Why S550 and not S500 like Europe?
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LandRover Disco
Why S550 and not S500 like Europe?
Why do we call it the S550 and not by the same name "S500" that they use in Europe. As I understand it the engines are exactly the same.
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From: San Francisco, CA / Middlebury, CT
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S450
Probably because S500 would appear to close to S450 when it comes out. Hence, S550 appears distinctly differentiated to S500. However, it is clsoe to S600. But I think there is equity in the 600 name, i.e., that of the Grosser version.
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2007 E63
Originally Posted by dbtk
Probably because S500 would appear to close to S450 when it comes out. Hence, S550 appears distinctly differentiated to S500. However, it is clsoe to S600. But I think there is equity in the 600 name, i.e., that of the Grosser version.
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'03 ML350 Inspiration, '01 SAAB 9-5
Originally Posted by AsianML
I thought there was a good chance that we wouldn't get the S450.
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I think it's more about marketing. BMW has the 750i as the base model now, so Mercedes one-ups them with the S550. The idea is that people will see the higher numbering as a sign of better performace...and given America's obsession with automobile power it's a good marketing ploy.
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why 550 nomenclature
It seems the US nomenclature makes the most sense given the engine size of 5.5L. Also, from a marketing prospective, the new engine might go unnoticed to the average person if the old 500 nomenclature were used. This is especially important for the other cars in the MB range as new nomenclature will be part of the facelifts for the SL550 and E550. Why Germany decided to keep 500 makes no sense - are they trying to keep the new engine and its 80 additional horses a secret?
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From: West Michigan
2007 E63
Originally Posted by silberrosa
It seems the US nomenclature makes the most sense given the engine size of 5.5L. Also, from a marketing prospective, the new engine might go unnoticed to the average person if the old 500 nomenclature were used. This is especially important for the other cars in the MB range as new nomenclature will be part of the facelifts for the SL550 and E550. Why Germany decided to keep 500 makes no sense - are they trying to keep the new engine and its 80 additional horses a secret?
