jimm

Not that anyone else cares about this only me .. but, I’ll tell it anyway.

As I’ve reported, I’ve been shopping for a new E350 Sport. The highest
trade-in I was able to get for my 06 DTS was 27,000 which I thought was
a little ridiculous. (5,000 miles, paid 50,000 for it 6 months ago.)

There was no lien on it and I sold it today from an ad for 35,000. And, I
have the money! Big loss but that’s life. Taking this loss (to buy a new MB)
should “somewhat show” how serious I am about going back to MB. I figure
at this stage in my life, it’s now or never! At least I got 8,000 more than
the dealers would give me. AND, after two more months of depreciation,
and against an 08, they probably would offer me even LESS!

Sooo, now I’m more anxious than ever! No trade-in has simplified it: I can
make a clean cash or lease deal. But, as days inch by, I’m getting more
inclined to wait on the 08s! I love the “newest!” And, my fingers are
crossed hoping the Nav will be improved. With production starting in 5
weeks, we surely will hear about any new features SOON!

jimm

baybenzo

You should wait for the '08s since you like to have the newest cars. Once the '08s come out the W211s are going to all look long in the tooth. And it's not like you need a car right away...you have that C6

Roupin

Lease it. The E350 has a great lease deal right now, and the redesigned W212 will be out in a year or so.

DerekACS

Jimm,
I'm not sure if I should be offering condolences for your loss ( 30% depreciation for 6 months ownership ! ) or congratulations for your decision to purchase a new E 350.
In any case, the moment I learn any more details about the 2008, I'll certainly let you know. I did find the two new MY2008 E Class colours on MB's UK website. If you go to the 'configurator', look under C Class Coupe to find these colours; production starts on June 1st.
The Columbite Black is a very dark metallic; hard to tell from the configurator pics just what the undertone colour might be. The other one, Tenorite Grey metallic, is a very dark grey, with a bluish undertone; much darker than Flint Grey metallic.
Let us know the details on your future E Class when you have placed your order. Good luck !!!

Barry45RPM

The next generation E Class will be around very soon. If you like the "newest", just lease an '07 now, use & enjoy it & then get the 2nd year production of the all new E Class. That way you'll have the newest twice!

There will be no "new" nav in an '08 E Class. Why would they introduce brand new NAV & Entertainment interface in a car thats on its way out & have no "big improvement" in the system for the next generation product? It simply doesn't make any marketing sense.

...and, I'm sorry to say, the next generation E Class will make these very beautifull 211's look instantly dated... not as dated as the 210s became overnight, when the 211s were introduced, but dated to be sure.

DerekACS

[QUOTE=Barry45RPM;2163642]The next generation E Class will be around very soon.
...and, I'm sorry to say, the next generation E Class will make these very beautifull 211's look instantly dated... not as dated as the 210s became overnight, when the 211s were introduced, but dated to be sure.[/QUOTE

W212 will not be here until mid-2009 as a MY2010.

As for the 211's looking "instantly dated", that remains to seen. The numerous W212 spy photos vary widely in the details, eg. front head lamps, profile, wheel arches and rear tail lamps. The final product may be superior to the W211 ( I hope so ! ), but there are no guarantees in future car design. Look what happened to BMW, going from E39 to E60 (present 5 Series); E60 sales are slumping badly while E Class sales improve around the world.
There is no question in my mind that the W211 styling is a huge improvement over its predecessor, the W210. The W211 will remain an inspired, modern design for a four door sedan.

RJF

Id wait for the 08's as well. I just recently got an 06 with 5k miles... I feel out of touch already lol.

jimm

Thanks fellas!

I really appreciate all your thoughts and advice. Even tho I’ve owned many
new cars, it seems that your counseling, now, is more helpful than ever.

With reference to the 212:

I don’t want to be morbid - and bring down the great spirit of this site - but
what’s going to happen “way off” in 2009 or 2010 is not pressing to me now.
(A little heart problem inspires that.)

So, back to 08: Maybe there will be a new chrome door knob, or something.

jimm

alexrod

Check out the pictures of the 2010 E class. Major changes are on the headlights and a less bulkier trunk. No other dramatic changes in the size and dimension. Our W211 won't look that much older.

Copy and paste the link to your browser's address bar.

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...estnews..1.*#4

A

raheelq

The depreciation on some new cars nowadays is unbelievable !

Mr.Gearhead

FUNNY... I am dreaming of dumping my 06 E350 and getting a Cadillac DTS Lux II package or maybe STS.

Why did you dump the Caddy?

And yes...deprication of new cars are tough. My leased car in March 06 was 54K MSRP and I leased it with agreed selling price of $47,000. MB financial states to buy the car now from them would cost... $48,225.. hee hee... trade in value... is listed as......>>> $34,500...OUCH... glad I did not buy it...


AND YOU HAVE A C6 to boot... good for you!!!!

Barry45RPM

Yeah, its amazing how fake the "Residual" values are on these cars in lease agreements. ...but, that's how they lower the monthly payments, keep sales up & keep moving product.

Because of these fake residuals, it pretty much pays to lease rather than own an E, since when you get out, you will have paid so much less for the use of the car. The exception to this is if you buy one & keep it for 10 years... I think its rare when someone keeps an E that long any more.

