USA-1

4 hours ago, David said:

@USA-1

Valid question, not being political, just being honest one college educated man to another. 

As a college educated man, how do you not use the analytical skills we learn to assess, review and consider all points of views about science/medicine?

I accept your choice to not get vaccinated, but I do not understand how one can review the data and understand the pro's and cons. 

Were you not vaccinated as a kid growing up in Oregon like all the other school kids?

As an Engineer, I totally get the fact that we can work numbers many different ways to get various results, but if you truly believe in yourself to build the best product, then an objective review of the data allows us to see where the pro's and con's lay and why we would build one way or another.

As more data comes in a clearer picture shows up, yet with that said, today's computers allow us to run many simulations and the data has been far more accurate than we had with Polio, Mumps, Measles, etc.

Vaccination is important to the human race and allowing infections to happen where we can minimize the affects and loss of life via medicine seems to be natural to me. 

So have you reviewed the data from so many various medical sites in coming to your stated view? Which sites are you basing your view on?

I've stated it previously and I'll state it again. I am NOT against vaccines, never have been. Yes, I had the MMR, Polio and Tetanus shots with boosters when I was a child like hopefully everybody did. I also never said I wasn't going to possibly get this m-RNA shot eventually once the FDA knows more about it long term, I stated that I'm going to wait it out. That is my right as an American Citizen and the choice that I'm making. There is still a substantial risk right now with the m-RNA inoculation that I won't be taking.   

Like others have stated on here as well as myself and my medically trained/licensed family and friends, we do not know what the long term effects will be. I am pretty certain that I already had Covid last February before China told anybody about it and I am going to get tested for SARS-CoV-2 antibodies soon.

I am a very clean, responsible adult and wear a mask when indoors in public, common sense tells one it's an obvious requirement for everybody's safety. I don't want to spread disease anymore than the next normal, logical human being.

I'm not basing my reasoning and justification on just websites that you have no way of fully verifying is actually true data, like all of you. I have real world feedback from friends and family in the medial field who are front-line workers who are helping me make my decision. That's what common sense is. Someone that you know and trust in the medical field who are seeing first hand what is going on and informing you on what they believe. Just like others on this thread have stated this isn't natural medicine, this is screwing with actual science and your DNA.

11 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

 It is being well documented, however the full extent of the greater benefit is not yet fully known.

‘Natural Immunity’ From Covid Is Not Safer Than a Vaccine - The New York Times (nytimes.com)

The administration has not changed testing procedures at the boarder. Anyone caught by CBP is held for 72 hours while they are tested.  This is carry over policy from the previous administration. Biden Hasn't Reduced COVID-19 Testing at the Border - FactCheck.org - Lots of sources at the bottom too. 

NYT? Yeah, talk about a trashy tabloid...and this whole thread that you started is political in many ways on it's own, long before I stated anything.  

1 hour ago, Drew Dowdell said:

That's actually a lower rate than the article from Israel that I quoted, so I'm not sure why you think that helps your argument. 

And all it is saying is that the vaccine didn't protect everyone. 

That is the only ethical way we get to herd immunity.  If 80% of people out there take the vaccine, this pandemic is over.  By not taking it, you're only helping to extend it longer. Even if you had covid, you are not as protected from the virus or variants as you are if you took the vaccine. 

So explain this then. If you think this vaccine is an end all be all and Pandemic will be over after X amount of people are vaccinated. Why would such a large amount of healthcare workers nationwide be choosing to NOT get the vaccine if they didn't know something was wrong that you don't?! They are seeing sh*t in the hospital from the vaccine that you aren't and know firsthand what it is doing to people.

https://nypost.com/2021/01/01/alarming-number-of-us-health-care-workers-are-refusing-covid-19-vaccine/

This pandemic has been winding down, but Covid will never be over. I have friends and family who are front-line healthcare workers who say it's pretty much back to normal other than illegal migrant Covid cases spiking along the border towns with the disaster the current Administration has created. It was solidly locked down because of Covid, but now the Admin. has started "Catch and Release" again forcing CBP to let the illegal immigrants loose many without being tested or given any form of the vaccine DURING a Pandemic...RIDICULOUS

https://www.abc15.com/news/state/arizona-border-patrol-releasing-asylum-seekers-to-communities-in-need-of-shelter

https://apnews.com/article/arizona-immigration-phoenix-e900051cb6c60826b1013f0ab2b5c385

There is no proof that having natural antibodies is less protection than the vaccine. That's clearly your opinion.

