Johnny Rad

Looks like it's limited to 132 mph in the USA, but your point is well taken.

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...an-test-review

http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...an-test-review

blegthbloo

I like analog clocks, and feel weird when I'm not wearing my watch (which I only buy analog)... but I don't use it to tell time. I work at a computer all day, so I have at least one digital clock available to me at any given time, and the nav screen in the car has a digital clock on it too, so the one in the dash is redundant. I just like analog for looks. My wrist watch could be dead for a few days (like last time) before I even notice it (yet, I continue to wear it anyway lol)

Johnny Rad

Way OT: Whether or not they recognize it, I believe there's an increasing # of folks that wear watches more for fashion than telling time. Like you describe, there's so many other devices out there to get your time from...

Back on Topic: Andy - What did you decide to do? Did you find an E550 to make your own? Inquiring minds want to know.

Calvin0433

I was in your position before I got my E550. I was kinda new to Mercedes so I did a ton of research to find out exactly what the differences were and the trims I wanted.

The few options I wish I coulda got:
Pano Roof, Keyless Go, and massage seats. Not Having Keyless go isn't as bad as I thought, it just takes some time getting used to after you've had push to start for a year or so. Also I made sure I had the air suspension and leather seats.

Other than that I absolutely love the car. Black on Black and with it being stock it still turns heads at times. I'm thinking of taking off the resonator so I can get a little more rumble from the V8 though.

RNBRAD

The airmatic is incredible but they still worry me. I ride around in sport mode mostly so not benifitting much over the spring ride but the comfort ride for long trips, second to none. I've used my massage feature just a couple times so it's been a waste. Definitely like the keyless go and the light package my 2 fav options. The pano is ok for looks only IMO, I rarely open it.

apg231

Still looking, waiting for Spring 2017. It's gonna be a toss up between a E350 and E550. Whichever I can find with the options I want will be the one I chose. Although, the E550 is really growing on me. For now I will just my eyes peeled and keep researching.

Munich77

Just do not test drive both.....the E550 is just addictive - although maybe there is a 2015 E400 which could be a good middle ground .

apg231

I test drove a CLS550 which I assume has the same engine, but a different chassis/body lines. Was really impressed. The closest 2014 E550 is 2 hrs from me in Boston. In the spring I will hit my local MB dealer and have them run a search for both.

Munich77

Glad you liked it - I wish I could have afforded the CLS550 - they are just gorgeous.

ddsouza

Love the E550! especially the convertible E550s

dgmanny

i bought a used 2014 three months ago. I love it. The best options are the distronic, led lights and the airmatic. I bought the extended warranty because of the complexity of the vehicle. And in Massachusetts you can get a full refund if you sell the car before the extended warranty period starts. Distronic makes driving much easier.

jonUF02

If you don't care about the speed and you'll be happy with a 350, then save your money and effort.

The 2012-2014 E550 sedan is a V8 Biturbo beast. It's really more than you can use in real life, no reason to even think about the AMG. If you want a little more you can get the ECU tuned to add another 100HP on the 550!

All 2012-2014 came with 4matic standard. It really helps with handling in general, and especially wet conditions. The down-side is no burnouts

The hardest option to find on a E550 will be the Airmatic, as they went to standard spring suspension in these years, and it's very rare to see the Airmatic custom ordered as an option. If you have any intention to keep the vehicle beyond any kind of warranty, then you'd be crazy to actually want this. Basically bound to fail and cause a large repair expense.

Vented seats - I think standard with the Leather seats on 550, never seen any without it

Split/folding seats - seems to be somewhat rare

Dynamic contour seats - the only option I REALLY wish I had. Test drove one and they are much more comfortable as you can snug them to your body, and the active response is pretty cool.

Pano roof - 2 complaints seen here 1) it makes startling popping noises when you go over bumps a certain way, and 2) the sun screen is not 100% blocking of all light.

Keyless go - you'll quickly get over it if you don't have it. I actually hate it on my wife's car, she can never find her keys, just buried in one of her many bags she totes around.

Lighting package - looks amazing on the facelift body cars, but probably wouldn't be a deal-breaker for me. Seems to be somewhat rare.

