housclass

how can you compare the zo6 to the e55...two different types of cars! i've had 2 s500's and i've had my e55 for 5 months...and i hammer the car everyday...all three cars have been good cars.

i agree you've had your share of problems but..."fat pig on a dolly"...come on...the car weighs 4000 pounds and has 4 doors...it's not a vette...

threads like this always amaze me...people can always find the bad things in their cars, yet few can talk good about their cars.

yea...i'm gonna get flamed!

john

Childish///AMG

Thank you "Gentlemen" for all of your info and insight

norb

Wow! I can't say I disagee with you, I'd probably do the same! But let me just say that I loved reading all your posts. Don't be a stranger! Good luck.

Dvinn

While I agree with you on the heavy brakes and rotor weight that can be much improved, and the brake by wire does numb brake feedback. But I am a firm believer that smaller wheels give much improvment over larger lighter wheels in terms of weight transfer handling and stopping power. Usually the overall weight of bigger wheels/tire will not be much lighter than the stock setup. 19" forged may be lighter than stock alloys but the difference is out-weighted by the increase in rotational mass and the weight of tires, that is what offsets the most benefit.
Now if it was a 17" forged setup the car would feel and brake like it just got out of Jenny Creg.

CynCarvin32

1) no way to get real camber adjustment for anything less than say 3k in the rear and just about impossible up front. This car needs 3 degrees of negative camber or more for track use and it is no where near that stock -- or with the MB crash bolts.

2) no real LSD is available for the car. The kleemann version is a cop out and is nothing near what the car needs for track use. The amg LSD is jsut as useless as the open diff....

3)The brakes for their size are pointless and turn into mush after a few laps of hard use or canyon driving. Might MB want to make the car stop? One run to 145 in my SL55 glazed my rotors (and it was a very slow deceleration as well -- no panic stop at all). Then there is that light that just tells you to slow down because the car cant manage to slow all that mass again.

4. No one makes a R-Comp tire for the car, and you cant get a large enough front tire to make the car turn in very well. 265's all around may work but there is still some rubbing issues. This only leads to ESP freaking out because it does not have the stock difference in tire size and the car always thinks it is in the middle of a massive powerslide.

Other than that the E55 is a great car. When not driving like a sports car it does well. Nothing beats it for nice freeway driving (well the S55 is better). So that leave me with this... if the E55 is not that sporty, and the S55 is better for the freeway, why buy an E55? Wait i often wonder that same question....

DarrenCT

i'll start off with .... most dealer do SUCK. period. however, the ones that are very good seldom get the proper praise for their efforts. the one i use is new country mercedes, hartford, ct. i've dealt only with joe in the service dept, but after 2 mb cars, neither of which i bought there, they treat me like a king-- offering loaner cars, always following up w/ me with phone calls, ect. i haven't had any serious issues (hopefully won't), but i know i can count on him to help me out. it also helps that sometimes as a gesture of thanks, to throw them and/or the techs some lunch or a case of beer or something, as most of the time , the advisor and techs go greatly unappreciated. i was a service advisor for subaru way back when and i'll say that is not a well liked job-- always delivering the "bad" news to customers, but kindness does go a long way. sorry for your expirience, most of them have no idea what it really means to be in the service industry.

Dvinn

E55 let's you carry 3 less people. Once they find out how crowded it is back there.

...and their luggage.

benzmodz

There are times when I imagine that opening the fuel lid on a BMW may void the warranty. Try owning Tuareg and see if anyone in the USA has even heard of the idea of a retrofit.

DJE55

I agree with John. You can't compare the Vette to the E55. The Vette is a true sports car and the E is a family car with *****. If you wanted the E55 to be a track car then you screwed up. I don't know too many people that go out and buy a 4300lbs car and actually expect it to rip up the corners and stop like a 3100lbs fiberglass car. Plus you have a lot more electronics and features in the car that can go bad. I think a lot of you guys just expect way too much out of your cars. It sounds like you don't expect much out of the Vette but expect the world out of you E. I had a Vette (C5), it shook, rattled and rolled down the road. I now call them the Redneck's Porsche. You can read in the Vette Club magazine where Vette owners talk about the "rental car quality interior", all the cheap materials and problems with fit and finish. The last thing I'll say is that cars are just like women. No matter how great you think she or it is, somewhere in the world someone is sick and tired off her or it's sh*t.

Derrick

AMGe55

While I agree with your sentiments especially since you've had so many problems with your e55 I think saying it handles like a fat pig on a dolly is a bit harsh(but humerous). Lets keep in mind that the e55 is a two ton four door luxury sports sedan and no way is it ever going to handle like a vette or any other true sports car. When compared to other two ton foor door sedans the e55 is quite entertaining, but yes the handling and steering could be better than they are. I have a late 2004 model and haven't had a bit of trouble in 13K miles but I too am thinking of selling my e55 and buying a true sports car.

