Hi All,

I currently have a 2014 GL550. However, I am thinking of getting a 2015/16 S550.

There are couple questions I wanna ask and hope you guys are willing to share some insights for me.

I know for sure that I will be getting that Distronic Plus package as I have it currently and would hate to lose that function and the 360 camera.

I am looking for the nicest ride possible at the sacrifice of small rims and/or more money on options but still worth the value with these sarcrifices.

I read through the entire thread of the Magic Body Control, and seems like the USA version is neutered by the MBUSA's Legal department. If so, that is a great shame, and not worth the 5K additional.

Would the regular 18" be the most comfortable? For my GL550, I have the bigger 21" rims and compared to my friend's smaller rims, I really feel that his is a bit more bouncier.

I personally would rather enjoy the previous genereation of Lexus ES or LS type of "floating" feel in exchange for a BMW like super control freak steering feeling. I want to customize the car with the softest suspension feeling ride as possible so anyone who has tested them back to back, I would appreciate very much if you can shed some light to my inquire.

My friends are suggesting Black on Black as the color, but for me, I feel that is so VIP Taxi limo like that it might make me look like a chaffeur rather than the owner, as I look much younger than the stereotypical S class driver. I would rather get some other color if possible. I currently have a polar white GL550.

I do have a one year old son, and if anyone has any ideas on baby seat arrangement, suggestion or concern, that would be helpful as well. I don't need any heated seats or winter tires as I live in Hawaii.

Besides that, I am open to any comments. :-) Thank you so much in advance!

 

Have you gone for a test drive or two or three? It's truly the best way to feel and see the difference between ride/appearance in rim size.
It's subjective but I believe the 222 looks best on 20's and when the suspension is set on comfort it will be a very nice ride. Color is yet another subjective area and we already have two black cars in the household and it appears we are getting a third due to it having the Bengal red/blk interior (quite stunning imho) without having to wait the extra 3 mos to get the designo silver/bengal we wanted. I would encourage you to check out MB palatte of addition cost colors as some are quite nice. If you're not in a hurry to get out of your '15 GL you might want to wait for the 17 S as in addition to the facelift it most likely will benefit from much needed electronics ala 4G as many here have expressed discontent with this. Hope this helps you.

 

The facelift is MY18, not 17. Just FYI

 

Thanks.

 

RJC is correct, the car looks best with 20" wheels and comfort will be better than the GL550. Personally, I think the body style requires a larger rim and 18" simply look too small. I know that others will disagree

MBC is great no matter how good the actual "Magic" part is. I consider it ABC plus a few bucks for the cameras/software. That said, I don't think you'll need a high-performance suspension in Hawaii.

 

I have 18" wheels & MBC and I firmly believe that every inch in larger diameter wheels you go with, your ride quality suffers. It may not be dramatic from 18's to 19's, or from -19's to 20's, but every little bit counts. THE best thing you can do for ride improvement, regardless of wheel size, is to dump the run flat tires and go with a set of Michelin MXM4's or Bridgestone Serenity Plus conventional tires. I have the latter and my ride is just wonderful.

 

I always put the mxv4 on my cars. Just googled and learned the mxm4's are the new version. The other thing to keep in mind is the lower the speed rating the softer the ride. MXV4's and MXM4's come in H and V. H rated tires go to 112MPH. If you want the softer ride get the H over the V (149MPH)

Great tire the MXV4 is.

 

Thanks everyone that responded, they were all very helpful.

I wish I can test drive two or three, but the dealership here doesn't have that many S classes to test drive. Hell, they don't even have one with MBC, and most of them are like, uh, I dont know what that is, or I don't know if it is activated or not, something crap like that.

I was mainly concerned with the Rim size is because, I noticed that a smaller rim GL450 is more bouncier (in my definition, it is more comfortable) compared to my 21". I know BIGGER rim look so much better, but after years of getting large rims, I have realized that I care about comfort more than esthetics as I care less about what perception people have regarding me and my car anymore. (kinda an oxymoron at first because I don't need an S class then right?, well mostly I get it because I assume it is a very freaking safe car as priority number 1). I wish I can see what the smallest 18" might look like in person.

Additional Color Palettes? Are you telling me that there are more color options possible than what MBUSA.COM has to offer in the build? I know there are usually some minor stuff for other models, but if they are hiding some special order options, then I would love to check that out.

'18 facelift is far away, I would wait for '17 redesign of E if I really could just to see what is up.

I am fairly pissed off at MB for not following through their promise of Apple Carplay in '15. I almost don't wanna buy a car without that option available.