2 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I did... here's is a quote from one of them

 

 Here is a quote I had above from the CBS Washington article.

"However, at least eight people with breakthrough cases have been hospitalized. The Washington State Department of Health is also investigating two potential breakthrough cases where the individuals died."

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/100-fully-vaccinated-people-contract-covid-19-washington/story?id=76784838

54 minutes ago, David said:

Please post the actual links of where you are getting these so called facts on people who are vaccinated are getting sick with Covid-19?

Currently if you never had Covid-19 and get vaccinated, there has been no reported cases of infection except by deceptive news outlets that have not given any actual scientific facts on this.

 

Below are articles about people getting sick with Covid-19 after being fully vaccinated, first article is up there with you in Washington State. Like I already stated it's the 5% chance that it won't take and the different variants that get past the vaccine immunity of the original strain. CDC and FDA were originally telling people they would be immune 2 weeks after the vaccine and they obviously are not so again they don't know enough to give any real trust worthy direction right now. 

I understand that you can still be asymptomatic and get it with the vaccine, but some are still getting sick and hospitalized or even dying from it even after being fully vaccinated, that's why the CDC is watching the variants so closely, learning as we go...

Here are some serious complications with Covid after being vaccinated right in your backyard...

"However, at least eight people with breakthrough cases have been hospitalized. The Washington State Department of Health is also investigating two potential breakthrough cases where the individuals died."

https://abcnews.go.com/Health/100-fully-vaccinated-people-contract-covid-19-washington/story?id=76784838

Correct, common sense is not so common.

https://www.jpost.com/israel-news/i-was-fully-vaccinated-and-still-caught-corona-heres-why-661336

31 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

The reason they are still telling people to mask even if they’ve been vaccinated is that you can be an asymptomatic carrier. So even if your aren’t ill, you can carry the virus for a time and if you sneeze, say for seasonal allergies, you can spread the virus.
 

Read the links I just sent David, not just asymptomatic.

45 minutes ago, Drew Dowdell said:

 None of the vaccines are expected to be 100%. 
 

However the vaccine is effective that even if you’re vaccinated and still get it you don’t end up in the hospital.
 

Right, which is what I am saying, nothing is 100% effective, so it's really a roll of the dice.

Like I stated earlier I'm pretty sure I already had it last February and I'll be getting tested for antibodies very soon now that the tests are having better results.

Also, we are still being told by the CDC to wear a mask and keep your social distance even if vaccinated, so that should tell you that even the FDA still doesn't know what to expect from the vaccine or it's effectiveness in so many people.

Happy Easter 🐰

5 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

@USA-1 your strong immune system could very well be your undoing if you were to catch Covid. Many of the young healthy people who died did so because their immune system over reacted and flooded their lungs with mucus and inflamed air passages too much in an attempt to fight the virus.

You are correct that mRNA vaccines have not been widely used like this before, but they are not untested.  The vaccine itself is out of your system within a few days of each shot, removed by your immune system.

While using mRNA is a new technique for creating immune response, that’s where the novelty of it ends. Once your body recognizes it as an intruder, the immune process works the same as any other vaccine or even just being infected. And because the vaccine is expelled within days by the body, there is no reason to assume any long term side effects.

There are only 2 big question marks that will only be answered with time.

1. Will we need to get boosters to combat against variants? So far the data shows that while you may not be completely protected from a new variant, having the vaccine does prevent the illness from becoming serious enough to cause hospitalization and completely prevents death from the virus. So for now, getting the shots is worthwhile even with the variants out there. I will get the Moderna variants booster if/when it becomes available and needed. We have to do this with influenza every year, so it’s no big deal.

2. The other question mark is on how long immunity lasts. Most vaccines require booster shots after a period of years. The MMR vaccine is usually given to children, but for people my age and older they’re finding that the body forgets how to make the antibodies after a bunch of years for the vaccine that was being used in the early 80s when I got mine. There is a newer MMR shot that is supposed to improve on that which children are getting these days. I got a booster for MMR a couple years ago because I had the old vaccine. A few years ago I talked to my doctor and had him put me on a schedule to get boosters of anything and everything I might need because I was traveling internationally regularly.

