[gIzzE]

I have sold my E320cdi and just about to sell our X1, I was going to buy an E350cdi Sport but have been offered a 530d sport touring with plenty of options ticked.

Now we had a 520d F11 last year and didn't get on with it, but think it was the combo of SE and the 2 litre engine that didn't excite.

This 530d sport looks nice enough, it is Space Grey with black, and has Media Pro etc. but just wondering what the difference is between a Sept 2010 car and a newer 2011 model in regards to Media stuff?

Can I retrofit the 6NR option?
If so what is needed?

What else will I miss out on in this model year?

Our 2010 had internet etc. so presuming this will as well?

Thanks in advance.

[mistry]

Hi Gizze,

I'm not sure anything changed from a Sept 10 build and a 2011 build. It was Sept 10 that brought in Combox as standard with the pro media. So if it doesn't have this it's probably an older build just registered in September.

As for retrofit of 6NR, I'm not sure.

P.S. the 30d is a great engine, and very different to the 20d. I'm quite pleased with mine, just wish I'd gone for the F11

[gIzzE]

Originally Posted by mistry

Hi Gizze,

I'm not sure anything changed from a Sept 10 build and a 2011 build. It was Sept 10 that brought in Combox as standard with the pro media. So if it doesn't have this it's probably an older build just registered in September.

As for retrofit of 6NR, I'm not sure.

P.S. the 30d is a great engine, and very different to the 20d. I'm quite pleased with mine, just wish I'd gone for the F11

Cheers for the reply.

I am so torn as of what to do.
Go for the 530d M-Sport or an E350cdi Sport Tourer.

If I go for the E350cdi it will be the first time in a very long time that I don't have a BMW of some sort on the drive.

[mistry]

I know you didn't particularly get on with your first F10/11 but try and get a back to back test drive if you can.

I did this and found both to be very good, but I thought the F10 was a nicer place to sit and preffered the drive.

One thing I know did get improved from the early models was the lack of feedback from the steering, but I'm not sure when.

Good luck.

[gIzzE]

I had a day trying stuff out again today.

A6 is out.
To be fair to Audi it is a very nice car, and really has moved the game on as far as Audi are concerned when it comes to comfort and dynamics.
I have owned around 15 Audis over the last 15 years and around the same amount of BMWs.
The Audis have always been bought as I like their design, both externally and internally. They were always a little bit more understated, never annoyed anyone like BMWs can.
I bought it because of the badge, I guess where as with BMWs I buy it despite the badge.

The Audis have always been both wallowy and crashy at the same time, an engineering feat for sure, but not one to be proud of!

However this new A6 is certainly more comfy than the F11, the way it soaked up the road was pretty impressive. The interior was as good as always and although I thought the F10 has one of the nicest interiors of any car at any price I found the Audi just as good when actually in the car.
The Handling was much better too, not as sharp as the BMW but no longer did it feel lacking like every other Audi I have been in, with the exception of the RS4 and R8, and if I am honest the A6 actually felt lighter on its feet than the BMW, which was the real shocker!!

To be honest though it was the price, the 3.0tdi Quattro S-Line was coming in close to £50,000, just like the 530d and E350cdi, and over with options. But used they were still asking silly money, £43,000, £46,000 etc. etc.
530d and E350cdi were more like £35,000.

Then had the 530d for a while.
To be honest I was not over keen on the all black interior.
Loved the space grey though, and I now feel bad for saying to John from the Tyresmoke forum that his 550i in space grey was a nothing colour, it looks stunning.
The gadgets I know well as we had an F11 se before and have a 5GT as well, the old mans car that I drive a lot as we work together.
Overall I found the 530d a big jump up from the 520d we had in terms of grin factor, but, and it was a big but, after an hour or so the niggles started to creep in. Very crashy, but it was on 19" run flats and a bit jiggly. I would think that real tyres would sort the crashyness, nut not sort it would sort the jigglyness of the car?
Also, I still can't get over the high window line and the big bonnet, it makes the car feel massive, and not in a good way, combine that with the small interior and laughable boot size and I decided against it.
Don't get me wrong I really wanted this car, had sorted the finance on it and had got a perfect trade in price on our X1, plus it was £31k for a fully loaded late 2010 (MY2011 build) car with some really nice options on it. Due to the low price and high residuals it was a £400 a month car which is silly cheap really.

