Hi All.. Just got a new '13 E350 with sport package, and sport wheels. However, I can't seem to get used to the soft electronic steering.. It seems like the power assist is over kill. Maybe I just miss the old style of steering, but it feels so damn soft and lexus-ey (yes it is a word, check Websters).

Maybe I'm ranting, or maybe I'm hoping that someone has some miracle of a response to help me accept it, or there is some thing I can do to stiffen it up. I have read that Sport mode only affects the transmission and shift points.

Thx!

 

Did the steering feel change since you took delivery? Or, is the same as when you test drove it? If it has changed, you should take it to the dealer. If it is the same, why did you buy it?

 

It's just the way it is on the E-Classes now. I didn't realize it until I got my 5-Series since I was so used to it.

At first, I actually thought my 5er was too hard to turn, that's how light the E's steering seems to be. My friend who drive my now-previous W212 home noted that he almost swerved into cars during turns because the looseness took him by surprise (saw him swerving around in front of me and was getting fumed).

 

Strange, I had an F10 535i and I thought it was light also. Electronic steering is the culprit. The E has it worse though.

 

I didn't notice it as much on test drive as I do now after a week long driving experience. Not the end of the world and its nice for cruising, but yep, it's pretty damn soft.

 

Anybody feel free to correct me but I think that the steering changed in 2012 with the engine upgrade. I found it very strange, very,very light sitting there at a light and it weighted up significantly with speed. Felt very nonlinear / unnatural. Having said that the 2012's and newer are attractive because of the newer engine and better looking fog lights.

 

Yeah Bimmer purists say the F10's steering has gotten lighter, but compared to my hydraulic W212 steering (they went to Electric in 2012 as pointed out below, which I heard is even MORE soft than the early W212 hydraulic) it almost felt like I was doing a workout, lol. Took some getting used to but man do I love it, I love a weighted steering feel.

BTW, was your F10 a 2011? They issued a few software upgrades I know, which came out on 2012+ cars (might be more than even one, but I know they did one big one that was meant to make the steering feel heavier and more "connected"), which people were able to get applied to their 2011's. Apparently it did a good job in improving the Electronic Steering on earlier models.

Good point and I forgot about that. Yeah, they went to Electronic Steering over hydraulic in 2012. I remember hearing it made the steering perhaps even softer.

 

No, it's really not. From the Car and Driver article on the GL:

"The steering in the all-new 2013 Mercedes-Benz GL three-row, seven-seat SUV feels light to the touch and loose on-center. This shortcoming is not attributable to any flaw in the electrically assisted rack-and-pinion gear or lapse on the part of the engineers who fret over chassis tuning. Instead, blame 50 clinic participants—Southern Californians owning a current Mercedes ute or a competitive SUV—who drove GL prototypes and said that light and loose is how steering should be."

Terrifying. I don't think cars should be designed by focus groups, but.... And, at the risk of sounding totally sexist, most of the GLs in LA are being driven by anorexic desperate housewives who can barely see over the steering wheel and who are texting w/ one hand and checking their make-up w/ another, so of course they think light and loose steering is good. =P

 

If Mercedes is really letting focus-groups design/engineer their cars then they've already lost the plot.

 

Agree, to a certain extent. I think it's fine for focus groups to determine some design elements, but I don't think the inmates should be allowed to run the aslyum, when it comes to driving.

Having said that, I think the upcoming S-class is looking very nice (aside from the very bland interior door panels and what appears to be the liberal use of single stitching!), and the CLA has a great interior (at least in photos). So I'm cautiously optimistic that MB is getting its act together, design wise....

 

It's not the Focus group's fault, its not the electronics steering that is to blame.
The one and only culprit is Mercedes.
If they were smart then the power assist would be adjustable.

 

As Steve Jobs said: "It's not the consumers job to know what they want". My biggest beef with modern day Mercedes is that they're pandering so hard to the non-enthusiast denominator, seemingly more-so than any other manufacturer in their field. I feel the reason for that is because Dieter Zetsche is in the hot seat because market share is declining, and Daimlers stock is being punished (and his contract is up pretty soon). However, if Mercedes wants to LEAD they need to be MERCEDES, not some overly-consumer-pandering brand. The great innovators (i.e Mercedes as one themselves) have always told people what they want, not the other way around. It's only when you get caught slipping and get behind that you have to start getting into pandering mode.

That said, I wasn't too hard on my E's steering when I had it, but it wasn't until I started steering the 5er that it dawned on me, how soft the E's steering is. That and my friends comments on it rolling around and feeling like an "old Cadillac" (his words).

I have to second feeling that Mercedes is letting their housewife demographic shift brand focus too much. I don't mean that to sound "sexist" or like an a-hole, but the brand seems to want to be perceived as the ultimate get around premium Taxi for the Lease-then-toss generation, which is obviously its growing clientele.

Have you tried steering an ML? Sheesh, I thought I was behind the wheel of a 70's school bus (those wheels where you can fling it with your finger and it'll spin around 2 full times). I've never experiences such light and loose steering feel.

I'm very curious to see how they do the S. One car Mercedes seems to never sacrifice on in terms of delivering that "classic Mercedes feel" it's the S-Class. However, I too don't like it's interior.... that mix of overly complex/nonsensical shapes, technology-age design with that giant 80's Knight-Rider screen harshly mating with a very old world (have you seen that 2 spoke steering wheel? Talk about trying to "appear" geriatric in that stereotypical sense, reminds me of an old Lincoln) rest of the interior just doesn't sit right.... so far. Hopefully it comes together in person.

