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Hi from Hampshire

cepal67

New Member
Joined
Apr 28, 2014
Messages
12
Car
facelifted '00 S210 E320 CDI Avant
Hi everyone,
I've recently (a month ago) purchased a facelifted S210 E320 CDI with some spots of rust but nothing horrible, some faults (the usual brake pads sensors, turbo pressure sensor is giving ******** reading causing the engine to shut by EPC on kickdowns, and of course the front axle needs attention).

So far I have to say BMW E36 was much better build quality than this facelifted S210, but this one is much bigger (I am 6'2" and the seats in S210 are at the bottom limit for backrest height for me), comfy and excellent for long distances, while on short distances it has quite an awful fuel economy but that's not what I bought it for, although sometimes one has to do short distances in his car... eg. when a motorbike commuter fails MOT :-D (my case now). My commute is 30mi, which I recon to be still really short trip for the S210, even for the bike it's at the edge of minimal ride to reason the long lasting BMW K75 (60k miles just for the run-in).

Are there other S/W210-ers from Hampshire around? I would also be very interested in recommended garages for maintaing these beasts decently well for reasonable prices. I am specifically looking for someone able to sort out the starting rust on arches and NSR door, do some overall check, quote me for repairs necessary and recommended, and then potentially perform them in the pace my wallet can afford :-).

I will need the car to be ready for my July journey across Europe...

Later I would also be interested in tuning the engine a bit - EGR, better fuel economy in cruising mode and better performance in performance mode. Potentially I'd also prefer to switch for much lower final drive ratio as the 5th is ridiculously short for the engine, unless one wants to stick with 70mph limit (which isn't the case in Germany, right? and most of Europe has limit around 80mph with 90mph tolerated without fines)...

Thanks for any tips and for this club to exist!

CePal
 
Hi,

We use a body shop very near to us. He is excellent. I am very fussy too.
 
Hi welcome to the forum, good luck with the car.
 
Just a note on fuel economy:

- short trips are MPG killer, first 5 miles are hardly ever above 25mpg (might be also related to potentially faulty thermostat?)
- 30mi motorway miles is a minimum to get above 40mpg
- on 60mi trip I managed to reach 47mpg - not bad I think...

I know that the engines went up with consumption quite a lot changing from EU2 to EU4 emission norms. Does anyone here have any idea why? Mine is the older, EU2... So theoretically it might reach even better mpg...?

BTW the most fuel economical car I ever had in my possessions was Skoda Octavia I / facelift model with 1.9 TDI 66kW with some chip (I think the chip was around 80kW by the comparison of other 80-90kW VW cars) common-rail EU2. That one had around 40-70mpg depending on driving mode - motorway cruising around 75 GPS speeds would give around 55-60mpg, depending on weight load, wind (yes, wind!), weather, Winter/Summer tyres etc. I mean real consumption, the onboard computer is lying by at least 5mpg (in fact the offset is 0.5 L / 100 km).

I am quite pleasantly surprised that the board computer in S210 reports the fuel economy quite accurately when calculating on refuelling... (I am resetting the figures on refuelling and comparing them on next refuel with how much I fitted to the tank).
 
Fitting a chip to yours is possible too.

We sell the speedhawk type. They are excellent.
 
... but I think I will visit them anyway :-). It isn't too far from me and I trust referrals given on the MBclub :-). And they seem to be just next door to yours Prestige Car Service ...

BlackC,
if I pop for a quick visit this Saturday, would be willing to have a quick look (and maybe test drive) of my car and give me some ideas what's MUST be done, what should be done and what I might want doing and some approx estimate on prices? I have less than 30 posts here so I can't send you a private message and I am not sure you'd reply to contacting by e-mail... (feel free to contact me directly by e-mail, I do read my mails twice daily at least)

Thanks!
 
Just give me a call. 02392570123. Much more simple!

:)
 
ahhh if only their website wasn't all in FLASH :-(... Did you know Mac OS X has no support for it?

I'm slightly mystified as I have a rMBP running OSX 10.9.3 and the M&K Autobody site works just fine for me.

Regards, lim
 
car health status update

So, a little update: I've been to a garage I have round corner from my work which I used couple times in the past and got some news:

The engine being killed on kick downs isn't caused by the pressure sensor giving wrong readings, but by the first fuel pump just next to tank in rear, which seems to not be giving enough fuel feed (could be clogged or just worn out). As all the rest on the fuel path was checked and when the engine suddenly stops, there is absolutely no diesel in the front pump's fuel filter...
 
There is no pump in the rear. It has a lift pump in the front just on top of the high pressure pump.
 
OK, more to ask:
- any tips on alloy rims? I'd like to have Winter-Summer tyres and because the current rims are quite worn, I've decided I'd get an extra set of rims to get two whole wheel sets, saving some money twice a year plus I might have differently sized wheels for Summer if I decide to go for the 17"/235/45 keeping 16"/215/55 only for Winter... (I am positive I do want the hassle with Winter tyres, I intend to drive for skiing to Europe etc.); I am interested not only in recommended brands/models, but also where to get them the cheapest of course, I am not Rockefeller after all
- alongside with rims, where to get cheap premium tyres is also something I'd like to know, potentially some recommended tyre brands/models; I've checked the ADAC, but there is quite a lot to pick from and some might be more suitable for my car

Now, with thinknig about the wider tyres, does anyone have clue, how badly the 235/45 would affect my fuel economy compared to running on the default 215/55? How much stiffer and less comfy along potholes and speedbumps is the ride going to be?

Thanks everyone!
 

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