I'm out the 'lounge!

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John

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I'm officially out the AMG lounge! I'll hand in my pass on the way out...

The E55K has been sold... a sad day but time to move on.

My discipline in the speed department was almost non-existent in the end so I knew I had to change things before Her Maj allowed me the use of one of her lesser-spec'd rooms.

Replaced by?

Well it had to be something that little bit special but slower (or slow enough so I don't even bother trying - and it is working already) - so a change of direction was needed.

I fancied the S Class thing and tested one at the beginning of the year. S500 - was well spec'd with £20k of options but I just don't think I was ready to move on then. Having tried a Maserati Granturismo, BMW F13 6, run out Jaguar XF and W218 CLS350 - I decided to go for:

2013/63 plate C216 CL500
 

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Part deux.
 

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Very nice! Amazing amount of car for the money, I was looking at buying one of them 6 months ago, performance figures aren't that off the '55 AMGs to be honest.

Changed my mind due to the size of the car :)
 
What a great car John and a perfect jump in luxury yet still cool in terms of being a big coupe! What engine is in this 500? 5.5 388bhp?

What toys has it got? I see it's got amg kit and wheels.
 
They are big cars - I still have the seat a long way back but not quite as far as in the E!

It's not a lot bigger than my E but with the reversing camera, this easily cancels out the additional length anyway.

I know it is not far off the E55 in terms of performance but I've decided against any modifications - otherwise I am back where I was before!
 
What a great car John and a perfect jump in luxury yet still cool in terms of being a big coupe! What engine is 500 in that? 5.5 388bhp?

What toys has it got? I see it's got amg kit and wheels.

Yes - I wanted the waft factor to help remove that sense of "you're not accelerating hard enough" I got from the AMG all the time.

It's a 4.7 twin turbo - it's the "Blue Efficiency" version. Makes 435BHP.

Yup, has the 20s and AMG kit.

This is the spec - not sure what is standard vs. optional though:

Rear Parking Camera

TV tuner

20" AMG 5 twin spoke alloy wheels

Advanced parking guidance (APG)

Attention assist

Closing aid for boot/doors

COMAND HDD navigation 40GB + 8" display/radio/CD/DVD/PCMCIA slot/MP3 compatible; with Bluetooth interface + Linguatronic

Doorhold system

Hill hold assist, Outside temperature gauge

Parktronic system

Remote boot release

Service indicator (Active Service System)

Speed sensitive parameter assisted steering

Telephone pre-wiring with hands free facility and telephone aerial

6 disc CD/DVD autochanger

Auxiliary input socket in glovebox

Media interface

USB Interface in glovebox

Adaptive brake lights

Aerial in rear window

AMG body styling

Auto dimming driver's door mirror

Automatic dimming rear view mirror

Bi-Xenon headlamps/Active light system and cornering light function
 
Bit sad I know but one of the big clinchers for me is the B pillarless thing!

Car looks amazing with all 4 windows down.
 
I was going to say the best grand touring coupe in the world, but didn't cos I thought it might start a flame war.
But it is.
Gorgeous.
 
Love the car, I can see why you chopped in the E55 for it, definitely no slouch
 
Very nice John. Always sad to part with a car you love but times move and the E55 isn't getting any younger.
That looks a cracking car and not a big difference in performance to the E.

Was the E55 sold to a forum member?
 
Now that's superb. One of my favourite Mercs
 
Lovely, you know it makes sense.

I have a soft spot for S coupes ever since I had a 560SEC, your one and the new ones are just lovely and the 500 is the sweet spot as these are comfy fast cruisers not bruisers.
 
John you are a sensible chap and have great taste which is proven by the fantastic colour of your E55 and reinforced by this bad boy.

I'm really liking this new motor and it ticks a lot of box's. I think you have made step forward rather than a step back.
 
Always sad to part with a car you love but times move and the E55 isn't getting any younger.

Was the E55 sold to a forum member?

