2007 Mercedes Benz E320 Bluetec
Road Test Review
L
ooking back at their history in the United States, I can understand why most Americans have never shown a lot of interest in diesel power for their automobiles.
The best of the diesel cars – no doubt Mercedes-Benz products – have traditionally been sluggish and noisy, with a proclivity for belching a stream of nasty-smelling, noxious black smoke out the exhaust pipe.
Their strength and their appeal to a loyal band of followers were their fuel-sipping habits and their exceptional longevity. The German-made diesel cars routinely provided hundreds of thousands of trouble-free miles. During the 1980s, Mercedes-Benz diesel cars actually became popular among the well-to-do and accounted for 80 percent of the German manufacturer’s U.S. sales. Some of those cars are still on the road today.
The worst of them – arguably the General Motors diesel cars developed quickly after the gas shortages of 30 years ago – were powered by converted V-8 gasoline engines that had all the negative traits of the German powerplants plus a general reputation for unreliability.
When the fuel crisis finally abated, even buyers who had been swayed by the fuel efficiency turned away and diesel-powered cars pretty much faded from the picture. Mercedes-Benz continued selling diesel cars in the United States through the 1999 model year, but never in great numbers.
Dirty, sluggish, smelly, noisy polluters – not exactly a recipe for big-time sales success.
But what if you could have the important fuel-saving advantage of a diesel car and none of the disadvantages? Actually, you can, thanks to Mercedes-Benz. which introduced diesel power to the automobile more than 70 years ago in its 1936 260D sedan.
After an absence of five years, the German manufacturer re-entered the U. S. market in 2004 with an E class diesel sedan powered by a 3.2-liter turbocharged, in-line six-cylinder engine.
Nearly as quiet as a gasoline engine, except at start-up, it produces 201 horsepower and a hefty 369 pound-feet of torque. It can match the acceleration of the gasoline-powered six-cylinder E class sedan and return an EPA-rated 27 miles per gallon of fuel around town and 37 mpg on the highway.
A common-rail injection system that squirts fuel directly into the cylinders under extremely high pressure eliminates mostly of the diesel clatter and reduces the emissions of nitrous oxide and soot into the air.
But, the pollution problems were not completely solved and the E320 CDI, as the car was called, could not be sold in five states, including California and New York.
For the 2007 model year, Mercedes has introduced a new diesel powerplant, which it calls Bluetec. It is a 3-literV-6 engine, again featuring turbocharging and direct rail injection. Like its predecessor, it is quiet, smooth and lively.
This one produces 209 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque, enough to propel the E class sedan from a stop to 60 mph in 6.6 seconds and return EPA-rated fuel mileage of 26 mpg city, 37 mpg highway.
The V-6 diesel’s use in the United States was made possible by new regulations that require the sale of low-sulfur fuel. The 2007 sedan is cleaner than its predecessor but still legal only in those 45 states.
That is about to change. For the 2008 model year, one more pollution prevention step will be added to the Bluetec. It involves adding AdBlue, liquid urea, to the exhaust stream to reduce nitrous oxide by 80 percent. That should make the car legal in all 50 states. The only hang-up is that the supply of AdBlue must be replenished at regular maintenance intervals.
And what about the rest of the car?
In every other respect, the Bluetec is essentially identical to all of the 2007 E class sedans.
It has the same heavy, solid feel. The steering is accurate, the brakes are strong, acceleration and passing power are brisk. It is not sporty, nor is it intended to be, but it is a satisfyingly comfortable cruiser.
Over a weekend, I took the car on a journey of 426 miles. The long stretches of open road were interrupted by several lengthy traffic jams and the rest of the time was spent in small towns with red lights, stop signs and a 25 mph speed limit.
I averaged 32 miles per gallon, with a high of 36 mpg during one easy-driving stretch, and a low of 26 mpg in the small towns. When I returned home, the trip computer advised me that I still had 256 miles to go to empty. Credit that in part to the 21 gallon fuel tank.
