Likes:
Beautiful redesign from the W210 with typical high quality MB build. First rate interior materials and switch gear. Seats are comfy and the leather is an A. Fit and finish are excellent. Straight line acceleration is astounding for a sedan (or any car for that matter). HK sound system is excellent. My family of five fits even though 3 kid seats in the back make it tough to latch the seat belts. Quiet ride is a nice change from what I am used to. Dash layout and lighting is very cool and MB finally has a modern looking interior. The exterior profile looks very cool and the space between the wheel and fender is minimal...no need to lower the car. Remote lock/unlock has some serious range. I feel great driving the car!!!

Dislikes/Nitpicks: Not enough tire for the torque. From a 15mph roll the traction control kicked in but I could still see some of my tire left on the pavement in the rear view. MB should have gone 295 rear. Would have looked badass from the rear too! No limited slip diff.??? Brakes still feel funny just before I stop, otherwise fine. Car needs to lose around 500lbs to improve handling and inspire some confidence in turns. I have always wished the AMG cars had a little more distinction from the E320/E500s. Imagine if MB offered paddle shifter and a real SMG gearbox as a choice!!! The shift buttons are pretty useless for the most part. Why is the A/C display dot matrix when everything else is backlit LCD??? Too much is optional on the AMG cars....Raise the price and make the popular options standard such as Xenon, disc changer, rear shade and Nav. My W210 E55 had Xenon std.

My Verdict: MB hit a triple with bases loaded! Just missed the home run. I really do love the car and it is 2% shy of perfect IMHO.

 

Nice review, but in life nothing is 100%.

I wish the seat would go lower. They need longer valve stems on the wheels, can't add air without scratching the rim. NAV sucks. I wish it had bluetooth. Steering Wheel seems very thin and big in diameter.

I love the interior. The suede headliner is a great touch. The leather is great, looks like it will last a long time. Drive Dynamic Seats work great, better than I expected, although I don't know how the bottom seat cushion control works. The PanoRoof is sweet, makes waxing the car easier. Power is intoxicating. Solid structure and rattle free ride. Smiling all the time knowing I own the quickest/fastest 4 door sedan in the world!

 

Thanks for sharing your thoughts. Here in Canada, the E55s come with bi-xenons standard, and active cornering lights as an option. COMAND however, is much more expensive than in the US, still a US$2500+ option.

As of now, nothing comes close. The new 545i does not even come with navigation until next year. And the new M5? At least a year away.

I agree with the comment, that the interior of the E is really nice, miles ahead of the new 5!

 

Norb, you bring up some very valid points. My cheap little air compressor has a nice small fitting on the end, I need to be careful, but at least I can add air without scratching the wheel. Why the heck did they do that??? The steering wheel is thin...another sign that this isn't a sports car. BMW M wins there hands down. I even had to order my new 996TT with the "Thicker Steering Wheel" option. I think that's more of an American thing seeing as my old Vipers and Z06 had that nice fat steering wheel on it. As for the "suede" headliner. I believe it is Alcantara...a nice faux suede. I just wish they would have made it black instead of light grey. I prefer the monochromatic interior look. One more gripe...no one out there will "play" with the beast. They either know better or don't suspect it's worthy of their gas since they don't know what it is...either way it stinks!