I traded a 2000 Mercedes E430 that I had for about 8 months. Yes it was great and the V8 was awesome, but it had issues. A rattle in the passenger door that refused to be fixed, and the steering made a strange noise. Not to mention it required premium fuel. I was afraid it was about to cost me big to maintain, so I dumped it. I miss the rear wheel drive, but my Fusion is actually more comfortable and has heated seats (not on my Benz that stickered for $55k). My friends and family thought I was crazy, but I usually get a different car every 8-12 months.
My list of cars the last 3 years- Fusion V6 (bought in March), Benz E430 (8 mos), Infiniti I30 (9 months), Benz E320 (3 mos- totalled in accident), Accord (11 mos), Focus ZX3 (10 mos), Passat Wagon (hand me down from my wife). I usally buy a used car, drive it for 6-8 mos, put it on Autotrader for what I paid for it, and sell it. I was able to break even or make money on all but the Benz, which is another reason I dumped it (traded for the Fusion). I decided to go new to make myself keep the car for at least a couple of years.
Overall I liked the E320 the most. The Fusion is second- if it was RWD, probably a very close second.
But it was very small inside and noisy on the hwy (no hood or firewall insulation) and after 7 yrs I was ready for a bigger car. My Fusion is so much quieter and comfortable it's almost ridiculous. It's also getting 29 MPG and it's not even broke in yet!
