C&D Sucks

So they have this article, with a 2008 E class AMG vs a 2011 Charger SRT

I thought the article would be pretty cool and interesting, especially since both cars share some of the same architecture.

But to my surprise, the article was a travesty. They kept calling the benz "old", "outdated", "a clear example of how things used to be", etc. They basically kept writing as if they were test driving a 1980 190-E or something like that. They went as far as complaining that the benz' switchgear was "from a by gone era". Excccuuuusssee me? The car is a fucking 2008.

I mean, there are 2011 models right now of cars that have been around in the same model since 2005. They never whine about old, "outdated" stuff when they road test current-generation cars whose model has been around for 4 years or more.

Since when is a 2008 car a relic? It's ridiculous.

The cherry on top of the pie is that they admit that the Benz was actually faster at all speeds, even the 0-60, and after 60, the difference grows. They also admitted that the ride is much better in the benz. And lol@the cheap shot at the benz's switchgear when the other car is a chrysler.

I wouldn't be so quick to shoot down Chrysler. They have been reborn from the ashes from which they came. In the last couple years, the QC has gotten a lot higher and the technology they are using is now up to date.

Also when was the last time you were in a Mercedes? Better yet, when was the last time you were in two different Mercedes several years apart? The switchgear IS old. All the switchgear in an '08 Benz is the same as a 1998 Benz. It' s exactly the same. My FIL's 2006 E500 dashboard looks exactly the same an my MILs 2001 C230 Kompressor Coupe minus the Nav. They have the right to complain about the switchgear because IIRC its the same as it was back in 1995.

I read the same article. The comparison was "What is better? A new $50k car or a used $50k car". The E63 had other complaints such as the steering and nav, but they also found several advantages over the Charger. Also, they complained about several things on the Charger as well, but felt that overall the Charger was a better car. Not because of the Switchgear.

Also, I wouldn't be so quick to say that they haven't complained about old tech in new cars. They have.

The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

SBF wrote:I wouldn't be so quick to shoot down Chrysler. They have been reborn from the ashes from which they came. In the last couple years, the QC has gotten a lot higher and the technology they are using is now up to date.

Also when was the last time you were in a Mercedes? Better yet, when was the last time you were in two different Mercedes several years apart? The switchgear IS old. All the switchgear in an '08 Benz is the same as a 1998 Benz. It' s exactly the same. My FIL's 2006 E500 dashboard looks exactly the same an my MILs 2001 C230 Kompressor Coupe minus the Nav. They have the right to complain about the switchgear because IIRC its the same as it was back in 1995.

I read the same article. The comparison was "What is better? A new $50k car or a used $50k car". The E63 had other complaints such as the steering and nav, but they also found several advantages over the Charger. Also, they complained about several things on the Charger as well, but felt that overall the Charger was a better car. Not because of the Switchgear.

Also, I wouldn't be so quick to say that they haven't complained about old tech in new cars. They have.

I'm actually not upset because the dodge won... it was the general tone of the article.

The benz was a 2008. Ok, maybe it had the same switchgear of a 2001 benz. It's still really superior to the one found in mainstream brands. It's good enough for someone to shell 90K for it in 2008.

I just feel that C&D exagerated their "oh wow most outdated thing ever, it is an example of how things were". Maybe if the car was a 2001 or 1998. But a 2008?

Let's see them rip on a brand new C6 corvette, since the same basic model has been around since 2005...

Thanks for your reply, it was pretty cool

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

The_Edge wrote:

SBF wrote:I wouldn't be so quick to shoot down Chrysler. They have been reborn from the ashes from which they came. In the last couple years, the QC has gotten a lot higher and the technology they are using is now up to date.

Also when was the last time you were in a Mercedes? Better yet, when was the last time you were in two different Mercedes several years apart? The switchgear IS old. All the switchgear in an '08 Benz is the same as a 1998 Benz. It' s exactly the same. My FIL's 2006 E500 dashboard looks exactly the same an my MILs 2001 C230 Kompressor Coupe minus the Nav. They have the right to complain about the switchgear because IIRC its the same as it was back in 1995.

