TurboTuner

Is there such color as Arctic White for the S550? A car I am buying is listed as Arctic white on the build sheet. If so whats the difference between Alabaster and Arctic White?

Also when I go to build a S550 on MBUSA.com there isn't an option for Night View Assist, I was told it was part of P2. But when I select P2 it doesn't show Night View Assist as part of that package. Maybe their website is not updated or something.

Just wondering if someone can help answer these questions.

MercPlease

I have an Arctic White S550. It's gorgeous!!I think, Alabaster White is "softer" and reflects more while as Arctic white is "sharper"

I'm pretty sure Night View Assist is NOT part of Premium 2, atleast not for the 2007 model year.

TurboTuner

Thanks for the info. I wonder why they don't let you choose arctic white as a color choice and the night view assist isn't available.

trumpet1

Maybe they are getting the hint that most of us find the night view assist difficult to use. I personally feel this is the only useless feature on the car.

Eddie Knopp

Why do you say that ? I find it very useful especially for the dog walkers in dark colors - would be better as a heads up but once you're used to it seems to work very well.

dr.skp.ortho

I drive at high speed on unlit roads in rural areas.....it definitely has an advantage in these conditions.

noxxin

I find the night view assist pretty worthless to me as well. It seems like more of a distraction then anything to me. I feel the instinctive need to watch the road when I drive and not the instrument cluster display. I am also just starting to get semi-comfortable with the distronic plus. I have a very hard time accepting that the car is going to brake for me and seem to hover my foot over the break while using it. What are other experience with distronic plus?

trumpet1

You're right. I guess I need to give it more of a chance. I only need it for about 5 blocks in my neighborhood and I usually just simply forget about it and never turn it on to give it a fair chance. I'll try to use it more and I may have a better opinion of it. One thing I really enjoy are the adaptive headlights that turn with the steering wheel. Now that is sweet.

whoover

I recently spent a week at a facility my company has near Stuttgart/Sindelfingen. Going from work to dinner at some restuarant and then to the hotel every night always involved dark, curvy, two-lane roads. We are spoiled by our well-lit highway system. The autobahn is great, but it's mostly for intercity travel. The rural character of much of Europe, even where the bulk of people work and live, makes for a very different life experience.

I would have found night view very valuable on a daily basis there, but probably not at all here in San Jose.

eddietr

When I was researching my car last year, night view was not available on the mbusa sight but I was able to order a car with it.

The more I get used to it, the more I see the value of night view in rural areas or areas where there aren't street lights. So for instance, for those of you in the DC area, many of the residential side streets in Bethesda are poorly lit. It's very helpful to be able to see people and dogs at night in those neighborhoods, especially on the narrow bridges. Likewise in the Great Falls area as well. So on weekends when visiting family, it is very useful.

But, on the other hand, here is Fairfax where streets are pretty well lit, the thing is next to useless. So it really depends on the environment.

Would I order it again? Yes. But if my next S-class ordering experience is like my last one and I have to trade this feature off for that feature and so on because of lack of availability, then I would prioritize night view lower than most of the other options I have on this car.

MercPlease

btw, Fifth Gear did a test with the Night View Assist. He could see the guy via the normal headlights but not via Night View Assist. Total rubbish.