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What could you live without, or not, on your MB?
There has been much talk lately about MB's reliability, and the current problems that many new(er) car owners are having. The discussion has turned to gadgets and needless complexity.
So, what gadget(s) would you HAVE to keep, and which ones would you toss?
For me, if I were buying a new MB, it would have to have:
1. Heated seats. You Yanks might be able to live without them, but here, my a$$ would miss them terribly.
2. Sunroof. I love my sunroof, especially in the spring and fall. Not sure about your W202 cars south-of-the-border, but our versions had the sliding roof as optional. I had to have it.
3. Air conditioning. I HATE opening the windows. Also, most cars have too much tumble-home in the aerodynamics, and driving windows-down is awful.
4. Keyless entry. I never loved this feature until I had the munchkin. Now it's a requirement!
5. ABS brakes. I rarely use them, even in the winter, but when I do, they're great. Too bad most people don't use them, and release the pedal when it pulses. Better driver training, please.
6. Cruise control. I would get mitts of speeding tickets without it.
Things I would not want to have:
1. COMAND/Navigation/phone. I don't need any of this crap. I plot my route on a map before driving. I have a cell phone, but rarely use it while driving, and don't need it "integrated" into the car. I don't need a giant screen to display the radio station. I want a simple HVAC system and don't want menus to scroll through or anything like it.
2. ASR/ESP. It's still tires on ice, and when we had the C36 and the E300, I grew to dislike the traction control. It jumped in when I least expected it, and I always felt like someone else was in charge. I do like ABS, but not the other end. Yuck.
3. Distronic Cruise Control. I am looking out the windscreen (since I don't have the stupid COMAND) and can see the car in front of me.
4. Power windows. Since I rarely wind the window down, I could easily live with manual windows.
5. Keyless "Go." Well, it's neat. However, I would always be wondering if today was the day the car didn't like me anymore. "Nope, this is a nice spot, I think we'll stay here." It took MB more than a few years to get keyless entry right, why break something that we just got right?
6. Fully-electronic-transmissions. If "older" hydraulic trannies work better, let's go back. It's not like they were terrible driving cars, ya know.
7. Rain Sensor wipers. I CAN SEE the rain, since I am not COMAND equipped. To engage the wiper, I just ease my left index finger forward a teeny bit, and presto! it swipes the screen. How lazy are we?
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