Dema

You did mistake driving so much Mercedes. You learning only comparing things. Diversity is essential part to do any progress. I have experience with BMW, Lexus, Acura, Hyundai, Ford, Chrysler, Chevy.. So my input is following, although Mercedes are not perfect, you can face even more problems and frustration with other makes. Believe me. My strong advice to do not buy Asian makers, especially if you keep a car for long. Asian cars aging very fast, another problem their economics sucks. It can look goot at first glance but after starting using it you will suffer. SO I am currently going to buy Jaguar. Would you join me?

The Thomas J

I can't beatup on Toyota/Lexus too much. I have a 2005 4runner limited with the v8 140,000 miles on it & the thing is a tank. My chick bought it brand new. All I've done to it are fluid changes, brakes & tires. It does go though brakes more than previous cars I have owned. No squeaks or rattles.

I would have picked up a Lexus LS450 if it was in my price range. My cousin has an 05' & I really liked it. It reminds me of the older squared off Benz's of the 90's.

My Dad has a 2007 es350. Very nice car, but after driving my BMW I really started disliking it. Not my cup of tea.

My mom had an 87' Camry that was in a terrible car accident with & honestly the car held up well considering what hit her was a 77' buick Le'sabre at 40-45 mph that broadsided her. She was very lucky. Since the car was only 2 years old it wasn't totaled.

My Dad got rear ended by a Landscaping dump truck the first summer he had his Lexus. $18,000 worth of damage & they fixed it.

So IMO Toyota/Lexus are pretty safe cars in my book.

Myself personally I prefer the German engineering & the stiff euro ride.

giant330ci

had 01 BMW 330ci and X5 4.4i, both with sports package. i've always had fun and excited to drive both.

06 Lexus GS430 and 09 IS250 are very smooth and quiet ride but never had fun in it, so traded in after 2 or 3 yrs of driving it.

07 mb e350 with sport package and 09 ml350 . it is okay overall. i would say ride is somewhere between BMW and Lexus. maybe i might get another mercedes when i turn 60.

next car will be Audi Q7 and A6, but for now i am still a bimmer fan.

Dema

By aging I meant mostly how quickly interior and exterior materials get worn. For example a friend of mine owns 98 S430, and when another friend sits in his car from his brand new Camry (just 1 year old) he still tells "wow". Over 15 years old Mercedes gives you feel of a new car.

The Thomas J

I love my BMW. It's been the most fun I have ever had driving. The only thing that comes close to it was this 86' Toyota MR2 I used to drive.

Since I bought the Mercedes there are some days that the hardest decision I have to make is wether to drive the BMW or the Mercedes . I know tough life right. Sometimes the pressure to make a decsion becomes too much & I just go back inside & not go out.

06E5004ME

I was actually comparing an 05 Prius to my 06, so no, the Prius is not newer. As far it being an option, I doubt it because every Prius I saw had Bluetooth built in to that on board system.

Lexus is not a Toyota. To say that is the same as to say that Audi is just an expensive VW and that Bugatti Veyron is simply a VW Beetle on steroids. Do some research before saying that. Lexus are built by completely different standards and those include much stricter tolerances and welding processes.

Yes, most Lexus models are designed with older customer in mind. However, the F models are definitely giving the German Three the run for their money. Last time I checked, the ISF was extremely close to BMW M3 and actually beats it in straight line performance. Look at CPO values of the cars. Mercedes CPO program is good for 1 year after the purchase or 100k miles, while Lexus CPO is good for 3 years or 100k miles. Mercedes does not stand behind its product in the long term.

Don't get me wrong, I still love German cars especially BMWs as they are truly a driver's car. I think the best way to go about it is to have a Japanese daily and drive German on weekends. It just seems that German cars these days are not built to last 300-500k miles like they were in the 90s.

boardboy330

You can check it out yourself guy. There are 3 sound system packages available in the Prius at that time. Just like any other car company...unless you specifically order it...it's a toss up what you get into. When I bought my 2003 E500 back in 2002 - I didn't get in a single one on the lot that had Audio50...they all had Nav installed. I didn't even mention it to the salesman. Just because you only saw them...didn't mean it wasn't an option.

I understand your point about Lexus and Toyota...and Audi/VW. Next time you look at a VW...check out what the emblem is on the parts. Their rotors have the Audi logo lol. You can make that argument...but nearly all the main parts are transferable between vehicles. A friend bought a Honda Civic coilover step and we bolted it right in to his Acura Integra. **** ant car I know - but you get my point. And don't get me started on Cadillac...

I don't think you are wrong about the perception - but I think you are wrong about what you get for the money. Everyone has an opinion and ours happens to differ.

Honestly, I agree that we disagree.


That said, the LS450 is hot as hell...I was thinking about getting one.

06E5004ME

I am completely fine with different opinions. I don't think however that shared parts is a bad thing though. Hell, Audi S8 has a V10 from the Lambo. However, if you look at the Lexus, it shares the minimal amount of parts with Toyota.