But I just wasn't sure.

I went round the corner to the Bentley dealership as I had noticed a nice 2011 E350cdi Estate on their forecourt.
I took this for a spin and straight away it just felt more me.
Not saying it is for everyone, just right now the Merc is more about what I am looking for in a car.
The interior felt nicer, not better, just more elegant. Where the BMW still feels like a drivers car interior, purposeful and precise, the Merc just had a nicer feel.
The ride is like a magic carpet compared with the BMW and Audi, as good as they felt this was just on another level.
But the most surprising thing was how the Merc drove, it was not as sharp as the BMW but it was not far behind, and I hate to say it but it made the BMW steering feel very vague, especially round the centre. Pulling onto the motorway the Merc is just so planted, which made me realise that in the BMW and the Audi I was constantly adjusting the car to keep it straight, the Merc was just so much more relaxing.

I can certainly see why people choose these cars, although very similar in size, price, image, etc. they all deliver in a very different way.
10 years ago when I was 30 it would have been the BMW all day long, but now at 40 I appreciate the Merc more than ever.

Also the load space on the Merc is massive, it is a proper estate car unlike the other two, and this is important to me, I want to be able to throw the lads bike in the back with the dog and not have to think about loads.

I know you will all think I am nuts on here for going with the Merc, but this time round I found it to be the better car, for me.

[BigKutta]

What is "crashy"?

[gIzzE]

A car should glide over poor road surfaces, speed humps, raised ironworks etc. But the BMWs since the release of the E60 have crashed over them, every time you hit even the smallest crack in the road you brace yourself, it shouldn't be like that.
Audis of old managed that on proper tyres, the whole thing would just feel very hollow and ruin an otherwise fine car.

I am in an X1 at the moment, and that is on 225/50/17 continental sport contact 2's, non run flat, and on a raised damper and spring set up, and even that felt harsh after the Merc, incredibly so.
That was a revelation in ride comfort after the 335i as well.

The best handling and most comfy BMW I have been in is the Alpina B3 coupe, it seemed to get it right, why BMW can't just ditch the run flats and set the cars up properly again is beyond me?

[kc1953]

Originally Posted by BigKutta

What is "crashy"?

I think that is proper English slang for bumpy and harsh. If you think the 5 series is "crashy" you should try the Acura TL with the sports suspension on the SH-AWD model. I owned one for three years, and while it handles like it is on rails, I no longer have any fillings in my teeth.

[gIzzE]

Originally Posted by kc1953

I think that is proper English slang for bumpy and harsh. If you think the 5 series is "crashy" you should try the Acura TL with the sports suspension on the SH-AWD model. I owned one for three years, and while it handles like it is on rails, I no longer have any fillings in my teeth.

I like that saying, is there such a thing as proper slang? Surely if slang it is not then proper?
But it sounds good.


When I say crashy, it isn't so much the fact it is a firm ride, my M3 was firm, my M3 CSL was really firm, but it still gripped the road really well and never made you cringe when you hit a raised manhole cover or suchlike.
It seems to me that if you are pressing on in the F11 and you hit a corner that is not pool table flat, the back end doesn't bite into the corner but starts to bump about a bit.
Now I know this is the run flats, and a simple swap to proper tyres would probably get rid of it, but that is the problem, it is 'probably'.
And getting back in my X1 made me realise that it could be more than just tyres that cause it.
Not a gamble I wanted to take.

Don't get me wrong a great car, but after living with a Mercedes for 2 years it has made me appreciate different things.

And to think, 2 years ago I nearly called the dealer up the night before getting my E320cdi to say I was not old enough for a Mercedes yet.
The thought of swapping my BMW for a Mercedes was scary, I only did it as I needed that huge boot in the tourer, but have fallen for them big time.