What is the general feeling out here. Do you think our cars (w211 E55) will look outdated when the new E Class comes out?
The BMW E39 M5 (2000-03) still looks good when you compare it the the E60 M5. Now the W210 E55 looks outdated. IMO if you compare the E39 M5 Chassis with the W210 E55 the M5 looks current as opposed to the W210 E55.

I want to hear your opinions

 

Personally I have loved the E55 since pics were first introduced (I think 2002) and I'm still in love with it. It still gets my heart pumping when I see it for the first time in the morning. There are only a few things out there that I would like to have instead of my car. Honestly though after seeing the new CL I dont think the new E is gonna have the same curves that our cars have. Honestly though, I think to the general public our cars will look old when the new E is introduced.

 

i previously had a E39 BMW 5 Series(i am pretty sure you have seen the pic in my introduction thread), it was a 2001 and even until the day i traded it in people would give me the thumbs up while driving or if it was parked poeple would ask me how old this car was.

I got a thumbs up on the E within 4 days of owning it, but hopefully people will still admire it after it is 8-9 yrs old.

 

I love this car so much that I have had 2 W211 E55's now. In August of 2009 I will have had 2 W211 E55's for 6 years total and I still love this car.

The E63 took the E AMG to the next level and I admire it every time I see one

The only downside for me is I'm finally getting tired of the factory wheels. They seem old and outdated to me. Maybe a new set of wheels are in the future.

As for the W212 the 1st pictures aren't too promising as compared to the
W211. Just my .02

It may grow on us after a while but it's not like when the W211 came out.

 

I agree with you deaguero. The question is that as of today the W210 E55 looks more outdated than its competitor the E39 M5. I hope that doesnot happen with our cars.

 

I agree with you on the body of the E63. The new front end looks vicious. And the engine is a piece of art, it really is amazing, but its just not for me. Its a little too balanced for me. Nothing I could potentially kill myself in. Lol. I'm hoping that I can own my car for a very very long time. I am madly in love with it. I want to keep it long term and hopefully one day in the future get either an E39 M5 or an old body RS6. And about the wheels on the E55... I love them. Always have. Always will.

 

I was worried about this too. but all we can do is just make it look better, right? i'm sure Neal will help us with that!

 

personally I have had my e63 for 2 year now. Dont really plan on getting rid of it anytime soon. Even when the new one comes out I still plan to keep my ride around for a while. I dont care if it looks outdated to everyone else as I love my ride and dont really care what the general public thinks. Yeah they might think it looks outdated but will still kick the crap out of most of the cars on the road.
From what I have seen of the new E I am not all that impressed so far. I plan to stay in my E until at least 2012. Hell... Im still modding! I wanna enjoy it for a while. In fact I am starting to look into extended warranty's cause I plan to stay in it that long.

 

I actually think that when the E39 M5 came out it was way better than the W210 E55 (no offense W210 guys). And the E39 M5 still looks classic today especially when comparing it to the E60 M5 (no offense E60 guys).

I think Mercedes turned the tables on BMW with the W211. They also got a little help from Chris Bangle and his "flame surfacing" design. The W211 AMG both the E55 and E63 will look as good as the E39 M5 for years to come.

The W212 will have to wait for the market and enthusiasts to pass judgement on it. I hope it looks better than the spy photos and other leaked visuals on it.

I have a Jaguar XF for my daily driver and I get lots of thumbs up and compliments every day on its great looks and lines. I guess that's why I got it since it was refreshing from my 335i and since I did not need another W211.
Lots of the guys slammed it here and had bad things to say but to me and a lot of the people that compliment me every day it's a winner in the looks department.

My point here is beauty is in the eyes of the beholder and our W211's are great looking cars period!!!

 

I completely agree with fr33kn63. I dont care what other people think about my car or if they think its fast. Actually I love that my car is a sleeper(mostly cause I can prove how fast it is) lol. I'm a young guy and if I wanted to I could have gotten an SL. Girls would definitely like that more. But I prefer my car. "Just cause your 2 door 'sports car' looks like it could suck the chrome off a trailer hitch, it doesnt mean it can outslut my 4 door saloon". Nobody ever actually said that. I just came up with it. Lol.

But seriously, I always thought that a person should get a car because they love it. It shouldnt have anything to do with what others think. If you're buying a car because of what others think, your car purchasing is the least of your worries.

 

I am actually noticing already that my car (2004) is starting to look dated. It's not the form of the car persay, but it's small details that have since been updated on newer w211 cars that makes mine look dated. The headlights and tail lights in particular look dated to me, mostly because there are newer cars with updated lighting assemblies that share a body with my older car.