I read the same article. The comparison was "What is better? A new $50k car or a used $50k car". The E63 had other complaints such as the steering and nav, but they also found several advantages over the Charger. Also, they complained about several things on the Charger as well, but felt that overall the Charger was a better car. Not because of the Switchgear.

Also, I wouldn't be so quick to say that they haven't complained about old tech in new cars. They have.

I'm actually not upset because the dodge won... it was the general tone of the article.

The benz was a 2008. Ok, maybe it had the same switchgear of a 2001 benz. It's still really superior to the one found in mainstream brands. It's good enough for someone to shell 90K for it in 2008.

I just feel that C&D exagerated their "oh wow most outdated thing ever, it is an example of how things were". Maybe if the car was a 2001 or 1998. But a 2008?

Let's see them rip on a brand new C6 corvette, since the same basic model has been around since 2005...

Thanks for your reply, it was pretty cool

How long have you been reading C&D? They have ripped on the C6 Corvette. They hate the seats. They hate the seats in every model (dont know why considering I just drove one and I found them pretty comfortable). They hate that they use the same switchgear you can find in a Malibu. They don't care for the low rent interior (which didn't bother me).

Back on the Benz stuff, I don't feel they exaggerated the point of switchgear, they only mentioned it a couple times. Like I said before, it is outdated, they've been using it for 15 years and it's hardly changed since then.

Realize too that a 2008 model year car is almost 4-5 years old now.

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

Any car that Has P-N-D is ruined. Pretty Simple.

Hey Underpants wrote:

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

Any car that Has P-N-D is ruined. Pretty Simple.

While I still think you're a flaming homo for not thinking that that Amber Heard chick is hot, I'll agree with this completely.

thewalrus wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

Any car that Has P-N-D is ruined. Pretty Simple.

While I still think you're a flaming homo for not thinking that that Amber Heard chick is hot, I'll agree with this completely.

+1 that

Hey Underpants wrote:

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

Any car that Has P-N-D is ruined. Pretty Simple.

This has 1999 written all over it.

I guess an automatic ZR-1 is a piece of **** and you'd rather take a 1989 corolla that is manual

We're talking interior quality here dude...

SBF wrote:

The_Edge wrote:

SBF wrote:I wouldn't be so quick to shoot down Chrysler. They have been reborn from the ashes from which they came. In the last couple years, the QC has gotten a lot higher and the technology they are using is now up to date.

Also when was the last time you were in a Mercedes? Better yet, when was the last time you were in two different Mercedes several years apart? The switchgear IS old. All the switchgear in an '08 Benz is the same as a 1998 Benz. It' s exactly the same. My FIL's 2006 E500 dashboard looks exactly the same an my MILs 2001 C230 Kompressor Coupe minus the Nav. They have the right to complain about the switchgear because IIRC its the same as it was back in 1995.

I read the same article. The comparison was "What is better? A new $50k car or a used $50k car". The E63 had other complaints such as the steering and nav, but they also found several advantages over the Charger. Also, they complained about several things on the Charger as well, but felt that overall the Charger was a better car. Not because of the Switchgear.

Also, I wouldn't be so quick to say that they haven't complained about old tech in new cars. They have.

I'm actually not upset because the dodge won... it was the general tone of the article.

The benz was a 2008. Ok, maybe it had the same switchgear of a 2001 benz. It's still really superior to the one found in mainstream brands. It's good enough for someone to shell 90K for it in 2008.

I just feel that C&D exagerated their "oh wow most outdated thing ever, it is an example of how things were". Maybe if the car was a 2001 or 1998. But a 2008?

Let's see them rip on a brand new C6 corvette, since the same basic model has been around since 2005...

Thanks for your reply, it was pretty cool

How long have you been reading C&D? They have ripped on the C6 Corvette. They hate the seats. They hate the seats in every model (dont know why considering I just drove one and I found them pretty comfortable). They hate that they use the same switchgear you can find in a Malibu. They don't care for the low rent interior (which didn't bother me).

