CaptainChaos
MB Enthusiast
I use E-SAVE for going up very big hills and very cold mornings, otherwise leave it in Hybrid and be as smooth as possible.
D
Deleted member 126969
Guest
The best way to minimise the ICE cutting in & out in hybrid mode is to keep an eye on the EV power gauge (under the tacho) and basically be gentle with the throttle. Keep it away from the top of the gauge and it won't think you are asking for more performance than the battery can provide and start the engine.
Of course, this performance drops as the charge does, to the point it won't maintain even a slow road speed without using the ICE.
Eventually, once the battery is down to 10-20% (depending on mode etc), it'll keep running the ICE no matter what you try to do. I too find it a bit disconcerting the way it cuts in & out for barely seconds at a time - can't help feeling it wold be better if it had a minimum ICE run time of 20-30 seconds. At least it could be charging the battery if it wasn't using the power to move along the road, but no doubt MB did their sums and decided it needed to do that to achieve the target emissions limit. So, they sell a few more starter motors....
If I reckon I can make the trip on battery alone without trouble, I just leave it in hybrid. If I think it'll be marginal but do-able, I switch to E to drag that last 8-10% out of the battery and avoid starting the ICE for a short run. If there's no way it'll do the trip on battery alone I just leave it in Comfort/Hybrid and let it get on with it.
Is that best? Almost certainly not, but it's least fuss.
Of course, this performance drops as the charge does, to the point it won't maintain even a slow road speed without using the ICE.
Eventually, once the battery is down to 10-20% (depending on mode etc), it'll keep running the ICE no matter what you try to do. I too find it a bit disconcerting the way it cuts in & out for barely seconds at a time - can't help feeling it wold be better if it had a minimum ICE run time of 20-30 seconds. At least it could be charging the battery if it wasn't using the power to move along the road, but no doubt MB did their sums and decided it needed to do that to achieve the target emissions limit. So, they sell a few more starter motors....
If I reckon I can make the trip on battery alone without trouble, I just leave it in hybrid. If I think it'll be marginal but do-able, I switch to E to drag that last 8-10% out of the battery and avoid starting the ICE for a short run. If there's no way it'll do the trip on battery alone I just leave it in Comfort/Hybrid and let it get on with it.
Is that best? Almost certainly not, but it's least fuss.
CaptainChaos
MB Enthusiast
Exciting DIY post!
I've noticed over the last couple of weeks a bad judder from the front brakes when braking from reasonably high speed. It seemed to come after all the snow we had. I read a thread which said that the brake pad pins can seize and it can sometimes come across as if you have a warped disk so I thought it was worth a quick look. Sure enough the top pins on both sides were very tight and took a lot of "persuading" to leave the caliper. The bottom ones weren't quite as bad, but they all benefitted from a clean up and some copper grease. It seems to have solved the problem. I am sure the main dealer would have been very quick to put some new disks and pads on!
This isn't a problem unique to MB. It's a legacy of the modern way of "servicing" which involves sticking your car on a ramp and looking at it for £XXX, but not actually doing any preventative maintenance.
Some pics:
I've noticed over the last couple of weeks a bad judder from the front brakes when braking from reasonably high speed. It seemed to come after all the snow we had. I read a thread which said that the brake pad pins can seize and it can sometimes come across as if you have a warped disk so I thought it was worth a quick look. Sure enough the top pins on both sides were very tight and took a lot of "persuading" to leave the caliper. The bottom ones weren't quite as bad, but they all benefitted from a clean up and some copper grease. It seems to have solved the problem. I am sure the main dealer would have been very quick to put some new disks and pads on!
This isn't a problem unique to MB. It's a legacy of the modern way of "servicing" which involves sticking your car on a ramp and looking at it for £XXX, but not actually doing any preventative maintenance.
Some pics:
Yup, its this bit thats a bit annoying. It seems to me that when i get down to the last part, it gets to about 11% and then engine on, once is regens a little bit of charge it cuts the engine off - uses it and starts it back on again which seems a bit pointless when its literally for about a second or so. Loving the E mode only though, wish the range was more then it is! max charge i just show 15 miles but i guess it is cold and the car is second hand.
MercPassion
Active Member
I got C350e 66 plate 48k bought last year Feb20 as 2nd owner it’s been fantastic with no problems and for me personally I achieve best possible performance/ MPG on Eco/EV for local/running around and motorway for added power C/Hybrid or S/Hybrid on windy conditions.
That is a good question. It is interesting to see the different responses and that we all drive the car differently.
To answer your question, the most economical way must be eco and hybrid, especially when the ev battery is low.
