S-Class (W221) 2007-2013: S 320 CDI, S 350, S 450, S 500, S 550, S 420 CDI, S 600

Our S550 is gone.

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Old Mar 23, 2010 | 09:16 PM
  #1  
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Our S550 is gone.

And no, it wasn't stolen, although it wouldn't be hard to believe after all the things that have been happening to it lately.

The lease ended today after a pretty good (for the most part) 3 years with the car. Decided not to purchase our S or get into another one.

The 3 years were very trouble free with not too many issues. Overall, it's been an incredibly reliable car. However, as nice as it is, I personally got no enjoyment from it. It wasn't the most exciting to drive (IMO), and had numerous rattles, creaks, vibrations, etc. that even our W220 or W164 don't have. VERY disappointing for a $100k car.

Wife and I (mainly me ) have decided to go the BMW route and are going to pick up a 750Li in a few months when the 2011s are out. I was able to get an awesome deal on a fully loaded 2010 750Li but decided to wait it out for an '11.
I'll still be around the forums due to our other MBs.

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Old Mar 23, 2010 | 09:28 PM
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Sorry to hear you go. I will say I am very glad the S550 is not an exciting car to drive imho- I prefer it to keep me as isolated and coddled as possible. I'll play in an M3 or S5 to get that frustration out. The 750 looks like a cool car- good luck with it...
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Old Mar 23, 2010 | 10:52 PM
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Originally Posted by QuadBenz
The lease ended today after a pretty good (for the most part) 3 years
That pesky trouble and strife, eh?

So how do you go about changing your username?
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Old Mar 24, 2010 | 04:44 PM
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Originally Posted by QuadBenz
The 3 years were very trouble free with not too many issues. Overall, it's been an incredibly reliable car. However, as nice as it is, I personally got no enjoyment from it. It wasn't the most exciting to drive (IMO), and had numerous rattles, creaks, vibrations, etc. that even our W220 or W164 don't have. VERY disappointing for a $100k car.

Wife and I (mainly me ) have decided to go the BMW route ...
That's a bummer. We will miss you, or maybe you will stick around. BMW forum is, how should I say .....interesting (nuff said).
If "S" is not exiting enough to drive,
have a beer before
or close one eye while driving
or both (just kidding).
Seriously, you should get V12 or CL or both (not kidding).
I have to admit that your choice wouldn't be mine, Audi def. before BMW, but de gustibus non est disputandum.
Enjoy your new car in health, stop by from time to time and tell us how BMW was your worst choice ever (kidding again).
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Old Mar 24, 2010 | 08:57 PM
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Originally Posted by markopolo
That's a bummer. We will miss you, or maybe you will stick around. BMW forum is, how should I say .....interesting (nuff said).
If "S" is not exiting enough to drive,
have a beer before
or close one eye while driving
or both (just kidding).
Seriously, you should get V12 or CL or both (not kidding).
I have to admit that your choice wouldn't be mine, Audi def. before BMW, but de gustibus non est disputandum.
Enjoy your new car in health, stop by from time to time and tell us how BMW was your worst choice ever (kidding again).
Lol
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Old Mar 25, 2010 | 11:31 PM
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Originally Posted by QuadBenz
And no, it wasn't stolen, although it wouldn't be hard to believe after all the things that have been happening to it lately.

The lease ended today after a pretty good (for the most part) 3 years with the car. Decided not to purchase our S or get into another one.

The 3 years were very trouble free with not too many issues. Overall, it's been an incredibly reliable car. However, as nice as it is, I personally got no enjoyment from it. It wasn't the most exciting to drive (IMO), and had numerous rattles, creaks, vibrations, etc. that even our W220 or W164 don't have. VERY disappointing for a $100k car.

Wife and I (mainly me ) have decided to go the BMW route and are going to pick up a 750Li in a few months when the 2011s are out. I was able to get an awesome deal on a fully loaded 2010 750Li but decided to wait it out for an '11.
I'll still be around the forums due to our other MBs.

Good luck with the 7-Series, those are beautiful cars.

Sucks to hear about those rattles, etc. I would be beside myself if I spend S money on an S, and had creaks and rattles.

I personally do love isolated and coddling cars, but I gotta say, a friend of mine who bought a W211 fairly recently is saying the same thing as you, he just finds it "boring" and uneventful, he said he's not even too impressed with the luxury aspect. IDK. He came from a 535i, and says he probably wants to get back into a BMW after the S, which is ironic, as while he had the 5-Series he always said "I'm really a Mercedes guy, I wanna get back in a Benz".
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Old Mar 25, 2010 | 11:39 PM
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I see your point...