I just think that if Mercedes was a good quality car, the resale value would hold up better.

boardboy330

It's not a bad thing. But it does lend credence to my argument that they are generally the same engineering. I understand your stance, but a company that shares equipment between models generally speaking won't go out of their way to retool or rethink another vehicle line. Yup, I knew it had that. Why reinvent the wheel

I agree with that as well, but I think it's less to do with the engineering and more to do with perception.

One of these days...I will have a beautifully restored 60's era MB

K-A

Lexus, the best car nobody with a red blooded car enthusiast bone in their body gives a sh*t about. We have a guy on the Bimmer forums trying to shove the new eyesore GS350 down our throats, and I hate to quote sales data but regardless of what the magazine reviews about it say, there's a reason that people buy competing 5 Series' & E Class' 4 to one in the U.S (and probably 10-20 to one worldwide).

06E5004ME

Hahaha, I'm still a member on bimmerforums since the days of my good ol' e38. Yeaaaaah, if you try to even hint that Lexus is better than a BMW, you will have a bad time (insert meme picture here).

The Thomas J

Bimmerforums for life baby!

Special shoutout to my e46 fanatic brothers! You haven't been forgotten!

giant330ci

oh yeah my was e46. lol

vettdvr

You are right. As Popeye would say,, Dat's all I can stans and I can't stans no more".

At 123,000 I blew a right front strut, 500 miles later the power steering tilt coupling sheared, drove it 1200 miles on vacation, power steering pump began to howl, then the battery control module in the trunk faileld.

Before I got home I had ordered a new Chrysler 300C hemi 5.7

Gloss Black tan interior loaded out. At 12,000 miles 2 oil changes and ZERO issues. 8000 miles and it doesn't use a qt of oil and 27 mpg on midgrade gas vs premium. The price I paid for the E500 would just about cover 2 Chryslers.

The MB was a solid car but I got bit once too often. Each failure meant I had a 200 mile drive to the dealer for warranty.

My list was endless and just a few, SBC brakes, ball joints, ignition key, heater control valve, a/c, ps pump, rear air springs,, both front air shocks, rear shocks blew at 70,000, airmatic compressor, power steering tilt, battery control module............................................ .................................................. ................................... It was running great with no issues when I sold it but how long before the next failure. It just had a oil change and new brakes/rotors so I gave it 6 months and another oil change before major breakdown.

Then I find about the valve train failures on the newer ones, fuel tank leaks and the list goes on. So I gave up on MB as a Brand forever. They lost me after one purchase. I won't put out another $65,000 on a car with that reliability.

If the Chrysler fails for what I paid I could have a NEW spare chrysler to drive.

I do appreciate all the people on this site who helped with the issues. It is MB who build the car not the people who were so gracious to help, expecially when I was stuck out on the road 1200 miles from home.

So Thank you to everyone,, (Klongster sp?) who helped I appreciate it.

Gersh320

If you hate Mercedes so much, why are you here so often

06E5004ME

I'm willing to bet that if you had the same amount of problems with your 211, you'd hate it. However, in vettdvr's posts never did I get a hint that he hated his car. With that amount of problems I'd leave my car in a bad neighborhood with the keys in the ignition and hope for the best.

vettdvr

Well said 06E5004ME...

Hate is not an issue. This is strictly engineering discussion. Data provided helps other people to understand and make an educated decision with information. Information is neither good or bad, it is just what happens. If someone "loves" their care enough to buy it knowing it has a very high failure rate that is their choice. I have provided data not emotional response. Each response is based on data that can be or could be before I threw out the files. But you have a choice to like or hate depending on how emotional you are.

Gersh320, I wish you the best and hope your decision works out for you.

Many people on this site as in previous post have helped me and sometimes there are actually people who I can help. but apparently you don't need any help. Bye.

The Thomas J

Sadly things like this happen. It's the old addage when it rains it pours. Did you buy your MB new or pre-owned?

When buying any used car no matter how well kept it was it's always a crap shoot. I was lucky that I have a good friend of mine who works for MB USA corperate in NJ & when I told him what I was looking for & how much I wanted to spend he told me to get all the vin #'s & he would run them against MB's data base & help me weed out what was good & what was bad.

Which in the end worked out. There were 3 that I was really intrested in & 2 of the 3 were bad news despite the low miles, both of them had some of the issues you had & were in the low 60,000 mile range. Plus 2 of them were at Private used car lot's.

The one I wound up buying wasn't close to home, but it was at an MB dealership, it had all it's service history documented & was one of the better ones that he checked out for me. He did tell me to stay away from airmatic. As nice as it is it's just a big problem long run, & as I have mentioned in previous threads i've never had any luck with any of my cars that have air suspension, in addition my service warranty contract did not cover airmatic.

