glayfan40

Given that the MSRP of the two vehicles when optioned to the desired specs (see attachments) are almost identical, which one would you pick and why? My current GLK250 lease will be up next May but I'm planning ahead and would like to gather comments/opinions from my fellow forum members.

Some info about my lifestyle and preferences:
- reside in MA
- no kids (not planning to have any in the near future), just the wife and I
- nothing to tow but do seldomly (<5 times a yr) have large pieces of luggage/furniture to transport
- other car in the family is a compact sedan
- like the commanding driving position of a SUV/CUV, but also enjoys the driving dynamics of a sedan. Not a lead-foot by any means but do drive spiritedly on long highway stretches from time to time.
- would like a more luxurious cabin in terms of ride quality (suppleness), fit-and-finish, and noise levels (in that order of preference) as compared to the GLK
- wife will be the occasional driver during inclement weather. Maneuverability (read: easy-to-park and light steering) and visibility is paramount for her. 4WD is must.

The vehicle will likely need to be ordered. How long does delivery usually take (non-Designo)? And how many months does MB allow you to "pull ahead"?

I wanted to add "diesel is must" to the list because I got addicted to torque from the GLK250 . But the 2015 C class looks very interesting as well and could become a candidate for me. I don't think it will be offered with a diesel anytime soon in the US so I refrained from adding it to the list.

Now let the commenting begin!

E Classy

how important is fuel economy? i ask, because that is a major benefit of the e250.

my wife drove my car about 30 minutes recently, and her input was as follows:

+ steering feel, handling, solidity, power, parking, and overall drive-ability were excellent

- she is relatively short, and commented that visibility out over the hood was not all that comfortable for her. however, she could have easily adjusted the seat to fix that. i personally find my car has superb visibility out ALL windows for a sedan.

hope this helps.

Substance

My wife and I recently bought the E250. We also live in MA. I can't help you on which to buy but in my opinion you will be fine with E250 4matic. It is heavier than GLK250, it should do fine in he snow/ice.

I can help you with ordering. We configured the car on the mbusa website then emailed all the dealers in new England for best price and soonest availability. We picked every available option except illuminating door sills so it had to be ordered.

most professional and prompt was merc of boston. they returned with my answer right away where some of the other dealers kept asking me to call them for price and info(I am not asking any info!!!!). I also got a good deal from Viti of RI. I asked each if they can beat the best deal I already got at the time. Boston replied with an answer right away, viti said they are moving cars due to snow and they are closed on sunday so they will answer my question on Monday....opps you just lost my sale, I went to boston and bought it. $9000 off from sticker and free all season mats. They promised me 2nd week of april for delivery. Viti told me they could deliver for late April. Most other dealers told me late april or mostlikely eary may.

YYZ-E55

"Next May" as in May 2015? If so, the ML250BT will most likely be available at that point as well.

glayfan40

Thanks a lot for the response! The 9K off MSRP on the E250 seems like a very good deal. The $10K+ off deals I've read on the forums are mostly on E350's and the majority of them were from dealerships in CA/FL/NY/NJ.

I doubt I will get similar deals on the ML350BT though. Maybe recent buyers of that vehicle can chime in.

That, plus the fact that I don't get to use more than 20% of the cargo capacity of my GLK250 on a regular basis, might be enough to sway me towards the E250. But it's just one of those things you'd slap your forehead for when you need it. I guess I can always rent a cargo van when I need to haul stuff. Just need to plan accordingly.

glayfan40

Correct, it's May of 2015. I have my doubts on such a small engine in a much heavier car that the ML is.

While I do wish the mileage of the current ML350BT can be improved by another 15% or so, the 2.1L diesel in anything heavier than the current E or GLK class would just be a little too anemic in my opinion.

DerekACS

Do you have any sense on how well the E250BT is selling in Canada ?
I know there have been few available on dealers lots across our country. For over a month, I was unable to find one to test drive in the Vancouver area. Not being able to satisfy my doubts about the highway performance of the E250BT 4Matic, I decided to opt for a 2013 E350BT.

About 10 days ago, I was curious to determine the inventory of unsold E250BTs in southern California. Amongst 6 dealers in greater Los Angeles, there were 99 unsold units. In the San Francisco area amongst 8 dealers, I found another 56 units unsold. These inventory numbers suggest to me that the E250BT is not flying off the dealers' lots in California.

Whether the combination of an E Class luxury car equipped with a 4 cylinder diesel engine is accepted by the market in North America remains to answered.
Perhaps MBUSA's decision to offer this combo was mainly driven by the challenge's of meeting their CAFE ?

E Classy

so they are finally bringing the ml250 over? cool

fintail

I'd like to see a C250 BT, but it doesn't seem to be on a NA map yet.

YYZ-E55

E250BT is virtually sold out nationally in Canada and trending that way for the remainder of the 2014 model year. Allocation is tight and demand is relatively strong, exponentially so vs the E350BT which was a tough sell in RWD.

E Classy

this ought to be a great car for a lot of folks... i've read it will be coming over, but will be delayed availability - probably spring 2015 or maybe even pushed to the fall of that year. as always, an estate version would be epic.

DerekACS

That's encouraging for the E250BT. But 4Matic is not a necessity for the mild winters in the Vancouver area, but for the rest of the country, yes.

It will be interesting to see how the E250BT sells in the USA !