rufmb

After a month of E350 Lux ownership I'm discovering rather silly things that Audi managed to sort out 10 years ago in my old A6.
I very much like the solid feel of the new Benz and I'm just as comfortable after driving 100miles per day. Little things I'm noticing though, gas cap looking mechanism is flimsy, carpeting in trunk is coming loose, one cabin light doesn't always turn on, one vanity mirror light doesn't turn on at all, some rattling from passenger side that occurs only in motion that I can't easily determine, buzzing in the left tweeter, blue tooth audio from my iphone auto cuts out, auto-dimming mirror is still too bright, body shape kicks up a ton of dirt on the rear after a rainy drive. Some not so inspiring things too - auto transmission kicks a little too much when shifting down, maybe due to the 275ftlb of torque...I'm now very conscious of this and always looking out for it in roundabouts etc.
Sorry for the mini rant from a new MB owner, but it cost twice as much as a top of the line Honda Accord I test drove just for kicks with full leather and LED headlights
Never owned a Lexus, wondering how perfect they are once you take possession - JD Power says they're good?

mleskovar

Did you just post your warranty repair list? Just think, if you had bought the Honda you would just have....well, a Honda. But it would be a perfect Honda.

BenzV12

Recently , one of longhorn members K-A's post frown upon and I don't wanna see same thing happens to you . So, please do not post topics like that XXXX car is better than MB or something like this .
I am taking matters in my hands if you don't mind because you are a good member here and don't deserve attacks
Attention to detail ....As of yet I have not driven an Audi but been a passenger .MB's interior is the best and suits my taste greatly from array of buttons to the design of the seats but that's my opinion

rufmb

Thanks, I remember K-A's comparison's with his new BMW and the negative criticism it drew for some reason. It did surprise me though coming from what I'd expect is a more sophisticated and mature group of car owners. Don't get me wrong, I love the car and am still a proud new owner of a Benz. Still, while not S class, I did expect a certain level of engineering and production attention to detail in a higher end car.

rufmb

Agree completely, which is why I said 'tested just for kicks', I was never going to buy the Honda. I did test an Audi though, beautiful car overall, somehow I can't get past the big-mouth grill that appears to be a hit with customers.

chrisvr6

This guy nailed it. Its really that it is only a e350 maybe? Less attention to detail because its an entry level car? My lexus gx470 is an 06 with 90k and absolutely none of those silly quirks were ever a problem with it. Basically a Love/hate relationship with my e350.lol

alsyli

Maybe you just got a bum car? We've never had issues like in the first month of ownership w/ any of her 7-8 MBs, and most of those were C-classes....

Everyone I know how owns a Lexus raves about it. If someone at Lexus could figure out that single stitched leather actually looks *worse* than plastic, I'd probably consider a GS for my next car (actually, I'll consider one anyway, but my impression is that Lexuses don't ride as well as MBs).

I know you were sort of joking about the Honda, but.... I had a Honda Accord prior to my C250. Never again. After hearing how Honda last hundreds of thousands of miles w/ just regular maintenance, my crap Accord required $400 of maintenance in each of 3 consecutive months after clearing 110,000 mi or so. Sure, MB cost more to maintain, but truly bizarre things in the Accord were failing (a failed hood strut? a broken **engine mount**???). And those were just the things that broke. I drove the car ~17000 miles a yr, which, according to Honda's ridiculous schedule of maintenance means I was bringing in the car less than every 3 months for maintenance.

If a car from one of the most supposedly reliable car makes on the planet is going to crap out on me after 100,000 mi, might as well just get a luxury car and enjoy my life more while I have the car....

leapingpoint

Audi is not in the same league as MB and BMW.

Audi cars all look-alike, and from the front end you can never tell which model is which. It's like you have a male and a female cars, and they keep on having children, and their children would have offsprings with their brothers and sisters, and sometimes even their parents and grandparents. Then the cousins join in and have a big orgy. At the end, you have the entire family all look-alike.

