Week 1 Review (with pictures)...
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Joined: Jan 2014
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ML350
Week 1 Review (with pictures)...
Well I've had my ML for a week now and thought I'd post a few quick comments. Since there seems to be a lot of questions about some of the different options, I wanted to provide some feedback to others. Pictures follow :-) ...
2014 ML350 4MATIC, Palladium Silver, Black Leather, Burl Walnut Trim
2014 ML350 4MATIC, Palladium Silver, Black Leather, Burl Walnut Trim
- 421 Sport Package Plus One: This is probably the biggest rip off in terms of cost for all the packages. But I'm still thrilled I got it. I'm a huge fan of the 20" wheels and I really like the sport front bumper. The rear sport bumper is only subtly different from the standard bumper. This package also includes cross-drilled rotors in the front and calipers with "Mercedes Benz" branding on them. My husband was annoyed with the tires that came on it ... he was hoping it came with the "scorpions". He'll get over it... :-)
- 319 Lighting Package: I basically bought this package for the "highbeam assist" ... it works great and it's a must have for me with long drives through country roads at night. Active curve is a nice feature, but wouldn't have been enough for me to buy the package.
- 413 Panorama Roof: I'm personally not a sunroof person (my husband is though) ... however, the rear seat tends to be pretty dark with the huge c-pillar on the ML. The pano roof really helps bring more light to the back seat. If you plan to have people in the rear seat ... this option is a must have. I wish the shades were solid instead of mesh, but not a big deal.
- 846 Running Boards: Another polarizing option... we use them for two things: washing the top of the car and hoisting the Christmas tree up to the roof. They are narrower than the boards on our previous X5 which is great ... wide enough for my husband to get a good step on them, but not so wide that pants hit them when getting out of the car. I think they are well executed on the ML.
- 443 Heated Steering Wheel: We live in the PNW, so this is a great feature on cooler mornings. For the price it was totally worth it. It tends to heat primarily at the 3 and 9 positions. Heats pretty quickly. Location of the control isn't ideal, would prefer a button on the steering wheel itself.
- P01 Premium Package: Well there's a ton of stuff in this package. This is a must have for us for the AC outlet in the back, memory seats, nav, etc.. Many of the features in this package are things you'd kind of expect by default on a car like this. I will say that the COMAND system is not as simple as the Audi or BMW ... it takes a bit more time to figure it all out.
- 399 Multi Contour Front Seats: OK, I got this for the massage feature... I think the massage is just "OK". I do really like the ability to tighten up the side bolsters on the seats - great for customizing the fit of the seat. The thigh adjustment isn't that great - it extends about 1 cm at most. Note, this package eliminates one of your "custom" buttons and replaces it with a "seat" button. Also note that settings for the contour seats ARE stored in the memory function.
- 401 Active Ventilated Seats: Kind of pricey for what you get, but I think it will be nice on hot days. It does a good job of cooling your bum ... probably important if you live in a hotter climate. Note that the fan is a bit on the loud side (if you expect it to be silent like the Porsche version, you'll be disappointed).
- 876 Multi-Color Ambient Lighting: Well, if you want to go all out, get this. Otherwise, pass. The lighted door sills are cool, but gratuitous. The interior ambient lighting is quite nice, but not as dramatic as I expected it to be. You can control the color and intensity through the steering wheel controls.
- 872 Heated Rear Seats: We didn't get the second row climate controls as our previous car had (though there is default controls for managing the airflow). However we wanted heated seats for our second row passengers ... as with the front seats, the heating is really good. (and I like that the heated seats step down over time).
- 810 Harmon Kardon: Not an audiophile by any stretch, but the LOGIC7 setting is really nice. I think overall this is every bit as good as the B & O system in my husband's Audi. If you listen to music, get this.
- 889 Keyless Go: Worth every penny. Period.
- 311 Heated/Cooled Cupholders: This one cracks me up ... it does work and it's cool that the cupholder lighting changes based on the setting. Glad I got it, but it's probably something you could pass on.
- 297 Manual Sun Shades: These were a must have for us, but they are a funky design... the shades pull out of the B-pillar and they are pretty flimsy. Not a great design and I expect our kids will break them at some point (you have to be pretty gentle in pulling them out)
- 282 Rear Seat Pass Through: I'm not sure why we got this, probably because it was only 160 bucks. We'll never use it...
- 993 Lane Tracking Assist: I know my husband explains that if your mirrors are adjusted properly, you won't have a problem with the blind spot. Whatever. I love having the indication of a car in my blind spot. Haven't dozed off yet, so I can't comment on the lane keeping feature.
- 996 Parking Assist: Well, I like having the surround view camera for parking. The car has a really tough blind spot, so the cameras are very helpful when navigating a busy parking lot. I will say that the system is very "beepy" ... there are all sorts of beeps when just pulling into my garage.
- 550 Trailer Hitch: we never pull a trailer, but we have a hitch mounted bike rack. It works great for this. Note: the rear bumper has a cut out in it (on the bottom) with the hitch. So if you install this after market, there will probably be some cutting.
Last edited by mellow sparky; Apr 1, 2014 at 12:15 AM. Reason: update
Junior Member
Joined: Jan 2014
Posts: 16
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W166 BT
No leather piping
Correct, mine is leather and has no piping. I was confused also because the dealer during tests said that leather has piping and I thought the one we tested had piping but then my custom order ml arrived without piping and I just keep wondering if they switched for mbtex (but I am pretty sure it is real leather). I also got mbtex dash so wasn't sure if that affected the final combination look. Smells like nice new leather though...
Super Member
Joined: Jul 2012
Posts: 513
Likes: 5
From: SoCal
13ML BT
Correct, mine is leather and has no piping. I was confused also because the dealer during tests said that leather has piping and I thought the one we tested had piping but then my custom order ml arrived without piping and I just keep wondering if they switched for mbtex (but I am pretty sure it is real leather). I also got mbtex dash so wasn't sure if that affected the final combination look. Smells like nice new leather though...
Nice truck, BTW.