But the risk of the body forgetting how to make antibodies is present for nearly all vaccines, so while we do not have data yet on when boosters for Covid-19 might be needed, I’m just assuming they will be needed eventually in order to maintain immunity.

I do hope you’ll reconsider and eventually get the shot USA.
 

A strong immune system is not the same as one that overreacts to a pathogen or antigen, two totally different things. Your immune system could overreact to the seasonal flu or any other nasty bug for that matter and for many people it does.

I've read all about m-RNA and it is a great development and the latest in technology with Gene therapy, but I and many others feel that it's not quite ready for prime-time, that is all I'm stating here.  I never stated that I wasn't going to eventually get it, I'm waiting it out a while like many others are who I know and trust.

It doesn't work like any other vaccine because it isn't like any other older method vaccine where an inactive pathogen is injected in your arm to "present" it to your immune system. There actually is data coming in that people who have been "fully vaccinated" are still getting Covid-19 so the different variants are, in fact, still getting past the "vaccine immunity" and some could be the 5% or 6% failure rate of the 2 shot vaccines 94-95% effective rate. The J&J one shot is definitely not worth it with only an 84% effective rate. 

It is a temporary Emergency Approval so You AND the FDA do not know for sure what possible side effects could come up in the near or distant future. I know they've been testing it, but not enough trials have been completed, nothing close to what they normally complete.

I get it, it scared the sh*t out of you that your friends almost died from it, but it's VERY RARE that someone our age has Covid-19 to that extreme. Like I stated earlier, I know several people our age and older that had Covid-19 and got over it fine, flu-ish or cold like for 3 days. My 53 yr. old PA cousin and his 51 yr. old RN wife both got it middle of last year like I stated earlier and are fine with no lasting side effects. My 76 yr. old Uncle got Covid late last year and got over it fine just dizzy and fatigued and slept a lot for a couple of days. My cousin says if he and his wife weren't in healthcare they most likely wouldn't get the m-RNA right now even before they had Covid, because not enough is known about the very possible lasting side effects. That's coming from people in healthcare who I trust, not our FDA/Gov't. and I'm not anti-government, I'm anti Big government.

There are a lot of chemicals used in food (food coloring/dyes) and body care products that are not banned by our FDA, but are banned in every other Developed Ally nation in Europe, Japan and Australia because of the cancer causing carcinogens or ADHD that they cause in children, so our FDA directors aren't always headed in the right direction. Why don't they just ban it? Because they have Big Corp. or Big Pharma in their back pocket who are sadly many times directing them. Why do we pay so much for basic pharmaceuticals like antibiotics in this country? Big Pharma money and control... 

4 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

A lot of the Covid deniers will point to the survival rate (while also pointing at the wrong number), but survival does not equal recovery. People survive cancer all the time, but they are often not able to do the things they once did. My old boss was a multi-time cancer survivor (it did get him eventually) but even when he was in remission he was relegated to a lifetime of medications that had side effects and he couldn’t take the stairs going up because he no longer had adrenal glands.

So yeah, he survived cancer for a time, but he never recovered.

The same is happening to people who get Covid.

That's almost always the lasting effects of chemotherapy and radiation cell damage that cancer survivors go through. My cousin (sister of cousin above) had breast cancer nearly 20 years ago and still has horrible lasting effects from the chemo with tendon and muscle issues etc. She was healthy as an ox before as well, but obviously cancer doesn't discriminate. She says she now feels like a 75 yr. old woman when she's only 55. Sucks. 

It's often said if the cancer doesn't kill you, the chemo will.

We all have immune systems and some are very strong, "nature's vaccine". Like most of us know once you have a virus your immune system makes almost certain that you won't get that same bug again by making antibodies for it, even if a slightly different variant. So yes, there is such a thing as herd immunity and it's constantly proven.

I have and still wear a mask anytime I'm indoors in public to protect myself and others, but I find it interesting that the expert infectious disease doctors said we didn't need to be walking around with masks on in the beginning last February, but 2 weeks later we all needed masks ASAP. We could have had and still need better direction from our leading doctors and scientists involved with this ongoing disaster.

