  | |||||||
| Home | Register | Search | Today's Posts | Mark Forums Read |
Help with our new E :-)This is a discussion on Help with our new E :-) within the E-Class forums, part of the Mercedes-Benz category; Hi Guys, So about a month ago we sold the X5 in anticipation of the new E. Dad ended up ... |
 |
| | LinkBack | Thread Tools |
05-14-2009, 07:58 AM
| #1 |
| Devotee   Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Australia
Posts: 2,487
Thanks: 550
Thanked 569 Times in 292 Posts
 | Help with our new E :-) Hi Guys, So about a month ago we sold the X5 in anticipation of the new E. Dad ended up despising the X because of the ride. I guess the sports suspension, larger wheels and runflats were not an ideal combination lol. That said, we were at the dealer deciding on the new E today. So far we've got: *E350CGI *Avantgarde *Vision Pack - Keyless Go, Harmon Kardon, Sunroof Australian E350's are comming pretty LOADED with everything. All the new features such as lane assist, blind spot warning etc, active bi xenon with anti dazzle functions, reversing camera, 18 inch alloys, interior ambient lighting etc. and the list goes on and on. VERY impressive compared to the spec on the w211's. And the pricing will be in line or cheaper. We're having trouble on deciding on: * Airmatic OR Distronic Plus Dad really doesn't believe either options are necessary lol, but has said he'd allow one. So I'm pretty torn on what to get. Now the advantage of the Airmatic is the obvious ability to make the ride firmer or softer as required and most importantly the car sits a tad lower when in sports mode and looks a little cooler.  But the Distronic plus cruise is such a usefull feature. We tried it out in a CL and think it would be quite useufull and relaxing on long drives. But I'm completely torn. Which one to get? Any thoughts? I know given that he ended up disliking the BMW because of the ride, you may suggest the airmatic. But given that it is a Mercedes Saloon the ride should be smooth regardless. He's quite satisfied with the ride on our C which has 17inch alloys. The E would definitely be better. We have a couple of days to decide for the mid August delivery batch.  |
|            |
| Sponsored Links |
|
05-14-2009, 08:18 AM
| #2 |
| Global Moderator  Join Date: May 2006
Posts: 9,520
Thanks: 10,333
Thanked 9,856 Times in 4,065 Posts
  | First of all: Congrats on the new car!! Sounds perfect!! I would definitely decide for the Distronic Plus…the standard suspension get a lot of praise in every test I read! And the Distronic would be a real plus of comfort! Especially when this is going to be a long distance cruiser for your family!
__________________ "Nothing will make a driver more faithful to a car, than a car that is faithful to its driver." |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 08:36 AM
| #3 |
| Devotee  Join Date: Dec 2006 Location: Swaziland
Posts: 2,825
Thanks: 2,730
Thanked 2,529 Times in 1,024 Posts
| Where's the poll? Even though Distronic is way cooler, I would take the airmatic mainly beacuase: 1) Your dad did despise the ride comfort of the X5. 2) Distronic makes way for lesser driving invlolvement which I personally dont like. All the best!