 

not an issue for me

 

K-A it's nice that you have found the perfect car for yourself. Most of your comments are crap trying to justify your purchase. As you know, I traded two BMW's on my MB's. I liked my BMW but in the end I came back to MB simply because a Bimmer is not a Benz. Second best just won't do for many of us.

It's time for you to spend more time polishing out the swirls on your black car and less time on the MB forum. After all, this is a MB enthusiasts' forum.

 

Completely agree. Same here - traded 2 bimmers for MBs a while back. Will never come back to BMW brand. In my book, they're third best after MB and Audi.

 

Agree as well. I had the F10 BMW. Meh. They ruined the design with the new front end. It looks bloated. It's no ultimate driving machine any more. Even with the floaty steering, I prefer the Benz.

On another note, damn Petey, intense reply. However I have noticed that K-A is pretty much only posting about how great and happy he is that he's with BMW now. I also wondered why someone would still hang out in a Benz forum but mostly reply to topics referencing his new BMW and how happy he's made the migration. However it seems like he's been part of the community for a long time with over 8,000 posts, so it seeks to me that he's entitled to his spot here.

 

quick fix drive faster it tightens up the faster you drive. usually around the triple digits...

 

I'll tell you one thing: the BMW's around the triangle and bountiful! they must be giving them away somewhere..........

 

not sure if this actually helps but what I usually do is just swerve back and forth left to right really fast and it seems to tighten the steering up for a few minutes, could just be in my head though. Who knows?

 

Wow, don't let your sensitivity overrun your logic and sense.

Sounds like you're the one trying to justify your purchases ("A Bimmer is not a Benz" is exactly the complacent valueless empty words that allow Mercedes to get away with slacking off, you can't really qualify the "second best" statement other than your personal perception).

This is a thread on STEERING FEEL. My comments on the steering feel are spot on, and I'm sharing my experience.

Looks like you're getting crankier with age.

 

Logical and friendly. Appreciated.

I honestly don't believe I've been touting how happy I am with my BMW here (other than in my own Thread). It hasn't been my purpose of hanging around and such.

I know the W212 back and forth, I've been possibly the biggest enthusiast of that car since I got one (I had two).

If people don't like BMW or the F10, I don't care, I fully understand why they or you can like the W212 more. My intent isn't to "prove" one thing or another on an M-B board. Some guys on this Forum are sensitive to the touch and can't take some warranted criticism from a guy who knows current Mercedes products very well.

Unlike others here, I don't get "offended" if someone slams the car I'm driving right now. Spilling misinformation is another story....

 

The worlds perfect car was the W212 when KA owned one. Now its the butt ugly 535. If he gets a Kia lets hope he moves to that forum. Still don't know why he feels the need to post here. I am willing to bet there is not a single W212 owner in the world on a BMW forum (unless they own a BMW and trying to figure out to replace the run flats or keep the car from pulling one way or the other due to the electronic steering problem).

 

And now I've found a more perfect car. How hard is that to comprehend, LOL. Let's hope you're not delusional enough to think that the buck stops at Mercedes and that the car you're driving today will be everlastingly perfect. If car manufacturers do their jobs that won't be the case. My newfound affinity for BMW doesn't diminish my views toward the W212, instead my high regard for the W212 has made me that much more appreciative of what I find even more enjoyable in my new car. Experiences will vary.

Yay let's turn this into another sensitive haters vs K-A thread. Haven't had one of those in awhile.

 

All I am saying is that we have heard your opinion on BMW over and over and over again. We get it. You believe you have found a superior car in performance and design. Of course, it is only your opinion but you have a right to it.

You have now owned this car for about three months and the crap keeps coming. Most of us are MB enthusiasts and simply do not give a f@#k about BMW, otherwise we would own one and be posting on Bimmerfest.

Since you no longer drive a MB, there is little you can contribute to this forum. You can accomplish much more by offering your long, sage diatribes to the enthusiasts on the BMW forum. That would certainly reinforce their choice. They need it . So many of them are complaining of hesitation problems along with steering issues. Your soothing comments would help.

Go to them, they are waiting............ so are we.

 

With bratty and self-entitled posts like that where you get so defensive about a mere car brand in which you apparently love so much you have "confidence in your choice" (lol), enough so to actually get personal about it (it's called a fanboy) toward someone else's respectable opinion, I think I'll use it as fuel to kick around here longer!

Oh, wasn't it you who came into MY thread on Bimmerfest stating some valueless crap about "BMW isn't a Mercedes" (more insubstantial, empty words), and knocking what I wrote, looking like a fool (and admittedly trolling), while I wrote pages of distinct and ACTUAL merits about my car (the fact that YOU call what *I* write as "crap" is laughable). Maybe it's you who should practice what you preach, just as it is you with the big chip on your shoulder (getting personal about someone liking another car brand? Thought you were better than that).

If anyone here is sensitive and self-conscious enough about their choice of car to the point that me simply stating "My BMW" in a thread and having a pic of one in my sig bothers them, then they/you need help.

IF I have been here going around claiming that my BMW is the best thing since sliced bread, going into threads that aren't my own and recklessly slamming M-B and touting BMW, then please post them so I can see that I'm being delusional and ignorant here. Problem is, you won't. And me coming into a thread about steering and telling a guy that the steering in my W212 I realized was "soft" when I got my F10 is NOT reckless bashing, if you take it that way, that's your problem (self-consiciousness).