My new W212 E250CDI Avantgarde

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mrcbenz

Active Member
Joined
Mar 3, 2011
Messages
66
Location
West Yorks
Car
W212 E250 CDI Avantgarde
Good evening fellow members,

After much pondering these past few months whether to keep my W211 E270CDI or go over to the dark side, ie BMW 5 series or Audi A6, I made the decision to part company with my W211 E270CDI Avantgarde. I picked up my new used 3.5 years old W212 E250CDI Avantgarde BlueEfficiency from an MB dealer in the North West just over a week ago.

Specifications as follows:

1 owner and just run in with 71K on the clock
COMAND APS
Bi-Xenons
Intelligent Lighting System
Full leather
Iridium silver metallic
5 speed auto

Have had the car for over one week and have enjoyed every moment so far. Thought I'd share my experiences and observations from the past week. The ride in the W212 is just superb with the normal shocks. My old W211 had airmatic, but enjoying the ride a lot more on this latest generation E. Road conditions where I am can be rather poor, but have found the ride to be very civilised when she encounters such conditions. On the motorways or dual carriage ways is where it takes command and just glides along smoothly and much quieter than the W211. Am very impressed with the power delivery from the 2143cc engine. I guess a E350
would have been nice, but had to consider costs, so a E250 is a good compromise. During the test drive and all week, I've found the window sills/edges sit much higher than in my old W211, but it gives one a feeling of being cocooned in a safety cage if you get my meaning .... a luxurious safety cage of course. Still have great visibility once the seat is adjusted to one's preference. The seats are very comfortable. I feel there is much more support on the new seats.

The build quality on the W212 feels very solid and well built. The dash layout seems some what flatter than in the old W211, where it seemed more elegant. But it still feels very good. The screen for the COMAND is in a great position and very clear. The previous owner must have had the software upgraded as I can enter a 7 digit postcode. The linguatronic feature works very well as tested for the navigation. Not driven her in the dark yet to see how effective the bi-xenons ILS works. I went through the settings on the dash and have set it for left-side traffic. I hope that is right seeing we drive on the left. All that is missing in my new Avantgarde compared to the old is the memory pack, but not a big issue. Would have a been a 'nice to have' option.

I tried using the manual shift a few times. I can change up through the gears OK but not down. If I knock the lever to the left from say 3, it doesn't go to 2, but back to 1? I tried it in S mode and still the same. Has anyone else experienced this or can explain why this is happening or am I doing something wrong?

I've been looking at forum posts concerning the tyre pressures for the W212. The petrol flap says 38psi front and rear and see in the manual the psi can be reduced by 4psi. The dealer had pumped them up to over 41psi upon checking. I decreased them down to 32psi as I always had my E270 at 32psi all round. Think I'll pump them back up to 34psi so at least its within range. Perhaps one of you good people with the same vehicle can clarify the proper psi for the E250CDI. My wheels are 245/45 17s by the way.

The only thing I'm really dreading is the PDF. I have a 2 mile commute to work and just pootle about during the week to various sites with 12 miles or less if required. I used Millers in my old W211 and have on the W212 once so far. I see the girlfriend at the weekends in York so it'll get a good blast almost every week so I should be OK. Couldn't find any petrol models so bit the bullet and went for diesel.

I bought the car from an MB dealer in Blackburn and received a very good service from them. The salesman was very helpful and was the only dealer who actually rang me back. The other MB dealers around the region just didn't seem interested. As the car was 3.5 years old and over 50K, I asked for the ATF to be changed as part of the deal, as the service technician checked that it had not been changed. I also asked will the car be serviced as part of their approved used deals. They said no if it didn't need it. The next service wasn't for another 3 months according to ASSYST on the dash. However, upon collecting the car, I was provided with a service sheet indicating that the ATF has been changed and that a service was carried out. It was also given 2 new rear tyres and 2 new front discs and pads (which needed replacing when I checked the car over), plus oil change etc etc. I was very happy. I get the usual 1 year warranty. We shall see how reliable the car is over the coming months. Overall, I am very happy with car.

Look forward to your comments.
 
Your views about the comparison between 211 and 212 are what I found too when doing the same. Re tyre pressures, my feeling is that the tyre pressures recommended are high in order to assist economy so if you find it too hard dropping them by 10% shouldn't affect tyre wear but will make it more comfortable.

Hope you continue to enjoy the car.
 

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