hollywoodtrash

What are your guys' thoughts about an E550 or CLS550 going up against a BMW 550i. I'm thinking it's going to be a very close race but I have a feeling the E550 would get a better start off the line. I also drive a BMW 550i and was wondering if anybody in the SOCAL area would want to join in on one of our E60 meets to do some G-meter timing runs.

TopGun32

too close to call..

but I would say the SMG 550 will have a higher trap speed than the auto and manual.

I have seen videos of a 335i manual neck and neck with a 550i

E550 have ton of torque, but the 7sp is not as aggressive as you would think.

rolling start.. I give it to the MB (more torque)

stand still probably the beamer by a hair.

long run.. I would think the gearing of the SMG will win. With auto and manual.. I think the E woul win.

search for trap speeds (not 0-60 or ETA of 1/4) The trap speed always tells the full story or a real world race. Cars with higher trap speeds will always win the freeway runs.

don't get too caught up in 0-60 (too many variables)

Roupin

The E550 would win. Car & Driver tested both of them a few months ago, and the MB was a bit faster in both off the line and in the 1/4.

ProjectC55

The E550 would thoroughly trounce the bmw 550i! CLK550 would kill it even worse. No questions asked.

Cylinder Head

iTrader: (1)

E550's have a ton of power, and Mercs in general are better drag cars. I'd have to go with the E on this one but that's just my gut. I drove an S550 and that thing really surprised the hell out of me.

MidniteBluBenz

I've seen the video of the 335i vs. the 550i. I debate the value of that race since the 550i had 20" wheels and I saw a second race w/ the 335i vs. 550i vs. 545i and the 545 came out ahead of the 550i. The 335i was ahead of both.

The E550 and 550i manual should be neck and neck. Although the 4.8L in the 550i isn't as powerful it still manages to trap the same as the 5.5L. Same story w/ the S550 vs. the 750i. It is possible that BMW underrated the engine at 360hp. They did that w/ 540i's at 282hp.

There was a race between a 335i and a E550 posted on another board and the 335 got beat. The 335 driver said it was a fair race and he got beat straight up.

LB Bnz

IMO: the E550 would outrun the Beemer...tons of tq!!

regor60

That's the first I've heard of BMW underrating anything. Dinan was getting 240whp out of the 540 or low 290s at the flywheel,not much of an underrrating

ProjectC55

The E550 can trap 105 to 110mph. Can you post some 550i traps? Just wanna see who says they trap the same.

http://www.caranddriver.com/comparis...-bmw-550i.html

http://www.edmunds.com/insideline/do...ticleId=116445

manual BMW 550i 13.7@ 104mph
auto MB E550 13.5@ 106mph

MidniteBluBenz

I spend a lot of time on 5er boards and 540i's dyno on the low side between 250 - 255whp ('94 - 95 & '99 - '03 models) up to 265whp - 270whp (only '97 & '98). Roughly that translates into 300+ crank. The engine evolved a lot in the 540i's, and not always for the better.

The best trap I've seen for a E550 is 108. A 550i will never trap that high. Thats deep into E39 M5 territory.

However, the 550i in the C & D article has a 6spd ZF autotragic. I can only speculate that a 6spd manual 550i would trap closer to 106. How much closer? But I wouldn't be surprised to see it trap 106 in the hands of a good driver.

My second reference wrt to the 4.8L vs 5.5L is this. The first link is the performance chart comparison of the 750Li, S550 etc. The 750Li is 1/10th slower in the q/m and traps 1mph better. The second link is the weight of the two cars. The 750Li is 80lbs lighter. An insignificant difference.

http://www.caranddriver.com/assets/d...ertrain_ss.pdf

http://www.caranddriver.com/assets/d...vehicle_ss.pdf

hollywoodtrash

Haha if that video was a black 550 with 20'' black wheels that would be me

It was pretty much a dead even race between my friends 335 and myself. We went from about 40 to 110 around there and he was only up by maybe a quarter length. I must admit his car is stupid fast and he just recently installed the xede program.