Inside the Mercedes, a maximum of four adult passengers are treated to first-class accommodations featuring comfortable and supportive leather seats; elegant burl walnut trim; a first-class sound system; automatic, dual-zone climate control; and sound-proofing that isolates them from the annoyances of the outside world.
Other comfort and convenience accessories include a power sunroof, 10-way power front seats, rain-sensing wipers, auto-dimming rear and side-view mirrors and an in-dash, 6-cd player.
Safety is given the highest priority, with front and side airbags for front-seat passengers, side airbags for rear-seat passengers, side-curtain airbags to protect the heads of all four passengers, a rollover sensor, traction control, stability control, the four-wheel, antilock disc brakes, and an advanced feature known as PRE-SAFE.
If PRE-SAFE sensors detect an impending collision, the seatbelts are automatically tightened to hold the occupants more securely in place. If they detect that the front passenger seat is too close to the dashboard, or the seatback is too far reclined, or the seat cushion is positioned wrong, the system will automatically adjust them to safer settings. If the vehicle goes into a skid that signals a possible rollover, PRE-SAFE will automatically close the sunroof and side windows.
And, if an accident is averted, the system will automatically ease the tension on the seatbelts.
When a collision does occur and the seat-belt tensioners and/or air bags deploy, the Mercedes-Benz Tele Aid emergency communication system automatically calls 9-1-1 to tell emergency personnel the vehicle’s location, plus its model and color.
In addition to the new engine, a new, smoother, seven-speed automatic transmission replaces the former diesel’s five-speed shifter. When full acceleration is required, It has the ability to skip several gears to a ratio that offers maximum power.
Base price of the Mercedes-Benz E 320 Bluetec is $51,550, a $1,000 premium over an E 350, which has a V-6 gasoline-engine that offers comparable performance.
The suggested price jumps to $58,375 with the addition of platinum blue paint ($700), walnut and leather steering wheel ($540), electronic trunk closer ($520), Premium II package ($4,290), and delivery charge ($775).
The Premium II package includes a navigation system, satellite radio, heated front seats, power rear-window sun screen, hands-free communications system, keyless door locks and ignition, Bi-Xenon headlights with curve illumination and headlight washers.
Mercedes-Benz appears to be on a mission to convince American motorists of the many benefits of the new diesel technology.
In addition to the E Class sedans, diesel power is now available in the ML and and GL sport-utility-vehicles and its R class luxury wagons. Because of their high prices, these vehicles will never bring diesel power into the American mainstream regardless of their proven benefits.
But Mercedes has also has worked out an agreement with Jeep, Audi and Volkswagen, which sold diesel cars in the United States through 2006, to bring the Bluetec name and technology to their diesel products. Many of these vehicles will certainly cost a lot less.
All are betting that Americans will change their long-held opinions about automotive diesel power once they get a chance to experience it.
And why shouldn’t they? It’s hard to think of anybody who wouldn’t prefer a significant reduction in fuel consumption and pollution with no sacrifice in comfort, convenience or performance.
The E320 BLUETEC is the diesel-powered version of Mercedes' revamped E-Class. While the outgoing E320CDI used a 3.2 liter inline-six, the E320 BLUETEC uses a new 3.0 liter V6 engine; BLUETEC denotes Mercedes' new clean-diesel technology. Why go diesel? Fuel economy. The E320's EPA numbers are 26 MPG city/37 highway, the latter holding the promise of 700+ miles on one tank. And with a starting price of $52,550, just $1,000 more than a gas-powered E, it's easy to make up your investment.
First glance: How long can I keep handing you the same old line?
Writing reviews of diesel cars is more and more becoming an exercise in frustration. It goes something like this: A manufacturer comes out with a new diesel car. I drive it, then write an article saying "You'll never believe this is a diesel car." Then the manufacturer comes out with a new diesel that's even less diesel-like, so I write another review that says "This time you
really won't believe this is a diesel car." This was all well and good when there were only a handful of diesels, but the new E320 BLUETEC is just one of three diesels Mercedes plans to start selling in the US this year. Worse yet, it's the most un-diesel-like diesel I've ever driven. Now what the heck am I supposed to write?
