Vivek

Many of you guys have replaced the front tri-star emblem with a flat badge. Don't you like it or feel good looking at the tri-star from inside when you drive a Mercedes. Ofcourse, there is another one on the steering wheel, but still.... Just curious.

BudC

I think it's sacrilegious to take away that star on the hood. Of course younger people are now buying Mercedes so my feelings are outdated. Still, when I'm driving through a snowstorm or a rainstorm, the three pointed star out there on the hood provides me with a sense of security.

DWP

It's a matter of personal taste and every response may be different. To me, the stick-up emblem doesn't look quite right with the sleek, hunkered-down styling of the W211. Also, far from giving me a warm and fuzzy glow when I saw it, the view of the emblem when I was driving was a visual distraction. It was in my field of vision too much. I know what make of car I'm driving and I don't care that much whether other people know. I'm still carrying a torch for BMW, even though they broke my heart, and I'm not much into the Benz status thing. Other people replace their original W211 grill with a grille that has a BIG tristar logo, and that's OK too.

SAguirre

I heard rumors that MB was going to discontinue them due to pedestrian safety in case of a hit. But those were just rumors. I personally have gotten used to driving behind the emblem for the past 10 years+. I am currently driving a 05 ML350 as a loaner car and even though I don't think a SUV should have a hood ornament, I miss it.

On the other hand, I know of a lot of people who remove the emblem because they are tired to replacing the stolen star! I only lost one star and that was in Eastern Europe. I promptly replaced it when I got back to Germany.

I can see that some people could see it as a distraction, but I don’t think that one can say that it is blocking the view of anything. I kind of tend to agree with BudC.

Steve

Brian_I.

For the same reason anyone would do any modification, to be different. Even if only slightly different. Especially when you live in LA and are surrounded by Benzes. In fact just this morning there was an E500 directly in front of me, an E55 to my left and a C240 behind me (all silver as well).

The flat hood emblem is one of the most inexpensive and easy mods to do so it's usually one of the first ones that gets done.

At first it was hard for me to get used to but I got over it. I like my flat badge although I may go back and forth just to spice things up a bit.

cdiken

It is an honor, and a great conversation piece to have your ***-cheek "Starmarked."

Only the finest quality **** should get Starmarked, and only after a thorough inspection by my certified female body inspection staff.

Kia imprinted backwards on your forehead or something, might not be as cool.

KB

spyderbret

I personally like the stand up tri-star emblem but since I decided to install the CL style grill I thought it was too much. Plus I agree with DWP, I really like the sleek look as well. After putting on the CL style grill and the flat hood emblem I feel more original when driving it around. Last night I saw an E320 with the original grill and stand up hood emblem and I thought it looked kind of plain. Just my opinion though.....

miroj

Probably because the first they owned was a Mercedes and not a 68' Detroit special.

BenzoBoi

In my case, I know the W211 isn't made for my age group, so I decided to take it off and get a different flat hood emblem. Usually you see the older generation guys driving benz and their proud of the "star" Me on the other hand, I'm a little younger and wanted to give it an updated, more "flush" look. I really like the look of the flat hood emblems. Can't stand the star emblems, makes me look like an attention *****...Well that is my 2 cents...

plocjim

For me, it's not so much a like or dislike of the hood ornament - it's the grille that drove the decision to replace. The CL style grille is a more aggressive look that I really like...one side effect of that is that the stand up ornament is "too much" (IMHO) sitting on top of the grille with the large star in it. I actually replaced the grille first just to see if it looked OK with the ornament - and it didn't! So, I replaced the ornament with the flat emblem. I really like the look - but it's all personal preference! If I were not to have the CL grille I would have left the original star on top.

benzboy

To me the star is class. RR has the goddess, Jags have the leaping cat. Why not the 100+ year old emblem of a fine automotive tradition. I've been driving behind one star or another for over 40 years. Replace it with a badge (like a BMW!) NO THANKS!

SAguirre

There is one very big negative association with that 3-pointed star that might make some people remove it. I guess I should bring it up after all. If you watch any old German WWII footage, you will see Adolph Hitler parading behind the star. Mercedes Benz was his favorite car! It always gives me a bad feeling when I see that star and A.H. together. As a result, if some people can't get that image out of their head, they might decide to remove the emblem.

Just another perspective here,

Steve

Nevada Jack

The exact reason I replaced mine...it did not look good with the CL grille. Also, take a look at all the new models...flat emblem. For MB, the flat emblem has got to cost less than the Silver Star rig...so they save some bucks.

