hyperion667

I'd love some white walls like that on my AMG

BenzE350

I must be the luckiest person in the world in regards to never having problems with leather.

My wife had a BMW 323is for 10 years and the leather always looked terrific. I have a 15 year old Bernhardt leather recliner that looks (and feels) as good as it did when I purchased it. My Andrew Marc leather jacket looks (and feels) better than it did when I unwrapped it under the Christmas tree a dozen years ago. All with very minimal maintenance.

golfster

I see a Hyundai Genesis (with standard leather interior) in your future!

BenzE350

Or the Hyundai Equus (witht the premium leather interior)...

golfster

Good one. I actually saw my first "in the wild" the other night. Their version of diamond white. The car certainly has road presence and looks quite nice.

K-A

You guys should see the new Azera (I think it is). To me the Genesis is nice but still looks like Hyundai in their "Chinese car poseur version of more expensive cars" phase. The Equus is pretty interesting overall and does have elements that give it some presence, but is incredibly unattractive and bland to me. The new Azera is placed in between the Sonata and Genesis, and lacks the ultra-luxury feel of the Genesis' interior, but is pretty damn good looking I though, namely the rear if I remember correctly.

Edit: Never mind, just looked up pics of it Online, and it doesn't look all that. Maybe it was all the glammy Auto Show lights that moved it up in perception. Still nice though, but nothing special IMO.

MCF

So your an *** man. I'm more of an legs and ***** kind a guy.

ImInPA

A new Passat diesel wood make a nice second car.

El Cid

I traded an '07 Azera Limited with Ultimate package in on my '10- E350. No regrets. IMO, the MBTex is as good as the leather on Azera or Genesis. Test drove four Genesis' because I had access to a super deal on them. Still couldn't pursuade myself to get it instead of the E.
That said, Hyundai makes some terrific cars for the real world prices they charge. Their Air Quality system is fantastic and electronics are much easier to operate. Suspension and ride have been questionable for many people.
Hyundai customer service is far superior to MBUSA.

CedarZ4

Did not read all 7 pages, but read where everyone was arguing (page 5 or something) about this leather is better, or MBTex is better etc. All nonsense.

Like most things, different people have different opinions. Special ordered a E350 a month ago, loaded with every option (MSRP $68,000) and I opted for MBTex. I just threw in almost 20k in just options, do you think that 1.8k is going to matter? No, however, like others have stated, MBTex is and will always be more durable with minimal care compared to leather. I am not going to argue that leather can be in pristine quality if well taken care of, but that's just not me. I have a Cayenne S in the garage, and it's not even 3 years old (36month lease, have about 5 months left) Real leather, and it is starting to look gross. It wrinkles easy, and just looks plain used. I don't like to spend time wiping down my seats after each time I drive the car, and since this E is going to be a keeper (10+ years?) MBTex is essential. This is a preference.

So, actually, if they made leather standard on the MBs, I actually would be rather upset. Now, did getting leather in the E not cross my mind, of course it did. But I eat breakfast in the car every morning, and when I get hungry on trips the whole family just has a McD meal in the car... You see why MBTex is essential in my case.

Point is, I won't not buy a car because it's leather (had a 07' Lexus ES350, but I'm pretty sure that was leatherette too, despite people saying how Lexus Infinity etc. have leather standard) but given the option, I'd still choose "cheap vinyl plastic" over "super classy cow skin"

In my head, patina is just a better way to describe used and worn because leather is "high class" and can only get better (definition of patina?) Not hating on those who prefer leather, because we all have our opinions, especially for those who take care of their seats/run on <36month leases, but let's be honest. There is no doubt that MBTex is more durable than leather with the same amount of care, and with the quality MBTex in imitating leather, people hating on it just because it's "vinyl" is ridiculous. If it serves its function and does a good job, it's good, plastic or skin.

Edit: Just read the first page, and see people ripping on cloth. I don't know, the first two cars I've ever owned (1995 Dodge Caravan and a 1999 Toyota Camry) had cloth seats... and if it wasn't "wrong" to have cloth in a Merc (due to "status") or if it was even an option, I might even get it. I think cloth seats, in terms of comfort, are 100% better than MBText, and leather! They are soft, conform to your buttock and most importantly, doesn't burn or freeze my thighs in the crazy weather. Though... cleaning up coffee spills is

cleankutazn

Mbtex is not what it's cracked up to be...had it on my 08 e350 for 2 years and it had a 2" crack on the seating area.

K-A

What, did you take a knife to it? I don't think I've ever even seen a single wrinkle on even a well-used M-B Tex interior.

MCF

Man made material < Nature.

