hyperion667

IMO the guys that drive the TL's are the same as the guys that drive those G37's
wanna be lux cars lol, again, just an opinion

drsaab

I personally Like the Panamera over the CLS.

The newer ones with the white and red led taillights look sharp. I am not sure what year that update was done. You should see if those lights are upgrade-able.

Very Few V6 models out there, most get the V8. did you get a CPO? how is the reliability vs Mercedes?

I like the Audi A7 over the CLS too. But the Panamera is more rare overall.

Audi 4 cyl burn alot of oil too! Seems weird in this day an age to have a engine burn oil and be "normal" in my opinion.

atl7

thanks! im just in love with the looks of the panamera and my daily driver before the pani was a c300 so its not like i took a step down! lol

atl7

i actually prefer the 2010-13 pani style over the 2014 because i dont like the all red tail lights. my buddy's 2010 had 42k miles when he traded his in and never had a problem with it and hopefully mine will be reliable too! mine was not a cpo at my local dealer (plaza porsche) even though it met the standards, but it was either pay an extra $3k or keep my fingers crossed that nothing goes out on the car. so i decided to take my chances and not buy the cpo since maintenance and tires will already be insanely expensive and the warranty was only extended for 2 yrs/100k miles.

drsaab

For 3k you might re think that. The cpo is transferable if you sell it and you can not get a good 3rd party warranty for that price on that car.

G3710

I cant compare the E350 to the TL but I can give you a comparison to a 2 G37Sport (2008,2011) sedan, a 535i M sport (2013), an (2010) Audi A4 Sport all cars that I have owned in the past years and currently own the E350 2011 sport with P2 package and 535i M sport all packages MY13.

I would put the e350 at the bottom of the list when compared to the other cars I have owned. For build quality and interior. my 2007 335i had a comparable Nav unit and a much higher quality interior vs the current model year E class. The back up camera is of low quality, and other components do not justify the 60k new price tag.

Why did I buy this car? I bought this car as a commuter and plan to keep it for 1-2 years, for the service and warranty covers everything for the high mileage driving I do and the unlimited CPO mileage warranty provides me with peace of mind.

atl7

trust me i didnt want to pass up the warranty, but i was already spending so much and i decided $3k couldnt justify a 2 year warranty for me. plus, i did some research and the panamera's v6 is very reliable so i just had to take my chances and i plan on keeping this for at least 5 years

DerekACS

[QUOTE=G3710;6064571

I would put the e350 at the bottom of the list when compared to the other cars I have owned. For build quality and interior. my 2007 335i had a comparable Nav unit and a much higher quality interior vs the current model year E class. [/QUOTE]

You can't be serious about the E90 having a "much higher quality interior than the 2013 or 2014 W212 ??? IMO, this is nonsense ! I have owned both E90/E92 and F30; none of them come close to the interior or exterior quality of the W212.

Hsg08

I was about to say that. I dont own an e90 or f30 but overall w212 is way better than the two if you're comparing them in and out.

Arrie

So it was on my 2004 Tahoe. It set seat and mirror and even the radio station memorized in the key. And it was scary too when you was driving and if you hit the button for the shorter driver as it moved everything all the way to the setting with just one touch of the button.

I don't see a problem with holding the seat memory button for a few seconds when needed.

Arrie

I have all three positions set for myself to change to while I do my 6-8 hour drives. Highly recommend for anybody doing short 4 hour drives too. Shorter than that, don't bother...

DubVBenz

Those panamera's seem to really be holding their values well. I know Porsche has a pretty good reliability reputation, but I always assumed that's because the only cars people bought were highly pampered, low mileage sports cars. I just have a hard time accepting at any VAG product could be reliable, but I really like the sedan so if it seems to hold up well, I may consider it in the future.

Dema

Wow, MB is doing really bad. I expect posts like E350 vs Civic soon. I have never seen such questions for 550i.

And it is very good point MB will be cheaper than Acura, I was also hoping to save some money on RL, but it is obviously better car, so no luck. I stick with E class for now.

El Cid

If you really negotiate, you can probably get a great deal on an Acura RL. They never have sold well and Acura and dealers need to get some off the lots. As for costs, the Acuras will cost less to own over time due to lower maintenance costs. Probably lower insurance as well.

fintail

No doubt the TL and RL will be easier to live with than an E, especially in the long term, as they have cheaper maintenance and are generally less complex in that fun German way. However, the price paid for that is having to look at the cars - I have to agree with K-A's idea, the aesthetics of both cars aren't exactly first class. IMO, the E looks its price, the RL especially, not so much. TL hasn't looked good since 08, new RL looks like a 4:3 scale Accord. Nice smooth comfortable cars that can be loaded with interesting tech, but design wise, I don't warm up. I don't know if I can agree that the materials are anything superior either, at least on the cars I have experienced. But on the positive side, probably deals to be had on both - TL is aging, and RL, as was mentioned, isn't selling well - buyer's market.