I would like to say don't let one bad experience turn you off to MB. However I understand where you are coming from. The same thing happened to me with GM cars, wether it being Cadillac or Oldsmobile, actually american cars in general. If anything I found Fords to be the most reliable. But it was my final experiance with my Old's Auora that pushed me in to German cars in the early 200's & I have not looked back. I have never had the issues with 2 VW's, my current BMW or current MB that I have had with American cars.

khansab1

Hi, I have a 1999 E320 with 190k miles on it. I want to change transmission fluid because it is black and smells burnt. Car is running okay though. Transmission shop guy said don't change. It might not work after new clean oil. I am confused now. What should I do??

SunshineGirl

Now that's an idea i hadn't thought of! lol

Thank you all for the helpful suggestions. I have owned other car brands, unfortunately, i didn't really like many of them. My first car was a chysler, made the mistake of buying another years later, but won't do that again. 2nd was a mustang SVO, very fun, but also scary to drive in winter and OMG talk about issues. My mitzubishi turbo eclipse 5 speed was a lot of fun, but too many tickets. It was a great little car though, and I never had a problem. sold it due to speeding tickets at 96,000 miles. I bet it would have gone another 90 easy. I also owned a toyota celica that was pretty good, but just not the car for me. It blew a rod and that was the end of that one.
I also worked for Ford at one time and I will not ever own one again. I couldn't believe the stuff they would cut on to make 10 cents. I will say they build a good truck.

I'm just disappointed because there once was a time that MB was known for making cars that were luxurious and dependable up to 400,000 miles. My friends grandma still has one that is from the 60's! THAT WAS WHEN THEY MADE IMPRESSIVE CARS! The thing still looks new inside and out.

I test drove a cpl hyundais and toyotas this weekend. Azera looked great, was gutless IMO. Inside felt like i had a transformer looking at me from the dash, but i love the all glass roof. Genesis is just ugly, it seems like they trying too hard to copy everyone else as far as design. I mean the emblem is similar to Bentley, but it is most surely not a Bentley. I liked the power, but still shifting was a little hesitant, could just be the difference in the shifter and all that i wasn't used to. Toyota just felt like i was in my in-laws old car. lol My husband hated it.

I like the new jaguars but my cousin had one, and it was in the shop more than it was on the road, so I am afraid of the electrical problems she had. My aunt had a lexus es300 i think and it drove great. I drove it to Florida and it handled really nice. When it came down to it, i still enjoyed getting back into my Mercedes at the end of a long day. I think it is just too familiar. One thing i have always liked about buying them is that even though a few things change, they are pretty much the same in that i don't have to learn new things or get used to something entirely different. It is a comfort thing. I think i really just don't like to change cars much, so i just keep buying the same one in a different color and model year.
I guess i am just going to fix the darn thing and be thankful i can afford to do it. I guess i just don't want any car payments and nothing spoke to me enough to make me want to jump into one.
I think the only other car that screams take me home is the Bentley GT convertible. I would just love to own that, but i couldn't afford the gas consumption let alone the payment. lol I have a problem with using that much gas too. Just seems wrong. But man those are sexy cars and I think i would look good in it.

I guess until i can afford the "B" I will just have to settle for the MB's i have. I sure hope my '09 tranny holds up better than the '06 did.
In the mean time i may still sell the '06 and buy a bicycle. lol totally confused as to what to do next.

06E5004ME

Haha trust me, if you think Mercedes are bad, wait until you do some research on Bentleys. I don't remember what model but I was reading somewhere and it spent on average 15 days in a shop per month. Now, people who can afford Bentleys then usually just buy 2 so that when one is in the shop they drive the other until it breaks and it's a never ending circle.

SunshineGirl

Wow, for 200,000+ you would think there wouldn't be a problem at all. I had no idea. Only know one person who owns one, but says it is a beautiful car to own. He loves it; although, he was upset to find out the hard way that he couldn't leave his key near it or the battery would run down and they had replaced his battery a cpl times, but there was never a charge.

WEBSRFR

I'm most likely going to get a Tesla Model S. Nothing offered by Mercedes, including the s class, comes close to what I experienced during the Model S test drive.

I really dislike the interior of the current generation E class. It is too angular and not at all elegant in my opinion. The interior of the current E is better suited for a VW than a Mercedes. The only thing keeping me from buying a Model S and trading in my E550 is the lack of AWD with the Model S but there are rumors AWD will be offered in 2014.

SunshineGirl

Really depending on where you live the E class drives great in snow regardless, I have owned both and have driven in snow with both. They all performed better than the SUV's i passed stranded on the side of the roads. I honestly, couldn't say my 4-matics drove really any different than the rear drive models i have had. I have even driven the convertible in the snow and it also handled great. I will check out this model S. thanks.

SunshineGirl

Just looked it up and put my name in for test drive. If it is exciting as you say to drive, this might be goodbye MB, hello tesla! That is a good looking four door.