I have it activated, but Mercedes Me was not involved. I have a 1TB SSD drive plugged into one of the ports in the center console. The function is restricted in the US to not allow for continuous recording. However, that functional restriction can be removed by recoding.

 

All manufacturers are so far behind Tesla at the moment. Tesla has so many cool features like sentry mode, continuous dash cam (whether or not car is running), dog mode, green light chime, serious HEPA filters, blind-spot camera activated with turn signals, etc.These things are all common sense to me but not being adopted by others.

 

Gripe of the day regarding my favourite car in the world: The sound system sucks.

No low door panel speakers and no trunk sub makes all the sound including bass directional coming only from the front. It’s like I’m pumping all my music through a Bluetooth portable speaker. Jealous of the Sedan’s 1400W or whatever 3D sound. I cranked it today and feel nothing. Just hear it with my ears from the dash. I’ll have to add a fix for that to the mods list.

 

Thank you for the detailed suggestions you solved my umbrella issue, HUD height I’ll adjust.

Tire noise is ok it’s debris hitting inner wheel wells that’s weirdly loud. It’s ok.

SUV is perhaps an exaggeration but it’s definitely no W212. Maybe my W212 Coil-over kit is just a lot better then stock? I would definitely call my W212 nimble compared to the W213, but not compared to say a Miata or 911. The old one has more steering feel, more feedback, better seat of the pants, snappier turn in, road feel, compared to this car so far. Keep in mind I have yet to really get on it or have any oh **** moments letting me know where the edge is in the new one. Comparing Daily driving duties the old one is more connected.

 

PS I agree @HBerman there’s nothing better on the market in this space. RS6 has even less feel and less storage. I do like their exterior styling though!

 

There is a sub-woofer in the rear on the right-hand side of the cargo area. Additionally, there are two mid-range speakers in the rear corners of the roof at the tailgate. Have you tried to adjust the equalization and sound localization on the control panel yet? You can set it for "PURE" or "SURROUND" and setup for sound localization as well. All of this is through the media panel via the settings. I've got mine set up fairly well, but there is not a 400-watt amp sitting in the rear like there was in my previous E63S sedan with the 3D Surround. That sound and the additional speakers could blow me out of the car, but that system is not available in the wagon. Try adjusting the equalizer and see if your experience improves.

 

The dashcam can be recoded to be continuously recording on a loop, just need to involve a vendor such as RJ Automotive. You also might want to recode your ILS lights to be ILS+ as the 2023 E63S wasn't updated for the lights unlike our Canadian friends. The VR system can be set to recognize traffic lights, but not when they turn green. There are two sets of cabin filters on the E63S, one underneath the hood, and the other underneath the glove compartment (needs to be changed at the same time as the underhood unit). I do like the traffic alert and braking feature when I'm trying to back out of a parking space at the grocery store and others seem to think that it is a race course and don't yield. Collision detection is also very useful.

 

So so many ways to improve this wagon, and a better sound system is definitely one. Senseless why it doesn't get the top-of-the-line unit.

 

Curious about your take on something. One of my biggest gripes with W213 is seating position. I'm only 5' 11" and no matter how I adjust driver's seat my head is uncomfortably close to the roof and I'm looking out of the very top of the windshield. Feel like the seat is an inch or two too high. I like straight back like a bucket seat and a lot of support under my thighs. Would've bet money that the seats in my first car were defective but it was the same with both my grey and black wagons.

 

The excuse that I was given was that the wagon was too low a volume production to warrant the required effort to map the sound equalization properly. Sounded like BS to me with all of the technologies available to map the locations required for the speakers. However, the sub woofer on the sedan uses a hollow channel in the left-hand side of the frame as a part of the sub-woofer. Sound was really fine in the sedan, but not equivalent in the wagon.

 

Dude, this is awesome. Thanks for sharing all of this!

Subscribed.

 

I use a similar seating position but I'm looking through the middle of the windshield. I'm OK with the headroom with my position as it places my head in the panorama roof opening. Sorry that I can't describe it better, but I have the seat cushion down in the back and tilted up with moderate thigh extension support. The seatback is adjusted almost straight up.

 

Exactly. Your head should not be in the panoramic roof. This is a design flaw. Lucky you don't feel too high up, and still unable to see over hood.

 

Well, it's not IN the opening, but it is directly above it which adds a couple of inches of room. I've seen this with my other Mercedes sedans (sunroof or panorama type), but never considered it a problem because of how I have the seatback. I know when I get the car back from a service appointment that the seatback is significantly more reclined and I have to restore my seating preference.

 

I took some measurements tonight with the help from one of my friends to see where my line of sight is through the windshield. It turns out that I am looking through almost the exact vertical center. The glass is so sharply racked that it's much closer to me at the top of my head. The front of my seat bolster is 9 inches and it is sharply tilted back at the seatback. The floor is sloped as well under the seat so the back measured 9 inches also from the floor. I have 3 1/2" to the roofline without regard to the opening for the panorama glass. My arm position is correct per recommendations and the steering wheel position is fully toward the instrument panel and at the top of elevation as well. The thigh extension is midway to complete the seating. YMMV

 

No just downshifted in Race so far. Will do next drive

 

OMG yes!! This is the FIRST thing I noticed when I left the dealership. I thought it was something to do with missing the acoustic comfort package, but I guess not since you have it. I never noticed this in my E53.

