NuBenz

Here are my first impressions and comments...

1. Beautiful styling, inside and out.
2. Sport wheels look much better in person.
3. Interior fabric along the footwells and door sills gets dirty too easily!
4. The motor has effortless power and torque.
5. Two thumbs up for the air-matic suspension. I especially like the raise/lower the front end feature to clear driveways and slopes. It's no 540 sport, but it surely ain't no slouch!
6. Tranny's as smooth as silk. Manual mode is somewhat delayed, but it's fine.
7. HK audio system sound is superb. However, the other day there was a bunch of static in all speakers while playing a CD I burned... a quick stereo on/off maneuver and it hasn't happened again. Hmmm... we'll see...
8. Occasional "ticking" sound from the motor on acceleration, but it doesn't happen all the time. It's probably the motor mount issue.
9. Awesome seats. The quality of leather shames the 5-series. Multicontours are worth it IMHO.
10. Tons of room in the back seat! Nice sculpted "knee wells" in the back of the front seats.
11. White gauges look great.
12. Darn grabby E-brakes! With the suspension set at the softest setting, it really takes a conscious effort to stop the car smoothly without much pitching and diving. However, by setting the suspension in the sportiest mode, this motion is significantly reduced.
13. This car is truly emotional!

Here's the link to the photos: E500 pics

NavNut

Cool... Looks nice... Is that the Platinum Blue with the Ash interior? I was thinking of Plat Blue with Charcoal... I'm a little concerned it will make the black birdseye maple fade away... How do you like the light colored interior? You mentioned the "hard to keep clean" already, and that was one of my motivating factors for the black interior...

-NavNut

jabo

Looks like an E55 is next to yours in the photos

What do you make of it?

Dr Chill

Suspect it's an S55. The headlights look like an S and it appears larger than an E. Good observation, though.

monakh

I agree...the cloth interior gets dirty too darned easily. I wish there was some way to keep it clean without scrubbing it down

NuBenz

The silver car was an S55.

I went with Plat Blue and the Ash interior. The light Ash interior looks great and provides a nice contrast to the black maple trim. Also, the white gauges add to the overall effect. But, yes, cleaning and upkeep are an issue. I have graphite grey leather in my cab, and it wears pretty well. Dirt does show up, but it's not nearly as bad as something like the "sand" interior offered by Mercedes. Charcoal also looks real nice, but it was a little too dark for me. I prefer lighter interiors despite their increased maintenance.

NuBenz

How do you like that Pano roof? My wife really loved that option, but we eventually decided against it when we realized the rear portion didn't open.

Is the front pano sunroof a little smaller than the usual sunroof?

We saw an E500 in silver with the pano roof, and it was beautiful!

rickyfanmdr

I'm really happy that I got the panorama roof! I think it's really cool! And I think it's full size--the same size as the standard sunroof or maybe even a bit bigger, but I don't know for sure. It doesn't seem small at all. So far, I have been driving with the interior covers retracted, so that I really have the double moonroof. I love all of the light during the day (but with the black glass, it's not overly bright, which was a concern) and the stars at night. When it's fully open to the sky, the front panel does stack over the back panel.

Love it!!!

I think your platinum blue is really pretty, by the way!

. . .and, DUH! I just realized your pano question was directed at monakh.lol

NuBenz

I'm glad to hear you like your pano roof... I just wasn't completely sold on it. But it sure does look sweet!