I find the interior depends on the colors a lot. I really liked the interior in that smoke white, and I like it in just black and the amarone which is that deep red.

I'm only looking at and talking about new cars here.

The layout is very similar to my S Class, I think thats why I like it. That heavy feeling is what I like, thats why it rides so well. Bear in mind the i7 I drove was 1,000 lbs heavier than the V8 you drove. I'm not going full out nor are most people who buy these cars. Its for comfortable effortless cruising and confidence in all conditions.

I don't think thats the case for the D5. They have a great ride and are very relaxed and easygoing. Issue is the layout and design just feels a generation behind now and that you can't get a V8 without getting the S8 now. I loved the V8 D5 I drove before I got the S560, their lease rates were just typical terrible Audi and the exterior was too anonymous for me.

 

I agree on the D5 being much softer outside of the S8 but the S8 is the only one I would consider so I honestly forgot the other versions exist lol! Same thing to a lesser extent with the D4, I didn't like the non-S8 version as much and really wanted the suspension/driveline of the S since it really becomes a two faced car with those systems. The difference between modes is so stark even non-car people easily can tell during simple highway cruising that something changed. Normal spec cars without the sport suspension/diffs/and steering system don't change much

Audi never has good leases and you end up paying 10-20% more for the same tier of car vs others, doesn't really matter to me but I get how annoying it is. Turns a 30k cost to own into something totally impractical unless you are just keeping the car....

Layout is typical Audi but is overly reliant on screens for my taste, it won't age as well but it's a good system and the haptic feedback gives a semblance of being able to interact with the machine better. I firmly dislike having no sensation of touch/texture/wasting a sense by just having a phone like screen, ruins the bond with a car and cheapens the interaction.

As far as weight that's very true, I'm sure the extra 1000 smooths the i7 out a LOT. I like my cars to be able to do both flat out and relaxed equally well so that's why I picked what I did/why I like the Bentley Speed editions so much lol!

 

IMO they are designed with different mindsets. If purely luxury, I agree with you. While bmw has changed a bit, I still think they are more drivers oriented. I read this somewhere and I think it’s spot on.
BMW: Luxurious Sports Cars
MB: Sporty Luxury Cars

 

That sounds good to me.

Nicely worded.

 

i agree it ain't pretty. i saw an s-class i see quite often when i take a short walk around the block from my office... so elegant.

 

I just read something that I found very interesting - on Ferrari's recent earnings call, they mentioned how demand is very high and currently 1/3 of all new orders are being placed by people under age 40. Wonder where all that cash is coming from.

 

tesla stock.

 

LOL. There's always money being made somewhere - just crazy to think that the percentage is that high for what's still considered a younger buyer. I know the last few years a lot of people made a TON of money in crypto (hope they sold!), then you have successful start ups, influencer money, and baby boomers transferring wealth to their kids.

 

Its beautiful but its very generic and forgettable. It could be any Mercedes, its hard to tell from any distance whether its an S or an E or even a C. The 7 Series is unmistakable, the W222 was more unmistakable than the 223.

When I walk up to my 222 I still go "wow", and I just don't feel that about the 223 and for the massive money one costs compared to other cars that feeling is important. That i7 with EVERY option I would want is $133,000, an S580 with all those same options is $150,000. Don't want to spend $150,000 so in an S I would have to do without features I would like (as I do in my W222), but I need the wow to make up for that.

 

@SW17LS

so today, in less than 10 minutes. Two different grocery stores inside the same parking lot. I saw two Ford Explorers, same colour but different trim levels.

Brought me some nice nostalgia

 

Nice...those are both newer than mine, the Limited isa 2000 or 2001, and the Eddie Bauer is a 98 or 99. Mine was a 95.

 

Yeah. Wasn’t sure the years. I figured it wasn’t first gen. Then as i left. A new Explorer parked next to the old one

 

They're second gen. Really the second gen is what we would consider a heavy refresh of the first gen but in the Explorer community the 95-01 is considered second gen. This is the first gen:

 

I've been looking at the new gen 5 Series that's coming out later this year and it has some styling cues from the new 7 Series. The biggest difference is the grill which is more traditional BMW than some of the new models. The interior looks very nice. I'm on the fence as to whether or not I could pull the trigger on one but my wife who isn't into cars at all doesn't have any issues with it. Our experience with the current gen 5 Series has been outstanding so the new gen will remain in consideration.

 

Yeah I think you will need to see the new 5 in person, IMO the 7 looks way better in person so does the refresh X7. One of my agents got a new X7 and it was parked on the street right in front of my office window the other day and admiring it for the couple hours it sat there is what made me go by BMW to drive a refresh X7...which I did then I saw the i7 and drove that too.