Stanced Luxury: Cesar Cuevas’ 2008 Mercedes E350

Originally this 2008 Mercedes E350 was a gift Cesar purchased for his wife. But from the moment he purchased this ride, he knew there would come a day where he would have it all to himself. That day came faster than he imagined, just a year after the car was purchased he took over the wheel and decided to drive this Benz to a new level of “stanced luxury.” Ideas had been brewing in his head since the purchase, he was quietly plotting and scheming to have a truly unique Benz. Cesar’s quest to make this Benz the pinnacle blend of luxury and stance would soon become a reality.

Cesar is all about style and keeping it stock height just wouldn’t fly, he needed an aggressive look to match what he felt this car was really about. After all the ‘stuffy old man’ Benz look is not his steez. Cesar and his brother threw on some H&R lowering springs immediately after Cesar knew this would be his ride. At first they were both excited about giving this luxury sedan a fresh drop and closing that wheel gap. This excitement lasted until Cesar’s brother showed him an AccuAir video he came across not long after the install. From this point on the mission was to shift from aggressive to bagged.

Originally the idea was to go for an aggressive look while keeping it suitable for daily driving, but the mod bug bit him pretty hard. The effect of this bite viciously spread through Cesar as he found himself picking up a set of AC Forged 3-piece wheels shortly after the springs were installed. The only problem was that his itch for getting the AccuAir in the car had yet to be scratched.

While attending SEMA, in order for him to get more ideas for his E350, Cesar had a chance to meet Derek from AccuAir. After chopping it up and getting the full scoop on AccurAir Cesar knew that going bagged had to be next. A month later he ordered his set up.

Cesar wasn’t going to stand by idle just waiting for his airbag setup to come in. He had that ‘modding bug’ making his mind run 100mph with ideas. Cesar went online to JL Motoring and ordered a carbon fiber front lip and stock trunk spoiler, which were color matched and installed to give the Benz the ultimate affect of form and function.

Finally, after what seemed like an eternity, the air ride came in. Cesar wasted no time and took the car over to Jesse at Bagged Life in Oceano, California. Jesse took care of the install and the fabrication of suspension parts. That major itch had been scratched, but Cesar was no where near complete with his vision.

As soon as the air ride was installed Cesar decided he wanted to give his car an intimidating growl to go with the luxurious stanced look. He took the Benz to a local muffler shop where they installed a MagnaFlow exhaust with custom piping. Just listening to the sound of the car start you might think it’s an E63. An aggressive sound plus an aggressive stance equals severe whiplash for anyone who passes by this car. Cesar’s modification thirst had not been quenched by these major milestones.

Attention to detail is really important for Cesar. He decided to get the roof vinyl wrapped in gloss black over at Vinyl Tek.

Cesar then reached out to his buddy Max over at Quality Powder Coating to get some parts powder coated. Max suggested doing something custom for the air ride components in the trunk. So he put together a floating bracket setup for the components with custom mixed color powder coating.

While attending a show in Anaheim, Cesar met Yuya Sano from Avant Garde wheels. Cesar ordered a customized set of F410s to fit his stock fender clearance. But his vision for one of the most important aspects of his car changed. The Avant Garde wheels were cool, but they weren’t “VIP” status.

Cesar fell in love with the “VIP Style” scene. He decided the best shoes to fit the vision of the Benz he envisioned were the 20inch Infinity Werks SS1s 3-piece modular wheels.

Patiently waiting for those wheels to arrive and leaving no aspect of the car untouched Cesar ordered Spyder Industries D.R.L headlights with DEPO fog lights and clear side bumper markers. He also ordered an Auto Couture full lip kit and rain visor.

In the meantime Cesar and his brother began working on installing custom wood flooring in the trunk as well as the cockpit floor mats. Knowing that the interior needed some love too Cesar reached out to Jim and Tuan at TN Auto Inspire where able to help Cesar acquire junction produce curtains and Tsuna Knot. Cesar added custom memory foam neck pads to accentuate the luxurious aspect of the Benz.

Getting close to the finish line, Cesar received all the parts he had been ordering. In typical Cesar fashion he wasted no time in sending it all to Trends Custom Paint to get everything color matched. Around the same time Cesar sent his wheels out to get the lips redone, he wanted an even more aggressive look. In order to make this master piece come together he came to the conclusion that custom metal fender flares were going to be needed.

He had the shop flare the front two inches and the rear four inches wider. Cesar also had the side skirts custom molded to fit the wide flares. They also molded in the rear lip, custom painted the whole car iridium metallic silver, but added more flake.

After it came out of the shop he took it over to his buddy, Miguel, at Vinyl Tek, to do the black vinyl accent work on the lip kit. They also threw on custom pin striping. The last thing Cesar did was the VIP inspired tables him and his brother worked on, and put in leather tops to match the dashboard and cup holder.

His VIP inspired Benz was modified as an enjoyable everyday car. In fact, Cesar sees this as his grocery getter and car show competitor. In the future he sees himself changing out the wheels again, and putting in a sounds system. But for now his visions of blending ultimate luxury and stance are a reality he can enjoy every time he sees his ride.