E-Class Cabriolet - advice wanted!

[thewinelake]

I love my old Volvo C70 Cabriolet. Strange, because it drinks like a fish and handles like a whale. It's getting on a bit, so I've been looking around for alternatives.
One of the problems is that with 2 children of 13 & 16, I need something with space in the back - the C70 has this. A decent boot with the lid down would also be good - also acceptable in the (soft top) C70.

I've looked at Audi A5 (and the new A3) which are lovely to look at, but seem a bit cramped in the back. These I might be able to stretch to new (at certain times of the year, deposit contributions on Audis result in a 25% discount).

It has been suggested that I consider a used E-Class. At around £24k, one can get a 3 year old example.

One of the things I really like about the E-Class is the air-cap (I often get told by those in the back to put the lid up!) I also suspect that it might be slightly nicer inside than the A5.

Just looking for general comments at the moment - any particular models/facelift versions to consider/rule-out (But I've not yet got my head around all the W-numbers!).

Thanks for any help.

 

[The Boss]

great car. we bought the facelift model last year when it was launched

in the yr and half we have had it, we have done 1000 miles .. literally.. its a weekend toy on warmer days..

air cap and air scarf are great..

air cap is the bit you are referring to, which is the elevation diffuser to the front above the window

air scarf is the heater modules in the front head rests..

overall i feel the facelift is a huge step forward from the pre facelift, so if budget allows, go for that..

here is one of the cheapest i found

Mercedes-Benz E Class Cabriolet SE (E220 CDi Tip Auto) NEW SHAPE 2.2 2dr

and more options here:
Used Cars for Sale - Auto Trader UK

the pre faelift on the coupe and cabrio were too angular and the facelift has worked wonders on the cabrio..

the same can not be said of the facelift to the saloons..

maybe hold out till one comes in budget, or see if a cheeky offer gets accepted on the facelift model..

my wife has the S5 cabrio at present, and i love the audi because of the bespoke theme we have with it and a great place to sit, but it feels more clutttered than the mercedes for sure, but their is more soul with the audi and honestly the design of the audi is pure timeless!

good luck

 

[thewinelake]

Thanks for that - most useful. I was wondering if your recommendation to go for post-facelift is mostly about looks, or if there are other aspects not obvious at first glance? Maybe better fuel economy?

There's a brand new Audi coming out in (probably) 2016, based on the new A4 which is supposedly coming out early next year. It'll be an interesting competition to watch!

 

[The Boss]

Thanks for that - most useful. I was wondering if your recommendation to go for post-facelift is mostly about looks, or if there are other aspects not obvious at first glance? Maybe better fuel economy?

There's a brand new Audi coming out in (probably) 2016, based on the new A4 which is supposedly coming out early next year. It'll be an interesting competition to watch!

the interior is a class above, visually and technically

360 degree camera is so useful and the vents in the pre facelift resemble something out of a vauxhall of the 70's 80's, but the post facelift looks more fitting for the 3 pointed star.

Beyond all this, the cars are very similar, yes!

 

[cctesta]

I also bought the facelift model last October and it arrived in December. There are the visual differences outside and also tweaks in the cabin. The gear selector is no longer in the middle and the Comand system and safety upgrades were standard.

I use mine daily and have covered 16500 miles in a year. I am 6ft8 and I've had three passengers and luggage in the car and it's coped well. We drove 200 miles without problem.

The Aircap makes a huge difference in the cabin when it goes up. In the newer version the Aircap works automatically over 25mph. Also, you can operate the roof at up to speeds of 25mph.

I read online that a new E Class will be released in 2016 and so a new estate and cabriolet will follow. So far I am keen to stay with Mercedes as I like how safe, quiet and easy to drive the cabriolet is.

I would highly recommend the car. I love the Airscarf too, that's a good feature. I also upgraded the wheels to 19" and I had the Harmon Kardon stereo, which is great.

 

[thewinelake]

Facelift...

I test drove a pre-facelift car yesterday. An E250 SE - which is actually pretty close to what I think I'd like, although the AMG/Sports models seem more common.

A very nice drive, and it played the standard trick of not feeling like you're going as fast as you are - could well be expensive on licence points!

A couple of potential killers, though
1) The car I tried could even act as Bluetooth speakers for audio. Apparently this facility is now standard in the post-facelift model.
2) Although rear legroom was just about acceptable, headroom in the back is very mean indeed. I'm only about 5'10 and yet my head was hitting the bar of the roof. My girls won't have that problem, but I would like to have a car that can take adults in comfort. I would imagine that at 6'8, your seat would be back too far to accommodate anyone with legs at all!

The boot was able to hold a case of wine, even with the lid down - which is good.

I then went to drive an Audi A5. This was an S-Line Quattro 3.0 TDI, so a higher spec than I'd be looking for. It even had the Audi version of airscarf.

The boot here would be able to hold two cases of wine with the lid down - even better!

The drive on the A5 was excellent - I think that the 4 wheel drive was giving a real sense of control and road-holding. Would have to trial the more basic mode that I'd be looking at before committing.

One of the things that I was hoping to get a sense of was whether aircap is a winning feature in the Merc, but as I was unable to convince my daughters to come and do a hair-test, this was not possible. Interestingly, though, for front-seat passengers at speeds no higher than 60 mph, the Audi seemed to have the edge (but very little in it).

The Audi does not have EUR6 rated emissions, which is a bummer, as in about 5 years time, that'll cost me if going into Central London. Not sure about the Merc.

Real pricing for E-Class (with metallic + HK stereo) seems to be around £34k, so it makes little sense to buy a 1 year old model for £30k (which is what they tend to go for) unless you can find one in the exact spec you want (or better!).

Audi A5's can be had for about £28k new when Audi are giving the deposit contributions - which they withdraw during the winter.

I'm hoping to buy in Spring 2015 and have a budget of around £25k. Seems that the advice here to wait until face-lift E-Classes are available at that price is good, but that might mean waiting until late 2015. If an all-new E-Class cabrio is on the cards, maybe the decline in values will be quicker?

In the meantime, I think I may have to arrange a test drive of the face-lift version with a child or two in the back, as without knowledge of Aircap effectiveness, it'll be hard to decide between the Audi and the Merc.