Well. It has arrived (or, more to the point, I collected it from Birmingham).
It's quite nice. Too bloody nice for me!
Interior is absolutely lovely - suede and leather in black on grey. Very very comfy (although obviously designed for fatter arses than mine!), and looks really smart. If I were to criticise, it's perhaps a bit "german businessman" (as virtually everything new is these days), but it's all absolutely mint (9 year old car, remember). Shame it'll have to spend most of its life under protective covers.
Toys - yeah, there are lots of them, and it's all going to take a bit of getting used to. Seatbelts that self tension (and do so more under braking) were a bit of a shock. Menu systems that seem endless. Voice control (not played with that yet). Climate control to set a different temperature for every part of your body. All a bit new to me.
If anyone knows how to make the bluetooth on the COMAND stereo play music from my phone, please let me know (Foz?)
On the subject of the stereo, it's also really rather good. Decent power, half a million speakers and dedicated subs. I can see why aftermarket ICE has largely died on its arse - modern OEM stuff really has hauled itself out of the dark ages!
So, the important stuff:
Engine - not the most characterful (sounds decidedly industrial rather than sonorous), but, by god, it gets the job done. It's only supposed to be 230-odd bhp, but it pulls hard. Not quite up with the Jag for outright acceleration, but it punches really well, and is more than adequate for making progress (not that I won't remap it for 280bhp and 650NM). Economy seems pretty good too, at least compared to what I'm used to (33mpg average up from Brum, cruising at c.90 most of the way). Auto box is super smooth, too - so much so, you can barely notice it doing its thing once you're up to speed. Still got to work out the flappy paddles - not sure they're really bringing anything useful to the party.
On that same subject, the controls generally are going to take a bit of familiarisation. Column-mounted gear selector feels a bit weird (last thing I drove with one of those was a 70's Rolls!). Indicators and wipers on the same stalk is odd too IMO, and slightly annoyingly hidden behind the steering wheel. Everything is auto (well, apart from the indicators), so it probably won't be an issue once I'm up and running. Foot brake and hand release is a new one on me too, so looking forward to my first hill start somewhere steep!
Ride/handling - again, pretty impressed. It's two and a half tonnes of car, so it really should be awful, but it isn't. Ride is very smooth and wafty, which I guess you'd expect, but it hustles OK as well. IMO, its better at both than the X5 (which is harsher, and manages its weight less well).
It does feel BIG. Really BIG. Not sure if it's actually much bigger than the disco, but it really feels it. Perhaps because it feels much more solid, or that there's less glass and more metal, or maybe it's just because it's all new and shiny and I'm a bit nervous of twatting it (whereas I simply didn't give two fucks about the disco)
Looking at the tyre wear, I think it could do with a little tweak on the geo (my guess is a wee too much toe at the front), but we'll see when I get it down to the workshop.
Towing with it for the first time tomorrow, but I'm anticipating only good things.
The bit I'm still a tad unsure of is the image (not that I usually care too much about such things). I never thought I'd find myself bang smack in the heart of chelsea tractor land, and mid-range stuff isn't usually my style, but here I am in an upper-mid-range Merc 4x4 in slightly anonymous resale silver. I know I've got a good excuse, as I'm actually using it for hauling heavy stuff, but I'm still feeling a bit embarrassed pulling into the supermarket car park. I guess I'm a grown-up now...(not sure how I feel about that
)
