(Tl;Dr: Looking for suggestions to replace my 2017 E300)
Hey,
Long time lurker on these forums. I’m currently leasing a 2017 E300 that’s modereately loaded (Premium/Tech/Keyless/Heated Steering wheel) and I’m paying ~650 per month. My lease expires in a couple months and I’m trying to decide on which cars I should look at for my next 36 month lease. I’m not looking to increase my payment and wouldn’t mind it being lower. I graduated to the e300 from a 2014 C350. While I love the e300 for all of it’s space and luxury, I DO miss the handling and pep that my C350 afforded me. I have 2 children (2 and 4) that have car seats, which is the main reason I opted for the E300. To put my driving history in perspective, I have been privileged enough to have driven german/british cars my entire life so my preferences lie in that direction, but I am always open to suggestions. Finally, I am 6’1" at 230 lbs fwiw as far as front seat comfort. I wouldn’t mind a SUV or Crossover, but it would need to be low to the ground. I was considering the BMW X2 M35i until I realized BMW doesn’t have android auto. For tax and obtainability purposes, I am located in NJ.
Here are a list of my “Need to Have’s”
Android Auto
Heated Seats/Steering Wheel (Do not need heated rear seats)
Luxurious Interior
Space to fit car seats (Forward facing is acceptable)
4 doors.
Blind Spot Assist
Rear Parking Sensor/Camera
Here are a list of “Would like to have’s”
0 to 60 5.8 or under
Large Backseats
V6 as opposed to turbo i4.
Really nice Sound System
Front Parking Sensor.
I love Tech, so all the interior tech.
Here are a list of “Do not want”
Boatlike ride
Really high off the ground
0 to 60 over 6.3 seconds
Fwd Cars (I have yet to drive one that feels good to me)
Cars with large blind spots.
Slow infotainment System
Like the rest of you fine gents and ladies, I’m looking to get the best bang for my buck. Here are some of the cars I’ve looked at (online) so far:
2019 C43 (The engine/Handling appeals to me but it’s a definite step back in ‘luxury’) 2019 E300 (Same car I’m driving now, which I’ve been very happy with aside from the lackluster power/handling) Audi A6/Sq5 (No experience with Audi, but this forum seems to love this car These cars seem to have a solid compromise between performance/luxury/cost) Volvo S90 T6 (Heard positive things from friends, but wary about driving dynamics) Jaguar Fpace/XFE-Pace/I-Pace (Wary of Infotainment. A Family member has a 2014 XJL and the infotainment is terrible) Porsche Macan(I’m in denile about Android Auto. I love the looks. If I could get into a Macan S for what I’m paying now, I don’t know that I could stop myself.) Range Rover Velar/ New Evoque?(Lots of positive buzz, but worried about height & Blind Spots) Maserati Levante (Only vaguely on my radar. Reviews that I’ve read have been rather poor, citing mediocre performance and lots of components borrowed from cheaper vehicles. Overall seems to be a poor value) Alfa Giulia (Lots of people complaining about reliability even within the first year, unsure of size)
Sorry for the long post, I figured I would give you guys as much info as possible.
Thanks for the response! How would you describe the handling on the S90? Is it “Fun” to drive? I tested the T6 s60 a couple years ago and it wasn’t bad.
Jaguar Fpace/XF. I found the XF to a bit stiff when I tested it. If you’re tall, you’ll find the room is very limited. The infotainment in the newest XJs is supposed to be faster. They depreciated a ton, so you can nab a highly optioned XF S model for cheaper, if not cheaper than a lease. Jaguar is always on the periphery of any car purchase, always in the back of your mind, but never really good enough to pull the trigger.
Maserati Levante Emotional purchase. Would at least test drive to see if it speaks to you. Hit or miss brand. The car has a lot of soul but some cheaper parts on the inside. Expensive to maintain. My Maserati is $550 oil changes from the dealer.
Alfa Giulia Only people I see in this car are <30. It is way better than my spare 330xi, in terms of handling and power.
We also just got a BMW X3 m40iM and that car is fantastic, too. I’d say it’s one of my favorite SAVs out right now for the money. You’d need to drop another 20k to get a Macan Turbo.
Jaguar
Are you saying I can get a 2018-9 XF S for purchase for 650 or under per month? I used to own an X-type. I had a love/hate relationship with that car which ultimately ended when it would randomly decide to shut off while driving on the highway. Until that point, I was mostly a happy camper. Then again, I was in my 20’s, so there was that, too.