Driver assist package - seems like it would be cool if you do a lot of highway driving, or nice in traffic with the Distronic. Luckily I don't have to do much of that.

Parking sensors - I find them annoying on any car.

apg231

[QUOTE=jonUF02;7001892]If you don't care about the speed and you'll be happy with a 350, then save your money and effort. If I can find an E350 with the options I want I will go that route. I do a lot of driving for work so the fuel economy might help. But I do miss having a "quick car." Man do I miss my Buick Grand National

The 2012-2014 E550 sedan is a V8 Biturbo beast. It's really more than you can use in real life, no reason to even think about the AMG. If you want a little more you can get the ECU tuned to add another 100HP on the 550! Yep I looked into the Renntech ECU upgrade already

All 2012-2014 came with 4matic standard. It really helps with handling in general, and especially wet conditions. The down-side is no burnouts I had my fun with burnouts in my younger years, now i am looking for comfort

The hardest option to find on a E550 will be the Airmatic, as they went to standard spring suspension in these years, and it's very rare to see the Airmatic custom ordered as an option. If you have any intention to keep the vehicle beyond any kind of warranty, then you'd be crazy to actually want this. Basically bound to fail and cause a large repair expense. When I look for used 2014 E550 around my area 1/2 have the airmatic the others don't. I am still up in the air about this option. Again I do a lot of highway driving for work.

Vented seats - I think standard with the Leather seats on 550, never seen any without it Ok, I figured that

Split/folding seats - seems to be somewhat rare Not a deal breaker, I can do without them

Dynamic contour seats - the only option I REALLY wish I had. Test drove one and they are much more comfortable as you can snug them to your body, and the active response is pretty cool. This is one option that I really want/need. Some of my trips can be 2+ hours so a massage every now and the would help.

Pano roof - 2 complaints seen here 1) it makes startling popping noises when you go over bumps a certain way, and 2) the sun screen is not 100% blocking of all light. Yeah I have read a few complaints about the popping noises, I don't mind the sun screen letting in a little light

Keyless go - you'll quickly get over it if you don't have it. I actually hate it on my wife's car, she can never find her keys, just buried in one of her many bags she totes around. I hate carrying keys, plus I never use the 6+ keys that are on my current key chain. I enter my house through the garage when I park my car and the only key I use is the one to my office door. My wife's Jeep has the key fob and that's all she ever carries. I would like to just put all my keys in my laptop bag and keep my key fob in my pocket

Lighting package - looks amazing on the facelift body cars, but probably wouldn't be a deal-breaker for me. Seems to be somewhat rare. Again around here 50% of the used E550's have them, 50% don't. I love the "hockey stick" LED look. I also drive on a lot of dark windy roads when I come home late from meetings and the active curve illumination will be a big help.

Driver assist package - seems like it would be cool if you do a lot of highway driving, or nice in traffic with the Distronic. Luckily I don't have to do much of that. Driver assist package is a must, again I do a lot of highway driving during the day with plenty of stop and go traffic. The E350's with this option are pretty rare, the E550's seem to have it more. Again, going to be pretty tough finding an E350/E550 with everything I want.

Parking sensors - I find them annoying on any car.[/QUOTEMy wife has them on her Jeep and it really helps with parking in the garage or at the mall. Plus I like the Skyview camera that comes with the Parktronic package.

blegthbloo

re: fuel economy, I have the latest RennTech tune and just filled up yesterday with about 18mpg combined. Only down 1 or 2mpg since the tune. Also my spark plugs are on the way out, so when I get them replaced tomorrow, I should see better mpg's from that. If you're constantly doing long trips I wouldn't worry about it in either car since 2012+ when they went to direct injection. Just my .02... I put more weight in spm (smiles per mile) than mpg.

belarus27

as far as AIRMATIC
after 2011 they had Airmatic struts modified , i guess to be more reliable , so they should last longer than 10-11 models , they relativly cheap to replace if you know where to look and can do some basic DIY's yourself.
AIRMATIC is more for COMFORT ride its not where you can cut corners car , but more of freeway cruiser or where you just driving and telling the whole world to wait cuz you just relaxing and chillin.
Springs are more for a sportier ride.
comfort or sport? your choice
p.s. had airmatic for 3+ years