There, I said it.

Bring it on.

Wig

I agree. Very overrated cars. Audi is the media darling; discussed in detail in another thread. They are thought of as 'cool', but they don't do it for me.

Bland looking, terrible rear-end design, slab-sided, flimsy and gimmicky interiors, and poor reliability.

They also have arrogant dealers who think their cars are too good to be discounted, and use BS tactics such as saying they can't get enough cars to meet demand. The dealerships are often a joint VW and Audi facility, which is why they have 'low rent' customer service.

ImInPA

Go and drive a new A6 or A8 and then post. Audi is very much in the same league. Audi/VW have always been known for their amazingly well executed interiors. While the design language is different between MB and Audi, I think any rational person will concede that the materials and assembly are comparable. I personally prefer the more teutonic approach of MB. Form and function. IMO, BMW has given the nod to Lexus-like plushness, Audi sits between MB and BMW with regards to Plush Vs Teutonic. With Audi getting ready to releawse A8, A7, A6, and Q5 with their 240 hp TDI, MB and BMW better keep an eye on them. Also, don't discount Hyundai, as they ready the second generation Genesis.

BenzE350

hahahahahaha

You sound like a certain MBWorld character who led the fanboi cheerleading for MB until he switched to BMW. He now admits that he has a new higher standard.

Audi, MB and BMW all make some great cars. I have owned all 3 and they have their various pros and cons.

CLK550AMGpkg

I can't say I disagree about the extremely flimsy-feeling fuel filler cap. It's completely plastic. My CLS has that same little hint of cost-cutting. I even remember watching a promotional video for the 212 E-class wagon/estate and that plastic gas cap actually came off the car.

Another thing that caught my attention on the E/CLS is the lack of a metal housing/holder for the windshield wiper blades. There's simply a thin stem connected to the rubber blades. There was a Car&Driver article of an E63 AMG where they said one of the windshield wipers actually flew off the car while they were driving on the highway.

But minor forgivable quibbles aside, the new E's are still some of the best built tanks on the road. The build quality (overall) is still seriously impressive as far as I'm concerned.

And as far as Audis are concerned, they are highly overrated. Let's be real here, the level of praise for their interiors has been blown WAY out of proportion. Not that I don't love Audis. They've been in my family for years and their build quality has always struck me as no better (or worse) than MB, BMW, or Lexus.

gsxr_fvr

And in regards to the Audi...Just google "CARBON BUILDUP", its just sad. My 2007 A4 died at 35000 Kms. Literally engine just gave up and then I found out about the well known Major Carbon build up issue.

emericr

Some members just drink the MB cool aid.
The Audis interior and attention to detail is superior to MB. No question about it. I have owned Audis for the 8 years (and not the top models S4, TT and Q5) and there were all superior in interior quality, finish, and durability.
The level of service (I understand this is down to the relationship you have with that specific dealer) but again my Audi dealer wins. (ability to test a car over the week end to just name one item).
Finally, IMHO design of the new Audis (I know this is subjective as well) is better than the current new MB cars.
Anyway, too bad about the little problems you have. Get to the dealer and they should be able to fix most of thems.

ZorroAMG

Audi interior > MB every day. MB build quality, prestige, exterior styling > Audi and BoringMW every day.

But that's just my opinion...

W210

Had a few Audis, A6 allroad 2.7TT, A4 3.0 avant a few years ago. They look nice but don't find them reliable at all. The A4 had some serious wind noise issues which traced back to a welding problem. The A6 had a rather dangerous drivetrain with a unresponsive throttle lag due to the combination of poor software and lag from the turbo. The car eventually died on us even during the warranty period with a dead alternator.

My experience tells me MB cars are more reliable.

