mspaul

Last weekend I drove my friends 525i and no offense to the owners of 525i - the more I drove the more I hated it.

Don't get me wrong, 5-series is a great car, good handing and fun to drive for a short distance. The transmission was really smooth as compared to my 03 e320 (I am sure transmission for newer w211's are better).

At first I was excited (maybe just because I was driving the "ultimate driving machine"). The car felt like a sports car and had all the features of a luxury car.

But there was something not right, the sporty side and luxury side of the car were not going together. At times it felt like the drive is
lexusiss. The seats are terrible. I had to take a break every 2 hrs to keep my back straight. The back seats were even worse. Oh, and the looks, I just hate it.

The IDrive is a real no no.

I guess I can conclude by saying 525i is a good car but not in the same league as the Eclass. The car itself is confused if its a luxury or sports car.

Driving my W211 today was such a relief.

M-bENZ

U dont want to post that in Beemer Forum lolz.

Andy

mspaul

That's true.
I made my friend drive my E-class after our trip and he agreed to most of my comments.

A potential E-class customer

lkchris

Last newish BMW I drove illuminated a big red light on the dashboard to indicate cruise control was on. Pretty dumb imho.

gaazmon

The seats suck, even with 4-way lumbar and thigh extender.

My uncle has a 330ci with a dinan chip and intake. He's always been a hardcore Beemer fan. He just both his wife an 04 e320, the 1st benz he's ever bought (I told him to go for it). When I asked out hows the car, he replied "man, nothing like a mercedes."

steveberde

I was a BMW owner for years - I had a 530i, a 740i and 535i. I won't go into details but let me say only that I will NEVER own a BMW auto or motorcycle ever again. Aside from the car differences and there are many the biggest difference I found was that of the factory. In dealing with MB when there is an issue they do not go out of their to avoid paying a warranty claim, just the opposite. In the case of BMW they are arrogant and insulting.

I have owned 4 E cars, my last being the 500 4matic and think it's an amazing car. I am totally conent with it. If my stock portfolio ever recovers or I live long enough to see that, I will definitely get a new one after the 212's been out for a few years.

Steve

petrolhead

;-) I came over from the dark side too, went from e30 to e36 3 series, to e23, then 2 e32 7ers then an e38 but now i`ve had a w168 and w208 the mercs are just miles better, looking forward to getting a w211. Still got the e38 but it`s relegated to a beater for the wife to take to work.

gaazmon

One thing I must say about BMW is that I LOVED and still LOVE the 2001 740i with M sport package. Just beautiful. I love that car. My friend had one, it was gorgeous. Best BMW ever made IMO. Up in my favorites along with the W140 S-class.

EUROTEK//AMG

what did you expect its 525 ? not an M5..........

GABMAN

I don't know about this. I came out of a 545 before I got my E500. I won't go into the look of the cars as looks can be very subjective, but there is still something to say about the ultimate driving machine, I much prefer the drive and handling of the 545 over my E500. I am just waiting for the new 5 series to debut before deciding if i will return to the fold.

vettdvr

[QUOTE=steveberde;34......... If my stock portfolio ever recovers or I live long enough to see that, I will definitely get a new one after the 212's been out for a few years.

Steve[/QUOTE]

Same boat I'm in,, stock needs to recover.

Long Islander

I love those classic pre-Bangle 7-series! Now that Chris Bangle is gone, maybe BMW styling will return to its classic past. Oh, and they need to get rid of that dreaded iDrive.

Long Islander

IDrive? No you drive while I try to figure out how to use this stupid knob!

mspaul

I agree with this. I can justify calling BMW an ultimate driving machine.

Long Islander

When will the new 5 series be out?

lkchris

NOTHING like startekinfo or epc available for BMW. No service DVDs, either.

Too bad, as they are very likely the world's least reliable cars.

Don't need new water pumps on Mercedes at 60K miles.

Dema

I test drove 535 before taking E350. I liked it more, however BMW asked more money for less options so I decide to stay with Merc. I really like iDrive and MY09 iDrive became even better. Actually my 9 years old son can operate iDrive much better than me. We are all old farts can learn simple stuff.

