I'm a very lucky man

[Dieselman]

Anyone seen the plot??

Not yet, but if you find one big enough I'll build a house on it...

 

[robert.saunders]

Anyone seen the plot??

Nope

 

[Dieselman]

What I meant is that quality of materials (as opposed to build) is excellent with only the key showing significant wear

Overall not what I expect from a £56K car.

You'd prefer more parts to show wear....

 

[Mactech]

Not yet, but if you find one big enough I'll build a house on it...

Smart move! far less depreciation than a big Merc....opps! lost the plot again

 

[prprandall51]

This S Class has surely been receiving the tradional hire car treatment from new. ("speed bump? What speed bump?").

Therefore, any squeeks and rattles can probably be excused. No offence to the OP, but I would put far more weight behind a build-quality review regarding a car that had been owned from new.

Philip

 

[MBManInKen]

Anyone seen the plot??

Long gone

 

[glojo]

Ok easy all tigers please.
.

I appreciate reading constructive crticism of any car and you are telling it just as you find it. Are the distances your travelling in excess of 20 miles? If not then I can understand how the car might return these figures, but I dread to think what a large petrol engine would return on the same journey.

I would NOT be a happy bunny if there was just ONE squeak coming from this vehicle but they have you by the proverbials. If you complain, they might take the car off you

Your point about turbo lag is not a complaint I have read about before, especially on this 3ltr V6 and again I would seek the counsel of Mactech.

John

 

[Mactech]

This S Class has surely been receiving the tradional hire car treatment from new. ("speed bump? What speed bump?").

Therefore, any squeeks and rattles can probably be excused. No offence to the OP, but I would put far more weight behind a build-quality review regarding a car that had been owned from new.

Philip

I agree and disagree! My car is slilent after 8000 miles but modern cars should and are built to take anything that is thrown at them. On the Milbrook acelerated durability track there are block speed bumps that take your fillings out, but are not expected to make a quality new car rattle.
I still treat mine like well...I owned it.

 

[Mactech]

I appreciate reading constructive crticism of any car and you are telling it just as you find it. Are the distances your travelling in excess of 20 miles? If not then I can understand how the car might return these figures, but I dread to think what a large petrol engine would return on the same journey.

I would NOT be a happy bunny if there was just ONE squeak coming from this vehicle but they have you by the proverbials. If you complain, they might take the car off you

Your point about turbo lag is not a complaint I have read about before, especially on this 3ltr V6 and again I would seek the counsel of Mactech.

John

Response and turbo lag are very subjective areas. All turbo engines have some turbo lag. The smaller the inertia of the turbo, the better the response.
At the alltitude of Boneville last year, the Dieselmax land speed record car had a lag of over 30seconds...not really good enough for a road car!
The 320 CDI V6 is quite good for a turbo, but not as good as an atmo engine, but one which never provides such huge torque. (Agian its the off torque to on torque of a turbo being much greater that allows you to percieve lag)
If you squeeze rather than stab the throttle this engine is really good. If you want the response of a high reving atmo engine you may be disapointed.
I know from experience the the response of the standard engine can be substantaily imporoved by re-mapping.

 

[Dieselman]

(Agian its the off torque to on torque of a turbo being much greater that allows you to percieve lag)

I know from experience the the response of the standard engine can be substantaily imporoved by re-mapping.

I always find it interesting that drivers of low torque engines complain of turbo lag when extracting full torque from a turbodiesel. Even in atmo form it produces more torque than an atmo petrol so what is the issue.

 

[prprandall51]

I agree and disagree! My car is slilent after 8000 miles but modern cars should and are built to take anything that is thrown at them. On the Milbrook acelerated durability track there are block speed bumps that take your fillings out, but are not expected to make a quality new car rattle.
I still treat mine like well...I owned it.

I don't know - agreed these thesting grounds should shake any modern car as much as it is ever likley to be shaken but just look at the scrape marks on the approach - and often the exit - of most (all?) speed humps - they are way beyond the range of obstacle / hazard that the suspension designers plannned for.