Back on the Benz stuff, I don't feel they exaggerated the point of switchgear, they only mentioned it a couple times. Like I said before, it is outdated, they've been using it for 15 years and it's hardly changed since then.

Realize too that a 2008 model year car is almost 4-5 years old now.

well, is 4 years old that bad? Does it make a car antique?

By that metric, most people own POS cars. Those guys racing M3's on the track? POS's. Those guys on the //M reunions with 2008 or 2007 M5's? POS's. (I'm not saying you say this, I'm saying that's the idea that C&D leaves with their stupid article).

As for the switchgear... I understand your point. But I also see that it'd be a rip off to buy a 90K car with "old" switchgear (think E AMG or S class) while you can buy a "little" car for 30k with newer, better ergonomics, switchgear and equipment (think, C class or C class coupe). The entry level model cannot have better switchgear than the flagship. That means that the S class must introduce the new stuff, cascade it to the E class, who will cascade to the C.

Besides, good money was spent on the R&D of those interiors/switchgear and first rate materials were used, it's not like a dodge would suddenly have superior ones because it is a new model.

See I think you're still blowing the age thing out of proportion. I think you're looking too much into it. C&D isn't saying the AMG sucks because it's old, they actually didn't insinuate that it sucked at all. All they said was that the sitchgear was old, the Nav is outdated (and too be honest it was outdated in 2008 a Tom Tom or Garmin was a better choice then) and it's steering wasn't good.

I really think you should read the article again. It's more about options in purchasing a car. Are you going to pay $50k on a brand new Dodge or on a 4 year old superior AMG Mercedes? Are you going to purchase a high end luxury performance sedan that will still cost a fortune to repair or an mid-level luxury performance sedan that will probably cost cheaper in the long run for repairs?

All it winds down to is pros and cons of each vehicle.

Honestly if I had $50k to spend, I would spend it on the Dodge. I'm not a huge fan of Mercedes. Actually I would buy something else, but this isn't about that.

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:

The_Edge wrote:

Hey Underpants wrote:The only good part about a Benz interior, and its not even really that good, it actually kind of sucks, is the center stack. And even that is ruined by lame autos.

How does the auto mess up the aesthetics/material quality?

Any car that Has P-N-D is ruined. Pretty Simple.

This has 1999 written all over it.

I guess an automatic ZR-1 is a piece of **** and you'd rather take a 1989 corolla that is manual

We're talking interior quality here dude...

I think we'd all rather a ZR-1 with a proper manual than a Camry with a manual.
And did the old ZR-1's even come with automatics? doesn't that completely defeat the purpose?

The ZR1 is manual only IIRC.

I would definitely sport a Camry with a manual. Nothing makes appliances more fun than a manual. I am embarrassed to admit it, but I like the new Camry redesign. If they sold a sport model with the V6 and a 6-speed, count me in. The only problem is that it would probably be a $30k car and there's other stuff i would buy with that money.

And I always found most Mercedes' to be boring. That's starting to change now with their newer models, but that generation E didn't really speak to me, even though the CLK did. (guess I just liked it better as a coupe?)

I really like the new C-class coupe though. Especially the AMG and the Black Series. Just wanted to throw that in there.

The new C-class just looks evil. The best looking Mercedes in a long long time IMO. Unfortunately I think that they finally dropped the manual for the C-class for 2012.

SBF wrote:The new C-class just looks evil. The best looking Mercedes in a long long time IMO. Unfortunately I think that they finally dropped the manual for the C-class for 2012.

Yeah, the Mercs are pretty much all auto only. Personally, I prefer the current E-class to the C-class. The greater boxiness just seems more appropriately Mercedes to me. But a C350 with the AMG sportpack is hardly a car I would turn down.

bummer. wonder if you could do a retrofit from an earlier AMG. I'm sure they would fit and could handle the torque.
Edit: At least the C63's auto transmissions have a manual mode. I guess that'll pacify me somewhat.