In Canada, MB offers far better service which is another important factor, as they are mostly factory owned dealers. Writing to VW Canada/Audi was a nightmare, just like Porsche for that matter, rather poor customer service in comparison.

pcsgrp

I looked at Audis and wound up getting a E350. There are some idiot things that I wish MB had dine such as a place to put my sunglasses, no HID lights (quickly resolved) and I guess I wished they would have a owner manual for the navigation system so I wouldn't have to learn how to use it sitting in the car but could use some "quality sitting time" learning about it. I now have 1,200 miles on the car and a trip I just took to Boston gave me a solid 29.6mpg. Didn't really realize how good the luxary suspension worked until a truck drove into a car about 300ft in front of me and managed to rip off the rear bumper and a lot of other pieces as we were all going 70mph. How I was able to avoid all those parts with another vehicle to my left was just something I didn't thinks was going to happen. The semi and the car pulled over but looking in the mirror you could see other cars hit the debris and the accident got worse

alloutmk23

I work in an independent automotive test facility. I really can't stand it when an audi drives through door because the whole car is clipped together. It's really annoying doing head impacts on the front bumper and having to tear it off and put it back together every single time, instead of unfastening it like a normal vehicle.

Even the engineers bi*ch about it...

emericr

Interesting info, allout, however it really does not impact us the daily use of the car.

rufmb

Don't get me wrong, still in love with my E350 Lux, and enjoy driving seeing that standing star on the hood.
But...
I did mention in a separate thread that the parking brake isn't set correctly, needs to be pushed right to the floor to get it to engage at all, else the car just rolls back until the tranny catches it.
Also, today I notice a lot of condensation in my right rear brake light....wonder how MB service will fix this - replace light or use a hair dryer to make it disappear

ImInPA

rufmb: I do not know your dealer, but, I know that my dealer would address both of your issues. They would adjust the parking brake, and, replace the tail light. Have you actually been disappointed in the service from your dealership or are you just engaging in a paranoid vent? The dealership is very important in having a good ownership experience.

rufmb

Sure I understand the importance of the dealer service relationship with customer but I'm intentionally separating the two - they are 2 distinct areas for a quality evaluation.
For example and as fact my dealer has been wonderful thus far in replacing for free the tow hook cover that flew off immediately after I'd purchased the car. But I'm concerned that the little cover actually flew off the car in spite of the tether design, something I haven't experienced before along with a quickly growing list of minor annoyances.
The brake light issue, I'm sure the dealer will attend to it, but why the severe condensation in a presumed quality product, not unlike the same I experienced in an old Honda CRX I owned 20yrs ago?
Also soliciting other user 'initial product quality' experiences here, which one should be able to do without having one's loyalty to a brand questioned. I'm hoping MB will earn mine.

K-A

You and me both, my friend.

That's funny, my windshield wiper on my 2011 E flew off one time as well. I stopped to pick it up, "clipped" it back in, and it flew off again, lol. Hit the top of my car and everything.

I agree about Audi interiors being overrated. They ARE very nice, but I don't see that impeccable quality so many Magazines rave about. I find the A6 to have some very chintzy plastics in the center console that you wouldn't find in an M-B or BMW, and there is absolutely no stitching on or around the doors, which looks a lot less luxurious than the F10, IMO. I do think lots of things about the A6's interior are nicer (certainly more avant-garde and sporty, if you like that) than the W212's, but all in all I prefer the W212's I think, as the door stitching goes a long way to me, and though I'm not crazy about all its plastics itself, I found most to be maybe better than the A6's. Oh, and I hate the cheapo looking pop-up screen on the A6, that doesn't even look aligned right sometimes when up.

I actually had condensation in my 2011's rear light as well. The dealer took care of it (replaced it). Also, I got really tired of M-B's parking brake as well. You have to really push down on it to engage. My F10 has an electronic button that I just press (next to the shifter) and it engages a parking brake. Far more "luxurious" feeling then cranking a pedal down with your foot.... though perhaps M-B does it their way for ultimate safety and reliability, which they do very well (I still can't figure out how to get my 5-Series into Neutral while the engine isn't running).