Maserati
My father owned a Quattroporte back in the 80’s and my brother drives a Ghibli today. Emotion is the main thing keeping it on my list and I do plan on giving it a fair shake, but I already feel pretty haunted by the negative user reviews I keep seeing.
Alfa
I’m really curious how the front seats feel. Most native Italian cars can feel a little claustrophobic, but I do like the layout and the specs. The reliability complaints are fairly pervasive, though. I’m thinking of striking this off my list for the reason you mentioned. Though it seems interesting, I may be past the point in my life where this car is a relevant good choice for me.
BMW
There are a bunch of Beamers I like, but the lack of Android auto is a major strike. I use it every day in multiple ways. On top of that, Google maps reliably destroys any in-built GPS I’ve tried.
I doubt all the other cars listed there will be, never know until you start looking. Maybe you can find a loaner. Bang for the buck is going to be a 2018 S90 from the looks of the deals right now on those.
For the most part I picked my list based on cars that should go in that category.
C43
This was my mistake, I was looking at rates for the 2018 C43 and saw them leasing in the $600 dollar range. That being said, I would consider the 2018 model.
2019 E300
Based off this post (I can provide some MSD to help sweeten the deal)
Audi A6
Showing an A6 at 369
Volvo S90 T6
Having trouble locating much movement on the T6, but see lots of deals in the 3-400 range for the T5. The national incentive is something like 3k DAS with payments at 640 per month.
Jaguar Fpace/Xf
Seems to be in the general strike zone:
Porsche Macan
General Strike zone, though admittedly at the top of the range.
Range Rover Velar
General Range
Levante
(out of range, and would only be an emotional and non-frugal option no matter how you cut it)
Thanks for your candor. I agree that the E300, while amazing on the inside, has a pretty lackluster ride. I’ll give the Volvo a test drive to see if it’s enough of an improvement to get me past this hump I’m in.
Off topic, but you even prefer the ride quality? What size wheels do you have on each? Every review of the -60/-90 cars I’ve read indicates that the ride quality leaves a lot to be desired…
My S90 has the air suspension option, I wouldn’t have got it due to the cost if I ordered the car but now that I drive with it, it makes a huge difference.
I’d focus on the C43…most of the other sedans mentioned are boats relative to the C43…(not sure if you copied/pasted something you wrote in another forum, but where does ‘this forum’ seem to love the A6? There are hardly any recent A6 lessees here) and SUVs are going to have the high off the ground/high center of gravity feeling (is it a feeling when it’s just reality?)
Max,
Thanks for the response. In regards to the A6, I feel like I have read a lot of posts spanning the past couple months which advocate the A6 as a sweet spot car that has attractive lease deals. I seem to remember 1 or two of them (having trouble locating them) talking about the '18 models have $10,000 on the hood. I’ll link a couple that I remember below. It could have just been that those threads were relevant to my searches which is why they popped up more than others.
The C43 does seem like it would be the most fun of the above options. The main detraction for me is the tablet sticking to the dash look of the infotainment, but I’ll have to test it myself to see how I feel about the car as a whole. I tested the C300 back in late 2016 when I got my current E300 and the glare on the tablet was pretty bad. I’m hoping that in the past 3 years they have at least addressed that issue. The engine and general cabin feel is exactly what I’m looking for, though.
I agree on the SUV’s. I’m trying to look at “lower” SUV’s if that makes any kind of sense. After further research I’m thinking of taking a look at the SQ5 and the GLA 45 to see how I feel about those cars. I think the GLA 45 will most likely be too small, though.
That being said, when I test drove the Fpace a couple years back I felt like it pretty much drove like a sedan.
Links I’ve visited that made me feel like the A6 is viewed positively around here:
Thinking out of the box: the lowest (to the ground) high-performance SUV is arguably the E63 wagon. Could you buy a CPO and sell it again in three years for less than a $24k delta?
I’ll add the wagon to my list. I’ve never purchased CPO before, but not against giving it a try for a good price. Though, with my love of Tech, I wouldn’t want anything older than 2017 max. I could always buy out my lease for my current car (~15k miles I believe on a 30k lease with 4-5 months remaining, Purchase option is $37,408) since it is a 2017. I was really hoping to freshen it up, though. New car for a new phase of life, if that makes any kind of sense.
