davidjohnbamber

Having previously owned a 94 W124, a 2007 W211, and a 2014 W212 all with 6 cylinder engines, I always thought the additional 30+ HP would make happy with my newer purchases. After spending too much time on forums like this I realized the error of my ways. My E550 isn't an AMG, but damn it provides many Smiles per Mile, and my cashflow gives a thumbs up also! In the past 20 years six out of my 8 vehicles were M-B. So I guess that I might be prejudiced in my choice of rides.

tresean1

Nice!! So you went from a 2014 E350 to a 2013 E550?

kajtek1

Not trying to start another religious war, but since the topic seems to have too many replies from "power freaks" I feel obligated to add realistic fact to driving.

- it is not 2 seconds less at green light that will get you first to long-distance destination.
It is avoiding gas stations!

DIESEL RULEZZ.

KEY08

Hey, you have to take a pee every once in a while on those long trips! Ha! It's all good. Mercedes makes cars for us all and the Diesel prowess with the brand is only lagging in the US it seems. They are all great rides.

davidjohnbamber

Yes, it took about 6 months to "just do it"! I told my local (165 miles away) dealer to find me a E550. A little over 2 months later it was a done deal. So as Paul Harvey said: Now you know the rest of the story. Living in Oregon is great with NO sales tax. That said it complicates purchasing from out of state dealerships with sales tax issues unless the dealership delivers the car to me.

Peachy

Yup, they make an E200 to a E63S AMG, and everything in between. There's one for us all.

davidjohnbamber

I owned a GLK250 that I bought for my late wife (ease of entry/exit). I averaged over 30 mpg over 24 months. When Oregon passed a clean fuels bill (less dino, and more bio) it was the deciding factor in trading it in for a E350. Most of the diesel sold around here is now 20% bio. Reading the owners manual for over 5% bio use did not leave me with a warm, and fuzzy feeling.My 550's average MPG is a little less than 10 mpg than the GLK was, and I now fill up the gas tank monthly. So it costs me about $25 more a month. BTW, I also find it interesting M-B announcing no diesels for 2017, and mentioning potential forthcoming regulatory issues over emissions.

kajtek1

I am good for 4 hr even after my routine 1l morning coffee.
Still it is how long you take to pee. When I am alone, I need 3 minutes.
With DW it turns to 20-30 minutes.
Bottom line, our routine 550 miles from SF to LV took me last time 7 hr alone.
Have hard time to do it in 8 hr with wife.
Coming to B20, I did fill it few times with my E320 Bluetec and actually one time noticed increase in mpg. But that could be wind, what is big factor on desert driving.
I am just starting to drive E250 and on city/mixed driving it is recording 32 mpg. Can't complain.
With such mpg, I will make 550 miles without fueling. Should come to 6 hr 40 minutes.

davidjohnbamber

Kajtek1: Early last year I came across a M-B bulletin regarding B20 use. Basically it stated to only put enough B20 in to get to the closest stop with B5 or "pure" diesel, and fill up.

kajtek1

I know, I know, but each manufacturer will always exaggerate the issue.
In the past I drove 1997 E300DT on 100% bio for few tanks and the only difference was lower acceleration. (same with 7.3l Powerstroke btw)
With 320 BTC I had 2 fill ups in the row with B20 and no problems.
I read about MB owners in Minnesota, where B20 is only available reporting problems, but that usually takes tens of thousand miles to show and it becomes cleaning issue.
Driving in CA I have a choice to fill up B20 for $2.39 at reputable truck stop, or "no name" diesel from "no name" gas station for $2.69. There is always Chevron at $3.29
Than when you take your time to research gas station data, all diesel in CA has min 6% of bio.

jbizzle76

I had a baby on the way and was currently driving a 2009 328 w 75k miles. I wanted something bigger for the baby and always wanted a diesel. I knew MB had just face lifted the E class in 2014, so I started looking seriously in the 2015 model year. I ordered a 2015 E250, dark blue, lightning package, sport package and no other options - it took 3 months to arrive, but I love it. Only thing I have done to it is add 35% tint and change the exterior mirror glass to the Euro-style convex on both mirrors. Car currently has 37k miles, no problems and consistently returns 38mpg on my 62 mile daily commute!

Love the folding rear seats and huge trunk for all the gear that comes with a beautiful, 18 month old daughter.

El Cid

Star on the hood.

teksurv

I remember fondly when my Dad got his '94 E320. I was a teenager, and I loved it. Black on black. Then he got a 2004 E320. Loved that too. My first Benz was a '13 C350. Leased for two years and moved to my '15 E350. Steel gray on black and 20% tint with AMG wheels. Love it. Oh, the lighting package DRLs catch a lot of attention.

I test drove, as a loaner, a new '17 E300 for 5 days. Nice car, but looks like a melted jelly bean on the outside and lack of E400 is not for me. If I change it up in the near future it will be for an E400 Coupe 2018 model. Outside is bland, but less than the sedan. Otherwise, I'll keep the W212.

thefisch

I go on 2-4 long roadtrips a year in my E550 and have gone about 500 miles (about 6.5 hours) straight before, but I never do as stopping to stretch or whatever helps break up the trip. More range around town and more time between fill ups would be nice though.

