[madhokritesh]

Chk out The Mercedes E350 Launch event Hi res pics link
New Mercedes Benz E350 - a set on Flickr

[akj53]

Originally Posted by entropy

I am surprised that you think so. Just have a look at the prices it sells in international markets. This price (47 lakhs) might be Ok for a CBU but for a CKD which this car is - there is certainly a huge profit margin. Expect some corrections once new 5 is here.

You are right. Although Mercedes assembles the car here but charges the prices as if it was a CBU import.

The E350 Petrol Blue Efficiency Avantgarde On-road list price in U.K., is only GBP 36,320/= which is roughly Rs. 29 lacs. Even if Indian pricing is done at GBP @ Rs. 100.00, it should cost only 36,32,000 here. Just imagine the jump in volume sales if E350 sells here at 36 lacs. Merc & their dealers will make more profit due to increased volumes. on sales and servicing.

Merc UK web site also has a footnote for the above price saying:-

* Recommended on-the-road price: these prices reflect the Road Fund Licence applicable to the standard model plus £613.93 additional costs necessary to put your car on the road. Included are a standard UK delivery charge (£489.36 incl. VAT), new vehicle registration fee (£55.00), number plates (£19.57 incl. VAT) and fuel (£50.00 incl. VAT)

VAT is calculated at the standard rate of 15.0%

Now just see how much we are being robbed

[entropy]

Sorry for going OT but for the pricing my benchmark currently is:

For a CKD the price should be in the ballpark of X Lakhs of INR if the car sells for X thousand GBP in the UK. E.g. a car selling for 22000 GBP should be 21-23 Lakhs INR if a CKD. Skoda Superb fits this criteria.

For a CBU the price should be in the ballpark of X Lakhs of INR if the car sells for 1.1 X thousands of USD in the US. E.g. a car selling for 50000 USD should be in the range 54-56 Lakhs INR. Q7 roughly fits this criteria though a bit overpriced.

Anything above that and you know how much extra you're being milked .

[nickatnite]

Pics of the new E-Class at a Chennai dealer. If not for the three pointer, i would have thought that Mercury was making it's debut in India. Neither here nor there styling coupled with unnecessary complicated controls for a car which is going to be majority chauffer driven here. What a pity!.

[dhiman]

saw this car parked near a restaurant in dallas today - to me the looks weren't inspiring, especially the headlamps and alloys. The taillamps somehow reminded me of beemer 328i

[RishiSuri]

The car looks impressive. Different style of headlights which most people would not like in first look but eventually will be a copy by all

[S350L-E240]

Ok, Just went and saw the car at the showroom, and I have a question if someone can answer?

Are the seats in the Indian W212 E class made locally? For some reason they felt different compared to he car I've driven in the US? Like this felt a little hard in terms of the leather and the feel was just wierd, but over all an excellent new product will surely get a lot of buyers considering how well the C does,

[Speeding@160mph]

perfect benchmark..this is also the basis i go with...by the time u convert $/GBP into INR and add the Duty, 1:1 or 1.1:1 is the 'easy' ratio to go with.

New E starts at $48k - by the time its hits On Road pricing pretty much 1:1. with INR.

Can't say i'm a fan of the Sedan, the Coupe is definately better looking of the two but My God - Is this an ugly car or what! New 5 is gonna kill it as long as they keep it along the lines of the 'new' 3/6/7!

Originally Posted by entropy

Sorry for going OT but for the pricing my benchmark currently is:

For a CKD the price should be in the ballpark of X Lakhs of INR if the car sells for X thousand GBP in the UK. E.g. a car selling for 22000 GBP should be 21-23 Lakhs INR if a CKD. Skoda Superb fits this criteria.

For a CBU the price should be in the ballpark of X Lakhs of INR if the car sells for 1.1 X thousands of USD in the US. E.g. a car selling for 50000 USD should be in the range 54-56 Lakhs INR. Q7 roughly fits this criteria though a bit overpriced.

Anything above that and you know how much extra you're being milked .

[nickatnite]

Originally Posted by S350L-E240

Ok, Just went and saw the car at the showroom, and I have a question if someone can answer?