I'm not an antivaxer by any means and I am all for vaccines for MMR, Tentanus etc. Chicken Pox we all got as children and our immune systems made antibodies for it, but this isn't a typical vaccine like MMR or Tentanus or even the Flu shot where they inject a weak or inactive pathogen to force your immune system to build antibodies for it so you are more likely to be protected if or when the real one hits, but it's never 100% protection.

This is a very new inoculation called Messenger - Ribonucleic Acids (m-RNA) and it has never been widely used like this, so we have no way of knowing what it could do to our immune system and our DNA in the future with the way the RNA read the DNA nucleus and makes changes to our cells, they're screwing with science big time. They still have to have clinical testing like our FDA and CDC require or recommend, but it was only 6 mos. of trials for this particular m-RNA and they weren't having large trials that go on for at least 5 years when testing vaccines previously, so yes it's been in our FDA controlled labs, but not injected in this many arms.

 https://biologydictionary.net/mrna/

Just like people are dying from Covid-19 many are also dying from the m-RNA shots who were never sick, usually the second one from the two big Pharmas out there and many are healthy individuals with no underlying conditions, which is why I'm going with my strong immune system for protection.

I also hope everyone stays well, whichever choice you make. 

We really don't know what the long term effects will be and I won't be getting this inoculation, my personal preference. I'm pretty sure I already had Covid-19 way back before we even knew about it in Jan. 2020 as it was spreading from China and we know the CCP kept it quiet.

It wasn't that bad, like a head cold for a week or so the typical run for a virus of any kind and I never get sick (not even a seasonal cold) so I know it was most likely SARS-CoV-2 (Covid-19). I'm 44 and feel that herd immunity has a great chance at keeping this Lab Bug down. I know several people who have had Covid-19 and gotten over it just fine, one person being my 76 yr. old Uncle who lives in the PNW and all he had was slight dizziness and fatigue, so he just slept a lot for a couple of days. My cousin and his wife and their two boys got it, he and the boys just had flu like symptoms for a few days and fatigue so they slept it off. They are both in the medical field, he's a PA and she's an RN and was asymptomatic. High risk are diabetics and the over weight with heart disease, among other underlying conditions. Experts are saying this current inoculation may not protect against the new variants coming out of the U.K., So. Africa and Brazil and now California here in the U.S., so it's a crap shoot and I'm not taking a chance of what the long term effects will be, especially if it's not going to protect from the new strains/variants. I'm good, thanks.

According to the ever changing guidance from the CDC, even if you are fully inoculated you still have to wear a face mask and continue to social distance. Also, regularly wash your d*mn hands with soap and water or have hand sanitizer with you. I have always religiously washed my hands when I get home after being out in public, even before this outbreak and like I stated earlier, I hardly ever get sick. I still think this is a major form of transmission like with any viral or bacterial infection.

“People who have received the vaccines should watch for changes in guidance from the CDC [Centers for Disease Control and Prevention], and continue with coronavirus safety precautions to reduce the risk of infection, such as mask wearing, physical distancing and hand hygiene.”

https://www.hopkinsmedicine.org/health/conditions-and-diseases/coronavirus/a-new-strain-of-coronavirus-what-you-should-know

18 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

I don’t know who that guy is but he looks one spare rib dinner away from a heart attack.

That's @oldshurst442 himself! We know he's angry and he does own a hamburger hotdog restaurant up in Canuckada

It's called a clown car. What a joke, it's even smaller than a "Smart" car. I could fit that thing in the back of my truck and still be able to shut the tailgate.

Thanks for update, Drew. 

And here's another one. She's a nice BIG RED 2020 Chevy Silverado 6500HD DMax Tow Truck that can haul some big heavy clunkers 👍🏼🇺🇸

49 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

It's just unfortunate that they chose to share an engine specifically designed for truck use, to be in their luxury sport sedan. It isn't that it is tune-able, it's that it isn't refined enough for luxury sport sedan-use. 

"I wasn't going to describe it as such when Cadillac admitted that the turbocharged 2.7-liter four-cylinder comes from the Chevrolet Silverado pickup, but then I slid behind the wheel and hit the start button. The largest four-cylinder engine on the market starts up with a grumble, like a teenager being dragged out of bed at 5:00 a.m. I'm not kidding, on startup you can feel the torque twist the engine in its mounts, a sensation that reverberates through the car – it's uncouth and unacceptable behavior for a car with a luxury badge. So, yes, this is a truck engine, even if it smooths out at idle."

https://www.motor1.com/reviews/428474/2020-cadillac-ct4-v-first-drive/

Mercedes makes REAL trucks. 

