srice

Having moved from an E55 to an S63, and after 2 PM's asking me to compare the two, I thought I would post my thoughts on the cars.

I drove my E55 for 20,000 miles. It is an absolute beast. It was a blast to drive. The seats are probably the best I have ever sat in in a car, and it was pure heaven as a daily driver. My main issue with the E55 was that I need a back seat that is usable for full-size adults. I am 6' 1'' tall, and when I adjust the driver's seat in a comfortable position for me, only a child would be comfortable in the back seat.

I was prepared to make some sacrifices with the S class - a bigger car, more weight, etc. I have been pleasantly surprised with the S63. The seats are even better (if that's possible) than the E. I really don't think I gave up anything in the handling department, either. The car handles like a much smaller car. The track is wider than the E55 and that more than makes up for the additional weight. Subjectively, I think the S63 is a little more refined and a little smoother than the E. It does not have the raw power of the E55, but it has plenty of power to accelerrate onto the freeway, pass slower cars on two-lane roads, etc. Make no mistake, however, I do not think the S63 is lacking in power. It is still a beast, just a beast with manners.

I opted for the fully loaded S63, with the back seat package, the 030 package, panorama roof, PIII, etc. I got the grey leather, and I think the Black Laquer wood that comes with the 030 package looks very nice set off against the grey. (I wonder if it does not get lost on a black interior.) Distronic Plus is worth every penny - and more. Quite possibly the most useful option on any car, EVER!

I don't have that many miles on it yet, but I can't imagine I will regret the decision to "upgrade." The S63 is a purely amazing car. I will post pic's of the car this weekend.

Carl Lassiter

Congrats on a great car.

Interesting to hear you say the E55 was lacking for rear seat space. Coincidentally, I'm having the same problem with my little S4. After flirting with the idea of an M5 I've decided to wait it out for next years RS6 so I get the car I really want, with the increased rear legroom a big plus.

The A6 chassis is slighly roomier than the E so I'm sure it will be fine. I'd always thought the mid-size to be big enough for everyone so it's interesting to hear that some people require the extra space afforded by the S class, 7 and A8.

As regards handling, it seems AMG are finally churning out rivals with the poise to rival to the RS and M line in the twisties, which can only be a good thing.

noxxin

congrats on your new S63! I am very pleased with mine so far. Just about to cross the 1000 mile mark and she's a little smoother and meaner every day.

hubitubi

you wont go wrong with the s63. i just picked up my s63 less than 3 weeks ago and put on 1400 miles on it already. heh!

i agree with you the s63 seats are heaven.

Eddie Knopp

srice - It was the same for me (2 teenage kids and a big dog). This truly is a much more refined piece of machinery. Enjoy

srice

Here are a couple of quick snapshots from this morning. I am REALLY liking the grey interior, and the way the black wood offsets it.

The more I drive, the more I am impressed with this car. To be honest, I thought there would be more "compromises" between performance and luxury - like the E55. I haven't found any "trade-offs," yet. The wheels are quite simply the best looking wheels I have ever seen - stock or aftermarket - and the brakes look like (and feel like) they could stop a freight train.

One thing I have noticed: I always rest my hand on the phone pad cover. I don't think that will be good in the long run - it will show too much dirt and discoloration. I will order a black wood cover, as soon as it becomes available, it will match the wood trim, so it should look good. Realistically, MB should have thought of this. $250 is not a big deal, but it buys a couple of really nice bottles of wine!

jeffreyy

Sweet! The 030 rims look great with the silver exterior.

J

transferred

You put your big dog in the new S63?

I'd tow a trailor.

Eddie Knopp

Only when she's clean - she likes the front seats as well ;-)

srice - That's an excellent thought on the phone pad cover - do you know the part # ?

srice

My Golden Retriever won't see the car for a while - clean or not.