BTW...I reinstalled the regular grill and star because I thought I was going to sell the car. Since I have been driving MB's since the mid-seventies it kind of looks nice again. But I have the option to use either set up.

DWP

I'm seeing a pattern here ... people that go back a ways with M-B tend to like the upright emblem, people on their first Benz tend to go for the flat badge. I suspect that the former has a lot more to do with pride in your chosen marque than it does with being an, um, attention ho. I fall in the latter group - I'm on my first Benz, after almost 20 years in BMWs. Our E500 is a good car, I'm proud of it, and I'm not sorry that I got it, but I'm not bonded to M-B as a brand like someone who has driven behind a tristar for 20 or 30 years might be.

Barry45RPM

What else would a Head of State drive, but the finest automobile his country produced? (He was elected fairly by the people of his country, and did not sieze power-- no matter what kind of Monster he turned into) Don't forget "Mercedes" is the name of the Daughter of the Jewish designer that created the Brand! ...ahh such Irony!

Hood emblems were the way designers went years ago, when the hood sat way above the fenders covering a high air filter sitting atop a tall thin engine underneath... They set off an otherwise "clunky" looking piece of steel stamping right in the top-front front center of the car. (Like hanging a diamond studded necklace on a double chinned fat old lady?!?)

Nowadays with wind resistance measured in hundreths of a decimal, on top of a very sleek car, they are a throwback. If the car came with the same star flat mounted glued to the hood like the letters on the trunk, or of it came with the flat emblem that people are installing in the recess in the hood stamping, it would be fine with me... I like them too, but in my case I wanted a top notch 'fine' automobile all my life, the star on the hood whispers to me every day, thet I have one now. (I'm sure to those on the other side of the windshield it screams, but so does an inexpensive car with a 1000 watt stereo costing more than the car did, with pulsating, vibrating license plates, wrong colored aftermarket lights & trun signals, scoops, and spoilers that look like handles on a hat box, wheels that keep spinning after you come to a stop, and a muffler that looks like a keg swinging under the car in the 3 1/2 inch ground clearance... No difference to some, I suppose, just less subtle.) Beauty is in the eye of the beholder.

Brian_I.

Although I'm not old enough to have been driving MB's very long, I am on my second Benz now and the initial "excitement", if you will, regarding the hood ornament is gone. I do sometimes want it back because it is something that sets the car apart from most other makes but like others have mentioned it doesn't look good with the CL-style grill.

cte430

I've kept the star. If AMG came out with an official badge, i'd go for it.

!!!!!NJ Drive

you descibed me exactly....i jus replaced the upright star w/ the flat badge yesterday & honestly it really does feel different, but i do think it looks good

Brian_I.

How could I have forgotten, there is also a 6hp gain with the flat emblem due to the lighter weight design and the better drag coefficient.

ima55r2

Since MB has cars with raised stars and flat emblems, its good that we can make the choice. I like the raised star, but not with the cl style grille.

As for tradition, there is even another OE star. This one is from a 1914 Benz.

glojo

I am surprised that no one has figured out why the Mercdes-Benz has this very nice raised identification.

It was first installed to assist visually impaired drivers to tell what car was theirs. They would go out into the car park and gently rub their gloved hand over the bonnet. If they found a Spirit of Ecstasy, Flying B, or Prancing Jaguar then they would move on until they found the three pointed star.

Unfortunately times have changed and these people no longer rub their gloved hand gently over the bonnet. Instead they use baseball bats and swing them against the side of each car, hence all these 'car park dings' that we are always reading about.

Oh for the more gentile days before the 'car park ding'

Morning everyone,
John
A sunny, but cool morning in Torquay

DWP

Oh. I thought maybe it had something to do with drawing a bead on slow-moving pedestrians.

Brav

I gain nothing from the raised star, I've just been to lazy to remove it. As far as security or status, peice of plastic doesnt do anything.. come on. I bought the car for the style, comfort, gadgets and I'm sure image to a degree. But not the star. could care less.

Barry45RPM

Bet if it said Fiat on it, and everything else was as it is, you wouldn't buy it! .. or to live the life of bliss, we'd all be driving Lexus'. The star means something to us all.

Brav

Haha if it said Fiat, It would be up on blocks in my garage 364 days of the year! If lexus didnt have the personality of a fence post, I'd consider it.