I'm a little disappointed after reading Natalie Neff's review of your 2003 S55 AMG Mercedes. She nit picks about the ergonomics of the controls and the woe-is-me Command center, items that begin to get easy when you are in the car quite a bit. I can agree with her about the cruise control stalk being placed near the turn signal, but I have to disagree with her about the overall picture she paints when describing the car and its intended mission. This is the greatest sedan built on the planet for $116,435, possibly any price (other than the S600), period. Until the M7 is invented or Audi introduces the new S8 or when the Quattroporte hits the streets, what other full size sedan fills this space?
I recently had the pleasure of driving a 2003 S55 with 10k on the clock for the day through San Francisco, down the autobahn of the bay area (HWY 280) and over the Santa Cruz mountains. To say this is a quick car would be an understatement. Using the well placed shift buttons on the back of the steering wheel, I felt quite connected to this 4300 pound vehicle, and welcomed both the traction control (which can be turned off, Natalie) and the active body control (in sport mode). In manual mode, first gear becomes an amazing key to the rocket ship abilities that 516 lb/ft of torque can provide- the car lunges at even the smallest tap of the accelerator. Also I'm pretty sure the ABC doesn't dial in what body roll "you should feel", but rather dials the car as flat and as comfortable as possible, and at times it feels quite amazing how well it does it. I will admit that the interior could be a little more special for a car at this price, like the new Maserati Quattroporte which has a beautiful interior, power points galore, refrigerated center console, and even a redundant color screen between the instruments, but its hardly worth complaining about. By the time all the latest and greatest super sedans are out and about, Mercedes will be redesigning the S class and trumping the competition once again.
I would be interested to see what kind of comments Neff would have for a car like the Lexus LS430, a car that takes the road and driving passion and places the driver as far away as possible.
Natalie, next time you have the absolute pleasure of being able to drive this car, take a deep breath and remind your self that Mercedes isn't Lexus. Thank god.
I would be interested to see what kind of comments Neff would have for a car like the Lexus LS430, a car that takes the road and driving passion and places the driver as far away as possible.
Natalie, next time you have the absolute pleasure of being able to drive this car, take a deep breath and remind your self that Mercedes isn't Lexus. Thank god.
Sincerely,
Warren Madsen
Santa Cruz, Ca.
*Originally submitted to AutoWeek as a comment to Editor Natalie Neff's review, 2003*
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