The part is not yet available. My dealer called on it, and they were told it would be available in a month or so (knowing MB, that means end of the year). I don't see it as a big deal, I just want to get it before the cover gets too dirty.

noxxin

[QUOTE=srice;2274568]My Golden Retriever won't see the car for a while - clean or not. QUOTE]

I'm with you 100%. My 12 y.o. Pit Bull (he's like a Lab in a pit bull costume) will NEVER see the inside of my S63. He was in my E55 once way back when and it took 3 hours to clean all of the gold colored hair off the black interior. He still rides in style though in the X5 whenever I need to take him to the vet or acupuncturist. That cars interior is black too but wifey doesn't seem to mind as she isn't as crazy as me about keeping that car clean which I ride her about it all of the time.

noxxin

congrats on the sick new ride. please let me know if you find out where and when the black wood phone cover pad becomes available as I want to get one as well. Thanks

Eddie Knopp

Well mine doesn't shed - she's a standard and prefers the front seat ;-), I did notice I nned to blckle the seatbelt behind her or the light is always on - she's not heavy enough so the airbag is off.

juicee63

That is LUXURIUS, I want one when I grow up

rslpartners

Hi srice,

Would you mind taking a close-up picture of the side of the seat?
Like yourself, I ordered the grey interior too.
One thing I noticed on a black/black S63 I saw over at pleasanton, the material on the side of the side is grainy and cheap.
Was curious if it's the same on the grey leather.
As someone else had mentioned...the S63 Premium leather does not come to par with a regular S550 Premium leather.
Attached is a picture of what I am talking about.

kimt

Hi Rslpartners,

I'm really surprised to see such a discrepancy in quality between 2 adjacent surfaces.

As far as I can judge from the pictures taken by Noxxin of his S63 AMG black interior, this is NOT the case in his car.


Maybe Noxxin could post a close-up picture of the seats in his car?

rslpartners

One of the reasons why I've been coming to this forum for answers.
As mentioned in a previous thread I started...this is crap and I saw and felt it first hand.
Now my curiousity is whether this is an early production thing cause the picture this came from had "missing equipment too" or does it just pertain to black interior (maybe they ran out of the good stuff or mixed up the rolls).

Mine is on the ship and is on it's way.
I've already notified my salesperson that if my grey interior is the same crap...there's not going to be a sale. They can keep it or send it back to the guy that built it.


Another interesting note...
If you go to mbusa's site, and go to the build it section.
The CLS63 comes with "nappa" leather, none of this "premium" crap.
I've always opted for the ash nappa leather.
Since grey/dark grey was the only thing available, I was ok with it.
But! I'm not ok with this mismatch crap.

Are they going to tell me that a fully loaded cls with the 030 package (btw has limited slip) comes out to be about 110k is suppose to be more luxurious that the S class?

I thought the S Class is the top model within their line!
The S63 fully loaded came to 147k.
Now granted the technological advances are great...but come-on now....skippin out of the leather where I'll feel it the most??? Are they tryin to pennie pinch to make up for the bad chrysler investment??
someone needs to get fired for the idiotic decisions that don't make sense!

srice

RSL:

I looked at my car in the area you are talking about. Mine is pretty much the same as your picture, however, I would be hesitant to refer to it as "cheap." (My family is in the leather business, so I am somewhat familiar with the issues.) It is the "grainy" texture, but part of the difference is the thickness of the hide used in the two locations. The console is covered with a much thinner piece of leather, giving it the softer feel. The seat bottom bolsters are covered with a much thicker piece - probably two to three times as thick (my guess is this is intentional due to wear issues). I will agree that I do not the grainy texture is not as attractive as a smoother texture, but that, too, is a personal preference.

BTW, my mother has an S550, with the "premium leather" and hers is the same as mine, and she has the multi-adjustable seats, with massage, etc. Could that make a difference?

rslpartners

hmmm....that's interesting.
I looked at a s550 with premium leather and it was much smoother. Plush as I would call it...like napa.
The salesperson at Pleasanton MBZ gave me the same reasoning behind the use of different leather on the sides of the seats..."durability of wear and tear". So my response to him was...what about the S65 (which was also in the showroom at the time), it doesn't need "durability"...that's got the napa smooth leather throughout.
Not sure if the S550 I saw had the multi-contour massage, etc...
but if they can put it on a S65...I don't see the problem with a S63.
Now I'm ok with it not being on the dash and the whole door panel, etc...etc..
Afterall, for an extra 50k...the car's got to have other differences.
In addition, as I mentioned above...it's standard on a cls63 and that vehicle certainly cannot be more superior to the S.

