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After much deliberation, I decided that the E60 M5 just isn't the right car for me. Yes, it is awe-inspiring at times - mind boggling even. Yes, it's the fastest overall car I've ever driven. Yes, it has all the features I would ever want and more. Yes, I've had some incredibly fun times in the car on the open roads. Yes, nothing quite makes the sound of a V10 - reminiscent of the old Formula One. The car is a technological masterpiece. The car is a proper true race car, and yet you can have all your mates there with you too. It's not these things which made the decision for me. Imagine you have a friend who likes to party every night of the week, and is in fact quite a boring, uninspired and awkward character unless he is out there partying, but after a few drinks he changes into the most fun friend you have ever known. Some of the best nights you've ever had were out partying with this friend, and even though is it exhausting and at times very stressful, the good times mostly outweigh the stresses and late nights. However, there are many nights where you are just simply too tired, grumpy, or just not in the right state of mind for seeing this particular friend, and so you simply stay home and have a quiet one. This is the E60 M5 for me. It is not the right car for my personality. Yes, if you are in the right mood - the car is un-beatable. But it requires you to pay attention to what you are doing 24/7. It is not the kind of car you can hop in, turn on, drive 200meters up the road to the dairy to get a Pie and a can of Coke. It is the kind of car that, unless you are "partying", is really uncomfortable and too involved for my liking on the day-to-day stuff. I've always been a big fan of going for a drive to relax. Driving from A to B while thinking about other things going on in my life. Thinking about my week, planning my weekend, thinking about what I might want to eat for dinner, thinking about who my football team is playing this weekend etc. As I get older and older, I'm finding I enjoy the more simplistic things in life - like allowing me to get back to what I really enjoy, which is a more relaxed driving environment. After owning a few BMWs in a row, it was time to try something different. My grandfather was always an avid Mercedes-Benz fan. He loved the true relaxing approach they have always had, even since his cars back in the 70s. I thought I would give one a go. Obviously coming from an M5, I was not looking for a "performance car" or "the ultimate driving experience", but more something I can live with day-to-day for the next few years without the stresses and frustrations that the E60 brings. This was when I spotted a 2007 Mercedes-Benz E63 AMG. I have always thought this shape looked a little bit aged, as it looked similar for a fairly long period of time (2002-2008). But the subtle changes AMG have made to the front kit, guards, bonnet etc. combined with the colour of this particular one, was the first time I was quite impressed visually by this shape of Mercedes. Most impressive was the instant comfort. The leather is much softer and plush, instead of the hard leather of BMW, the softer air-supported seats of Mercedes was a good first impression. Then you turn the key and listen to the 6.2L V8 fire to life. Wow. So different from the V10 (which sounds terrible at low rpm - but amazing at high rpm). The merc gives itself a little blip of the throttle and burbles into life with mini-backfires and awesome sounding V8 power. After about 15 seconds of driving, you feel at one with the car. Thinking back to the E60, I remember it took me a few weeks to finally get acclimatized to the way it drives, the gearbox / suspension in particular. It was really all I had hoped for. Put the car into D (sports mode), and away you go. Yes - right now you are thinking - WTF - has this guy never driven an automatic before? And admittedly it has been quite some time. My E39 M5 was manual, then the E60 was the whole SMG thing. It was one of the first times I had driven a Merc, and yet it felt like I had owned them all my life. The comfort, the at-peace feeling. Everything felt right, and I hadn't even really touched the accelerator yet. I could tell even before experiencing the performance side of the car, that this was the right car for me. The air suspension seems to absorb all of the road imperfections, making a softer more comfortable ride. As part of the test drive, I reach a nice long straight all of a sudden, so figure this is a good time to see what happens when I push my right foot all the way down to the ground. Wow. I knew these AMG cars were fast in a straight line, but I did not expect this fast. The instant torques from 2000rpm - 7000rpm!! The noise! This all of a sudden is now the fastest car I've ever driven (in a straight line). 518 horsepowers, 630nm torques. Impressive. I throw the car around a bit, yes it is a tiny bit more 'boaty' than the E60 M5. But the AMG isn't renowned for its cornering is it. And with comfort in mind, this was almost ideal. The brakes are just as impressive as the E60 M5, those massive AMG brakes stopping the big heavy car very promptly. I finish the test drive in a state of confusion. How can two "top end" german super-sedans be so different. I spent that evening pondering the pro's and con's. The M5 has better features, like heads up display, active lumbar, garage door opener, plus many adjustable driving styles. The M5 cornered better, flatter, faster. The chassis is tighter, stiffer, more like a race car, and can sounds like a F1 Car at 6000rpm+. The E63 is far more comfortable, easy as anything to drive A to B (infact my mum drove it, but would never EVER try to drive the E60), has incredible power and low rpm torque making it responsive and you don't have to be driving like a dickhead to overtake someone. Gearchanges are smooth and un-noticeable instead of all your passengers flying back and forward each shift. My conclusion is that the M5 is unparalleled on the open country roads, and I do not regret owning the car. I always wanted to own a V10 in my life at one point, and what better car to have it in than the M5. As a sedan race car I love this thing. And although, for me, a very stressful car to own/drive, the experience this car has given me has been extraordinary and educational. Those who know me, know I have a fairly relaxed quiet personality. The E63 seems to match this far better. Ideally one would own both of these awesome machines. The M5 for the road trips, the open roads, the country side. And the E63 for Monday-Friday, traffic, short trips, easy-going-driving. It's hard to say which one is the better car overall. Time will tell.

Nice car! Just my personal opinion but isnt it a bit steep price wise? No disrespect or anything

Rightio so as all you e36 owners might know already, the headliners love to sag! and the grey is pretty dull so i have decided to replace the fabric on the headliner + pillars so it matches up nicely. As of today i took down the headliner + Pillars which took me 45 mins in total to remove (note: taking the headliner is a bit of a B**** easiest way taking it out of the car is though the rear door) I then peeled the headliner fabric off & scrubbed off all the sticky foam stuff that was holding the old fabric on Then stripped down the pillar fabric which was real easy I ended up getting some amber lights which i ordered a long time ago and put them where the sun visors sit as being a pre facelift model my e36 didn't come with sun visor lights. Called it a day and deciding on fabric now... Thinking of doing something different and going with a synthetic black leather.. Open to suggestions though Will update this post as i do things

You know that doesn't work, if it did you would be buying this!!

If the message is "Brake Light Circuit" it will need a new brake light switch............ "Brake light" is a brake light bulb