FKD

I recently switched from an 06 E60 530Xi M-Sport to an 09 W211 E350 4Matic Avant Garde. Here is my take:

Ride: MB
Handling: BMW
Power train: BMW
Exterior styling: tie
Interior styling: MB
Front seats: BMW
Back seats: MB
Driver assist - ease of use: BMW
Driver assist - features: MB
Voice command: MB (BMW never understands what I said)
Fun to drive: BMW
Value for money: MB

mspaul

Not sure what kind of seats you had in your BMW, but the stock front seats definitely need improvement.

Value for money: MB - Can you please elaborate on this? I thought it was the other way around.

K-A

I drive a 525 a lot as well ('06). Good car but not great, in fact I drove it to pick up my M-B when I bought it

Interior feels cheaper and not as "livable" and classy as the Benz. Handling is of course much more connected, you feel like you're driving the car more than pushing it, I personally like to cruise so I prefer the more luxury oriented drive of the M-B in a way. E wins no contest IMO in elegance and exterior design, the 5'er can look pretty badass if it wants to, but won't be as timeless as the E, and to me personally, when I have both cars parked together, the E looks even more attention grabbing due to its cleaner and more monolithic essense.... At least to me

Design wise the car seems to try harder than the E inside and out, to get more of the "ooh" and "ahh" factor going for it, but IMO once you really live with both and get up close and personal, the W211 prevails.

FKD

Mine was a 530Xi M-Sport so the front seats are sport seats with excellent support, great side bosters that firmly hold you in place and power thigh extension. Even with no lumber support, they are far better than the ones in my current E350. In that BMW you sit IN the seat, while in the MB you sit ON the seat.

For me the new MB E350 4Matic is better value for the money than a new 535i xDrive simply becasue I got it for a much better lease deal than the latter. Compared to BMW, MB offers deeper discount, lower lease interest rate, higher lease end residual value and a 39 month sretched lease. It would have cost me a lot more to lease the 535i xDrive.

gaazmon

K-A, how do you like the 525i? My friend is looking to buy one. It's an 07. Any problems you've had with it? How's the power of the car since it only has 200 hp?

mspaul

That makes sense, The car I drove had regular seats.
My thinking was that BMW's can be more economical in the long run because of the 5 year zero maintenance program.

220S

I'm a long time Bimmer owner (many versions) and I almost bought a 550i.

The 550i wins hands down in performance and handling. The E Class chassis is sloppy and the car has body roll and the steering is way over boosted. There's no comparison.

That said, the E Class is much, much more comfortable esp on longer drives. And so I bought a 2009 E350 (with every option including full leather.) The E350 is incredibly boring to drive. But it's perfect for what it really is: a comfy cruise mobile.

I would have bought one of the S Class cars if I could rationalize spending that sort of cash on a luxo-barge cruiser.

I wouldn't consider the 535i (I just prefer normally aspirated motors) and the 525i is an overweight, underpowered slow poke, so what's the point there? The NA V8 in the 550i is a magnificent motor. And it's mated to a good gearbox and a very well-tuned chassis.

I would have got the E550 (for it's wonderful V8) but airmatic scares me and the E Class chassis isn't tuned enough to make driving it with a V8 that much fun.

The E350 is so boring to drive that I can fall asleep cruising in it. And that's why I like it. I have my Porsche to take care of the boredom. The 550i would have kept the boredom at bay, but then I wouldn't have been able to sleep during those long drives

K-A

It's definitely not bad but very lacking. It's actually my moms but since her Lease is almost up and she's about 30K shy of her max Mileage limit I'll go drop my car off at her house on the weekends I have to drive cross state for work and take that.

It's a decent car, but the 525 is just a measly performer, power-wise. I don't need or crave a super beast of a motor, but when I notice a car is "slow" it ruins the driving experience. I'd definitely advise your friend to go with a 530i at least.

It does feel connected to the ground well, and it feels like a solid car with a strong chassis. The interior is okay but the materials and vinyl seats are pretty bad for what you'd expect....

As for problems, I think it's been problem free but it does only have just over 8K Miles.