rss997

The E-5 is awesome but having the opportunity to buy one I declined! One can simply not use the power without endangering your family and or getting a ticket and or killing yourself and or your family!!!

It felt like it was going to tip over at speed in a turn. Not ragging on anyone that has one, but I know a few people here in so cal that got rid of them in less than a year because they felt the power was useless in that car.

One guy who's I test drove had a number of carrs in his collection and said this exact thing!

Boston Duce

E55- closest thing to a Hemi Cuda this side of $200 grand.

All straight line grunt, turn the wheel at your own risk.

Add passengers-drive quickly, and hipity-hop to the barber shop. Even with the"AMG specific suspension".

As far as internet posted prices for used E55's go, you can ask anything you want, but if you have one to sell it's like an anchor. 2000 E55 with 5K perfect miles and MB 7yr warranty sold @ $38,500. On the market for months in the summer of '04-plenty of tire kickers-only one with dough. It's a buyer's market.

Now that MB has AMG'd everything, its just like any other expensive option you can order-big bucks to buy; worth strunes at trade-in time.

As far as the breed goes, early versions have mass air sensor issues. The supercharged engine has had a lot of warranty issues relating to the S/C.

Mercedes is also going the way of Lucas as far a electrics goes. Electrical gremlins which cost serious $$ to fix once warranty goes-like the "Command" head unit for $4,000.00-yes if the radio goes you have to change the whole unit.

Try an Audi A-8 with their typical firesale lease pricing this time of year.

Regards,
BD

The_Phantom

What is launch control?

Joe2000C4Cab

toothdoc, programmatore, Boston Deuce,

Thanks for the pointers... I'll continue my investigation with your tips!

MRW

I own an 03 C4Cab and an '03 E55 AMG Sedan (one of the earlier ones of this iteration of the model). They are two completely different animals, with the E55 having the emphasis on the animal. It absolutely goes like stink in a straight line (469 bhp)- I've told people that I haven't experienced anything like it since growing up in the mid-late sixties in the orignal muscle car era. It's a nice enough car, and frankly can be driven in a very docile fashion without endangering anyone or attracting undue attention. It will pull away from just about anything on the road if you ask it to. In terms of a family car, it's OK- I use it as my business daily driver, and I find that I miss my BMW 7-Series cars that i had before it (and probably will go back to) because they were so much more roomy.

Here's the bottom line- the car is nice because it is relatively rare, you don't see yourself coming and going, and it can be verrrrrrry amusing when you get a chance to light it up. As has been noted, there are some electrical gremlins, which may by now be sorted out. As to rarity and resale, what the dealers tell you about how the car holds its value relative to others is BS. There was a waiting list when I bought mine. Someone dropped out, and I had a chance to buy the car, and took it. it had every option available at the time, whicn drove the pre-tax list up to $92K plus change. You know what they're worth now, and the car will be two years old in June, so draw your own conclusions. And finally, if there is someone out there who really wants a low-mileage (sub 20K) example with a set of winter wheels and tires (an absolute must!!), PM me.

Hope that helps. Cheers.

Re-animator

Had an '01 996 TT. Have an '03 C32. Just passed on an E55 lease to own an '02 Carrera Coupe. It drives like an extremely powerful lux heavyweight sedan as expected being well over 4000 lbs. It feels as fast as my ex-996TT did off the line and does so effortlessly. It is very disconnected from the road when compared to any Porsche. You will miss the handling prowess by going to the E boat if you drive your Porsche even at 6/10ths capability in the twisties. Weight and over intrusive ESP are its only downside, IMHO. Why not get a used C32 and Renntech it? The best of all worlds.

penguinking

IIRC there was a member a few months ago (last year sometime) who posted about his experience with an E55 or simliar E-class on the track. said it was heavy as a tank but incredibly agile for how much it weighed

ubergeek

Re-Animator,
How do you like your C32? I was going to buy C55 but it looks like C32 is alot easier to hop up. Has it been reliable to you?
I've owned several Mercs and AMGs are truely blast to drive on road. They may not be the sportscar but have a fine balance of sportness and lux imho for those who needs a family car.