So are you going to change your handle to "QuadBWM"?

On a more serious note, you'll probably enjoy the Bimmer's handling and steering precision better (that's one of the main reasons I got into the S63) but........ overall the MB still has that appeal to it.

So what do the 2011 750iL's look like?
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Old Mar 26, 2010 | 12:42 AM
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Originally Posted by emilner
Sorry to hear you go. I will say I am very glad the S550 is not an exciting car to drive imho- I prefer it to keep me as isolated and coddled as possible. I'll play in an M3 or S5 to get that frustration out. The 750 looks like a cool car- good luck with it...
Thanks.

Originally Posted by Fraser
That pesky trouble and strife, eh?

So how do you go about changing your username?
Hmm, good question. I'll have to see about that.

Originally Posted by markopolo
That's a bummer. We will miss you, or maybe you will stick around. BMW forum is, how should I say .....interesting (nuff said).
If "S" is not exiting enough to drive,
have a beer before
or close one eye while driving
or both (just kidding).
Seriously, you should get V12 or CL or both (not kidding).
I have to admit that your choice wouldn't be mine, Audi def. before BMW, but de gustibus non est disputandum.
Enjoy your new car in health, stop by from time to time and tell us how BMW was your worst choice ever (kidding again).
Very funny, made me chuckle a bit.

Wife and I agreed on not getting another S (somewhat bored of them), but the CL was definitely under consideration, although just like the S was my main DD (up until recently), the 7 will be my DD and I need the 4 doors for when I have meetings, lunch, etc with clients.

Originally Posted by K-A
Good luck with the 7-Series, those are beautiful cars.

Sucks to hear about those rattles, etc. I would be beside myself if I spend S money on an S, and had creaks and rattles.

I personally do love isolated and coddling cars, but I gotta say, a friend of mine who bought a W211 fairly recently is saying the same thing as you, he just finds it "boring" and uneventful, he said he's not even too impressed with the luxury aspect. IDK. He came from a 535i, and says he probably wants to get back into a BMW after the S, which is ironic, as while he had the 5-Series he always said "I'm really a Mercedes guy, I wanna get back in a Benz".
Yeah, quality wise, our W221 was below-par. Our USA built ML63 has less rattles and creaks than our S550. The most annoying issue was the creaky seats that made unattractive noises in turns when your body weight shifted. Every. Single. Turn. Wife and I are both on the thin side too.

Originally Posted by AustinGuy
So are you going to change your handle to "QuadBWM"?

On a more serious note, you'll probably enjoy the Bimmer's handling and steering precision better (that's one of the main reasons I got into the S63) but........ overall the MB still has that appeal to it.

So what do the 2011 750iL's look like?
This is a 2010, but the 2011 should look exactly the same.





Our 7 will look like that, possibly the same color, or in black.

I've test driven a few 750's with the Sport Package (includes Active Roll Stabilization) and also with Integral Active Steering. In terms of driving dynamics, I'd say it's miles better than our old S550. Handles amazingly for such a large sedan, IMO. The 4 different options for driving dynamics (Comfort, Normal, Sport, and Sport +) are very interesting and give the car many personalities. In Sport and Sport + it makes steering heavier, sharpens throttle response, tightens up the suspension, etc etc and makes for a very enjoyable and sporty ride, something the S wasn't able to deliver, IMO.


For me personally, the 7 seems logical to replace our S550. It has more power, better brakes + handling, more options/newer tech, has a much more luxurious interior compared to S550s (standard Nappa leather on seats and doors and also on the dash, which is not available on S550 unless stepping up to Designo level).

Some interior pics similar to what ours will look like.









(Pics credit to esk @ bimmerfest and freshwhite335 @ bimmerpost)

Last edited by QuadBenz; Mar 26, 2010 at 12:53 AM.
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Old Mar 30, 2010 | 11:25 PM
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QuadBenz, did your S550 have Active Body Control? Are there flappy paddles on the back of the steering wheel in the new BMW?
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Old Mar 31, 2010 | 02:14 AM
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Originally Posted by irieblue
QuadBenz, did your S550 have Active Body Control? Are there flappy paddles on the back of the steering wheel in the new BMW?
I'm not quite sure to be honest. I was just recently in an F02 at the dealer but I completely overlooked that. I forgot to check to see if it had any. Most likely it doesn't I'm guessing since you can manually shift with the floor mounted shifter (which I prefer anyway).
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