though (and I could hear it!!), he could not pull away from the CLS550, probably because of the lower down, linear torque curve. The 550 is quite quick, and the power is very accessible. No doubt, if the engine was really wrung out and pushed, a 63 would run away from a 550, but I had a fairly easy time keeping up when he was obviously hitting it a bit.
I went south towards Florence to do some shopping. I stopped the first night in Parma, when I got tired, using the navigation system to find me a local hotel. I went over to Lake Como, and stayed at the Villa d'Este for a couple of days, and then went headed to the French Riviera. I stayed in Monte Carlo overnight, and then went to Saint Tropez for several days. On the way back, I went up through France, and looped around the other way. It's a bit longer, about another 100 miles, but is all highway rather than some of the secondary roads through Switzerland. Overall, I put 2000 miles on the car!
Interestingly enough, Tire Rack has the 2007 CLS550 listed on the site, and has all of the OEM tires for it. I somehow ended up with the least agressive of the lot, and if they had the listing back then, I might have insisted that they switch out the tires before I took the car. C'est la vie, I probably will buy new tires and sell these on ebay later in the year. I don't need the all season rating here in SoCal.
As an interesting aside, I ended up running with a new ML63 on the way to Monaco. We were running at 100+ mph. What a fantastic sounding engine, better than the 55s. Whenever he stepped on it though (and I could hear it!!), he could not pull away from the CLS550, probably because of the lower down, linear torque curve. The 550 is quite quick, and the power is very accessible. No doubt, if the engine was really wrung out and pushed, a 63 would run away from a 550, but I had a fairly easy time keeping up when he was obviously hitting it a bit.
09-12-2006, 12:16 AM
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May I ask which chrome door lock pins you got, and where you got them. I want to get the same ones. I really like the wheels, are the 18 or 19"? Are they the Brabus ones, and how much were they?
Is that the Brabus lowering unit you have there?
Is that the Brabus lowering unit you have there?
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09-12-2006, 01:31 AM
#8
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The chrome locks can be found on ebay Item number: 260030478309. Use that number in the search. The Brabus VI's are 20" and run about $6500, yes the lowering module is Brabus, as well as the rear deck spoiler. We also toured the Porsche factory as well, that was amazing, only one Robot, unlike MBZ with all theirs.
another familiar shot for you.
09-12-2006, 12:38 PM
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Perfect, I just ordered the door pins. Thank you!
How did the 20" wheels affect the ride? I know someone who put 20" rims on their SL500, and it completely trashed the ride. I already have a 911 Cab for when I want to really drive hard, I am interested in maintaing the ride on this car but perhaps changing the wheels.
Does anyone know if it is possible to lower the car using the onboard programming, or must a lowering module be used? I believe Brabus wants about $1600 for this module, which seems a rather expensive proposition for an electronic box!
How did the 20" wheels affect the ride? I know someone who put 20" rims on their SL500, and it completely trashed the ride. I already have a 911 Cab for when I want to really drive hard, I am interested in maintaing the ride on this car but perhaps changing the wheels.
Does anyone know if it is possible to lower the car using the onboard programming, or must a lowering module be used? I believe Brabus wants about $1600 for this module, which seems a rather expensive proposition for an electronic box!
09-12-2006, 01:16 PM
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09-12-2006, 02:46 PM
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Perfect, I just ordered the door pins. Thank you!
How did the 20" wheels affect the ride? I know someone who put 20" rims on their SL500, and it completely trashed the ride. I already have a 911 Cab for when I want to really drive hard, I am interested in maintaing the ride on this car but perhaps changing the wheels.
Does anyone know if it is possible to lower the car using the onboard programming, or must a lowering module be used? I believe Brabus wants about $1600 for this module, which seems a rather expensive proposition for an electronic box!
How did the 20" wheels affect the ride? I know someone who put 20" rims on their SL500, and it completely trashed the ride. I already have a 911 Cab for when I want to really drive hard, I am interested in maintaing the ride on this car but perhaps changing the wheels.
Does anyone know if it is possible to lower the car using the onboard programming, or must a lowering module be used? I believe Brabus wants about $1600 for this module, which seems a rather expensive proposition for an electronic box!
Your welcome, the ride didn't change much since I had 19" on as the stock wheels. I assume your running 18"s so the change to 20"s will be noticed. Also 20"s can bend easily so depending on road conditions in your area, I'd be careful. The best bang for the buck is Renntech lowering module for $1k, its adjustable as well, or do a seach about STAR Diagonisis of lowering with the dealer, they can drop it about 1 inch, but it all depends on your dealer.
09-14-2006, 11:27 PM
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4 wheels
That building looks very familiar! The tour took us to the e-class and cls-class assembly line.
I went south towards Florence to do some shopping. I stopped the first night in Parma, when I got tired, using the navigation system to find me a local hotel. I went over to Lake Como, and stayed at the Villa d'Este for a couple of days, and then went headed to the French Riviera. I stayed in Monte Carlo overnight, and then went to Saint Tropez for several days. On the way back, I went up through France, and looped around the other way. It's a bit longer, about another 100 miles, but is all highway rather than some of the secondary roads through Switzerland. Overall, I put 2000 miles on the car!
Interestingly enough, Tire Rack has the 2007 CLS550 listed on the site, and has all of the OEM tires for it. I somehow ended up with the least agressive of the lot, and if they had the listing back then, I might have insisted that they switch out the tires before I took the car. C'est la vie, I probably will buy new tires and sell these on ebay later in the year. I don't need the all season rating here in SoCal.
As an interesting aside, I ended up running with a new ML63 on the way to Monaco. We were running at 100+ mph. What a fantastic sounding engine, better than the 55s. Whenever he stepped on it though (and I could hear it!!), he could not pull away from the CLS550, probably because of the lower down, linear torque curve. The 550 is quite quick, and the power is very accessible. No doubt, if the engine was really wrung out and pushed, a 63 would run away from a 550, but I had a fairly easy time keeping up when he was obviously hitting it a bit.
I went south towards Florence to do some shopping. I stopped the first night in Parma, when I got tired, using the navigation system to find me a local hotel. I went over to Lake Como, and stayed at the Villa d'Este for a couple of days, and then went headed to the French Riviera. I stayed in Monte Carlo overnight, and then went to Saint Tropez for several days. On the way back, I went up through France, and looped around the other way. It's a bit longer, about another 100 miles, but is all highway rather than some of the secondary roads through Switzerland. Overall, I put 2000 miles on the car!
Interestingly enough, Tire Rack has the 2007 CLS550 listed on the site, and has all of the OEM tires for it. I somehow ended up with the least agressive of the lot, and if they had the listing back then, I might have insisted that they switch out the tires before I took the car. C'est la vie, I probably will buy new tires and sell these on ebay later in the year. I don't need the all season rating here in SoCal.
As an interesting aside, I ended up running with a new ML63 on the way to Monaco. We were running at 100+ mph. What a fantastic sounding engine, better than the 55s. Whenever he stepped on it though (and I could hear it!!), he could not pull away from the CLS550, probably because of the lower down, linear torque curve. The 550 is quite quick, and the power is very accessible. No doubt, if the engine was really wrung out and pushed, a 63 would run away from a 550, but I had a fairly easy time keeping up when he was obviously hitting it a bit.
The 63 will kill you when it get in its top end. Its very much like a M5 and it does have as much torque as the 55 does down low, but it delivers a more linear and flat torque and it just keeps going until redline.
