hi,i just registered,got caught in the forums down time..
my last three cars have been E-320's, (93,97,00).
lots of little annoying stuff and some bigger(very noisy top end)
w/this last car. I've got a '04 M3 on order(had 3 bmw's prior to MB)....i know the obvious differences...but convince me all of you out there to stick w/MB.
my thoughts were: e-320 w/sport/appear/light/pkg/ent pkg/heated sts. 4 matics seem to hard to come by and 500's
are typically overvalued for the +2 cyl IMHO.

thanks for any and all thoughts..
joe

 

hey sorry about your bad luck but more cars are going to have a little tinny annoying problemsexcept for those damn jap cars
Why dont you get a c32?

 

considered it..
if im gonna go that route
i prefer the looks and equip of the m3
2 colleagues have c32's...
i always thought the e class gave u more
joe

 

For what its worth, im selling my M3 for an E500. Its an amazing car, but not for what I need it for as my only car. I utilize its capabiliteis 5% of the time, while I will utilize the comfort, convenience, etc of the E 80% of the time. This was my rationale. I am 6'4, couldnt hang in that little interior. Seats are very uncomfortable for a tall person. If its your daily driver, I'd say skip the M3, unless you are that hardcore of a driver and a true enthusiast, and you will autocross, etc.

I have never been an MB fan, until the new E. I never liked BMW at all, save for M division. BMW are good cars, but they are hit or miss, as far as problems. MB seems to be the same.

In the end, its a matter of priorities, not emotions, as I have learned the hard way.

 

i'm with u on the comfort and convenience
as my last 3 cars have been mb..,it is gonna be my daily
driver at least for now..
simple things bug me like..no alarm,homelink,spare tire, 60k.
how did u like the smg?
did u ever get a flat tire?
thanks for your feedback
joe

 

Ya, those things pissed me off too. My MSRP was 60,355. Every option.

SMG is simply amazing. I felt spoiled.

I did get a flat, but they must have been run-flat, because they stayed firm. Did not use compressor. Slow leak from a nail.

I had it in for service about 7 times in last 5 mos of owning it. 5 of them for a *******g speaker rattle which is very common. 5 times, come on.. Now, SMG 3rd gear blew up.. replacing tranny now. the one they shipped to me yester day got dammaged, and it was the last one in the country!!! Waiting for one from Germany.. Seats were very uncomfortable for being a tall person. Otherwise great car.

 

I'm coming from an M3 also. While it was nice, the interior was cheap, and I was very afraid of the engine blowing up. I know mine wasn't in the range of bad engines, but you never know. Neither does BMW since they gave me a free 7/100 upgraded warranty.

 

If you want a troublefree car, you have much better chances with Lexus/Infiniti/Acura. While there's no guarantee you will get a 100% troublefree car, your chances are much higher.

All the German cars have their fair share of problems.

i.e. 03 E320 - automatic door lock feature no longer works after about 2600 miles

04 C32 - rattling/tickling behind center console after only about 3 weeks of ownership

Is it possible to get a troublefree MB, BMW, or Audi? Of course, but your chances will just be lower. This may be due to the number of electronics that went into the car (less electronics = less potential causes of headaches), or may just be a quality issue. JD Powers regularly conducts surveys of # problems/# vehicles, which serves as a pretty good indicator.

And from an ownership standpoint, Lexus is far better than Mercedes, at least this is the case between Serramonte Lexus and Autobahn MB in the SF Bay Area. Lexus always offers a loaner car, no matter what the service is while MB only gives out loaners during major services, and *only* when you call and make sure you put down a name for a loaner in advance. The funniest thing is there's an Enterprise rental car counter in Autobahn Mercedes. Perhaps they rent out MBs for free ;-).

Then why stay with MB? MB makes well engineered cars and a tight, solid feel. Prestige can also be a factor, but to me it is much less important. Styling, performance, and safety are much more important.

Just my 2 cents.

 

If you want a troublefree car, you have much better chances with Lexus/Infiniti/Acura. While there's no guarantee you will get a 100% troublefree car, your chances are much higher.

ultra/brav;
i guess everything is aggravating...
it wasn't til i got home that i discovered my 47k sequoia doesn't
have a front interior dome light when u open the door(gotta hit the map light by hand) i'll leave the jap stuff for the wife to drive.
i had people/friends asking me if my e-320 was a diesel,thats how noisy the top end was on my car(my previous mbs u didn't know the car was running unless u looked at the tach.

now i'm nnnnervous.....ive heard 'bout the speaker rattle, but ive got and loaded smg coupe on order and ur another person w/trans gear replace issues(yet i've talked to someone w/an '02
w/ no problem and it does seem rare. i've also heard the new E's
have some electronic gremlins and i assume they've done nothing
w/the 3.2 v6 since an ml loaner's motor was noisier than mine.
got the alum trim in the m3/i'll miss the wood...but in the sport/appear pkg on the E you get that grey stuff..no likey.
i like the benz...they're just commonplace around here.
well...thanks again, keep the thoughts comin..
joe