Kev04C320

Very well said

Dr Chill

I have 2 265/40-18 R tires mounted on 2 rear stock rims sitting in my garage (tires have about 50% life-rims not for sale). I ran these on the front with 275's in back along with Porterfield R4 pads with carbon fiber brake ducts. The car had much less understeer and better stopping ability.

I'm not trying to compare my Vette to the MB other than to say the Vette has been more pleasant to own, and mod. To think I wasted so many hours trying to upgrade the braking system in a way that I can afford(ie not switching to an Alcon or Brembo kit). I can work on the Vette, but feel I would violate some holy AMG sanctum if I tore apart the E55 engine. One gets a certain amount of pleasure doing their own mods rather than forking over a lot of dough and doing without the car for excessive periods of time.

And yes, when the s/c kicks in and there is no surging when cruising the highway at ridiculously high speed with a functional a/c keeping you cool, the E55 is a pretty cool car to be at the wheel. Too bad that kind of experience has been avoiding me for the last 6 months.

Maybe my dealer will make it all up to me when I go to pick up the car tomorrow or the next day by having the really cute receptionist take me in a back room to give me a BJ for all the hassles they have given me.

vraa

Oh so true, I did not look at it from that perspective, I was thinking straight line dragging! :o

CynCarvin32

no biggie i understand. people tend to think about drag racing before open track driving.

dr. chill and i are some of the few who venture to the dark side

i know its a big 4 door but M5's (E39 and E60) have tons of parts to make them do things that no 4 door car should do. i just wish these items were available for the E because it COULD be a wonderful car with a bit of work!

eclou

This is exactly why most track enthusiasts keep their Q-ships on the public roads and not on the grid. They may have an exhilarating performance envelope, but they are simply not designed with Road Atlanta in mind. Just the same as a Olympic powerlifter would not fare well in the hurdles. Doesn't make the powerlifter any less strong, or less able. He just doesn't ever get in stride because he has not trained for that event.

Most track vehicles need to be light and disposable. I have gone from an M3 to a 996 back down to a flea-market 944 turbo as my track hog. The old turbo is about 2600 lbs and more tire, hp and tq than a 996tt. Less weight = less wear. Less cost = less concern.

Sorry your E55 no longer catches your fancy, hopefully you will find a new steed more to your liking.

CynCarvin32

my mistake i thought u ran BFG KD's for the track. I know the Dunlop SP SSR was not made in the size needed for the E55 stock but if you did 265 front and 275 rear that may have worked. i never thought of doing that. I wish i lived closer I would have enjoyed a passenger lap in the car! maybe i would have see the light... or maybe not.

houston

Your wife doesn't read the forums here does she.

Vetluver

Doc,
Now you know why I still have my 89 POS Vette with 550+hp. It's a never ending project to get it better. It's also immensely cheaper to mod than anything German.

I learned a couple of M3s ago that no matter how good a track car is, it's gonna get beat by something lighter and more nimble. Let your wife enjoy the MB and go abuse the Vette. That's what they're designed to do.

After you get your problems fixed you might fall back in love.

Sean03S55

Sorry but that's not correct...
MKB offers a real LSD, and also Evosport has the complete rear diff with proper LSD and your choice of lock up as well as gearing. Kleeman is the only company who sells those crap BS LSD's.

medici78

I don't feel the 1st production year applies to the E55, as it was released the European market one model year before the US recieved it.

Dr Chill

Ok gentlemen, I now know what the problem is after speaking to my service advisor. Can anyone guess. I will log on again later tonight and see if anyone figured it out. I'll give you a hint, I should get my car back in a week or so.

CynCarvin32

ok evosport where is your diff... he says u have one.

wait they said they dont. they looked into getting some made but they dont have one due to production costs and economies of scale. not that many people want a real LSD so a batch of 20 is very expensive.

MKB's as i reccall was not a variable 100% locking diff but i could be wrong. then again i dorn feel like spending 5-8k for a diff. Between the diff and the software upgrades you are looking at a seriously high price.

simple

Fast55

MAP sensor or TPS.

Econprof

In August 2004, I purchased a new E55; from delivery, the electrical problems began. The fault messages were continuous...some indicating the engine was overheated even though the car had not been driven in a week, others indicating the car was too low and the tire pressure monitoring had failed. The most serious of all, however, was a recurring problem with the brakes that continued until the car was sold in May 2005. The quality was abysmal compared to two other AMG models I owned. Assuming there were no electrical problems, the steering, handling, and overall responsiveness were so poor, in my opinion, that disposal was justified. For a replacement I returned to Porsche and purchased a 911S that, to date, has been a delight and problem free.

Dr Chill

For anyone interested, the car is getting a new radiator and transmission because the tranny cooler somehow developed a communication within it allowing coolant to mix with transmission fluid whih killed the tranny. The head tech knew right away what the problem was going to be since they've seen it before. All they have to do is take a few drops of tranny fluid and mix it with some test solvent to tell if it's contaminated.