I will certainly agree that any company would be stupid to not want the success Ford, GM, and Ram have had with their trucks. Great margins, great profits. 

I know I've said it, maybe/maybe not here, that the C8Z is going to seriously hurt feelings. The C8 Z51 is already putting dents in serious super car territory. I'm stoked for the Z06 and/or ZR1.

Yeah, those Motor1 guys tend to get carried away with descriptions on all makes and models. You're making me want to go test drive a CT4-V with the 2.7T.          I mean not all luxury engines are butter smooth, the Cadillac V Series have been apologetic hammers and people love them, I loved my '13 Gen. 2 CTS-V Coupe and just like AMG V8's are loud and somewhat rough at idle that's how they're supposed to be. I hate the sewing machine smooth and quiet where you can barely hear it running. I've driven my Aunt's newer C Class Kompressor and it's not all that smooth through the power band.  

Oh yeah Benzo boy? Try to capture this REAL TRUCK lineup picture with MB! I'm being facetious dude don't snap, but it is a true statement on the pic.

Vachina

4 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

Minus the dry humping. 

This entire time I repeatedly mentioned I was not taking anything away from the CT4/5-VB. I clearly was just saying the CLA45 AMG was not the Benz to knock on, NOT that they don't have vehicles to knock on. I've also repeatedly hated on their garbage-@ss looking GLC Coupe and GLE Coupe, AMG or not. No, I do not love their entire lineup but Yes, they have a lineup that only BMW can compete with as they have legitimate high end performance variants from the bottom to the top, something Cadillac can only dream of. Instead Cadillac drops a truck engine in their sports sedan(yes, at the press release of the 2.7 Silverado, they said it was a dedicated truck engine). 

"Standard on LT and RST trims, the new engine delivers an SAE-certified 310 horsepower and 348 lb-ft of torque, for 22 percent more torque than the 4.3L V-6 it replaces. Developed specifically for truck applications, the new 2.7L Turbo inline four-cylinder engine delivers peak torque from 1,500 to 4,000 rpm"

I've said the same with GM and Cadillac and I definitely don't like GM's entire lineup, but they do offer an entire line of cars, midsize and fullsize BOF trucks and SUV's as well as CUV's, unlike Daimler. There's always going to be powertrain sharing when GM Powertrain builds all the engines and transmissions in house and ships them off to the other assembly factories to be installed in a Chevrolet, Cadillac, Buick or GMC and Daimler would definitely do the same if they had trucks which they can only dream of.

My point earlier was that these Cadillac CTx-V Blackwing's even the CT4-5-V Series non Blackwing do compete with MB AMG, BMW M and M Sport, Audi S and RS and Lexus F to some extent with all of them offering RWD luxury performance models, but I never said the whole lineup from Cadillac competes with the Germans. Cadillac doesn't want nor do they need a full lineup of performance vehicles because not only do they have the V Series and Blackwing line they have a fully loaded vehicles from their other 3 divisions where Benz is only Benz. The Chevrolet Corvette 3LT with 500 hp at the ready with a Z06, ZR1 and Zora on the way and many other pretty damn well built cars, trucks and SUV's that can and do equal if not better some of the vehicles coming out of Munich and Stuttgart. There are vehicles GM offers that Daimler doesn't and vice versa. I've owned a lot of really good GM vehicles having owned 2 Cadillac's, several Chevrolet's and 1 GMC over the years and I drive my vehicles pretty hard and they hold up really well, but I also maintain them very well which many people miss.

Automotive manufacturers constantly change their strategy, Daimler does it, GM does it, Ford does it, ALL of them do it. I remember the Chevrolet reps saying the same thing about the 2.7T I4, it's all marketing speak that they all spew. There are ways to tune the same engine for truck or car use and it is a brand new pretty high tech engine that's said to be very quiet and smooth for an I-4 and it puts out pretty impressive numbers. It's only offered to help balance GM CAFE numbers anyway.  

