tsquare

I was at the dealer the other day and they had a 2010 E63 with 22k miles on the lot. I flagged down a salesman and took her out for a spin.

First impressions - Very nice car, fast - faster then my W210, nice styling, all kinds of technical gadgets, etc. But when I got back into my W210 for the drive home - I was surprised how good the performance and feel of my W210 is when compared to the newer W212. I was also surprised at the similarities that still exist between these cars after 8 years of development; seat feel and position, sound and torque of the motor, the slight hesitation on downshifts, and handling. When I was on the W212 test drive I did try all the different suspension settings from comfort to sport+. The W210 suspension feels to be set right in between the comfort and sport+ settings of the W212. What really surprised me is how solid the W210 still feels (construction) compared to the W212.

So as I was driving home, I couldn't help but do a quick back of the napkin analysis - would the W212 be worth the extra $40k it would cost me (W212 price $57k) if I traded out of my W210 ?

I started working my analysis. The W212 is faster by 1 second from 0 to 60 (so I counted off 1-1000 - Hmmm). The W212 certainly has all the new gadgets and driving aids; nav, bluetooth, multiple suspension/trans settings, etc, etc. (I summized - I have GPS on my phone, an IPod and once I found my favorite performance settings, would most likely never touch again). Lastly, would I DIY the W212 (Yes-it's just a car underneath all that technology).

After my drive home analysis, I realized that I really couldn't come up with enough reasons as to why I would pay the extra $40k for the W212, - the performance and gadget differences for me are to small and my W210 still drives to well.

With all that being said, I did get a chance to drive in a new W212 E63 Bi-Turbo - now with that motor and transmission - the analysis might be different

Strigoi

W210 E55s are a lot of car for the money. There's no way I'd buy a newer E55/E63 due to there being so much more stuff on them that will just cause more issues down the road. My low-tech car is plenty fast for a DD, comfortable and still looks decent. People also seem to like the older AMG cars a lot. I had this random Bulgarian guy that works at a local pizza place give me all sorts of compliments. He thought the older AMG cars are badass.

RustbucketRacer

This is my problem exactly. I drove a new E350, a 2005 E55, a first gen CTS-V, a 2006 STS-V, one new and one old 300 SRT8, a 2010 Charger R/T, an 06 Audi S4, a 2004 545i, and a new Passat TDI (momentary Eco-minded madness)....
Anyhow, nothing I drove did what my 210 does for me that wasn't at least another $10K-$15K more than my car is worth. The only car that was really hard to walk away from was the STS-V. But the interior quality was crap, comparatively. I guess I'll drive the wheels off this one. The car puts a smile on my face every time I drive it.

JamE55

I'm hoping to one day come across a W212 E63 (moded or stock) i can have a test run to see how mine stacks up. Should be fairly interesting.

benzmodz

Why spend money at all ?

snooozie

After all that mod on my car, i am keeping it till the price of the W212 E63 comes down more. I think my 02 will last me another 2 to 3 years. You guys are right, after a long day at work, you get in your car and turn the key on and man....I love the sound of my car, especially now that the mods on the exhaust headers and pipes already set in. The only sound that I like better is the sound of the corvette V8 but for solidness and quality, you can't beat the W210 E55!!

Also, if i step on the gas from 80 to 120 on the highway, that back push and engine sound makes a smile on my face

fintail

From what I can tell, it might be better to hold off and wait for a biturbo car to depreciate (unless you are lucky enough to be able to buy new). The NA cars are too thirsty for me anyway, make the W210 look like an economy car. Maybe my mind could be changed for a loaded rare colors P3 car.

Speaking of liking the W210, I just spent a couple weeks in Europe in a rented A8 TDi, and although a nice effortless barge, coming back to my E55 feels like stepping into a light tossable sports car with so much better visibility. The noise and grunt of the E55 are fantastic. Has to be one of the best used car deals out there.

CharlyE500

What can you buy to replace something similar to W210 E55 with $10K ? I couldn't find at all. The 6.2 engine is great but wait until you try the 5.5TT
Just wait for 3 more years until 55TT price drop down to $50K. However, W212 6.2 is not worth extra $40K to $45K but surely W211 cost only extra $8k to $10k. Performance wise, W211 E55 kick W212 6.2 azz with only $3k mods.