 

Thats easy to remedy. Pick up new lights

 

Guy's all cars get old..Some of you guys are starting to sound like the e46 M3 owners when the new 3 series was about to come out..Do I think our car will look dated when the new E comes out? Yes. Will it change my mind about the w211? Not really. To me, Its one of those cars that the first time I saw it, I wanted it. None of this it will grow on you, or maybe if you lower it and add rims. Its fine the way it is. But can obviously be made better. I plan to keep my car for awhile and play with it. I am enjoying every detail. I think you guys who are on the fence about the new E might be singing a new tune when you see the next AMG. I am sure Mercedes will not disappoint. My .02 cents.

 

IMHO, It will certainly get a little dated but will still look great through the years as the design was good, just like the E39 M5.

As to the W210, that is a bag example as I never cared for it and it never made my heart pound. However, the good old '92 500E still looks great to me and is something that I admire whenever I am lucky enough to get near one!

 

I think it will & compared to the new 5 series it already does, imo. That said, as long as you love your car & how it looks, who cares what others think.

 

And that's just what I plan to do!

 

Well said.

 

It's just the natural progression, yup eventually she'll look outdated.

Will go down as one of the better designs, I believe, but with the radical changes Benz in doing to the entire line, eventually we'll look kinda weird with our round bug eyed babies. (saying that with a smile on my face...LOVE MINE)

Having 700hp helps me not to give a rat about looking old of course.

I am staying with mine until AMG puts 2 consonants together.
TT

Then most likely will keep mine and perhaps strip it down for a track car or something. Always wanted to see how much weight we could take off this car.

 

I don't think W210 looks outdated... looks even better with few mods...

 

I think the W211 will age quite nicely because its elegant design doesn't rely on gimmicks or faddish design elements. Contrast the W211 to the situation that other posters have mentioned regarding the BMW E39's timeless simple elegance versus the Bangle-inspired abortion of the BMW five series E60 design:





A few years ago when I was in the market for a replacement car (and having driven BMWs for over 18 years at the time), I really wanted to buy the new E60 M5. Its hideous design, however, made the decision to move over to the W211 E55 a no-brainer for me. The W211 already looks way better than the current BMW five series, and not surprisingly, will do so from now until eternity.

 

kompressed55: It was exactly the same scenario for me. After seeing the spy photos and just coming off a BMW lease I decided to put a deposit on my 1st W211 E55 Kompressor. Am I glad I did, I went with my instincts and have been happy ever since.

As a BMW forum member then I signed the famous "Fire Chris Bangle" petition. I don't remember how many people signed that thing but I think it was a "few hundred thousand" people! Amazing, BMW didn't respond to the criticism of the upcoming E60 BMW design and the rest is history.

I have now had two W211 E55's and will stay with AMG but am witholding judgement on the W212.

 

New wheels do wonders.

 

I too continue to like the E39 in any form. As a former 03 M5 owner I'm once again in the market for either an 03 540i 6-speed or M5 that I can store. Both are GREAT cars. Several dealers have called me recently to ask if I was interested in an 08 M6 convertible and an 06 S65 AMG. These too are great cars but I still like my 05 E55 and 04 CLK55 enought to keep them.

BTW, if anyone wants to sell their OEM 18" AMG rims I'm interested. I would like to put them on my CLK.

 

I know I'm a W210 guy, and I love the W211 design, but the W210 is the classic Mercedes design that I fell in love with. The view from the front quarter is absolutely decadent.

I know that nobody mistakes a Hyundai for a MB, but as long as the new "affordable" Hyundai's continue to take outside styling cues from the W211 (think grill and headlights), the W211 will remain in style. Now enthusiasts may disagree with this statement, but the general population will not see it as dated.

I've never owned a car/truck/suv in its newest body style. And hey, when you drive a W210 AMG and still get serious looks from the 996 and 997 P-car drivers, Audi RS drivers, and anyone that has any idea what AMG means, I don't mind the MB AMG level of outdatedness.

When the W212 comes out, I'll probably pick up a W211 for just over 20k and add it to the W210 in the garage. Unless something catastrophic happens, I can't see myself getting rid of the W210.

 

I think its begun to look outdated for the past 2 years.

-Stock rims look too heavy and not edgy enough like E63
-No hood bulges like in the C63 or new M3
-No air damn exit vents like on the front facia like the E63. Facia could be bigger/more agressive
-Window line is too low - would look better like the Lexus IS250, 350 or F but don't need crazy the CL window styling.
-Steering wheel is just awful especially when you put your grip at 12 o'clock - its way too thin
-The wheel wells/fenders don't flare on front or rear like S550
- Tail lights would look better like S550
- Add 40hp stock, torque is fine!
- Rear damn by exhaust needs to have the fine painted line like new 63's.
- Nicer exhaust note

Perhaps mix all above and we get the new E?


I am being very critical but I think it will still be a cool car to drive for the next 5 years. If you have 700 HP it will ALWAYS be cool.