Streamliner

In my quest to make my unloved Panorama Roof do a disappearing act, I was thinking of painting the glass panel that is just above the windshield header and just in front of the movable roof. I would like it to be the same Palladium Silver as the rest of the car. I figured it wouldn't be a gigantic deal to simply replace that piece, should I run into lease return problems down the road. WRONG!

Today, when I dropped my car off for service at the dealer, I visited the parts department and found that that relatively small piece of glass is actually attached to and ONLY SOLD WITH the frame assembly for the entire Panorama Roof and the price is $6,000.00! Can you imagine if you happened to crack that panel by jumping the gun a bit waiting for your garage door to open? And at $6K, we're not even talking labor, which would probably be another huge hit.

It's curious, that on the ML models with the Panorama Roof, that piece is not attached to the entire assembly, but is a separate piece, which costs about $900.00. Go figure.

So, it's back to my original idea of "wrapping" that piece, along with the roof trim rails. There are some wrap colors that are very close to the Palladium Silver, but not exact, which is why I gave thought to paint. Anyway, with the wrap, if I don't like it, it comes right off and I'm out maybe $500.00 for the exercise.

clkcadet

I would imagine nothing is cheap on this car, as everything is overcomplicated.

Yes you should definitely try a wrap, I just hope they get the color right. Palladium is a very special color that is hard to match.

Such a shame they did this, kind of reminds me of the black rear pillar on the Jaguar XJ. Luckily it is on the roof though on the S.

hyperion667

ah the dreaded D pillar.......I was noticing one of those just the other day while I was waiting for my daughter.........heinous design.......and I have always loved Jaguars too......still want one someday......

Streamliner

It's just so idiotic for MB to think that their S Class customers would perceive the Panorama Roof being standard equipment as some sort of a benefit. Anyone with half a brain can see that making all the S sedans with the exact same roof is nothing more than a cost cutting measure by MB, disguised as some sort of a giveaway to the customer. The cost of that roof is right there in the base price. I feel very strongly that not offering their customers a choice of roofs is yet another dilution of the luxury car buying experience. Luxury=choices. The more choices, the more exclusive, the more "tailor made" the experience. MB is taking choices away from their buyers and that is NOT luxurious. Say what you will about Tesla, but you can order their can with the all glass roof, a regular sunroof or a solid steel roof. THAT is luxurious.

Jason B

You should call mbusa and make that known so they have it on file. Along with the no spare issue.

UrBusted

I'm guessing its standard in the US, here it is a £1,430 optional extra. I wouldn't worry about a small feature like a sunroof, even if I hated it, since your S550s in AMG spec cost the same as a SE line S350, and you still get options such as Burmester as standard. If you hate it that much that you are willing to pay $6,000 to get it removed speak to someone in Germany or the United Kingdom. There may be a piece of a roof to replace it with.

clembo

Stream - you make a lot of assumptions, but not all are correct. MB makes the S Class with and without glass roofs. MBUSA specs the US cars only with glass roofs, yes by limiting options it makes it easier to get the US cars consistant, maybe they save a few bucks, but obviously, MBUSA feels that most customers may want the car with a glass roof. US buyers also pay less for these cars than anywhere else in the world.

If Tesla is luxurious because you can get a car with or without a glass roof then maybe you should get one. In my view, all cars have compromises, choose the one where the rewards are greater than the compromises, these are personal choices. It appears that you didn't do that.

Jason B

I don't think that's what he's saying. He's saying cars at this price point should be able to be customized with options to your liking. For ex Tesla lets you customize the way you want it.

It's also like Mercedes deciding to give everyone 19 inch wheels of a particular style and only offer one choice because that's what they think is better. He just wants more choices for the money spent, which I agree.

On the other hand, I also find it funny that the BMW 7 series has never had a piano roof or the option to have one.

Streamliner

Just because we pay less for our cars here in the US, doesn't mean that they can't offer us more options. Make them expensive options, but ALLOW us, the customer, to have our cars the way WE want them. I would happily pay $5K extra, just to get an S550 without the Pano Roof, because I just don't care for it. I would happily pay extra to get a full size, matching alloy wheel & spare in my trunk and I would happily pay extra to have the option of having the car delivered with the conventional tires of my choice. Luxury = choices, it really is that simple.

clkcadet

The fact that my car has no spare tire is absolutely ridiculous, I am with you on that one. I too hate the run-flats and will be picking up a spare tire on ebay like others have done.

Regarding the choice of including a Pano roof, I would rather have it as standard. I honestly would not have chosen it if they offered it as an option, and I am very happy to have it. Luxury = choices, yes, but truth is not everybody will custom order their S550 so they have to have an abundance of standard features for dealer inventory as most are likely to just have just the Premium pack and maybe the driver's assist package.

pdeacon

This is my third MB with a pano roof. The first one (an '07 S550) came with it because I purchased it out of the dealer inventory. It was a novelty at first but after a while I forgot it was there and kept the sunshade closed most of the time. I probably wouldn't have ordered it as an option but its there and the shade remains closed. I do like the idea that the shade can be controlled by a back seat passenger. Maybe it will get more use.

hyperion667

I enjoy the pano, and in the back too, like deacon mentioned, it's nice for the backseat crew to be able to control the roof

emilner

I'm very happy it's standard. I personally don't see why you dislike it so much, it's a luxury item and as such it's on the car. I can imagine there are people who would be pissed if a leather wrapped dash was standard because they didn't want it or want to pay for its increase in MSRP. In the end it's standard and quite a few people are happy...

Streamliner

I dislike the Panorama Roof for a few different reasons. First of all, it dramatically changes the appearance of the car, when it is painted a lighter color. Secondly, as remote as a rollover or a tree falling on the roof may be, I would much prefer steel on top of my head instead of glass. Thirdly, if some kid in the neighborhood hits a pop-fly that happens to land on your roof, insurance or no, you could be out big bucks to fix the thing and then you'd have to worry about it leaking or squeaking, etc.
The bottom line is that you and many others like it, I and many others don't, it always WAS optional, why not just keep it optional and give us all a CHOICE?

emilner

No one said you need to like it. Originally sunroofs were optional, then they became standard in luxury cars. Some people were probably pissed that they were forced to endure a sunoof when they didn't want one. They got over it and moved on to more pressing problems. If a pop fly hits a pano or regular sunroof you ar out big $ if you can't have insurance. To protect against this you should never let your car leave the garage. Problem solved.

It seems you spend an aweful lot of time to nitpick what you dislike about the S. I'd suggest either enjoy the car for what it is or move on. We sure don't need more all caps topics on what pissed you off lately....