I thought about simply writing the phrase "This is what I've been talking about" over and over again. The About.com article template has space for about 170 properly-punctuated repetitions of this phrase. All the reasons I think diesels are superior to gasoline cars are embodied in the E320 BLUETEC. For all intents and purposes, you may as well be driving a gasoline-powered E350 -- except you won't have to visit the gas station nearly as often.
Continued below...
In the Driver's Seat: E320 makes it easy to forget you're riding in a diesel car
Inside, the E320 BLUETEC is equipped identically to the E350 Luxury
Photo © Aaron Gold
Inside, the E320 is virtually indistinguishable from the E350 Luxury. (Alas, the diesel will not be offered in Sport trim.) The interior of the E-Class has become a much more pleasant place to spend time now that Mercedes includes a 6-disc CD changer and a sunroof as standard equipment. The seats are covered in "MB Tex", a rather convincing (and durable) faux leather (real cowhides are a $1,500 option), and the interior is elegantly trimmed with genuine wood. Dual-zone climate control and power everything are also standard. Mercedes puts their power-seat controls up on the door panel, and it wasn't long before I had both the seat and the electric steering column, which tilts up-and-down and telescopes in-and-out, adjusted to my preferences. Aside from the stereo, which still has too many buttons for my liking (photo), I found it easy to get comfortable in and familiar with my surroundings.
Driving the E320 BLUETEC is little different than driving the gasoline-powered E350. The E320 idles almost as quietly and by 30 MPH or so the rumble of the tires eclipses any noise from the engine. At lower speeds you can sometimes hear the familiar diesel growl, but just barely -- it almost sounds as if it's coming from the car next to you. The E320 uses the steel-sprung suspension of the E350; the E550's wonderful air suspension is, sadly, not available with the diesel.
On the Road: Excellent mileage and clean BLUETEC technology
The E320's 3-liter V6 may sound sedate at 208 horsepower, but it's the 400 lb-ft of torque that makes things happen. (Horsepower is a function of RPM; diesels spin slower than gasoline engines, hence the seemingly low hp numbers.) Mercedes claims a 0-60 time of 6.6 seconds, but that doesn't tell the whole story. Floor the E320 from a standstill and you'll be unimpressed -- but stomp on the accelerator to pass a slow-moving truck and you'll be blown away. The E320 accelerates from a standstill like a gas-powered V6, but it passes like a V8. The E320's engine is coupled to a 7-speed automatic transmission which helps with the fantastic passing power and awesome mileage: My driving partner and I averaged between 31 and 34 MPG on most segments of our drive through the Nevada desert.
The BLUETEC system refers to the E320's system of emissions controls. (For more information, see my article How Mercedes-Benz BLUETEC works.) The result is green power: The E320 BLUETEC uses low-sulfer "clean" diesel, available at most filling stations in the US and Canada, and meets emissions standards in 45 states (all except California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Vermont). A 50-state version of the E320 BLUETEC will arrive in 2008.
Journey's End: Return on investment
New 3.0 liter V6 replaces the 3.2 liter inline six in the outgoing E320CDI
Photo © Aaron Gold
I mentioned earlier that the E320 BLUETEC diesel only costs $1,000 more than an identically-equipped E350. How fast you will recoup your investment depends on fuel prices, but chances are E320 owners will be ahead after 25,000 or 35,000 miles.
Of course, old-guard Mercedes diesel owners will tell you they don't keep their cars for 25,000 or 35,000 miles. They keep them for 250,000 or 350,000 or more. Often a lot more. Diesels are durable and mechanically simple, and when it comes to lifespan they are the giant tortoises of the automotive world.
Diesels also offer the opportunity to run biodiesel, a clean fuel derived from vegetable oil. With no set standards for biodiesel formulation, Mercedes will only condone the use of BD5 (5% biodiesel, 95% petroleum diesel) without voiding the warranty, but plenty of diesel owners run mixes from BD20 all the way up to 100% biodiesel. (Visit http://www.biodiesel.org/ to learn more.)
