DaveW68

I've seen many comments here stating that the car looks OK with the right wheel, color, and options package.


The W221 looks great in any color and with any body options. Apparently the same can't be said for the W222. Although I dig the looks of the coupe. That car is a giant leap forward from the last CL.

Streamliner

I had a black 2013 W221 and I traded it, because I hated the black getting dirty so quickly. HUGE mistake. I now have a 2015 W222 and when it comes to the exterior appearance of the two cars, I LOVED the 221, and I find the 222 to be flabby, bulbous, goofy and completely uninspired. The 221 is a distinctive looking car, with nothing much on the road that looks like it. The 222--in addition looking almost exactly like a C Class, looks SO much like a Hyundai Equus from the rear and that gigantic Jack-O-Lantern grill in the front, borders on being comical. The greenhouse on the 222 just seems bulbous and overly huge. In a word, I dislike the 222. You never know what you have until you've lost it. I would, HAPPILY, trade my 222 for MY 221, right now, straight across.

Mike5215

Sorry to hear about your buyer's remorse. If it helps I went through the exact same thing trading my W220 for my current 221. I think sometimes we romanticize the "old girl" and it takes some time to appreciate the new car. It took me about six months, when I saw a nice 220 at my dealership, sat down inside, closed the door and thought "WTF decade am I in?".

There are certainly some plain, geriatric looking 221's, with no body kit and 18" wheels out there that aren't going to be winning any beauty contests. I think a body kit and wheels can make a huge difference in appeal, 220,221 or 222. It's true when I see a 222 oncoming I literally have to wait until it's close enough to see the side profile and rear quarter to tell if its an S, a C or even a CLA. It's not a terrible design, just not distinctive.

I do think there's too much visual "weight" in the huge grille, huge lower grille openings and headlamps. Looks mis-proportioned to my eye. With those elements so large, the front wheels look dwarfed. The front wheels also suffer from too high an offset, and some truly bland and uninspired rim designs. Although I've never been a fan of multispoke (no pun intended) wheels, those in 20" on the 222 seem to be the best.

Jason B

That's the other thing. The AMG package on the W222 isn't the huge difference that it was on the W221. The W221 AMG package is a super sculpted super hero.

Nuru

I actually like this version of the W222:

Mike5215

True. Honestly I like the non-AMG package 222 cars more, and they cost less. I'd just get a P1 package and buy aftermarket wheels.

I liked it better the first time I saw it, when it was called a Volkswagen Jetta.

Jason B

Be careful, if you look too fast, you might mistake this for a w222:



I saw one of these in person yesterday, and IN PERSON it got me, and it got me good. I then realized it wasn't a w222, and I know what I'm looking at

Streamliner

OK, very funny, but guess what? After nine months, my 222 is STARTING to grown on me. I still much prefer the exterior styling of the 221, but the overall feeling of the 222 is getting to me. I've been doing a lot of highway driving lately and the Distronic with the assisted steering is pretty amazing. The Surround View Camera is tremendous. In addition, the Exclusive Nappa interior in my car is addictive. I guess my perfect car would be a 222, sans the Pano Roof, WITH a spare in the trunk, with a 221 exterior design, but 222 everything else. Oh well.

T.H.Carrera

Why is your steering wheel laughing ?

Streamliner

You know, I've heard others comment on that, but I have never really noticed it. I mean I can see what others feel is not good looking, but it has never bothered me. Now, the frigging black roof, well that's another story!

Mike5215

That's what S Classes do. They wheedle their way into your heart because they're so damn good to you. Even a somewhat "plain" 222 exterior like yours (no offense) is eventually going to win you over, and don't get me started on how nice that interior would be to sink into every morning. Yeah, the steering wheel "smiles" and I'd like real(er) gauges, but c'mon guys...that's a beautiful car. I'd throw a set of staggered 20's on it and call it a day.

T.H.Carrera

Streamliner's car definitely needs wheels. I do not know what mercedes was thinking, those are just to plain to be on a flagship.

Streamliner

If you want 18" factory wheels, these are your ONLY choice. If I found a nice set of the 18" wheels from a 2013 W221, I might go for it. I agree, these are not the best looking wheels. That said, I am really waiting for the 2017 refresh. If the difference is as nice as it was on the late vs. early 221, everything should look better and hopefully there will be a much nicer choice of 18" wheels.

MBNUT1

Saw one on the highway today. While the C does look very similar the proportions look much better on the S. I think that it is very nice looking car.

Mike5215

To my eye 18's are undersized on the 221 and more so on the 222 which has more visual heft in the nose. I'm a HUGE stickler for ride quality myself and if the choice was ride vs appearance I'd pick ride but I think the 222 can handle 19" or 20" and give up very little in ride quality. I was nervous about going to 20 on my 221 and once it was done I could barely feel the difference. It actually tightened up the handling in a way I liked.

Jason B

Valid points. When it comes down to it, if you had to replace your w221, there aren't any other logical choices. You pretty much have to pick the new one, as all the other exciting offerings don't exist.

Except the new flying spur:

Mike5215

Well you're talking to a guy who's tried now twice to replace an S Class and ended up twice bringing home another S. There were some embarrassing mistake purchases in their too:

#1) Bought 2010 CLS with 10k miles on it. Drove home. Looked at it the next morning and returned it, got my S back. Dealer had a 3 day return policy.

#2) Leased a new Audi A5 sport coupe. Traded S. Had it three days and HATED it. Uncomfortable seats, cheap bits everywhere. Stuck in a 3 year lease but luckily my wife fell madly in love with the little Audi and let me trade her MDX for another S.

Since I have the audio gear and wheels now that will transfer, logically I should get another 221 or CL. I think if it were a 221 I'd want something special like a 600, or the 2011 CL 550 with the facelift and TTV8.

KNBS550

Bentley has always been my aspirational next car. The redesigned Flying Spur looks like a Baby Mulsanne.

Speaking of babies, the W222 is lovely. Mercedes combined the masculinity of the W221 with the graceful lines of the W220 to get the W222. The design borders on generic, but the looks will hold up well over time. The only problem is the new W205 C-Class is too similar in design to the new S-Class because of that rear. Drove about 50 yards behind a C-Class and I couldn't tell the difference until I saw the badge. That's what I love about the W221. The W204 C's don't look anything like it and there's no other car resembling it on the road (except another W221 of course). The W221 is a very German design. Mercedes' tag line used to be LIKE NO OTHER and the W221 is that.

Wolfman

I must be the only one that thinks Bentleys are ugly cars. This pic is a good example. Ouch.. And the new SUV takes the cake. The rest of the car looks alright but the front ends are nasty looking IMO.

I do like the Mulsanne the best and the interiors are stunning if technically stale.
But you can get low mileage 2012 models for $200k off MSRP. I would take that over a flying spur.

mnje350

That front end has zero appeal. I guess if the only thing you experience about this car is the back seat, the ride, and the door to said seat then you will be OK. But if you have to look at it from any other angle it is butt ugly. IMHO

Donnymac

I hope they have serious brand loyalty.

Jason B

An editor had an article on the net and mentioned the new wheel with this picture:

sixfour

I myself prefer the 221 body, I think the fender flares make it distinctive, and separate it from all other mbs, the 222 to me looks like a larger e class

MrRat

I wouldn't mind a W222. I'm fine with the W221 but the W222 is going to be nicer in some ways, more modern features. Neither is a great design according to me. But they are nice.

mercedesbenzs55

LMAO!!!