knucklehead550

I know, it's August 1st...we actually got her yesterday. But she's here!

2014 E550
Polar White
Black Leather with Brown Satin Ash trim
Essentially fully loaded minus Airmatic suspension

[IMG][/IMG]

We'll post more pics this weekend.

PeterUbers

Sweet ride, congrats!

I have a 2k14 being built 8/14 and delivery estimated first or second week of september.

I too chose no airmatic because of the horror stories and I'd like to keep this car well past the warranty limit (perhaps buying an extended warranty down the line).

What went into your decision making not to buy the airmatic -- how do you like the standard steel spring suspension on the 2k14?

I currently drive an Infiniti G37xS with 18's (stock) and initially thought that drove a bit harsh, but got quite used to it and enjoy it immensely in the handling department.

T.H.Carrera

i wonder if there is any difference in the ride of e350 vs e550 steel suspension other then e550 being a little more front heavy? Does it exihibit the same firm\harsh ride as the e350?

jdhoang

Very nice!

Hope you post pics of the brown satin trim.

PeterUbers

Also, curious why no "Biturbo V8" on the sides like the amgs... Would that look cheesy to add aftermarket?

BenzV12

Congrats, happy driving , I like your title of the topic as well

hstmercedes

Congratulations on your new E550. Curious why you did not get the airmatic suspension? Might it be that the roads in CA do not need them? I'm considering downsizing to the E550 from an S550, and that's the one option I would want due to the road conditions here in the Northeast.

knucklehead550

Thanks everyone! We are having a BLAST in the new car.

Congrats on your new Benz. We opted to stick with the standard because the ride is still great and it's one less thing over time that we don't have to worry about breaking.

The Brown Satin Ash looks GORGEOUS against the black interior. We saw pictures of it on a few cars online, mostly ML's, and actually got a little nervous because it looked orange. I'll try to take some good ones that show how great it really looks.

I can't really comment on the ride quality of the E350, only briefly drove one on a test drive. In regards to our E550, I think the ride is great. My last fun car was a 2004 Mach 1, and that was a rough ride. The E550 is a dream compared to that haha.

hyperion667

nice another 550!

MUST SEE FLAT TRIM!

PeterUbers

Thanks for the feedback, your comments on the suspension are very reassuring.

I chose the steel springs for the same reason -- one MAJOR thing not to have to worry about in the future. I've heard nothing but great things about the airmatic (when it works, and it seems to work for most people most of the time)

dan1495

What has your experience been with the stop/start feature? Is there any way to disable it?

34.50

Beautiful car and congrats!

PeterUbers

Apparently, according to the mbusa website, you can turn ECO on and off.

I can't imagine liking the ECO on .. i wouldn't like that delay

C280 Sport

Very striking car! I love it!

dan1495

That is why was asking. A friend of mine from Dallas just bought a 2014 E550 and loves the car except for the Eco feature. He claims the car gets really hot in traffic when the engine stops. He doesn't think it can be turned off.

PeterUbers

Tell him to hit the ECO button

From the mbusa.com website and confirmed by my salesman: "The ECO Start/Stop feature can also be shut off by the driver at any time."

He just did it on car on the lot, 2k14 E550...

dan1495

That's great information. I will pass it along

Thanks.

GabrielNov

you have to turn it off each time you start the car right? is there a way to make sure it only turns on when you want it?

edit: also wouldn't it drain your battery/cause wear by the constant starting/stopping? I had it active and I could not tell why my car was 'shaking' when I parked for a bit, it just feels weird.

C63newdude

The car looks great, I am after one right now(same model and color) but the dealer is stuck at selling me the car at $1000 below the invoice. Did you get a decent discount?

jdhoang

Wow - $1k below INVOICE?!? My discount was about $6K below MSRP. It seems most dealers I visited only had a few E550s compared to E350s and so weren't as willing to deal much on the 550s. One dealer I went to didn't even bother to make a counter offer to me. Sales mgr came out, took a look at my watch (Tag Heur) and apparently didn't think I could afford it.

Regarding the ECO button, I don't like it as the AC is definitely less cool when ECO kicks in. There doesn't seem like much of a lag to re-start though.

hyperion667

in regards to eco: I've been using the one: sometimes, in my CLS, and there have been zero adverse affects that I can see or hear in 16K miles.....

C63newdude

$6000 below MSRP and $1000 below invoice is about the same just in case you didn't know

PeterUbers

I got $6000 off MSRP -- but I also had to have them work harder on my trade in-- they gave me fair value, and made them give me an extra $1000. Another local dealership said take my offer and run, they would only give $500 off MSRP since the 550's so rarely came in.

Doesn't $1000 below invoice depend on how you optioned the car up?

PeterUbers

So can you keep it off permanently -- or do you have to turn it off each and every time you start the car?

knucklehead550

Took her out for a drive last night on a backroad here in town and she handled like a dream. Body roll appears slim to none, even getting on the freeway on a cloverleaf at about 40 (really like the active seat as well).