 

When considering quality issues I have noticed that the Japanese seem to get better press, despite the fact that they have their problems also. I see things such as the following, from the 11/21/03 edition of Thecarconnection.com, all the time:

"Recalls and Fixes for Mitsubishi, Honda and Ford Focus"

"Mitsubishi Motors Corp. and Honda Motor Co. said on Thursday they would recall more than a combined 570,000 cars worldwide. And Ford said it would fix 670,000 Focus sedans for customers because of a faulty fuel delivery module that has caused chronic stalling in some cars. No accidents were connected with the actions. Defective front-wheel suspension joints in about 140,000 Mitsubishi Galants, and 270,000 other Mitsubishis sold in Japan are affected. About 11,000 Grandi minivans in Japan were affected as well. Honda recalled 235,000 CR-V, Integra, Civic Ferio (non-U.S.), and Stream minivan (non-U.S.) models for a loose power steering box bolt that could affect the steering wheel. As Japanese carmakers grow, proliferate models, and manufacture outside their home market, recalls are on the rise. Nissan last month recalled 2.55 million cars worldwide for an engine defect. Honda said this month it was recalling 699,000 North American vehicles for a faulty parking gear mechanism. Recalls are rising for Toyota as well. -Jim Burt"

The worst product I've ever owned was a highly recommended Honda product. First rate recommedation from Consumer Reports. When it broke Honda said their were no parts available (on a year old product). Period. Buy a new one. After a whole lot of agony and six months of BS parts mysteriously appeared and it was fixed. Then more issues.

As far as BMW goes, they don't call them BMTroubleyou for nothing.

 

Click here for the best reason to stay with Benz!

If this isn't an absolute turn for the worst, I don't know what is. I know that the 5 series was dated, but in my opinion, they just wrecked it.

 

I used to work for Ford and have had many different brands of cars over the years. My '97 E-320 with the in-line 6 was one of the best cars I've ever owned, and I had no major problems with it in six years.

I had one of the first E-500's delivered last year without the Nav and had all of the "start Up" prolbems associated with this car. Hoever, my dealer took GREAT care of me and I loved the car. Since it didn't have the Nav which I'd ordered and paid for last year, I was one of the FORTUNATE owners to get a new E-500 this year. At no cost, they gave me a new car for my older car with 12,000 miles. I now have over 5,000 miles on my current E-500 delivered in August and it has been TROUBLE FREE.

I addition, my wife and I got to drive the new Maybach's at the California Speedway last year with a free helicopter flight to/from Orange County for the "test drive" of a life time. I actually liked the handling of my E-500 better than the Maybach but the Maybach is a SUPERB luxury car and FAR better than today's Roll's in my opinion. I sure wouldn't want to leave with it a valet parking attendant, however.

My daugher and son-in-law are both doctors and have had many different BMW's. After they drove my early, E-500 they both agreed it was superior to their 745 and M5.

No car is perfect, but I believe the E-500 is the absolute best car available for someone wanting high performance at a modest price with reasonable luxury. My sister and brother both have Lexus LS 430's and if you want an "old folks car" that is hard to beat. However, if you want to feel young and are a bit on the old side, the E-500 or AMG version is tops!! In fact, it's great for all ages of owners, I believe!!

 

lol, nice one

 

You are on right way, I 'm also thinking about dropping MB in favor of BMW. MB kept leadership for very long time, but it looks like tired. I am not impressed by MB cars anymore. So, let's go to BMW camp.

 

I absolutely agree.

In addition, I like the E's interior much more than the new BMWs.

 

For me MB is the pinnacle of automotive industry, I truly love Renault designs and the way they work on their cars but Mercedes Benz is a class apart, it's the name, it means heritage, it means quality, it means class and most time it means uniqueness, you can't buy uniqueness.

Really simple, Mercedes Benz > *

 

This is sort of an odd topic. Why are you ordering an M3? If you enjoy driving a near sports car, why would you even consider an E-class? Your best bet is to discover which kind of car you'd be most happy with, and then determine which brand you want to go with.

And BTW, the M3 is not nearly the purist car people make it out to be. It's just that Mercedes cars tend to isolate and pamper the occupants so much, that the M3 comes out seeming like a race car to some. In my perspective (6' tall), the car is one of the most livable sporty cars out there. Most people buy them because of the M badge, and because of the performance potential. The vast vast majority have no idea what the car is capable of because they never push it that hard.

If you are considering the E320, I don't see you really appreciating what the M3 has to offer. Maybe I'm wrong.