For the next meet we are organizing we would like to have an E550 or a CLK550 just to see how run against them. I'm almost positive the mercedes' will win but not by much..

hollywoodtrash

Yeah, I fell back pretty hard on this run because I started in the wrong gear

ProjectC55

We'll see! As the speeds climb my $$ is on the 5.5L 32 valve motored car. Especially if it's the CLK550.

vegastrashed

hollywood,
Amazing isn't it how the vids of our runs got around?

sprink49

OK...listen up. I think that the E550 and the 550I say alot about where our technology is today...and I think it's great. Here is a Mercedes 4 Door sedan that is a normal daily driver that will cary 4 adults in comfort & luxury for long distances. This automobile is not an exotic and is capable of consistent 0~60 in 5.8 seconds and 1/4 mile time around 13.2 seconds!!!

I'm probably alot older than most of you guys (my 1970 Hemi Challenger was new when I was a sophmore in college) and look back to the late '60s/early '70's for Muscle Car comparisons. These cars are what I have always considered to be fast. This link http://www.motortrend.com/classic/fe...s_pricing.html

takes you to a Motor Trend article comparing some of the "baddest" of that era.

Take note that the 1970 Hemi 'cuda with a 3.23 gear and automatic runs/ran 0~60 5.8 sec. and had a hard time breaking into the 13's with the rubber that was available in that day.I can tell you from personal experience that it took headers and slicks to get my Hemi Challenger 4 speed into the low 13's & high 12's and it drove like a dump truck!

Your E550's & BMW 550I's would smoke these cars on the street in the real world.

I'm going to keep my eye peeled for a '07 E550 in a year or two that is at the end of a lease w/CPO warranty. That will be alot of car/bang for the buck!!

JLP

E550 hit 0-60 in 4.8 seconds according to Car and Driver.

sprink49

There you go...even better still!! There is a very small % of cars on the planet that can match that!! Amazing.

amgdriven

Suprised you.....yes

Suprised the hell out of you......no. You drive a 1000 hp Supra. The only thing that would suprise the hell out of you would be a F-22 Raptor.

The S550 felt a hell of a lot stronger then the N/A S55 I drove years ago. Those 550 engines are awesome for a non-AMG label. My neighbor's SL550 was surprisingly fast when I beat him in my E55.

Fikse

It's close but I think the E550 would have a slight edge at any speed....

Here is a real world 550i run.....


http://www.dragtimes.com/BMW-550i-Timeslip-11291.html




.

MidniteBluBenz

As the speeds rise the E550 should creep away, but that link to a 550i running 14@100 is bull. A well driven 540i/6 will run 14 flat @ 100mph. http://www.dragtimes.com/BMW-540i-Timeslip-116.html

550i isn't that much slower than a E550. I think a well driven 6spd manual 550i will hang pretty closely w/ a E550.

sprink49

Not to start some **** but my 2001 540/6 broke into the high 13's twice...once at Commerce in Atlanta and once at Moroso. I'll try to find the time slips.Miss that car but it was hard on my wife's back. As I've said before, I might pick up a 540/6 as a toy.

Fikse

it's bull? it's a real run, not a magazine adjusted time.. that 540i time is from mototrend... maybe the 540i was lighter? not sure..

I raced a few 540i's when I had a GS400 and they couldn't pass me... and I ran 14.6 in the GS400....

MidniteBluBenz

If I showed you a link to a 55K car running 12.9@110 would you say that is the best/most accurate indication of what a CLS55 is capable of on the streets? Probably not since the car is fully capable of running a better time in the hands of a better driver.

http://www.dragtimes.com/Mercedes-Be...lip-10069.html

Also, GS400's and 540i's are neck and neck. I've read a few races posted b/w those two cars and its a toss up. GS400's trap close to or at 100 as well.

nicegsxr

ummm for a toy... get a M5

hollywoodtrash

Yeah, very interesting..