__________________ "With Great RPM Comes Great Mph" In German, AMG is pronounced " I am Ghey" |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 09:54 AM
| #5 |
| The Photo Phanatic   Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Munich, Germany Garage: '08 BMW 118i
Posts: 12,992
Thanks: 10,452
Thanked 9,148 Times in 3,290 Posts
| When my father was shopping for the W211 E-Class he inquired about Airmatic. We had a very honest salesman (Mr. Schultz!) who told us we'd be better off without it. The standard E-Class suspension is already very comfortable and quiet too. I happened to testdrive a W211 E500 a short time later with an Airmatic suspension and I can tell you that the difference in comfort over the normal suspension is negligeable. Airmatic in my opinion is hardly worth paying for. Then again this is the latest version so the difference might be more now than the version I tried in late 2002 early 2003. Distronic? It depends. I personally wouldn't need it since I can relax better by simply engaging the cruise control and just watching the road ahead and correcting the trajectory with the steering wheel. It's nice to have such a system but I think it might make you lazy and unaware of what is happening around you. Try testdriving an E-Class with and without Airmatic to see if you really need it. I personally would refrain from paying for it because the standard E-Class suspension already does such a good job of keeping the occupants isolated and comfortable from the outside world.  In our E320 Avantgarde the only options we paid for are: -APS-50 (radio/navigation) -Sunroof -3-way memory seats (driver's seat only) -Electric seats (driver's seat only) -4-Zone Climate Control (a gimmick, doesn't really work like it's advertised) -Hands-free cellphone provision (why did we order this?  )All in all we only use the APS-50 and sunroof the most out of all these options. We never touch 4-Zone climate control and the hands-free cellphone provision was a waste of money since we never used it. Congrats on the upcoming E-Class by the way. Post a lot of pictures! 
__________________ CWPhotography |
|
| |
| The Following User Says Thank You to cawimmer430 For This Useful Post: | etlomotey (05-25-2009) |
|
05-14-2009, 06:03 PM
| #6 | |
| Junior Member  Join Date: Jan 2008 Location: Australia Garage: 2008 C 320 CDI
AMG PACK
Vision Pack
Panoramic Roof
Posts: 20
Thanks: 2
Thanked 0 Times in 0 Posts
| Aus Delivery and Pricing? Quote:
 | |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 07:26 PM
| #7 |
| Moderator  Join Date: Nov 2006 Location: A French in Bucharest Garage: 1974 Mercedes-Benz 450 SLC
Posts: 3,796
Thanks: 1,500
Thanked 1,829 Times in 1,025 Posts
| ^^Depends on where you live. The E is not release at the same time for everybody...
__________________ "Minds are like parachutes. They only function when open." Sir Thomas R. Dewar |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 07:27 PM
| #8 |
| Fanatic  Join Date: Dec 2005 Location: Las Vegas Garage: 1987 190E
Posts: 1,728
Thanks: 294
Thanked 640 Times in 394 Posts
| The steel suspension on my sport package W211 was great, it was not too hard or soft. So I don't think I would go with air. Plus if you are going to keep the car until after the warranty is over, it will be much cheaper to keep in good running form. Distronic would be a nice feature to have. I don't use CC because I hate having to turn it on an off when I get up to the next car. Having it do it for me would be nice. Plus it can see better then you if some conditions and let you know what is ahead of your.
__________________ Give a man a fire, he will be warm for a day. Set a man on fire, he will be warm for the rest of his life! |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 08:30 PM
| #9 |
| Fanatic  Join Date: Sep 2005 Location: New York City Garage: No. 2 Train
Posts: 1,319
Thanks: 2,226
Thanked 436 Times in 188 Posts
| Is he always in a lot of stop and go traffic? I'd definitely go for Distronic Plus then. I say Distronic Plus for a more trouble-free E
__________________ "///AMG, an unending rush of power and adrenaline!" |
|
| |
|
05-14-2009, 09:10 PM
| #10 |
| Devotee  Join Date: Oct 2005 Location: Edmonton, Canada
Posts: 2,159
Thanks: 1,020
Thanked 1,038 Times in 581 Posts
| Mr. Mercedes getting ordering a Mercedes, I never saw it coming. Congratulations on the new car, since it's an E class and not a say Dodge Viper I would get the most options for it to be a comfortable, relaxing and pleasing daily driver. Now if it was a Viper he was getting I would say the least options because for a sports car it's the driving experience that counts and all the other, on the side extra options are rip-offs and a waste of money. 
__________________ You're familiar with the phrase "man's reach exceeds his grasp"? It's a lie, man's grasp exceeds his nerve. Last edited by CarGuy; 05-15-2009 at 03:45 AM. |
|
| |