HOCKEY STICK look is only for 10-11 models , 12+ had straight bar

im pretty sure you will not be able to get all the options as you want , you gonna have to sacrifice some for other>
unless you are lucky.
speaking from experience and what ppl say on these forums

apg231

Maybe I am mistaken. I thought these LED's were considered the "Hockey Sticks" on this 2014 E Class

belarus27

oh lol , sorry its only 8 oclock in CA , still sleepy at work lol
never heard anyone calling these HOCKEY STICKS as that term i only heard about DRL lights on earlier models.

and when i said i had airmatic for 3+ years , i meant i learned and realize some things , so i know how airmatic is ....

blegthbloo

These are "hockey stick LEDs":

http://s200.photobucket.com/user/had...a7056.jpg.html

I don't think I've ever heard anyone reference those you posted as "hockey stick"

apg231

Ok, I guess I am mistaken. So these are the standard E Class Sedan headlights


And these are the one included with the LED Lighting package


So is there a term for the headlights with the LED Lighting package?

jonUF02

You would be extremely lucky to find something used EXACTLY the way you would have ordered it new. There will be some compromise, or you will have to shell out to order a brand new one.

The "Hockey stick" refers to the fogs on the 10-11 sport models, I like the straight bar better. The headlights you like are just the way the LED package is designed. Again, looks great on facelift cars.

I use the good old tennis ball to park in the proper place in my garage, never fails. The parking sensors are extremely sensitive on any car I've ever driven and the constant beeping nannies annoy the crap out of me. I'd just assume rip out every beeper and buzzer in the whole car.

Airmousam

Jon, kindly take us thru your experience on this statement, besides internet chatter on folks that have problems. Remember there are many 1000's of E, S and CLS drivers that don't have problems and these drivers don't start threads on these sites saying yup, still no problems. Yup, some fail, I get it, but bound to fail and being crazy to want it is total BS....My dad is at 118k and I'm at 86k and gasp no issues! And driver assist esp with distrontic can save your life regardless of where and when you drive...Cheers

jonUF02

My point is that given a choice between something that has TONS of examples of failures (even within warranty period) documented in these forums across the history of all MB models, and costs a LOT to put right, and something that does not even have the possibility of this failure, I'll take the latter.

Airmousam

Meh, the ride is not close period and again "bound to fail" is crap esp based on the zero experience you have with airmatic...My first w212 was a base model much like yours with springs...moved to airmatic and it's a world of diff. Feels like a different car...A tennis ball over parking sensors....you're frieking killing me dude. Parking sensors in these cars are awesome and can be turned off if not needed.

cetialpha5

Yeah, I have the parktronic on both cars. It's usually fine, no real issues except in the winter with snow and ice, then it can randomly go off depending on bad it's snowing. Sometimes it randomly beeps with rain too, but usually not as much. It's interesting when someone walks in front of it, there's a slightly 1/2 second delay before it lights up. Auto high beams and active curve illumination are also interesting, you really notice it in the curves on the on/off ramps, it lights up the road, not the guardrail. Keyless go is also pretty nice, I use it all the time when entering/leaving the car. Only problem is that once in a while it doesn't work and that's when the key is hiding behind the cell phone which can block the signal. As for airmatic, maybe the newer models are better, there's a long history of them going bad in the past, especially on the older W211 models. Keyless go was also bad in the W211, the handles would go all the time due to the design, but I think the W212 is a better design, doesn't look like water will be an issue like it was on the W211.

Airmousam

Yup, we've all seen the issues on these boards with airmatic...if it's sooo bad why do they still use it so extensively on the high end models....you'd think with something that has a "presumably" super high failure rate would be frieking killing them on warr repairs and customer sat. Dunno...perhaps outside of the folks on these boards it's not that bad. I'd believe only a very tiny fraction of owners come here. Can add my bro in law has it on his out of warr S class...he's had 99 problem but airmatic ain't one...and neither he nor my dad has ever set foot on these boards...cheers and go Pats!