Jabibblesworth

Is this the material used on the driver’s

seat of a $150k car?
It broke off while I was getting in and out.

Frenetic

Yikes.

Yeah, there’s a lot of cheap plastic. I spent a little time just pushing, prodding and moving interior trims pieces just now while I was trying to figure out a headrest/seat noise and found a surprising amount of cheap plastic everywhere. The plastic around the screens are really cheap.

crabman

Yep. A reviewer said it looks like 100 dollar bills when you first get in but you soon discover the quality is 20s. Something like that, I'm paraphrasing. I can say for sure that getting out of a Panamera and going for a test drive I felt exactly that concept. It all looks great but when you start feeling around and touching the surfaces many of which will squeak or move at that touch, you start to understand they did a masterful job of making it appear of a higher quality than the reality.

When I got back into the Panamera I showed Mrs Crab the old door handle trick: You'll see salesmen do it at the Porsche dealership, they grab the interior handle for the door (not the release, the handle) and give it a stout shake while encouraging you to do the same. This is where you discover it's very solid. In any event I showed this to here and invited to try it in the S class. You don't even have to try to get the piece, that is not a handle, we're meant to hold when we open and close the door, and you immediately feel movement. Push it a little more and it will creak.

You can do that all over in this car, and nearly everything seems to have a flimsy factor to it, it moves, it squeaks, creaks, something. You don't get that in a Porsche, it's hard to sit in the drivers seat and find anything that does the same. It doesn't look as pretty but it's put together better. I just tried the same the other day and a BMW dealer and it's the same deal, it doesn't look as nice but it feels better put together.

Frenetic

All of this cheap plastic really doesn’t bother me provided it doesn’t look cheap and, more importantly, it’s quiet.

The center console plastic below the screen is ultra flimsy and that part—which is essentially right in front of our faces and within easy reach—could have been done so much better. It should have been the same material as the dashboard imo.

Fried Chicken

But touchscreens!

SW20S

Frustratingly true…I hope it improves in the refresh…

W222 is much better in this regard.

S_W222

But this is not even a W223 or W222, I guess, right? What car or trim is this car? Seats and leather look cheap, and that plastic piece seems of similar quality and match to those seats.

Jabibblesworth

I assure you it is a $150k 2023 Merce4des S580 (AMG trim).
The seat has a basic cover on it because it was being serviced.

Frenetic

Let us know if the dealer warranty’s it. They definitely should in my opinion, but it wouldn’t surprise if they try and back out forcing you to either pay for it yourself or filing a comprehensive claim.

Crito

None of the tabs looks broken... just snap it back into place and get on with life. I'm thinking maybe Mercedes actually knows what they're doing here tho, as the plastic in my EQE SUV has definitely gotten firmer and less squeaky after baking in last summer's sun. I've seen softer plastics get sticky and start to warp after just a few years, even in extremely expensive exotic cars. Then again, I might just be fooling myself to justify the 100 grand I blew. LOL

Wolfman

This just looks like the plastic we had in the last several generations of S-Classes as well.

Just pop it back in

SW20S

It’s on another level in the 223. Another big difference is when you open the console storage armrest, in the 222 that’s a felt material all the way under where the console lid closes, in the 223 it’s cheap plastic with a surprisingly sharp edge. Just lots of little things like that which irk me.

In the 222 that whole seat side is part of the cushion, that cheap trim piece doesn’t exist.

Frenetic

The center console area is the biggest failing in this car imo. It's a big visual and physical touch point that was designed and built in a way that didn’t take that immutable fact into consideration. And yeah, no felt or rubber on the bottom of the center console storage was surprising to me and a big miss.

SW20S

Agree 100%, hopefully that will be addressed in the refresh. The console area on the E Class looks much nicer

tx170754

It looks nicer but you still have to look down in order to eventually use that display, not something I would be inclined to do while driving....
Apparently the I7 kept it like our W222....

SW20S

It’s not that big a deal, I prefer the display up higher and I prefer it be controllable with a controller but that wouldn’t be a deal breaker for me.

Yeah I do like how the G70 7 Series does the screen, and the interior is top notch with none of these quality issues.

tx170754

It may not be a big deal for you but just keep in mind that when you're only doing 35mph your eyes are not on the road for almost 50 meters....

tx170754

In 3 seconds !

crabman

You don't really need to look down much; the map shows in the drivers display, you can change tracks, volume, and so on. Nav destinations are best entered with voice, it's the fastest, easiest way. Voice is also good for many other functions and works well.

I'm writing this post killing time in an antique store an hour from my house while a certain someone shops; didn't need to use the center screen once on the drive and that's typical. I'm a pathetic old man and learned to use the tech without any difficulty. You young people need to suck it up and get with the times.

tx170754

Well,
I did suck it up for a very long time but not any more, since I'm probably older than you, so safety is one of my first priorities !

SW20S

Most cars out there on the road have infotainment screens that are not on the same level of the dash as the instrument cluster, it’s a design choice, if it were a legitimate safety issue there would be legislation requiring that they be a certain way.

Wolfman

I know you are new to MB so you are missing the historical context. We have had too much plastic in S-Classes for the last 24 years. No need to just compare the last two models. Also, the only reason why I felt the W222 had a great interior was because we had the exclusive nappa leather.
To me, any MB-tex in the S-Class feels pedestrian but then the older models didn't even have that. Many surfaces were plain plastic even with Designo interiors (pre 2003)...

SW20S

Im well aware of that, but in the context of interiors the interior of the W222 is not pedestrian, it’s pretty high quality regardless of whether it has exclusive Napa or not, and there is a clear reduction in the quality of the materials used in the 223. It’s not materials that are in your face, the MBTex is fine, it’s the details and when you feel and look around what is right on top. All mainstream cars have plastic used in their interiors, the question is how well is it hidden. Hidden much better in the 222.

“pedestrian” means it’s of common quality and if you look at other cars made between 2014-2020 that were competitive to the W222, its interior is the nicest of the bunch. When you compare it to lesser cars that would classify it as “pedestrian” it’s certainly a huge step up from there. That’s not the case now, the W222 has the cheapest feeling interior in the segment and that includes the Lexus LS and Genesis G90, and exclusive Napa doesn’t solve any of that.

Tinboyboy

I have the same problem. Everytime I get out of the car and sit on the edge of the chair and push myself out, it creaks and clips open then I have to put it back in.

Its very irritating and I don't have this issue with the w222. Not sure if there's any work around. I even tried adjusting my seats to reduce the weight I put on the edge when I get out and nothing works (probably the only way is for me to lose weight!!!!)

Anybody have any workaround this?

SW20S

I would try replacing that piece and see if it secures better

I just realized that picture above is not from a W223...