Were I in the market for an E, the E320 BLUETEC is definitely the one I'd buy. It's better to drive, more economical, and holds the promise of reduced reliance on foreign oil -- the embodiment of all I love about diesel cars. This is so what I've been talking about! --
MERCEDES E320 BLUETEC DIESEL
Torquey, Efficient, Teutonic Luxury
By Steve Purdy
TheAutoChannel.com
Detroit Bureau
A 700-mile cruising range? Wow. I like that. That means fewer stops at the fuel pump, but it’ll be mighty costly to fill ‘er up. This week regular unleaded gasoline is $2.45, here in mid Michigan and diesel is $2.85. Fuel tank capacity is 21.1 gallons and EPA estimates are 27-city and 37-highway. I’m going to get through the week without having to add fuel in spite of two trips into the big city and lots of running around from my rural base of operations.
Back in the late 60s and through the 70s older brother, Gary, had Mercedes diesels. My favorite was his first, a powder blue 220D. He was an on-the-road sales guy and could go forever on a tank of fuel, and he could go hundreds of thousands of miles without engine attention. Yes, it started hard in cold weather, and it was a bit smoky, and noisy, and slow. And your hands would stink forever if you accidentally splattered while refueling. But it was a Mercedes with unquestioned quality and class.
One of our pals at the time, a character named Leonard, was a home builder of sorts and was proud of being able to drive his 220D from Michigan to Georgia and back on a tank of fuel each way just to select his carpets from the mill. We could do that with this E320 Bluetec if we wanted to.
These diesel problems have all been addressed. The E320 Bluetec we’re driving this week is about $58,000. Base price is $51,000. Ours has a few options. But, of course, for an E-Class (mid size) Mercedes I guess we shouldn’t fault it for price. It’s only a grand more than the V6-powered gas E-Class. Common rail fuel delivery, turbo charging, multiple valves and other engine technology make for plenty of power and speed, more insulation has made it much quieter and there are no longer any cold-start problems. The big deal these days, of course, is emissions, especially particulates (soot) and oxides of nitrogen (NOx) . How do they clean it up? Well, let’s take a look at the “Bluetec” system. That’s the interesting story here.
Certifiable in 45 states this year (not California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York and Vermont) the Bluetec diesel has multiple scrubbers in the exhaust system - two catalysts and a particulate filter. First in line as the exhaust leaves the engine is an oxidizing catalytic converter, then a diesel particulate filter and finally a selective catalytic reduction unit for reducing NOx. When the particulate filter gets to a certain degree of saturation the engine management computer will turn up the heat of the exhaust gasses to burn those darned particles off.
Next year, there will be one more element added that will result in certification in all 50 states. Urea (not cow pee – but a synthetic urea called AdBlue – essentially nitrogen and demineralized water) will be injected into the exhaust as it leaves the manifold and will somehow clean up that last bit of ugliness in the diesel exhaust - some kind of chemical magic, I guess.
Both of these systems must start with a state-of-the-art diesel engine and must use the low-sulfur diesel fuel, now becoming available at more and more outlets. This 3-liter, V6 turbodiesel has 4-valves/cylinder and replaces the trusty in-line six Merdedes used until last year. Instead of the old-fashioned troublesome injector pump and unit injectors this new engine features a common rail fuel delivery system pressurized to 23,000-psi. The fuel injector for each cylinder is positioned exactly in the center of the combustion chamber dome for maximum efficiency. This smooth diesel with a chain-driven balance shaft makes an impressive 388 lb.-ft. of torque though only 210 horsepower. It’s the torque, of course, that gets us going so expeditiously. And, I really mean expeditiously – zero-to-60 in 6.6 seconds. Gary’s diesels couldn’t have done that even with an afterburner.