I thank you for checking...it only adds to my disappointment and the fact that the sale is not going to happen.
The other option is that they send the seats back to mbz and give me what i want.
i don't know...i think i got spoiled with my S55. That was with nappa leather...and I won't accept anything less.

Thanks for the input and congrats again on your new car!

Eddie Knopp

Guys - while I completely agree you should be 110% satisified I think it's gonna be a matter of taste. I saw an SL 600 at the dealer today and yes the leather was smooth and soft - I think I prefer the sportier look of what we have - looks more durable as well - however given the way these seats contour and hold there won't be much sliding in the seats.

jeffreyy

Eddie,

I agree it's a matter of taste. I also agree with srice that the rougher leather is doubtless more durable. I have the nappa leather in my SL55 and I have some exclusive leather in the door panels of my SL55 due to the Nappa Black package.

I have to say that what was somewhat disturbing to me was the wide range of variation in leather texture. It is true they used exclusive leather on the armrest, but the really rough leather in the door panels and the grainy dash leather and the fact that none of these surfaces seemed consistent one to the other was rather odd. It's like they chose 5 different types of cows to pull leather from. Frankly, the center console leather I would think would wear more than the door panel (non armrest) leather, so I'm not sure I buy the wear argument 100%.

For me, I love the S63 and I have difficulty justifying the $50K premium for the S65. Also, the S63 has more of an exhaust note and a little more drama which I like. I have thus resigned myself to purchasing a designo package with my S63. The designo interiors are extremely detailed and use exclusively exclusive leather. In my opinion, on par with the best interiors I've seen. It's <$10K on the S63 and therefore cheaper than a S65. I only wish there were more than the 3 choices although I believe I saw a Mocha Black E today driving by and the color is unreal.

Just my $0.02. Frankly, I'd be happy if the leather didn't bother me, but we are all stuck with our own tastes and opinions on things.
J

turtle10250

are the designo packages avail yet on the S63's? I was told not until late in the year>>??

urHoneyinmy420

hey that's a real nice color for the interior. post some more pics will ya?

noxxin

[QUOTE=rslpartners;2277121]...this is crap and I saw and felt it first hand.
Now my curiousity is whether this is an early production thing cause the picture this came from had "missing equipment too" or does it just pertain to black interior (maybe they ran out of the good stuff or mixed up the rolls).

The CLS63 comes with "nappa" leather, none of this "premium" crap.

But! I'm not ok with this mismatch crap.[QUOTE]

hey rsl - it's kind of weak that you are calling the interior of all of our new cars crap. although it may not be to your personal liking i'm sure that like me, most of us w new S63s love our cars and the interiors as well. while i appreciate your opinion i don't think posting on a sub forum for S63 owners and then going off on how crappy our cars look is in the spirit of what this is all about. i don't mean to hate on you at all man but it really bothered me when i read this. either way i hope you end up getting a car that you are more then happy with like I am with mine.

jeffreyy

[QUOTE=noxxin;2280513][QUOTE=rslpartners;2277121]...this is crap and I saw and felt it first hand.
Now my curiousity is whether this is an early production thing cause the picture this came from had "missing equipment too" or does it just pertain to black interior (maybe they ran out of the good stuff or mixed up the rolls).

The CLS63 comes with "nappa" leather, none of this "premium" crap.

But! I'm not ok with this mismatch crap.Noxxin. I know the comment was not directed at me, but I feel partially reaponsible. Dude, what I can tell you is, I'd love to have your S63 right now! It's beautiful, and I'm sure you're loving it. I know I would. I think about driving an S63 regularly, but haven't pulled the trigger yet. So, rest assured that many of us wish we were you and were driving an S63 daily.

For some of us, the interior is a big deal. For me, I know I'm ultra picky and I realize that I am a slave to my own tastes. So, it's a cross I have to bear. As I said in my note, I wish it didn't bother me. I'd be a happier person!

J