I'm a car junky and look at cars constantly. While I'm not slamming any other brand, I have been noticed lately that many of the "big boys" out there really do come up a little short (no storage space, no spare tire, reliability issues, crappy interiors, etc). Why on God's Earth would BMW not put a spare tire or even a donut in the trunk? So you get a flat and have to get the car towed? Ummmm...no. But it will always come down to what you will be using the car for. If you are racing on the track then a 911 Turbo is going to be a clear choice over a W211. But my angle on cars these days is as a daily driver that I can do some spirited driving with on select occassions. The only thing that does scare me about the W211 is the Airmatic Suspension and being stranded somewhere if it goes BOOM. But percentage wise the probablility seems pretty low. That and brakes/rotors replacement someday.

 

E55s are all around beastssssssssss

 

Porsche 997.2s don't have a spare tire. And no RFTs either.

All BMWs are on RFTs now. Have been for a while.

No car is ever perfect, including the E Class. e.g., the Nav and COMAND media/interface is light years behind all the other brands.

Everybody has their own individual priorities and preferences in cars.

 

I just think you have to narrow it. The E55 WAGON is the PERFECT car.

 

thanks for reminding me Haha.

 

With the right suspension and 6 speed manual gearbox it would be pretty close to a perfect all around car!

 

.....until you have to drive in the snow.

It's very damn close thought.

 

That's what Blizzaks are for!

 

Wow, that is really cool. Perfect name for it to me.

She does everything pretty well, and some things (straight line accel/launches) GREAT!!

 

The car could def use better suspension and handling characteristics...also the brake feel is at times horrible.

Heck I'd be happy if the car handled as well as my sisters 07 TL-S

 

E55/E63 "Jack of All Trades" with oem AMG 19's or popular other forged 19's and Michelin PSS tyres, they handle like glue on almost all road surfaces and absolutely have great handling in very wet weather.

 

Compared to what? Glue comes in all forms, from basic white glue to superglue.

It's all relative. But if you come from owning a old Lexus with a rubber suspension, then I guess I'd agree with you.

 

I'd say mine handles like a very nice lounge chair. Not like "glue" and certainly not like it's on rails. I have no idea what's going on with the surface of the road.

In the M5, if I ran over a pebble, I could draw it for you, that's how communicative it was.

 

this exactly... i drive mine year round in the northeast. the thing is a tank in the snow

 

Uh... I don't have a spare. Maybe I should change out the AMG for M???

 

Never driven a Lexus and surely will never, thank you.

Buy a set of Michelin Pilot Super Sports and after driving them for some 3500 Kms, once worn in properly, then you know the levels of grip.

What glue? That depends on every ''Individual''

 

Haha +1...

 

Well let me say this...driving around without a spare tire isn't for me. I come from the Vette world and had a couple cars stranded in the middle of the night. Even had one of my cars damaged by the driver of a flat bed while trying to load it---due to a flat. Sitting on the side of the road waiting on AAA, MB, or BMW Service to haul your car to a dealership for a simple flat tire is insane. A simple fix becomes a HUGE annoyance.

In terms of performance the M3 rocks. For driving back roads it can't be beat. For straight line blasts...not so good. That is AMG territory:-)

 

I was just joking around. I WFH, so the car is more a toy than anything, thus I don't care either way about a spare.

I've been through a lot of these cars. (2) M3's, S4, 911, and now the E55 (oh and a CLK430 in there too). I'm my opinion they all have their own niche. Given most of these were in the NYC/NJ and now the Denver area, I can also say my opinion is biased due to weather. And that said, the car I miss the most was my S4. I actually almost bought a S6 before the E55, but convinced myself that driving only 2600 miles a year I just didn't need awd that bad to pass up on the 55's power.

 

The E63 Wagon is where it is at.

Pro:
More than enough power.
Space to spare (sit 5 or 7, 5 and a couple of dogs, 5 and pretty much anything you can though in the back).
Brakes you can feel.
Revised suspension make it actually handle.
Spare tire.
Nice, comfy interior (Alcantara headliner !)
Debadged you'll never get a ticket.

Con:
You won't get any pu55y (but you should already get some if you drive a Wagon or you are just creppy)

 

I put PSSs on my 997. They are pretty decent and are supposedly improved for wet, although it rarely rains here so I have yet to test that characteristic. I have PS2s on the AMG and I'll replace them with PSSs when the time arrives.

Yep, "sticking like glue" is a subjective quality. Although I will say that these E Class AMG barges do handle better than one would expect. Body roll is an issue, though. These cars are heavy and it often shows.

 

The spare tire thing might sound really dumb to some folks. Earlier in life I didn't give a hoot about anything like that. However, after living with several Corvettes as DDs (not weekend toys) the day to day began to sink in and the "blasting through the back roads like my hair was on fire" began to die down a bit. Especially after some major (very costly)speeding tickets. As a result I became very selective about where I played with my cars hard. You can't drive hard all the time or eventually they'll get ya---as they did me back in my 20s. So after a couple citations for "reckless operation" I had to adjust my behavior a bit. My point here is that I personally started to evaluate a car as more than something to blast around town with---that was becoming too expensive. But I did want something that I could break loose in short bursts and have some fun but at the same time go buy groceries, carry luggage, drive in the snow, be able to carry a damn spare tire, and be able to shuffle a bit (like the guy said in Ronin about the S8).

The AMG has been a bitter-sweet car for me...because I always want the cutting edge beast, but need something that I can live with as a DD. I hate maintaining multiple cars. But there is never going to be one car that does everything at 100%. There has to be a give and take. But the AMG does everything (to me) very well. However, there are other car that do things exceptionally well but suffer horribly in other areas.

Good discussion.

 

Has any company looked at developing sway bars? I would think that you could improve the body roll drastically with a set of bars? I guess I was spoiled coming from a Z06 on Pfadt coil overs and sway bars

 

Makes the e63 wagon stoopid.

I want an SLS wagon.

 

I had a full aftermarket suspension on my 2001 ZO6 as well. It handled like it was on rails, but I had to go sideways over speed-bumps due to ride height. It was really low. Most passengers didn't enjoy riding in it. I used my ZO6 as a DD for 3 years. Great car. A guy out in Columbus, Ohio owns it now.

Yes...coil overs and bars for the E63 would rock...absolutely. The problem is that most E63 folks do not mod their cars. It's a small niche that do. Very small.