I saw a car by the side of the road a few weeks ao. He had hit the (very poorly marked) speed bump located at the entrance to the M40 Junction 8 services. He was insepecting his tyres and wheels and had the bonnet lifted -I imagine you don't need to do that after driving over the milbrook paving.

Philip

 

[Dryce]

This S Class has surely been receiving the tradional hire car treatment from new. ("speed bump? What speed bump?").

Therefore, any squeeks and rattles can probably be excused. No offence to the OP, but I would put far more weight behind a build-quality review regarding a car that had been owned from new.

I disagree.

I would expect a MB - especially an S - to be squeak and rattle free after being in a company or hire car fleet for a year.

 

[Dieselman]

Maybe it's not the S rattling, it's the drivers briefcase catches, he just never heard it before over the noise in his C.

 

[prprandall51]

I disagree.

I would expect a MB - especially an S - to be squeak and rattle free after being in a company or hire car fleet for a year.

There is a world of difference between being a company car and being a hire car. Ask any hire car which they would rather be.

Hire cars, for example, return 14mpg.

 

[JC180]

You'd prefer more parts to show wear....

Ha ha whats with you today DM

I meant that as a compliment....

driving this car squeezing the throttle....perfect, wafting around in this car is the most serene experience possible when you want to get on the throttle early after cornering there is to much lag, simple.

Not complaining of the torque which is simply incredible, would prefer this engine to my 180K any day just making a point thats all. Even using the buttons behind the wheel don't help as the changes are too slow. Anyway this car is not meant to be hustled down country roads but wafting around town which it does in the most superb fashion.

As regards interior build quality, I do not expect the finest car from the worlds finest mass production manufacturer to contain ANY squeaks or rattles regardless of how it is driven for at least a number of years since purchase.

My boss's A8 that I drive quite often is 2 years old with 40K, driven all its life like it has been nicked (you need a nappy on when he is driving he is absolutely mental) and not a squeak or rattle to be heard anywhere. Nuff said.

 

[Ted]

This S Class has surely been receiving the tradional hire car treatment from new. ("speed bump? What speed bump?").

Therefore, any squeeks and rattles can probably be excused. No offence to the OP, but I would put far more weight behind a build-quality review regarding a car that had been owned from new.

Philip

My G class had previously been owned by a farmer. Now I can't tell how he drove it but after 100,000 miles there were no rattles, the engine was beautifully smooth, and the transmission was MUCH quieter than a brand new Disco I had.

The seat bolsters were worn though.

 

[prprandall51]

My G class had previously been owned by a farmer. Now I can't tell how he drove it but after 100,000 miles there were no rattles, the engine was beautifully smooth, and the transmission was MUCH quieter than a brand new Disco I had.

The seat bolsters were worn though.

But I doubt a G Class would scrape its underbelly on a speed bump..... If we are talking about the old skool ones, they were designed to hit a fallen tree at 30mph and just carry on. Almost as good as a Land Rover!

 

[JC180]

Maybe it's not the S rattling, it's the drivers briefcase catches, he just never heard it before over the noise in his C.

Cheeky git

The S is nice and oh so quiet but so is my C plus my seat does not squeak and my dash does not rattle and it's got 87K.

 

[Dryce]

There is a world of difference between being a company car and being a hire car. Ask any hire car which they would rather be.

Hire cars, for example, return 14mpg.

The worst abused / looked after cars I have seen were company cars. A hire car sees a spectrum of drivers. Some company cars get the same abuser on a regular basis. And some nice colleagues seem take particular pleasure in using another colleague's car with attitude.

MB rentals I have driven have been squeak and rattle free. Same has not been true of some other marques (Fiesta, Focus, Vectra).

 

[MBManInKen]

The S is nice and oh so quiet but so is my C plus my seat does not squeak and my dash does not rattle and it's got 87K.

Well, my S-class is also nice and quiet and does not have squeeky seats or a rattly dash .

I think the moral of the story is that you just cannot draw any meaningful conclusion about a car model based on a single sample. That would be just bad science .