Hey everyone,
Ive yet to test drive an E55 (im going to look at/test drive one tomorrow) but I would like to get your guys input on the over all "fun factor" of owning/driving a W210 E55. My current car (read below for a full description) is quite fun to drive despite being fwd. I worry due to the E55 being a bigger automatic car, more of a gentleman's sedan than a sports car, that it may get boring to daily drive after a while?

I currently own a 07' VW GTI, the car has: a full turbo back exhaust, intake, upgraded high pressure fuel pump, and a "stage 2+" tune along with countless other preventative mtx items like a catch can, upgraded bushings etc. Ive been through a few sets of wheels on the car (sell & trade them when I get tired of the same old look after a while) and its currently putting out 280hp/340ftlbs (stock the car comes with 200hp/200ftlbs)

Ive extensively searched through the forums and have done my best to educate myself on the reliability and mod potential for the E55, its seems like a great car and I realize that I will not likely see a drastic change in performance from the tasteful mods that I plan on doing to the car (headers, res delete & x pipe, kw coilovers, a nice set of 3 piece wheels, projector head lights and potentially a tune (along with basic and preventative mtx of course)).

Basically i'm looking for input from you existing owners, hows is the W210 E55 compared to other vehicles you have owned from a drivers stand point?

Thanks in advance

 

I've had mine for almost 2 years and it got boring after daily driving it 98% of that time. Now it stays in the garage and I DD my Durango, so it's actually kind of fun take out a couple times a week now.

I wouldn't trade mine for you GTI. There's just something about these cars and everyone that I've talked to that owns one loves it. I can tell you that much.

BTW, you should put your location in your profile info. If you're in the Bay Area we have a meet/cruise coming up next month. You could check out some E55s and join us.

 

I've had mine for 12yrs(brought brand new when it first came out) and no regrets at all. I don't DD mine though. It's mostly a weekend toy. It did get boring after sometime and decided to do a full Klee mod.

Now everytime i drive it this is my reaction... . LOL! In todays time there are very few 12yr old cars that can keep up with some of the newer and faster cars of today and mine does not disappoint.

 

I have a Tiguan AWD (wifes), not modded like your GTI.
You will fall in love with instant acceleration of the E55 as compared to the VW DBW delay combined with the turbo lag. The turbo lag is probably worse at my altitude.
The power of a V8 is very linear compared to a forced induction 4 cylinder.

If you have a DSG or manual you probably aren't going to like the auto tranny in the E55, it can be a little slow to change gears when down shifting.
Even manual shifting is a little slow and you have to plan ahead.
That being said, I wouldn't say it slows the car down any when "playing".

I drive my friends 08 GTI with DSG on occasion and would love to have a DSG type tranny in the E55, the near instant shifts and the paddle shifters are a blast!

I also have a 2004 Mini Cooper S, heavily modded for track use.
I will NEVER get rid of the Mini, way too fun to drive.

The Mini was my daily driver until I got the E55, now it's 50/50.
At my altitude (6000 ft) the Mini being supercharged (2600lbs) will give the E55 (3750lbs) a good race 0-60.
Above 60, forget about it, the E55 loves triple digits and wastes no time getting there.


I love driving my E55 because it's a sleeper, very comfy and on the interstate it's a cruising machine.
The rear wheel drive shenanigans will keep you smiling
Not as "flickable" as the Mini but very impressive for a 3800lb sedan.
And then there is the V8 sound.......

It feels like the E55 was made to go 100+ mph all day everyday where as the Mini and the Tiguan feel like 100+ was an after thought.
They will do it, just doesn't feel near as confident as the AMG.
In the Mini I love doing stoplight to stoplight blasts, in the AMG I just wan't to floor it and hang on!

For the price of entry a W210 E55 pretty hard to beat as far as performance and luxury.

My .02, YMMV.......

 

I love my AMG. I use to DD my car but since I got an outback for the snows, I only drive it three times a week. When I do drive it, I love it. Especially now that the exhaust mod had settle in with the ecu. I did most of the mod that needed to be done to the NA E55 besides going SC which I will not do.

 

Had mine for a year and still love it. Its a big V8 muscle car that bites hard and is super stable at 100+. While it handles great, and can be made better with new shocks and springs, its still a big heavy sedan that is not going to behave like a tuned up GTI. One nice thing though as a DD, is that when you are tired and just want to get from A to B, its still incredibly easy and low stress to drive around in.

The interior is still, in my opinion, very competitive with plenty of modern Mercedes' and BMW's, and is nicer than many of them. If you care about the technology, get a unit with Comand and replace the head unit to something modern. But the feel of the whole interior is just very solid and nothing feels cheap, which can't be said for lots of newer models.