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#796
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Quote:
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1996 E320 since 1/16/08, 171K miles as of Feb 2011 --------------------------------------------------------- 1989 300CE - R.I.P. Dec 29 2007 Other MBs (sold): 1992 300E-24 - 1979 350SLC - 1984 230E - 1990 300CE |
#797
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Just bought a new E350 2 weeks ago.
I must say that it drives nice and that everything works fine so far. The new brakes feel more responsive than the SBC system. However I noticed something right away. The car feels like it's made out of a tin can. The same cheap metal and plastic feel that many of you complain about on Japanese cars. It must be the new way to make cars now as compare to the older vehicles. I compared it to my 96 W210 which feels solid and better engineered to me. For example, I was really surprised to see that the rubber foam seal that surrounds the trunk lid on the W211 does not cover the entire opening like my W210. I wonder how much MB is saving by doing this? I have heard many people say that MB was lowering quality on it's cars to make more profits but the sight of this made me wonder what else are they cutting back on. Are they as safe as the older cars? I don't think I can justify the high prices of a MB anymore as they really are not that much better than a Toyota in my eyes. Is the quality of a new MB worth 2-3 times the price of a new Toyota?
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2010 W212 E350 Sport 1996 W210 E320 (220K miles) |
#798
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No, it is the brand not the real value. MB lives on its reputation of the past. I love my 300CE but would not buy a new MB, not for that inflated price.
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1996 E320 since 1/16/08, 171K miles as of Feb 2011 --------------------------------------------------------- 1989 300CE - R.I.P. Dec 29 2007 Other MBs (sold): 1992 300E-24 - 1979 350SLC - 1984 230E - 1990 300CE |
#799
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Thats what many W124 owners thought when the W210 came out... Its funny how that works...
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1999 SL500 1969 280SE 2023 Ram 1500 2007 Tiara 3200 |
#800
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Thats why most older MB's are shot, people cannot or will not repair them and just drive them until the problems affect operation.
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1999 SL500 1969 280SE 2023 Ram 1500 2007 Tiara 3200 |
#801
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"High end" means quality to me, and quality to me means less maintenance. I can see where the maintenance would/could be cost more, but I would contend that a quality car should require less of it.
Last edited by khickey; 07-16-2007 at 11:57 PM. |
#802
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Like Harley's
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#803
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The exclusivity has to be backed by quality, otherwise MB's fate will be that of Jaguar -- the brand will simply implode...
Lexus already took a huge chunk of MB's business, and although I am not compelled to buy an expensive Toyota, if MB's quality will drop to that of expensive Toyota, I will go for Lexus. After all, they seem to have at least Toyota's reliability, and my 140 is, really, a nightmare story (although really pretty and comfy one)...
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2004 CL 500 1992 400 SE |
#804
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A point that seems to be lost in this debate:
New Mercedes are expensive as compared to your average Ford, Chevrolet, or Honda - that is indisputable. New Mercedes are incredibly INEXPENSIVE as compared to old Mercedes. A new E350 is roughly $52K in 2007 dolllars. My '92 400E was roughly $53K in 1992 dollars. This translates to a tab of roughly $76K in today's dollars. Yikes! My 1983 300CD was a whopping $35K (roughly) when it left the showroom. This translates to tippng the scales at roughly $72K in today's money. So relatively speaking, new Mercedes have not continued the pricing that one would expect based on historical trends. It should not come as a surprise that since the cars cost approx $25K less, the "feel" of the car may not be what we would hope. But the trade-off is this - who in their right mind would pay in the mid $70s for a standard-issue E Klasse today? That said, this does not answer the reliability factor. If I purchase any new vehicle - bank-vault-quality "feel" or not, I expect the car to WORK. Were I the proud owner of a new E Klasse who was relegated to driving a C240 loaner on a regular basis whilst my E returned to the dealer for warranty work, I would indeed be very angry. |
#805
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I am starting to wonder what the posts are like on the 3-Series or 5-Series BMW forums. It seems they have been winning over the experts for years and years. I think as many as 3 generations of the 3-Series have been rated best, at least in terms of driving them. I wonder if they are problematic. My recollection is that they were problematic back in the day, but then improved dramatically, right around the time that Mercedes built the last W124.
I wonder...
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I just couldn't give up on my 1995 E320. I think it might be like always going back to that same bad relationship with an ex girlfriend. You feel you love them too much, or you are just too stupid to know any better. Flickr slideshow of my 1995 E320 http://www.flickr.com/photos/24145497@N06/sets/72157616572140057/ |
#806
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MB quality
Keep in mind that most of the front end of a new Benz is made of aluminum, a weight saving method. I drive a new ('07) E550 and find the quality higher than any of the last 26 cars I have owned. In my business we tend to want a higher quality auto with little regard to cost. I have a feeling that the folks at MB are doing a rather excellent job with their cars.and they are making quality improvements on each new model.
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#807
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I need a job in a business like that! I am leaving Big Pharma. They don't care at all about my car!
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I just couldn't give up on my 1995 E320. I think it might be like always going back to that same bad relationship with an ex girlfriend. You feel you love them too much, or you are just too stupid to know any better. Flickr slideshow of my 1995 E320 http://www.flickr.com/photos/24145497@N06/sets/72157616572140057/ |
#808
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Complicated cars cost more to maintain, more to break.
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1999 SL500 1969 280SE 2023 Ram 1500 2007 Tiara 3200 |
#809
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Have you opened the hood up and closed it? You can see that MB is improving in many areas of the car, the brakes for example. I just wanted to make a comment that overall the car felt cheap and tin can like and felt that MB was cutting corners in some areas.
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2010 W212 E350 Sport 1996 W210 E320 (220K miles) |
#810
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Quote:
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Lenny There are only three sports: bullfighting, motor racing and mountaineering; all the rest are merely games. --Ernest Hemingway '10 GL550/'04 BMW 545/'99 BMW 323/'98 ML320/'87 VW GTI (race) |
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