The next step in getting the power to the road is the new 7-speed Speedshift™ automatic transmission with manual mode. So many gears, so little time. Nice and smooth, it shifts quickly enough but doesn’t kick down quite as quickly by itself as I would like for back road passing. That’s what the manual mode is for. It is, however, driver adaptive. The 7-speed is not available with the 4matic four-wheel-drive, but the 4matic is not available with the diesel anyway.
Fortunately the E-Class is due for a design update next year. Our Flint Gray sedan is so plain-looking on the outside it’s almost invisible. A redesign is in order. The evolving Mercedes design language will, I’m sure, invigorate the E-Class. Don’t get me wrong. The E-Class is plenty elegant but perhaps a bit too understated, at least for my tastes. For someone who wants the classiness of the Mercedes without calling attention to themselves, the E-Class is a good choice. It doesn’t take much to dress it up nicely though. Take a look at the “designo” edition with extra body cladding, dual exhaust, dressier wheels and special colors. It’s amazing what a little trim will do.
The ride and handling are just what we might expect from this Teutonic cruiser – tight but compliant, firm and purposeful. With front engine and rear wheel drive the E-Class features a 4-wheel multilink system with 5-arm arrangement in the rear. The entire front axle assembly, front suspension and steering gear are preassembled along with the engine. Unsprung weight is minimized using lots of aluminum. The resultant feel on the road is of great balance and poise. While it doesn’t feel like a performance car on hard cornering, it wasn’t meant to. Get the 500-hp, stiff, AMG version of the E-Class for that. This is, after all, meant to be a sedate and efficient luxury sedan.
All available chassis dynamics are standard on any of the E-Class cars: Airmatic Semi-active Suspension, Adaptive Damping, speed-sensitive steering, Electronic Stability Program, Brake Assist, Pre-Safe impending crash sensing, ABS, Traction Control. The car even comes with a system that dries the brake rotors in wet conditions.
Easing into the cabin we find the E-Class practical and elegant, certainly not flashy or ostentatious. The wood and leather trim blend easily with the plastic parts for a quality feel. Controls are easy to manage with a tactile feel of perfection. I’m not fond of the navigation system controls, just too complex and obscure, although I suppose one would get used to them in time. They are not as intuitive as they should be. Perhaps if I was German I would understand them better. The 10-way adjustable leather seats with lumbar support and 3-position memory are generous and comfortable. For a few extra bucks we can have heat and ventilation in our front seats. Feedback from all the controls – steering, brakes, stalks, and so on – are excellent. Driving this Mercedes is unusually pleasurable. I feel like I’m at the controls of a fine machine.
Warranty period is 4 years/50,000 miles. Customers can purchase more coverage.
The only time we could tell this is a diesel is on hard acceleration and at idle, when we can barely hear and feel the muffled tell-tale diesel clatter, and when we gas it up, because we have to go to the special pump. We could also tell whenever we calculate our fuel mileage, were we prone to do so.
The good: A powerful yet phenomenally fuel-efficient diesel engine, a great stereo, and the usual upscale Mercedes interior trim makes the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E320 BlueTec an attractive package.
The bad: The E-class navigation system suffers from poor design and poor placement. Lack of nationwide availability means some customers will have a long drive home from the dealer.
The bottom line: With a comfortable cabin (albeit with some uninspiring tech), solid performance, and an astonishingly economical drivetrain, the 2007 Mercedes-Benz E320 BlueTec is an impressive newcomer to the luxury sedan segment.
Specs: Body style: Sedan; Trim levels: E320 BLUETEC; Available Engine: Diesel
The good: The 2008 Mercedes-Benz ML550 combines sharp styling with even sharper performance, courtesy of its punchy 382-horsepower V-8. Its optional adaptive-damping system gives drivers the ability to optimize the ride based on driving environment.
The bad: As with many Mercedes-Benz models, the ML550's cabin tech lags behind that of the luxury competition. Its iPod interface is particularly bewildering. Fuel economy is disappointing for a car with such an advanced power train.
The bottom line: The 2008 Mercedes-Benz ML550 is a brawny midsize SUV with some admirable on- and off-road performance capabilities. But its optional--and expensive--cabin technology lets it down.
