EKaru

Sorry, I don't have scans of the article yet.... The article mentioned that MB declined to give them an S550 for that particular comparison..

1.) A8 - best handling, best interior/tech, most efficient
2.) Jag - much faster than the others in a straight line, nice interior, though a little behind on the electronics
3.) BMW - kinda soft, not a driver's car, most expensive

mjr24

Jag is hideously ugly.....A8 and Audis in general are played out and overrated. They over-hype their tech advances because the car doesn't offer much else past the surface (except some LED's...big deal). The front of the A8 is really cool....but the sides, rear, etc. look like crap....plain as can be.

I find it interesting that the 7 isn't a drivers car considering it's faster I believe than the S550, A8, or Jag.....the TT V8 doesn't play around (car feels faster than my M6 was). That being said, I still think the face-lifted S550 looks better than the Audi, Jag, or BMW. I would have picked up a S550 but it's been out almost 5 years now and there will be another generation change within 1.5-2 years.

My guess is Mercedes didn't provide a car because they likely would have been ranked last due to the power and the fact it's much older than any of the other cars. The 7 has only been in the US since March 2009...and the XJ/A8 just came out. I bet they would have provided a S550 if they had done the rumored refresh with the 8 speed tranny and more power.

EKaru

The S550 is every bit as quick as the 750Li and it also makes more hp and torque than the new A8....



In this comparison the S550 beat the current 7-series and old A8....
http://www.motortrend.com/roadtests/...benz_s550.html

Quadcammer

the jag and audi interiors looked very nice.

pisses me off that you can't get full leather on the S550 anymore

Emauss

The AUDI interior is really the class of the industry. I waited patiently for 2011 Audi to come out and was ready to purchase it...but the ride of the Mercedes far surpassed either the Audi or the Jag (IMNSHO). All things said, I really believe the MERC is the best overall car out there in its class, but there really are things to be said for the others. (which is why I bought my 2010 S550)

EKaru

There's no doubt that the A8 is the class leader in terms of interiors.... Maybe I should have held out for this

Quadcammer

gorgeous...leather dash?

skrontz

Boeing 767 called, it wants its buttons back. Ergonomics fail.

Emauss

Full leather is an option. Additionally, if $$ is not an option there are the unadvertised "AUDI EXCLUSIVE" options. You can order beaucoup special interior leather and wood options. Truly an amazing set of options at truly an amazing price! Makes the Designo package look like a bargain! The link shows the options for the D3 Audi (last year's model). Gorgeous, but my Mercedes rides better...and the interior ain't too shabby (actually better seats). ...and the exterior is, well...great!

http://www.ecodetuning.com/gallery/B...iExclusive.pdf

EKaru

Quadcammer

thats pretty awesome.

My designo package was $11k in 2005, can't imagine the cost for all the stuff you can add.

mjr24

And no....the S550 isn't as fast as the 750, either. It's not even close. The power is there faster in the 7....only 1800 rpms gets you all 450 lbs of torque.....and if you are driving on the Sport setting it's significantly faster. Like I said...the car feels faster than a V10 500HP car...that says something.

http://blogs.insideline.com/straight...benz-s550.html

Also, what's the point of comparing a supercharged Jag against 2 base models? Compare the 760, B7 or S8 and see where the power numbers are.....the Jag would be dead last by a long way. I assume the magazine was just trying to keep pricing similar......but to sit here and say a supercharged Jag drives better than a stock 750 (without M-Sport package or it being a B7 or 760) is a misleading statement.

EKaru

As the C&D review mentioned, the normally aspirated motor in the S550 is naturally more responsive....The difference in acceleration times between the 7-series and S-class is trivial....

The Jag's price is in line with the others in the comparison.... I'm interested in taking one for a spin

Emauss

For me, I find the acceleration of my 2010 to be *much* more than adequate. When all things were considered, and after test driving just about all vehicles in the class (even the Panamera), I put my money on Mercedes. It was not a "no-brainer", but for me the S550 was the proper choice.

EKaru

Let's compare the curb weight of the F10 550i to the cars in this comparison... BMW's own 7-series is dimensionally a much larger car than the 550i, but only weighs only 185 lbs more. The Audi has AWD, but is still lighter than the RWD 550i. The LWB Jag weighs 147 lbs less than a 550i...

LWB AWD Audi A8L DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 122.9 in Length: 207.4 in
Width: 76.7 in Height: 57.9 in
Curb Weight: 4,350 lbs

LWB Jaguar XJL Supercharged
Wheelbase: 124.3 in Length: 206.6 in
Width: 74.6 in Height: 57.0in
Curb Weight: 4,270 lbs

LWB RWD 750Li DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 126.4 in Length: 205.3 in
Width: 74.9 in Height: 58.3 in
Curb Weight: 4,602 lbs

RWD 550i DIMENSIONS:
Wheelbase: 116.9 in Length: 193.1 in
Width: 73.2 in Height: 57.6 in
Curb weight: 4,417 lbs
http://www.caranddriver.com/reviews/...take_road_test

Emauss

As stated in the article, both the Audi and Jag use aluminum to reduce weight. Notice, too that the BMW is not AWD.
But so what? Do you feel the S550 is underpowered anywhere but on paper?

EKaru

I don't know whether that was directed at me, but I never stated that the S550 was in any way underpowered...

I know the Audi and Jag both use aluminum (The Audi's chassis is aluminum whereas the Jag's shell is aluminum)...
My point was that I think it was a mistake for BMW to base their current 5-series on the 7-series platform. They weigh almost the same despite their size difference...

Emauss

Sorry - I misunderstood (probably by reading too quickly) what the intent was on the message.

mjr24

I don't know what that statement even means. The 7 feels faster because it IS faster....a lot faster. It's like saying a girl with natural B cups is bigger than a girl who had natural A cups but who now has fake 38DD's....you aren't going to sit there and say Girl A has a "naturally" bigger chest and therefore is bigger.

0-60....5.7 for the S550 versus 5.1 for the 750 (0.6 diff)

Let me make this a little more clear with an analogy.

W221 S65....4.4 for the 0-60

That is a 0.7 difference from that to the 750. Are you trying to say the difference in power and feeling of power is "trivial" from the S65 to the 750?

Seriously....stop....I can tell you have never stepped foot in a 750 and you have absolutely no clue what you are talking about. I've driven these cars on top of the stats being what they are. There is a reason they want the 8 speedy tranny in an updated S550...because it's slower than the 7 series by a margin and they want to one-up BMW.....which is the same reason BMW is upgrading their power for the 2013 7 series, too.

EKaru

As I mentioned, the difference in acceleration is trivial and normally aspirated are for the most part more responsive....

K-A

Who cares about the drag racing or "cone-twisteez" stats on these behemoth sleds, the big shocker and kicker is the 750i beating out the S550 in sound DBA's in all 3 respective categories. Kind of surprising to me, and raises my respect level for the 7'ers Luxury Car capabilities.

Jan AMG

Hahaha, that's a good joke

golfster

0-60 times are insignificant to me in a sedan, because in real world driving, when can one truly take advantage of maximun acceleration? It is similar to top speed relative to roads with speed limits. So the car can go to 140 or 175, but where?

Yet it is funny, when our car is slower by a click or two, it is meaningless, yet when our car is faster by the same variance, it leads to bragging rights!

K-A

Werd. Performance arguments and cares about ".2 seconds faster" on non Sports Cars especially is hilariously bad to watch/listen to.