1 hour ago, ccap41 said:

It's always ironic when somebody tries to talk down upon a specific brand calling them your "fav." all while dry humping another brand whose spiraling in seventeen different directions. 

Pot calling Kettle...🤪

1 hour ago, ccap41 said:

Again, I never said WHY you brought it up or where else it was brought up, just that you brought it up HERE first. 

I'm not sure how or why that's confusing or why you're defending that. It was like a week ago, nobody cares. 

What part did you miss? It seems like all of it, so here's a recap. I've driven a CT6-V Blackwing Platinum so I know exactly what Cadillac can do in our modern day and has done again with the Cadillac CT4 and CT5-V Blackwing's. I stated RR because smk makes the Cadillac CT-V B's (before even seeing one in person) out to be on a much lower level comparing them to a Kia, Toyota or Dodge because of the similar size or it having a V8 for comparison, which is an F'n joke! Then he props up his fan fav. MB to something higher like their Maybach which HE brought up in the past so LIKE I SAID, HE KNOWS EXACTLY WHAT I MEANT so it doesn't matter what YOU think since you weren't involved in conversation. I don't care if it's this thread or not it was a very recent post between myself and him. 

Because I'm going to call BS when I see it is why and it doesn't matter if it was a month ago. I'm not on this site everyday because I have much better things to do with my life. I know why you're trying to vehemently defend your fan fav. "MB" and "AMG" but don't try to call me out like you know what we were talking about if you don't.  HE KNEW what I meant even though you didn't...   

31 minutes ago, ccap41 said:

That's still not Rolls or Maybach. 

I never said WHY you brought it up, just that you brought it up before smk. 

smk very recently brought up the Maybach GLS600 in a post before I ever did, comparing it to the new 2021 Escalade so he knows where I was going with it, it's straight from his playbook.  

2 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

Lexus ES350 and Acura TLX are the same size as the CT5 and from a luxury make.  

You JUST stated Camry and Sonata above as comparisons that is what I'm talking about and you know it, your new nickname is "flip the script". The ES350 is just a re-badged Camry, there's nothing unique about either of those luxury makes, but you're getting closer! 

18 minutes ago, smk4565 said:

My point was just because the CT5 is E-class size, doesn't, mean it is E-class competition.  Because a Camry or Sonata are the same size as a CT5 or E-class too.  There are like 20 mid-size sedans out there, it is the most common size.

I am sure Hellcat fans are saying how the Charger is cheaper and more powerful than a CT5 and therefore better, and not factoring in the Charger has a garbage interior and garbage handling.  

Again, you make no sense with your statements. Yes, Cadillac CT5 and Mercedes E Class compete directly because they are both LUXURY makes and are nearly identical in size and that's a fact, that doesn't change, no matter what your opinion is and it makes them exactly that...COMPETITORS. 

On 2/9/2021 at 7:39 AM, ccap41 said:

Scroll back and you'll find USA and Balthy mentioned Rolls and Maybach before smk did, Thursday, to help with your search. 

If you're an honest man, you'd get on those two for mentioning Rolls and Maybach.

I was proving a point on apples to apples and same class of luxury cars because smk continued to bring up econobox Kia's and muscle car Charger's on the other end of the scale that are no where close to a Cadillac on build quality or fit and finish. I wasn't comparing anything on this string to RR directly, it was a rhetorical statement.

The following is what I stated...

On 2/9/2021 at 7:39 AM, ccap41 said:

Scroll back and you'll find USA and Balthy mentioned Rolls and Maybach before smk did, Thursday, to help with your search. 

If you're an honest man, you'd get on those two for mentioning Rolls and Maybach. 

Diamler is miles ahead of Cadillac. Cadillac wishes and dreams they could be what Mercedes and BMW are. 

No, smk brought up the Charger or Kia comparing them to a Cadillac which is obvious BS talk. He's the master of the goal post mover...

18 hours ago, Drew Dowdell said:

Numbers lie... even Cadillac numbers.  The CT5 does not feel as roomy inside as a 5-series. 

All of this aside here's what Cadillac is doing.

I can get into a CT5-V (not Blackwing) for $47,695. With that I get a 350 HP V6 and a nice leather interior while over at Benz I'm stuck in a C300 with plastic seats, measly 255hp turbo 4 for the same price.

That is a very easy decision to make. 

Gotta love that $50k Benz Pleather!