However, I get to experience that '2 second high' several times a day if I want. So I don't mind feeding the beast a little more often.

taphil

Because W213 is too ugly to even look at. Or at least way too boring to consider buying.

adrien

Simple: it's the only premium full-sized wagon you can get in the USA.

We wanted an A6 to replace our old A4 Avant. Audi sopped shipping them here, and you can only get an all road A4. Too small.

Love this thing. I'm 6'3 and can put my bike in it without taking any wheels off. It has more room than my wife's 7-seater xc90. 30 mpg highway, plenty of go and all-day comfort don't hurt, either.

AMG_Go_Fast

After owning the E55 AMG and absolutely loving the power of that beast the MB bug bit me hard. The fact that I am German decedent might have something to do with it as well ;-)

However the E55 was just too expensive to fix and was getting up there in years so time to move on. When the W212 came out I just loved the front end looks, especially the Sport model with its pretty aggressive rack of the front end. Seeing as I had had my fun with the E55 it was time to get something more practical. the 350 would be first six cylinder car I ever owned (Over 10 v'8's). Gas prices are not a concern as my commute is 20 mi a day but I really loved the look and was expecting better reliability than the AMG.

2 Years later and only standard maintenance performed, I still say to myself "I love this car" everytime I get out of it.

davidjohnbamber

I like to think that I'm driving a car, and not an appliance.

kajtek1

THINK it the crucial word.
On the car where you can only "make requests" and it is actually computer adjusting the acceleration, changing the gears, putting car in P, steering the wheels - all it takes is 1 more chip already used in different makes and you can go on back seat.

blegthbloo

I had a G37 that I was getting one too many tickets in, so I needed something to slow me down. Part of the motivation was that the G37 had previously been in a frame-bending wreck that wasn't reported on its Carfax, and ever since finding that out, I didn't want it anymore. One day I drove my roommate's C350 to the shop while he was out of town and I loved how smooth it was compared to all of my previous (manual) cars, and how I didn't feel like I had to go fast in it (also cautious since it wasn't my car, and was more expensive than anything I had owned up til then)... so that started a search for a "go slow" car to break me out of my "go fast" ways.

Since I didn't want the same car he had, I went to look at a '10 E350 with pano roof and got the same "go slow" feeling from it. I didn't buy that car. I looked at a GS350 (which I hated since it felt like - and is essentially - a Camry, and it didn't give me the "go slow" feeling) and a LS460 (which I liked, but was bored by, more like a "go too slow" feeling). I saw an ad for another E350 with pano roof and went to go check it out... unfortunately, they sold it by the time I got there (and failed to mention it to me), so since I made the hour-long trip through DC traffic to get there, I decided to see what else was on the lot. Ended up getting my non-pano '11 E350 there that day since they agreed to pay me what I owed on the G.

Fast forward through 3 years of worry-free motoring with nothing but maintenance and filling with gas... my driving record cleared up and I was ready to "go fast" again... but I liked the E-class in looks and style. After almost buying a R32 GT-R Nismo (someone else beat me to it) and looking at a few other similar cars, I was ready to stay content with the E350 and subdue the "go fast" bug and just focus on taking my bikes to the track more often.

I was chatting with a coworker at work who was expecting his first child, and he asked for my opinion on sedans as a fellow "car guy"... I told him the E350 is nice, safe, and spacious enough for a new baby. But after 3 years of owning the 350 and being on these forums, I was leaning more towards the performance of the 550, so I suggested he look for one of those. He's lazy though, so he asked me to find him one. I like car shopping, so it's not a big deal... I quickly found a nice E550 with P2 and a bunch of things I wish I had on my 350, and it was local to us. He said I should go check it out for him and let him know if it's legit. Again, I like car shopping, so I agreed. Ended up trading in the E350 that same week. Oops. Moral of that story is: you snooze, you lose.

jahquan3

^Lol...Are you still friends?

blegthbloo

we call each other names and make fun of each other, so I'd say things are still normal between us. He ended up getting a Q50 3.0T and wants to race when he gets it tuned. All I have to say to him:


Edit: After posting this clip I realized how fitting it is to the situation as a whole, seeing how his car was "Taken" from him lol

jahquan3

^That's good stuff. Yeah he definitely needs that tune or it's a waste of time. I wouldn't have been mad either.
It's like asking a friend to do all the work to get you a date and when the girl ends up liking him, it should be expected lol.

KEY08

Ha! Great story. I ordered a 2008 G37 before they were even in the showroom. I took delivery, lowered it, tint, clear bra and then drove it for 18 months and sold it back to the dealer. I hated that car. The sport seats were the worst I had ever experienced. I just wanted a two door to tool around in and what a mistake that was.

blegthbloo

That car needed a stiffer clutch, smoother gear shifts, and a more open exhaust to be nice. I upgraded to a stage 2 clutch and changed the spring on the clutch pedal to get the perfect clutch feel (actually felt connected to the road afterwards), and put on an aftermarket exhaust (always loved the note of the VQ engines)... then it was a nice car to drive. Never got the synchros right (probably due to that accident tbh), and was the only thing I didn't really like about the car. See a bunch of them around now and none of them quite sound as good as the one I had, so I guess I chose well. I do miss that car sometimes, until I cold start the E550 with the windows down. lol