Hi, new member on the board that somehow wondered here after the SVT mustang dealer service fiasco. Anyways, I recently traded a couple cars for a 2002 M5 as my only car, and the weather is beginning to get cold ... basically I need a car for the winter. I was looking at a Cadillac Escalade EXT but my funds are limited as I currently have 2 homes. I could purchase the escalade but i risk 2 house payments and a car payment - ouch!

So I was wondering what the CL-S is like in the winter. Please don't consider this post as a "put-down" for the CL-S because I am using it as a winter car. I've loved the CL-S since they came out a while ago. I've had a Legend coupe back in 96 and I recently traded a NSX in for the M5. So I'm actually a car enthusiast (see cars below! - they were all meticulously maintained) and a big fan of acura's!

I noticed that I can probably pick one up for ~$20K even with nav if I'm lucky with 50K miles or so. My buddy has a dealers license and so i may be able to find one even cheaper at the auction. I was invited to drive one back in 2000 when they first came out and it felt great, but I wasn't in the market for a car at the time. I'm trying to recall some of its features.

Couple questions:

1. Does it have heated seats?
2. I wasn't too happy with my legend in Minnesota winters even though it was FWD. I had better luck in a RWD RX7! Is the CL better? I'm planning on putting a set of winter tires on.
3. Does it have traction control?
4. Any problem areas overall?

Thanks
Kevin

PS I've enclosed some pics of the new M5 and some of my past cars below

]

 

yes on tc (vehicle stability assist), yes on heated seats, i'm sure with winter tires you'd have no problems at all. btw nice rides , especially the nsx and the rx 7, hope you didn't trade any of those in

 

I thought this was a post about how the CLS does in the snow? why the pics of all the other cars?

1.) Yes it has heated seats.
2.) Im in Texas, we don't get snow.
3.) yes, it has traction control
4.) Houston, we have a transmission problem

 

the pics on the other cars are b/c this guy is a straight up baller... kinda like you mantis with your zeal setup and lh19s ... maybe someday I'll have some money to put into this sucker...

 

I'm no baller, I'm just young and single.

 

Why dont ya get a Audi A4? AWD baby!!

 

Baller huh?! nah, all my cars have been purchased used and priced pretty reasonably ... nothing over 50K. I recently acquired the M5 new and traded in all my cars for it. This is the first car I've owned over 50K I traded the NSX-T a 96, and the 740il (97 w/101K miles) for the M5. The NSX and RX7 are now gone

Yes the topic is about the CL-S, it was just an introduction and wanted you guys to know that I was a car enthusiast. I only have 1 car right now which is the M5, I decided to buy property instead.

You guys should go check out www.bmwm5.com if you want to see loaded people!! there is a guy with a new Lambo, F355 spyder, Z8 etc etc plus the M5, a few guys have 996 911TT (next car if I make enough!) and so on.

I looked at a S4, like it but don't really want 2 4-door cars, the quattro would be nice, but I don't want to spend more than ~$20K

Thanks for the comments though. On the topic of the tranny - is there a fix for it? recalls etc etc? covered under warranty? I'll do a search on transmission problems. Thanks for all the quick responses.

Kevin

 

my car in snow

 

cl-s + 16" rims and snow tires = BEAST in the snow

 

thanks amirsafdari,

what do you suggest for winter tires? and how quickly does the car heat up in winter? I'm in Minneapolis, you know the conditions being up in Toronto! Thanks

 

Transmission is covered under warranty, you shouldn't have a problem getting it fixed. I can't believe you got rid of those rides for the BMW Thats insane! :P

That was a nice array of cars yo. NSX & Rex are pimp cars, but I guess combined they might add up to an M5.

 

That is correct………

Here’s a shot of my “OLD” car with its snowshoes on.
16” TL Rims with Bridgestone BLIZZAK snow tires.
I saved the rims to put on the new car as well for when the WHITE SHIT starts falling.

Shawn S

 

car is perfect for a winter car...

no problems at all..

no different from my dads lexus, winter wise..

heats up real fast, two settings of heated seats,

 

the Lowenhart BR5's are great wheels, They look great on your car.

I only traded the NSX and 740il for the M5. The 740il was getting high in miles and they gave me what I paid for the NSX in trades. I recently purchased a townhome downtown minneapolis and it only has a 2 car garage. I bought the M5 as a comprimise to the NSX and 740il, i figured it was perfect in-between. and yes the car is extremely powerful with a very smooth torqueband unlike the Z06 vette which is much more "raw". The handling needs some improvement though!

I never owned all these cars at the same time! ... I wish! Nice CL though Mantis23

 

Yep... slap on 16"set wearing Blizzaks 205/60/16 and you are all set (see sig)...

I haven't had problem over 3" of fresh snow till I hit corners at 40+MPH then mild skidding is there...

VSA will help when you are losing control on corners.
TC will help stop spinning when launching your CLS
ABS does it work while comming to stop..

So all bases are covered

 

btw i recommend the snow tires in my sig...

they are like the blizzaks, except they are made in Finland, and the Blizzks i believe are a bit better on ice...

but the Nokians last a LOOT longer..i love them.

 

no one recommends 17" snows? Blizzaks are made in the 17" size for $129/piece @ tirerack

 

Nokians are extreemly good... You can put on Blizzaks LM-22 if you prefer HP winter driving on dry ice/snow like in Europe. If you have a lot of Snow, I recommend the Blizzaks like mine or Yokohoma Guradex.

 

17" snows are no good..

for snow tires u wanna have a thin tire..like 205/**/16

u get better traction in snow with 16" and u also would not be exposing your summer tires to snow..

also, i think someone told me its not good for the rims to take off tires and put them back on repeatedly..

 

It is tough to find 215/50/70 winter tires.. Last year Yokohama said they are gona make one.... but it did not happen maybe this year....

 

nashua after lots of research before i bought, i read on boards that blizzaks will only last 20 000 miles..the tread rating on the blizzaks are very low...only expect 1.5 winters out of them..

my nokians look like new after 2 winters though.

 

http://www.tirerack.com/tires/tires....num=15R7BZWS50

Do you think a difference b/t 205 and 215 is going to make that big a difference? This may work!

Now I have to go find myself a CL-S!

Oh one more question .... do the rear seats fold down for more storage??

 

It depends how you drive.
I remember there was some idiot here who burned through a set in like 5,000 miles but he admitted to HARD driving and burnouts.
NOT what you want to do with snow tires.
Of course if you do this they won’t last very long.

Mine have (2) seasons and about 5,000-miles on them and they look BRAND NEW.
Of course I drive like a PUSSY when they’re mounted and I wait until the last possible day to install them.
That’s what’s nice about having an extra set of wheels so they are mounted up and ready to go.

Shawn S

 

NOPE

 

but the trunk is huge and you have the rear console folds down so you can insert ski sticks...

 

Amir,

yes the wear on the blizzaks is bad but they are only $75-$90 each and I do not expect to drive more than $5k-miles to $8k-miles per winter season, I have them now for 1 winter ....and they will do good for the next...

The bad story is that once they wear down to 75% left they are almost like all-season tires...

 

Let me add... u can mount Michelin Pilot A/S they are UHP all-season... A lot of good things have been said about those bad boys... tha only drawback is that they are bit pricey... $200+ /tire.