2016 Mercedes E350 vs 2016 Lexus ES350 lease

twinsmom6

Leasing 36 months/15K miles

Which would you get and why?

2016 Lexus ES350 4-DR Sedan MSRP $46,784
$486 a month all in with the $2K down
Some of the things it includes:
18 'Wheels, 4-wheel Anti-Lock Brakes, Lexus Premium Audio System, Luxury Package, Telescopic Steering Wheel, Nav System, Panorama Glass Roof with Tilt and Slide, Heated Wood and Leather Wheel

or
2016 Mercedes E350 4Matic Sedan MSRP $65,755
$617 a month all in with $2,232 down
*Some of the things it Includes: Premium 1 package, Command Navigation, All Season Tires, 321 Sport Package, Sliding Panorama Sunroom, Heated Steering Wheel, 18 inch AMG Wheels, Lane Tracking Package

kyfdx

Lexus is 80% of the car at 80% of the price. A lot would depend on my budget and whether I needed AWD.

lonka2184

To me this is not even a question. Mercedes Benz reliability vs. Lexus reliability is night and day. Having owned a Mercedes I can tell you that it is my impression that these cars are either poorly designed, or poorly designed on purpose to keep you going back to the dealership. Let me be specific. one common problem on C classes and I believe E classes (as they used the same.component) is the interrior door handle breaking. This is quite common (and dangerous if this happens at the wrong moment). I have taken apart the door panel and inspected why this happens. To make a long story short, the handle is made out of cheap thin piece of plastic. Whats worse is you can not replace just the door handle. You have to replace the entire door panel ($800-$1000) which will be equally poorly designed with the same flaw. I ended up custom fabricating a metal piece to remedy the issue. Would you be willing to do the same? You might say "well that's the price you pay to drive an upscale car." For comparison, I currently own a Porsche Cayman S. 2 years ago I experienced a similar issue with the door handle. Except in that case, I was able to buy a new part (just door handle) online for $26 and pay an independent shop $100 to replace it.  I give you exhibit b - the timing chain had to be replaced in my girlfriends Mercedes at 69k. That along with another component was a $3,300 job at the dealership.  A timing belt in my old Acura is rated for 105k! Belt! Chain is supposed to last the life of a car.  I can continue to list a litony of other reasons why I would not touch a Mercedes. Google "Mercedes Benz timing chain sproket class action lawsuit" I've also owned an Acura TL. I bought it 3 years old and owned it for 9 years. Sold it with 165k on it. The biggest repair I had was a starter and that was at 125k ($350 job). Timing belt for that car cost me $700 at independent shop ($1500 at dealership).  Unless you like frequent trips to the dealership and will only own the Mercedes while under warranty, save yourself the money and the aggravation, buy a reliable Lexus and enjoy having a comfortable luxury car while saving tens of thousands. Even under warranty I would rather not go to the dealership for repair if having a reliable car is an option. This is my experience, your mileage may vary.