I've slowly started to suppress this in my brain but every pebble hitting the wheel well would make me wince at first.

Dude I can't stand this wheel, although I suspected I wouldn't like it even before I picked up the car. I've heard similar complaints to ours before. I really love the pre-FL wheel I had in the E53.

In this new one, the volume sliders don't register half the time, for some reason my left thumb accidentally causes the display to change from touching (or being in proximity to) the left track pad.

Like how can the volume sliders be so insensitive yet the left track pad be overly sensitive. I miss the physical buttons so much.

BUT... The fact that these new wheels have heating AND the U88 AMG drive unit is so key. Weird how the factory would never allow them both in the same wheel before.

 

Love your car, dude! Thanks for sharing!

 

Thank you @HBerman !!

I'm going to stop saying "Hey Mercedes" and say "Hey HBerman" in the car, I bet it will be more helpful.


You rock

 

I really hope it grows on me once I get used to it. I'm guessing when I have to stop looking down at it will be huge improvement. And, I'm also hopeful we will learn how to finesse the controls. To me it's like playing a first person shooter for the first time as a Dad with Xbox controllers. I just wanted to throw them thru a window. I'm old school, give me a keyboard and mouse and I think I could've schooled my kids. Instead I just get laughed out of the room

We'll get there I think

 

Loving your journey so far @I.T. Guy I'm learning so much from you and the awesome members here!

 

Wow, so @HBerman 's advice about the audio helped?? Sweet! I'm gonna try this in my car too. Btw us sedan boys didn't get the option of 3D Burmeister this model year either.

 

Fun! One thing that I've found is that dry fingers are nicht gut to operate the wheel controls. Also, a firm touch is better than a light one. Eventually it will become second nature.

 

My head is nowhere near the roof and I am 6'1 6'2 depending on my slouch.

M1 "Relaxed Mode"
- Steering Wheel all the way down and all the way extended out towards me as far as it will go.
- Seat all the way down front and back slammed to the floor as far as possible.
- Seat back/close enough in relation to the wheel so when I'm resting my elbows/arms on the left and right armrests I can hold the steering wheel at 4:30ish and 7:30ish with an underhand grip without really bending my wrists. I just kind of finger hold the wheel underhand between my thumb and fingers, sometimes gripping it like that too but mostly just steering with my fingers and wrists. I'll switch to both hands on the top at 11 and 1 o'clock positions sometimes, and also switch up driving with only left or right hand in either these top or bottom positions while the other hand just rests on my lap or whatever. In the city or for times I need more steering input I use the top positions. I can still extend and reach my wrists over top of the wheel so my hands can flop over the the other side.
This seating position has my legs long with a comfortably relaxed bend without having to reach for the pedals. I won't run out of length braking or accelerating or anything, pedals will bottom out well before my leg feels straight. Sometimes in cruise control I bend my knees and move my feet in front of the pedals or right in front the seat, just relaxing them on the floor moving them around to different spots letting the flop around.

M2 "Wife mode" whatever she has going on

M3 is "I'm gonna win Lemans" and "Oh look a C8" and "is that guy giving me the stink eye?!" also random times one arbitrarily feels it's time for some ego busting. Or for personal growth testing yellow posted speed limits.
Steering wheel same as above all the way low extended all the way out towards me.
Seat goes up and and forward until the Steering Wheel is in my chest as far as possible with my hands in overhand grip where the Dinamica indents are. Around 10 and 2 o'clock. I can reach the shifter paddles with my fingers. I will move hands to 3 and 9 as well it kind of depends. The seat is not so close my knees will hit the dashboard when wailing away on the pedals or when moving my right foot from gas to brake and back, but close enough I could touch the lower dash under the wood or carbon trim elements if I wanted to. With feet on the pedals my knees look to be about about 2" from hitting that bottom part of the dashboard. Legs are bent about 90 degrees maybe just a tiny bit straighter. Full proper steering wheel control is engaged including hand over hand, no shuffling, no palming, no knees etc. I have lots of leverage with my arms and legs and I'm ready rock.

I had to move my HUD pixels up the max amount per HBerman;s suggestions and it works great now. Today I can see all the icons even with my seat slammed in M1 Relaxed Mode. The passenger mirror still gets to me blocking looking through turns, and I have a HUGE blind spot left shoulder check when all I see over my left shoulder is B Pillar. Or risk old man back strain to look a bit further.

 

It "kind of" helped not having all the sound come from the front. But it's still weird. Need to play more.

Really no 3D sound? I considered for a nanosecond not to get a wagon so I could get 3D sound. I love cranking tunes. Then I figured I could always "fix" the Wagon's sound but couldn't fix the Sedan's trunk :P