K-A

I dunno, a calculator can calculate numbers better than my brain can.

enzo thecat

FYI:

I ordered my 2010 E350 with the premium leather package. The stitching came apart and unraveled behind my left shoulder at about 4000 miles. The dealership said they had no means to repair it and would just order a new leather "cover". I knew that the new cover would come from a different dye lot and wouldn't match the rest of the leather in the car, so i left it alone. I no longer own the car, but damn that leather was nice. If I had to do it again, I'd still pay for the leather.

mrjoe

Well my problem is solved. decided if I am going to get a Benz it will be the E550 coupe - which has leather standard. (for some bizarre reason MB mandated if you want the E550 sedan this year you must take 4matic). I am in Florida and don't need the extra weight, cost, complexity & lower mileage. Stupid marketing.

And I get amusement out of K-A undying love for vinyl seats. Maybe he works for a plastic production company or maybe a landfill owner ( that stuff will last a coupe thousand years keeping him in business)

FYI -My old man has vinyl in his 2010 E350 and hates it. Says it stiff and low rent. Now wishes he had leather - but of course MB makes it a pain in the ***, since pretty much all dealers stock is the crappy plastic.

MCF

And one day I am sure a computer will do your job better than you.

newyorktoLA

I have wrinkles on my GL350 Bluetec's MBTEX on the driver's seat bolster closest to the door. I also have wrinkles on one of the rear seat head restraints. The MBTex is really dry there and so it bunched together so it has a ripple effect on the side of the head restraint.

Just as a reference, MBTex DOES WEAR, and it WEARS as much as leather. Yes, it may not become super wrinkly like premium leather (although once again, my S550 with 57,000 miles and premium leather looks better than the GL's Tex), but it becomes shiny, hard, and really ugly. In fact, at 10,000 miles, my driver's side bolster's tex became so hard and shiny, it didn't even look like the rest of the seat. I took it into the dealer and they said every GL with tex has that over time....

My E350 with Tex also developed one wrinkle towards the back of the driver's seat as well. I only weigh <150 pounds so trust me, it's not me. Most of the time now, I let my son drive it to school and he weighs way less than me. I've seen many MB's with MBtex with weird wrinkle patterns in some areas.

CEB

At 4k miles the other seats shouldn't have been so worn as to make the new seat obvious.

As for dye lot differences, that is absurd. Assuming that there is a dye lot difference (and assuming that all the seats in a new car come from the same dye lot - I doubt it) it certainly wouldn't be visible as the two bits of leather would never be close enough to see the difference.

Something doesn't make sense here. If the stitching was coming apart then any automotive upholstery shop could fix that in no time and the dealership would foot the bill.

newyorktoLA

Dealerships are lazy....

enzo thecat

Not absurd. You're completely wrong. I know because I've already been through this once. In '98 I had a Jeep Grand Cherokee Limited with black leather and the seat heater went out in the drivers seat. (The bottom half you sit on) Dealership had to order 3 different seats (the bottom half) until they got one that was close enough to not be completely different than the rest of the interior. The final choice still stuck out like a sore thumb. In the end, I wish I would have stuck with the broken heater and had the seat match.

CEB

if the seat didn't match the back, then why didn't you ask them to order you a new seat back as well?

You sure seem to have lots of seat issues. Perhaps you should refrain from eating greasy burgers in your car and clean your interior periodically. All products need periodic maintenance and leather or tex need regular cleaning to make them look their best.

If you don't maintain your car then it will start looking bad very quickly, no matter what the material.

acr2001

This thread is insane. Between the lame bashing and the CRAZY misinformation about both leather and MBTex.
They both have their pros and cons. The guy saying MBTex wears as fast as leather.... just wow. Even the guys who consider it cheap plastic garbage wouldn't believe that if they're honest. Absurd.

mrjoe

Nicely said CEB.
And If someone is buying a vehicle for ultimate interior durability & drive through gluttony get a original "wash out" Honda element or cheap Jeep - not a $50,000 + Mercedes.

Amazes me people cry and whine about having the maintain a leather interior. Just plain crap - a weekly rubdown with a quality leather cleaner/conditioner wipe does the job in 5 minutes. Hey what;s next - *****ing about washing/waxing? then get a beater with a primer paint job.

enzo thecat

You may be the most ignorant person I have ever encountered on a forum. I wonder how old you are, 12?

I have owned a lot of cars, hence I've had a lot of experience. Two have had seat issues. One was due to a faulty heater, one was due to the stitching.

No one takes better care of their cars than I do. My garage is like one big detail bay that is almost hospital clean. All my cars are pristine, especially the interiors.

Replacing the back was not an option under the warranty, and at that point the entire seat would have been different.

Yeah, I am proving you got under my skin a little, but I want to show you how poor and reckless your judgment is. Maybe you should be less accusatory to fellow members that are taking time to help others.