A lot of those I've spoken to it have highlighted the fact I didn't sound like I wanted to sell the E, and if I am honest, of course I didn't.

I had visions of keeping it until it died!

The speeding thing really was starting to get to me and that is really the only genuine reason for moving it on.

Other sideline issues were it was getting on a bit, technology was well behind (I can connect my work phone now!) and I was concerned it might start to become a faff if it had issues - more the hassle of getting them sorted as I didn't mind spending money on it.

Car sold privately but not direct to a forum member but via someone connected to the forum.

Lovely, you know it makes sense.

I have a soft spot for S coupes ever since I had a 560SEC, your one and the new ones are just lovely and the 500 is the sweet spot as these are comfy fast cruisers not bruisers.

That was a big part of the inspiration which you hit on the other day when we spoke about MB GW.

Many moons ago after seeing Jay's widebody 560, I knew that was a car I could really swap the E for but whilst MB I believe have started making bits for them again, I was concerned about the hassle of getting bits for it and they are even older than the E - so wasn't sure about them as a daily proposition... not to mention the mileage I put on it killing the value and safety as a daily driver etc.
 
Stunning John, awesome motor, I reckon you'll end up mapping it lol What a Stunner ;)
 
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Hey John, shame you had to part with your 55, lovely as it was this looks amazing, best of luck with it.

I know what you mean by the speeding thing, i think the cameras nowadays make driving more stressful than it should be in the 55 as its easy to unintentionally blip past the legal threashold.
 
The car has Karman Hardon this time - something my E was missing.

I will be replacing the speakers shortly though because they are not good enough for me.

The other reasons for not going for an AMG or a CL600 are pretty much the cost of brakes and general running costs on the AMG are too rich for me - and similarly with the 600 as per the issues listed in the current CL600 thread.

I've taken on ABC, which is bad enough but I figure if I am not having all the other running costs / potentials, I can probably stomach ABC issues (whilst I still like the car anyway).

This is the successor to the M273 as well so I missed out on the balance shaft issues although late M273s are OK.

I am currently waiting to find out how the fuel economy compares - it's not something I care about but I am interested to see how all this BE stuff compares to a fire-breathing E55K!

I didn't mention it early - this car weighs 2070KG so it would probably need to be running 800/900BHP before it felt faster than my E55K @ 600BHP.

Again though, I'm back to square one and the brakes really aren't up to the job being 1 piece discs.
 
Stunning John, awesome motor, I reckon you'll end up mapping it lol What a Stunner ;)

Nope - not a chance (sorry Acid).

Anyone know what the 4.7TT chucks out after a remap? Lol - joking!

I did consider getting the exhausts done by Imran but its a slippery slope - I know that well already.

I only went to Acid to make the car "a bit louder" and look where I ended up after consuming that chicken...

Hey John, shame you had to part with your 55, lovely as it was this looks amazing, best of luck with it.

I know what you mean by the speeding thing, i think the cameras nowadays make driving more stressful than it should be in the 55 as its easy to unintentionally blip past the legal threashold.

I am gutted inside - I feel like a part of me has died which might sound ridiculous but my 15th car has been by far and away the best car I've ever owned. Definitely with a heavy heart and much regret but I know those feelings will pass.

Like you, I used cruise a lot to get around the speeding through road works (and generally on the motorway for me) but there are definitely a lot more cameras and I'm a bit wary of "plain clothes" cop cars too.

Whenever I use the performance, and I think of some of the speeds I've done on the public road, it only takes 1 thing and it's game over. I've never looked at the speedo - but when you are pulling away from Audi R8 V10s and Ferrari Californias, you know you aren't "just doing 100mph".

A few seconds of silliness and you've changed your life dramatically.

I find fast driving very rewarding, enjoyable and very addictive, particularly when you beat something, but also very stressful now being more and more conscious of consequences.

But then I think, if you have a problem with smoking, alcohol and drugs, what is the fix...
 

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