Hey guys, just wanted to announce our new edition to the family… ’04 silver/ash E500 w/Premium and Appearance packages. Picked it up last Friday and have already put on about 250 miles… abiding by the break-in rules the whole time of course (Murphy’s Law… when you can’t drive fast, the freeways will be traffic and cop free for miles on end). Overall, I’m very happy with the purchase. I had originally ordered back in January, but had to re-order after reading about the whole active headlights (Package #322/#422) issue on this forum. I have to admit, reading this forum made me a bit more skeptical about whether I should get a MB, and I’m crossing my fingers that I don’t run into problems that some of you have experienced (got the 7yr/100K extended warranty too).

No complaints so far except for the minor (IMO) issues like the navigation system, lack of low bass in the sound system and overly complicated cup-holder. I haven’t punched it yet, but power comes on very smooth and quick. Brake modulation seems a little better than the ‘03 I had tested last year.

Some things I want to add/change in the near term: parking/fog lights (want to match color with headlights), floor mats (the ash color seems to get dirty just by looking at it the wrong way) and possibly window tinting.

Got a bunch of questions, but suppose I should RTFM first before bringing them up here

 

you dont like the cupholders?????? i think theyre fun!

 

How many cups Can the front cupholder accomodate?

 

It holds two. but one is too low/deep and the other infringes on the passenger's space

 

What cupholders in the front? Please post a pic

 

Yeah, the cupholders suck. And I can see that they are prone to breaking in the future. I just had to wrestle with them for a little while the other day since it wouldn't stay in the down position.

I also quickly changed out the Ash floormats, because they were getting dirty very quickly. Bought the charcoal floormats, and it turned out to be a nice contrast, especially with the Appearance package.

I also agree with the lack of bass. Worst part of the system, and several options are available as well. I'm probably going to do something similiar to what another user on the forum, kyee, has done. Search for posts by him (as well as the other cool mods he has done).

Apollo, cupholders are standard on the US vehicles, and it is a popup device similiar to what they use in the C and the previous generate E. An overly complex solution to an easy problem.

Have you noticed any difference yet with the Active headlights?

 

I found the cupholder in my W210 far more elegant (read: bling bling), with the unfolding arm.

 

That sounds like good idea... vs. uses the clear mats or rubber mats. Don't have to worry too much about wet/snow weather out here in CA, just normal dirt/dust... charcoal might work well for this.
Haven't driven at night yet... I'm wondering too if there is an added benefit or if it just something very subtle.

 

On our UK models cup holders are an optional accessory that you can purchase from your dealer. They fit in the little glove box container in the centre consle.

Regards,
John

 

The bass is fine in our HK system. Put some house/trance music to really test it out...

 

Hi

I had charcoal mats in my C class with grey leather and they looked great.

I think the bass is pretty good in the HK, my view though is that when you turn up the volume the mid and high becomes distorted quite easily, with cd's in the changer, the head unit seems better though, plays mp3's great. The Bose system on my C Class was better, you could crank it up high and still really clear. Expected better from the E Class system for the money and 12 speakers.

 

The HK system is pretty good for an OEM system, but it does need some extra bass reinforcement. Add a real subwoofer, and you'll definitely notice what you were missing. I don't listen at eardrum piercing rattle your windows levels - I just like a nice solid bass feel to my tunes. The system is like night and day now with the addition of the sub box.

Throw in the growl of the Brabus exhaust, and you've got a full orchestra of sounds at your fingertips.

 

Here's a picture of my sub install:



More info can be found on this thread

 

Hi

I am not sure that when you pay this much and extra for an audio uppgrade with 12 speakers you should have to add aftermarket equipment that takes up part of your boot space.

 

Yeah, I wish I could do that. I don't want hear-me-coming-a-mile-away bass either... I have a dual-10" JL Audio box in my old car... but it eats most of the trunk. I need the space now for stroller and baby bags

Would be nice if you could replace the stock sub with something better... but I don't think that would match the output of a boxed sub.

 

I've still got a lot of usable space left. And I went with a non-permanent box install, so that if I ever needed the full trunk space, I just unplug the sub box, and take it out. Quick and easy.

No OEM audio system will ever give you the low end bass that audio fanatics crave.