WEBSRFR

While my car was in the shop (long story -- block of ice fell through the sunroof while I was driving!) for about a week. I rented a DTS and I can understand why someone would want to give one up for a W211. First of all this was the first time I had ever driven a Caddy and I have to say that I was impressed with the experience. It is a very fine car but if you look at the implementation details in the cabin, you'll notice that does not approach the level of refinement found in the W211. I noticed this immediately when I got in the car at night and was fiddling with an unfamiliar gear shifter only to realize that the shifter positions are not illuminated at night! The list goes on. And don't even get me started on the gas mileage.

The ONE FEATURE that I absolutely loved was the remote car start feature. It was great to have in the winter. Why can't MB integrate this most useful feature or at least offer it as an option?

There was another really interesting social factor when driving the DTS for a week. Virtually everyone single person I know, with the exception of my dad, made fun of the car one way or the other. There were numerous pot shots, all of them being variations of the pimp theme. It was unbelievable. Not that I really care much about what others say but after a week, it got old very quickly and I didn't mind returning the DTS.

Now the good part of the social factor is when driving in this car, for one reason or the other, people completely leave you alone. I definitely noticed this while driving in Washington DC traffic.

A brand new DTS is an awful purchase given the abysmal depreciation. However it is a very nice and comfortable car, especially for long drives. I think it is an very interesting option to consider if you are looking to buy a 2-year old car for essentially half price.

All in all I can't imagine buying a DTS over a W211. Especially when it is new. However while traveling, I'd definitely consider renting one

johna1

We owned a DeVille (DTS previous model) for a year while we were in Atlanta.

It is a great car in its own way. When we bought there was a choice of about 30 cars at the dealer, all 1 year old with around 10k miles on for $30,000. That's a lot of car for your money! It is covered by a good warranty as well because it has still got the rest of the new car one.

We travelled all around the south east, including 5 trips to Florida. It is a really nice car for cruising the freeways, 80 on the cruise control, four people and luggage, great gas mileage when cruising.

Obviously it's not the car you'd choose for a windy mountain road, but for driving 8 hours on a freeway, what better at the price? It has plenty of features as standard (heated and cooled seats, tire pressure monitoring, heated steering wheel, heated rear seats), great comfort and enough power.

I would certainly have one again in the same circumstances.

Nickelmania-Dal

Friend of mine has a DTS It reminds me of a padded Chevy Impala. Very Very Cheap interior! Can not even start to compare to a Mercedes. The DTS has no cache what so ever. You will never here anyone say "Wow look at that DTS" Cadillac really needs to get with the program and stat building great cars again. Back in 1969 the Cadillac interior felt as good or better than Mercedes. What happened?

Nickel

jimm

This probably will anger some and I don’t mean to do that. Also, needless
to say, I’m very anxious to get my 08 E350 which, hopefully, will be here
in July. (Building the week of June 10.)

BUT, I keep hearing comments about how “luxurious” MB's interiors are. I
don’t understand that! I don’t think the interiors have changed much since
my old 430 and 560 days. And, for a “luxury” car, I think the MB's interiors
are very utilitarian. More like what you’d find in a good pick up.

I’m going back to MB for several reasons. So I obviously love the car. BUT,
to “praise” MB's interiors .. I definitely must be missing something.

I’m not saying that MB interiors are ugly. Of course they’re not ugly. But, I
am suggesting that they are nothing to brag about. (As you saw above, my
last sedan was a DTS with the Luxury 3 package. It had a luxury interior.)

I’m buying the new 350 in spite of the interior .. certainly not because of it.

jimm

Nickelmania-Dal

Jimm, I know you say that DTS has a real luxury package but have a good feel of the headliner and the plastic inside the car. The DTS interior bends easy and feels super cheap! I will say that my 07 E interior,does not seem as good as my last Audi A6 interior. The Audi A6 interior felt like an old MB S class interior. Extreme qualitiy interior on the Audi A6! Bottom line..I like my new MB better than the Audi as it is a much fun drive!

Nickel

AsianML

E-Class interior is built to be luxurious and hold up well over the long run!

tlbeedy

I hope this is true on this generation of E-Class models. Being a realtor I usually have an older Cadillac I drive daily. My last one was a 1998 Seville I recently sold with 150,000 miles. The REAL wood (not the plastic) held up remarkably well as did the dash. I'm currently looking to replace it & have been considering either the W210 E-Class or a Cadillac Deville. Every older E I look at has serious interior problems such as Cracked up dashes & cracked wood regardless of the mileage. Much to my surprise the Caddys have held up much better on the interior. Don't get me wrong, I love my Mercedes, I just hope the new materials last longer. I have noticed the newer Mercedes use a different material now for the dash.

pmb600

jimm, congrats on choosing to come back to Mercedes! My Dad has an STS and even he admits that the interior is horrible, even compared to my C-Class which new is only about $40,000. The STS costs about $20,000 more and the interior is just cheap and uninspired. The 2008 CTS is going to have a killer interior, as Cadillac realizes that this is a big problem area for them.

As far as whether you should get a 2007 or 2008 E-Class, the one thing I hear about 2008 is that AMG body styling will be optional when you order sport. I think Sport is still a no-cost option, but I read somewhere that AMG styling will be about $2000. If you haven't seen any 2007 E-Classes with AMG Styling (such as the Saks edition or the E63) you need to see one before you make your choice. With the updates they made for 2007 plus the AMG styling, you will be fine for years--even when the W212 comes out. Good luck, keep us updated.

Barry45RPM

A lot of the Caddys do not have real Zebrano Wood on the dash. It is plastic except on the upper models of Deville.