I drive in e mode for short journeys. For longer journeys I switch to e save mode (even when battery is fully charged) and stick it into e mode about six miles from home. My wife drives it in hybrid mode.
I am not really bothered about driving the car economically and reflecting on it, if I wanted an economical car I could have bought a Prius or held onto my VAG 1.6TDI. Once it isn't costing a fortune to run it doesn't matter as we don't do big mileage anyway. If we did we would have went with the diesel.
Agree with Chris that Hybrid mode would be less annoying if the ICE was programmed to stay on for at least 30 seconds. I was out walking the dog yesterday and a 350e turned the corner. I could really hear the starter as the engine kicked in as the driver accelerated after taking the turn.
That sounds like it was a very satisfying job Captain.
MercPassion
Active Member
What would be the benefit of driving in E-SAVE instead of HYBRID,just curious?
If I am going for say a 20-30 mile round trip I like to leave the house on a full charge and save the battery to allow it bring me as much of the way home as possible on full E mode. The car will be well warmed up and as I live on the coast, there tends to be more downhill on the way home, so both of these factors increase the range.
In general I like to try and do as much ev driving as possible and save my battery for the times that I think it will give me the optimum range. I also think that e save is that bit easier on the starter.
Not sure how scientific the above is and it might say more about my personality than anything else!!
In general I like to try and do as much ev driving as possible and save my battery for the times that I think it will give me the optimum range. I also think that e save is that bit easier on the starter.
Not sure how scientific the above is and it might say more about my personality than anything else!!
raspy
Active Member
@dasachmo Don't know if they are sealed, but if you look in the manual, it points out that depending upon atmospheric conditions ect, the LED headlights can have some condensation (which disappears, i.e. it's not permanent)
I notice my headlights have some condensation from time to time. It might be after I've been driving the car in the rain, or it might be like yesterday on a cold frosty morning at 7am, there was some condensation. It doesn't bother me after I read the manual and the condensation disappears on its own after a few hours in my experience.
It may sound concerning if you haven't had a car with these kind of LED lights before, but it should all be ok unless you're finding your lights are completely blocked with condensation which never disappears.
D
Deleted member 126969
Guest
It’s a feature, Sir... but seriously, it’s normal for a bit of condensation to form under those conditions. The headlamps aren’t sealed units.
It’s even mentioned in the manual IIRC.
seekay
Active Member
Are we sure about the 600 Nm combined torque? Is it not a wrong math?
This only mentions 443 Nm HERE
The rivals 330e/530e also around ~430-450 Nm, I always wondered why the C350e has much more torque... Looks like the 600 Nm is only an urban legend (hope not) and based on this official MB doc, it actually makes sense. Maybe someone just added up the electric motors and engines torque which is wrong...?
This only mentions 443 Nm HERE
The rivals 330e/530e also around ~430-450 Nm, I always wondered why the C350e has much more torque... Looks like the 600 Nm is only an urban legend (hope not) and based on this official MB doc, it actually makes sense. Maybe someone just added up the electric motors and engines torque which is wrong...?
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seekay
Active Member
Thanks, I can have a good night sleep now.
Was just wondering when checked out the rivals BMW specs and their torque is much lower for some reason. Maybe the explanation is just simply MB is better.
raspy
Active Member
@seekay Just because something is higher on a spec sheet doesn't necessarily translate to "better" performance in the real world. There are so many factors beyond power and torque numbers in terms of how a car actually performs. I chose the C350e over the 330e after test driving them both because of luxury and comfort, but I wish the C350e had the 8 speed gearbox from the 330e, it's a way better gearbox than the MB box.Thanks, I can have a good night sleep now.
Was just wondering when checked out the rivals BMW specs and their torque is much lower for some reason. Maybe the explanation is just simply MB is better.
seekay
Active Member
I had a 2016 F10 5 series before the C350e, wasn’t impressed of the 8 speed ZF either. Was less jerky than the C350e but other than that it was a very similar experience.
seekay
Active Member
Anyone who has experience with the annual A and B services at main dealers.
At a certain year and mileage additional maintenance required beyond the usual engine oil/filter, pollen and air filter changes, such as gearbox oil, differential oil, spark plugs, belts, etc. When the time comes for these the standard A and B service price will include them or will be an additional charge?
At a certain year and mileage additional maintenance required beyond the usual engine oil/filter, pollen and air filter changes, such as gearbox oil, differential oil, spark plugs, belts, etc. When the time comes for these the standard A and B service price will include them or will be an additional charge?
raspy
Active Member
@seekay If you go online and get a quote, it gives you one price but also shows you if additional work is required (like spark plugs etc) and the price of those additional items, and you have a choice of deselecting the additional items and just booking the service only (but that may impact your warranty cover and your mobilio cover)
My B service coming up is £437.06 but if you include the additional items of air filter (£59.89) and spark plugs (£150.44) the total service cost is £647.50
eKatie
New Member
Hi all, I'm new here and have been reading almost every post regarding C350e, great forum!
