Thursday, November 12, 2009

G8RMNI Has Left the Building



My fiancĂ© and I have been toying with the idea of getting a bigger car the last couple of months. While I loved G8RMNI for his peppy, super-charged engine and thrifty gas mileage, my bum (and fiance’s derrier) were really sore after our longer car trips to visit friends and family all over the East coast. As a result, the search for a car that could meet my MINI Cooper S’ performance while providing extended comfort began.

We decided to sell the MINI versus my fiance’s car (a VW New Beetle) since it hadn’t really taken a hit depreciation-wise, thus providing a sizeable down payment. Her only request was that the new car be an automatic.

Being the car geek that I am, I immediately began bookmarking my favorite car sites, and revisiting them over, and over, and over again, for about six weeks straight, playing with configurations, specs, price sheets, paint colors, etc, etc…I shaved the field down to three cars:

1) BMW 328i
2) Audi A4
3) Mercedes-Benz C300 Sport

The 328i
Summary: This car is a driver’s car. It’s got heavy steering, an extremely firm suspension (for a sedan at least; definitely not as harsh as my MCS) and short overhangs (definite plus). The downside: If I buy a BMW, it must be stick. MUST BE! It’s sacrilegious to buy a 3-series with an automatic. Simply wrong.
Result: Off the list

The A4
Summary: The A4 2.0T Quattro definitely surprised me. I was able to take one out for a very long test drive (about an hour or so). I really cornered it hard, braked harder, and floored it. The all-wheel drive system is truly impressive. The cabin however? Not so much. It had relatively good power, but nothing that pinned me in the back of my seat like the MINI.
Result: Consider it.

The C300 Sport
Summary: If the engineering team at Rolex and the tailors at Canali got together to start a car company, they would simply buy Mercedes-Benz since it comprises the best elements of both companies; precision engineering with exceptional attention to detail. There wasn’t a second in my 1.5 hours of test driving this car that I found something to gripe about. The ride? Supple. The performance? Breathtaking. The styling? Gorgeous. The list of praises goes on and on, but I’ll spare you.
Result: Buy it.

Probably the number one question I received from friends (and even complete strangers in parking lots) about my MINI was “Why did you buy a MINI?” I would respond to them with the question, “Have you ever driven one?”

The C300 is exactly the same way. It’s not just a car. It doesn’t just have four doors and a trunk.

When you take it over a hill and rail through a corner, it asks for more, unapologetically. It is simply awe-inspiring what the team at Mercedes-Benz has been able to create.

Like my MINI, the C300 Sport is one of those cars you have to drive to understand. The seven-speed automatic transmission boggles my mind. The drilled disc rotors and staggered wheels out perform other cars in it’s class. I love this car. Love. It.