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Often when a new model is released, the press is so caught up in what’s been improved and is so taken in by the wining and dining they’ve just enjoyed that they say exactly what the manufacturer wants them to.

Then, come the first comparison or long term test the truth comes out. Sometimes – if the writer’s especially astute – it doesn’t take that long for someone to go against the marketing grain. Here’s an all-too-rare example:

The steering, despite having more feeling than ever in a big Merc, is still as tactile as glue. The big, shiny override paddles behind the wheel may be made of alloy, but the box still takes its own time to react, so you end up trusting the auto to do its thing and not bothering to flex your indexes… So the E63 is a mixed bag. A much better car than the E55, but not quite the car that makes people not want an M5… – Top Gear

The press is so giddy about AMG’s incredible new engine that they’re fawning over anything its dropped into. It’s important to remember that despite the fact that this is a completely AMG engine and Mercedes Benz is blazing a detail oriented comeback, the cars that are out now (SLK excepted) are conceived as passenger cars first, driver’s cars second.

This entry was posted on Thursday, June 22nd, 2006 at 1:21 am and is filed under Mercedes-Benz, errata.