Dema

Thanks, I will follow your advise and see. I am really sick of having Benz after Benz, so jumping in new league is very desirable and hopefully affordable.

PeterUbers

Do what is right for you, not for what is right for the people on this board. I have an Infiniti that is ultra reliable, an e63 that had already had a sensor replaced I the crankshaft in the first 200 miles and an Acura mdx that is bulletproof ... The Infiniti and Acura don't keep me up at night, but they also do not exhilarate me like the e63.

I had 120k of my own hard miles on my 2004 Acura tl and it kept asking for more. Same with my 2009 Infiniti g37. Problem free cars but occasionally Have read horror stories.

Lots of Benz nightmares but many with reliable vehicles even long term. Nothing has the cachet of Benz for the dollars spent, IMHO.

Get the Acura and you will not be disappointed.

Dema

When you compare reliability you should compare similar sales volume models. For example E63 is unique and sales numbers are very limited. Certainly TL has higher sales volume and for the reason the model is better debugged.
Recent time I stick with lease only, so no long terms value for me. But certainly residual value impacts lease rates, so than car is better for long term and has high resale value, then it is cheaper in lease. RL can be really expensive for lease, it is my major fear.

RNBRAD

That should never be accepted as the "norm" for a car to burn that much oil. If it's the standard across the board, there is a design flaw somewhere. If that much oil is getting past the rings, what about combustion "blow-by" getting past the rings down into your oil and crank case? You can wear your additive package out on your oil much quicker decreasing engine protection from the harmful by-products of combustion. Things to think about.

stale-bread

I had to add a quart of of Mobil1 in between annual changes on my BMW 650 convert. I was told this was normal as well.

Dema

It seems common for BMW. I did it too, although it is covered by their warranty. I just was lazy to go to a dealer and then wait for couple hours for so simple operation.

Trancebolt

I confess to not delving into all four pages of this thread, but I had to throw in two cents.

My stock 2010 c300 luxury that i just upgraded to an e350 bluetec from SMOKED my enthusiast racer buddies modded Acura TL 2008 with no equivocation. Street, Drag and Freeway racing. He just got an M235i =))))

Numbers do lie sometimes. pure spec stat comparison doesnt always equal same performance. I had four diff tires on at that time too =D Bad streets in california...

dont let people tell you japanese outlives german. My TSX i drove for YEARS had an entire tranny failure RIGHT after the warranty ended at 100... traded it in at 150. All cars have similar issues depending on conditions, driver intelligence and being nice to your car. and yes... build quality at times.

Mud

I came to the MB from owning a 2008 Accord EX-L V6. Great car but I was simply ready for a change.
My entirely biased and subjective 02 :
- Bought the Accord new, all maintenance done until I traded it in the Benz deal at 110K miles.
- I compared Accord and TL at the time and saw no real value in buying the TL over the Accord.
- IMO the Accord set the standard for me in terms of dependability, someone got themselves a great car. I got fair trade-in on it, wrote a check for the balance, deal done. I prefer not to lease.
- I am 59, my sig indicates lots of car enthusiast still in me lol, but I am more inclined to moderate performance and luxury. Nothing against the Accord but I have worked hard all my life, was ready for a change and I deserved what I considered a top-tier vehicle for my 120 mi daily commute. And I like the image it projects. No PC apologies on my end
- I found the 2011 E350 I bought to be acceptable from both the performance standpoint and certainly the nice interior trimmings. It came off of a 2 year lease.
- I looked at CPO's but decided that the $10k difference buying the same year and comparable mileage between a 3rd party dealer and MB dealer was worth keeping in my pocket. Essentially I would be paying $10K for additional year of CPO warranty, I did not think that was worth it.
- the e350 I bought still has warranty till Nov 2015, and at 27K miles is well under the 50K warranty. If it turns into a lemon I will know soon enough. However, I generally know what I'm looking at plus the car was evaluated at a local MB dealer, clean bill of health. So far, all has been good, no after the buy surprises.
- I've gone over the car at the house and did some basic maintenance so I know exactly what my baseline is going forward.

I'm quite happy to be driving this car, but I would certainly say everyone should drive what they want. I also accept someone else to not agree with any of this. I'm hopeful it will live up to my expectations, time will tell.

Enjoy what you drive

pamiboy

Somehow I feel that this is not the right comparison cars E350 and TL / TLX.
The E class more closely aligns and competes with RL / RLX when you consider the refinement, space, technology and price.

hyperion667

I saw THE ugliest acura today and was laughing.....and laughing at how ugly it was..guy had 'wheels' too, at least I hope they were aftermarket LOL