Lot of bashing going on here. I'm perfectly happy with my
Bavaria which is a 1999. I have several friends with Beneteau's. We can compare and contrast ad infinitum. The
interior joinery on either of these brands drops off somewhere around the mid 2000's. But
Bavaria have always been good with the sailing
hardware provided. Just look at the difference in size and weight of the
cleats to other similar brands. I know for certain that the hulls are built well for a production
boat. And as for Cadillacs. Well, I had a couple MB's that nickel and dimed me to death. Bought at Cadillac CTS when they came out. No trouble whatsoever and
sold it with 120k miles. On my second Cadillac now (SRX) - very little inexpensive trouble. So take the brand bashing with a grain of
salt. Your Mercedes could very well turn out better than mine did. Sometimes a Chevy is just fine.
One word of caution, which you were originally asking about, relates to the
rudder posts on some of the Bavaria's. The rudders were supplied by Jaffa (probably the largest in the business). The stainless tubes can have degradation and the bearings need to be inspected. Just be on the look out for that.