Chris-S, I have been sharing many thoughts with you when reading your posts. I bought my car 2017 (C350e, 2016, used). The electric range was my concern nearly already after purchasing the car and already then I got the HV battery capacity tested with MB dearler. Then it was ok. Now - 3 years later, I felt I needed to get the capacity tested again (5 years old and 110000km mileage). I have had thoughts of buying a new E- or C-model so the battery capacity test was a good idea - I thought. How wrong I was.
Test showed the capacity 69,3% which is 0,7% under MB approved capacity (70%). MB says if the capacity is under 70%, the HV battery needs to be replaced with a new one. A new hybrid battery would cost 14.000-15.000€ (£13.000) for me. The MB Dealership Service dept however told me it's completely normal for this battery to lose its capacity as it was. No malfunction of HV battery was found, the battery and the car is working perfectly. However, MB Service did ask MB about the battery issue, but MB was not interested to even look at the issue, not even as a goodwill gesture. Even the warranty of HV battery would not cover the normal wear, I was told. That do not many car buyers realize or even know.
Well, I went to the same MB Dealer, Sales department, and asked for a quote for my C350e if buying a new car from them. They could of course see in their service records that the HV battery capacity had been tested lately and I was told that due to the capacity under 70%, the value of my car is now a lot less than expected, appr. £13.000 (normally the value would be around £24.000). It really hit me hard, the car was working perfectly in all ways. All the service/maintenance had been carried out in MB dealership. In my eyes, the car was now treated like worthless. And all for just 0,7% capacity difference. So, I should have not got tested it in the first place.
If Mercedes has given the HV battery a capacity limit of 70%, my question is, what is the capacity percentage the car stops totally working?? I think it will be sooner than expected.
Many of older MB C350e owners are considering just enjoying the car as long as possible. I used to think the same way - until now. For a peace of mind, I really think it would be a good idea to move forward to another car.
If someone is considering buying an used C350e, I would really recommend to ask for the HV battery capacity test result before buying the potential car. But my honest opinion is: go and look for some other car (no Plug-In). It's the same story with many other Plug-In cars, a few years old ones. I don't believe these cars will have a long life.
Chris-S, I have been sharing many thoughts with you when reading your posts. I bought my car 2017 (C350e, 2016, used). The electric range was my concern nearly already after purchasing the car and already then I got the HV battery capacity tested with MB dearler. Then it was ok. Now - 3 years later, I felt I needed to get the capacity tested again (5 years old and 110000km mileage). I have had thoughts of buying a new E- or C-model so the battery capacity test was a good idea - I thought. How wrong I was.
Test showed the capacity 69,3% which is 0,7% under MB approved capacity (70%). MB says if the capacity is under 70%, the HV battery needs to be replaced with a new one. A new hybrid battery would cost 14.000-15.000€ (£13.000) for me. The MB Dealership Service dept however told me it's completely normal for this battery to lose its capacity as it was. No malfunction of HV battery was found, the battery and the car is working perfectly. However, MB Service did ask MB about the battery issue, but MB was not interested to even look at the issue, not even as a goodwill gesture. Even the warranty of HV battery would not cover the normal wear, I was told. That do not many car buyers realize or even know.
Well, I went to the same MB Dealer, Sales department, and asked for a quote for my C350e if buying a new car from them. They could of course see in their service records that the HV battery capacity had been tested lately and I was told that due to the capacity under 70%, the value of my car is now a lot less than expected, appr. £13.000 (normally the value would be around £24.000). It really hit me hard, the car was working perfectly in all ways. All the service/maintenance had been carried out in MB dealership. In my eyes, the car was now treated like worthless. And all for just 0,7% capacity difference. So, I should have not got tested it in the first place.
If Mercedes has given the HV battery a capacity limit of 70%, my question is, what is the capacity percentage the car stops totally working?? I think it will be sooner than expected.
Many of older MB C350e owners are considering just enjoying the car as long as possible. I used to think the same way - until now. For a peace of mind, I really think it would be a good idea to move forward to another car.
If someone is considering buying an used C350e, I would really recommend to ask for the HV battery capacity test result before buying the potential car. But my honest opinion is: go and look for some other car (no Plug-In). It's the same story with many other Plug-In cars, a few years old ones. I don't believe these cars will have a long life.