Are the seats in the Indian W212 E class made locally? For some reason they felt different compared to he car I've driven in the US? Like this felt a little hard in terms of the leather and the feel was just wierd, but over all an excellent new product will surely get a lot of buyers considering how well the C does,

I felt the same about the seats , almost felt like a bench!.I really wish the styling could have stayed to form.

[akj53]

As most of the premium cars are nearly full CKD imports so my local (maximum) pricing criteria is Rs 100 per GBP of UK price. This still gives the manufacturer a 25% premium over UK pricing, although UK local taxes are as stiff as Indian taxes.

So E350 should cost here, On road - Rs 36,32,000 against the UK price of GBP 36,320/=

[Caramelo]

on this debate of CBU and CKD and we getting milked. i would like to add that most of the stuff you see in these cars are optional equipment abroad. like the sunroof. leather seats for god sakes. and lots of it. we Indians expect this to be standard anyways in luxury cars. for example go to uk merc website and try to configure some of the cars to Indian specs. and then add the cost. and then add the duties. so we do get loaded cars. but overall yeah we getting milked because of the duties here. blame the government not the manufacturers. CKD or not if they don't have the volumes they will probably wanna keep the margins high to operate in a country like India. high margins + low volume= same profit. low margins+high volumes = same profit, they have to maintain this balance in order to operate succesfully.

i mean where will the salaries come from after all .


about the car,

i think the car is more VFM. it has all kinds of assist and safety systems. lane assist. blind spot assists. high beam assist. wake up you moron assist( i forgot whats its called). park assist.on a naughtier note. i wish they provided hot lady assist...ant as standard .


okay seriously guys they have reduced the drag coefficient of the car to 0.24-0.25 that's like wow. its aerodynamic man. so i take back what i said about the edgy styling. this is nice!! wish i had 50 bazumba's to blow away on this baby.!! but i would invest in a house or better yet put this money to work in the stock market, in 3 years i could afford an S class( don't tell me it impossible i work in finance sector). lolz thats how i think. its just my way

[S350L-E240]

@160mph... No offence at all but do you really find it ugly? I mean have you seen it in person? I truly think it looks like a perfect business sedan, and the Interior is truly awesome but like I mentioned for some reason the Seats in the Indian spec car felt different. Once again like I said I am not doubting you or your taste.

@nickatnite... have you been inside a US spec car the seats were so nice, and I am talking about seats without ventilation etc. So Can someone please answer the question?

Regards,

[Caramelo]

Originally Posted by S350L-E240

@160mph... No offence at all but do you really find it ugly? I mean have you seen it in person? I truly think it looks like a perfect business sedan, and the Interior is truly awesome but like I mentioned for some reason the Seats in the Indian spec car felt different. Once again like I said I am not doubting you or your taste.

@nickatnite... have you been inside a US spec car the seats were so nice, and I am talking about seats without ventilation etc. So Can someone please answer the question?

Regards,

i had my doubts about the styling but look at it this way. they have gone away from traditional 2009 over the top too curvy styling, they have made it aerodynamic. Cd 0.25. and i think this look will last for the next 7 years, this is the time of the life cycle of the car. timeless design works for me.

i watched a video yesterday about the merc presentation on the net. they said that they have put some foam underneath the leather strips and then sealed it and stiched it again. they did some tricks with the leather to make it more comfy. the designer who did interior said it was not easy to do. so i take his word for it. that the seats although may look like bench or strange but are more comfy than standard seats. there has to be a logic to design it this way.

[S350L-E240]

Caramelo, I assume the presentation you saw was from Mercedes-Benz and not their indian counter part. My question is the same car in the US has softer and better seats so are the indian seats made in the exact same manner? or is there a difference

[Caramelo]

Originally Posted by S350L-E240

Caramelo, I assume the presentation you saw was from Mercedes-Benz and not their indian counter part. My question is the same car in the US has softer and better seats so are the indian seats made in the exact same manner? or is there a difference

yeah i saw the merc usa presentation. i have not seen this car in person. the Indian version that is. so i cannot comment what changes they have made. what i can say is that the car in the US has lot of stripes in them and the back seats look really comfy. and i like the back seats and headrests.

here are two sets of the seats. which one India gets i have no idea. but i think we are getting the seats from the last image. have a look guys. i like the seats.