R Class opinions

[sweeper]

So I have had my R350cdi for around 4 months now and have sorted out a few issues, including seat belt buckle with faulty wiring on the switch, broken cable in the drivers door preventing locking and unlocking of the door using the switch, faulty anti pinch strips on the tailgate which prevented it from closing, replacing the thermostat due to over cooling! Looks like someone just left the repairs needed as they could live with them, the parts alone were over £400 lucky I could diagnose a fix myself and the car was a good price compared to some.

I find the R class a little disappointing in some respects, the drive in E mode is uninspiring with poor throttle response and using too high a gear, much better in S mode but I always have to re select it when starting up, the engine is a bit growlly at low speeds when pulling off, gear change sometimes a bit cluncky and performance is subdued by the sheer weight, the vehicle feels cheaply made, sat nav and radio is very hard to use, typical Mercedes, not very intuitive.

Why did I buy it? well I need the 7 seats and need to fit bigger children in the back, we already have a Viano for the longer trips but I wanted something which can also be fun to drive, i'm not sure it is, when I compare with my old Jaguar XJ that the Merc replaced I would have to say the Jag was better made and a lot more fun to drive, quieter, quicker, smoother and almost as good on fuel despite being a 3.5V8 petrol engine, the touch screen sat nav was far easier to use.
I'm a real fan of Mercedes and haven't ever bought an Audi or BMW and I think i'll learn to love the R Class much the same as I did our old C230 Kompressor S202 despite its poor corrosion resistance it's still one of the cars I really miss.

I have ordered some 19"wheels with all season tyres to improve the ride and give me grip in the winter and a spare key (ridiculous price) and there is a couple of marks on the rear bumper that I would like to get done.

Anyone else lived with the R Class? What do you think, am I being a bit unfair, expect too much?

 

[zipdip]

Well I used a R for about three weeks a few years ago,and they are a big 7 seater I found it comfortable and the guys I ferried around in it had no gripes,the R has never been popular and it shows in the second hand price,as you found they tend to have a number of small faults because people live with them as they need 7 seats and money is in short supply,at least you are handy with a spanner and so the faults are put right quickly and well at the cost of parts,for me it did not do anything very well but was ok for lugging people and cases.

 

[Deleted member 149005]

I very much doubt 19” wheels will improve the ride..unless you are downsizing from 20”

I can’t see any comparison between an R class, a glorified minibus, and an XJ limo.

 

[MD5]

I have a 57 plate R320L which I bought on a whim nearly three years ago. I needed something bigger than my S211 E class estate for equipment and a bit of a house move. It was meant to be a temporary purchase, but after this time I've even grown to love the looks and have considered getting a 350 facelift, with higher expectation of the engine over the 320, so interested to read your experience, which seems disappointing?

Mine's had lots of owners who have all taken care of it and it's just coming up for 80k miles. I had it mot'd at the main dealers a few weeks ago and the rear subframe was advised with surface rust which is being treated tomorrow. A previous owner had the gearbox plate sorted and it drives very nicely on 19" AMGs. Mine's a 6 seater as I needed cargo space rather than bums on seats, but if I bought another a 7 seater would be more flexible. I often carried 5 plus a wheelchair (father in law), but the poor boot space means one third row seat has to fold down to accommodate the chair. Sadly he's no longer with us, but lesson learnt re lack of boot space, so five passengers in two rows frees up the third row for luggage if needed.

I still need lots of cargo space, and the E class, a V8 5.0l is still on the 'fleet' for the V8 reason. Allowing for the size difference and the smoothness and performance of the V8 against the V6 diesel, I've enjoyed the R more than I thought I would, but it really was a whimsical purchase, as I said. I thought about an R class as a possibilty on a Tuesday and picked it up on the Sunday with no regrets.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

I’ve never owned one but I’ve driven a few, and I really like the R-Class, they look great too - ahead of their time I would say.

 

[sweeper]

I very much doubt 19” wheels will improve the ride..unless you are downsizing from 20”

I can’t see any comparison between an R class, a glorified minibus, and an XJ limo.

Yes i'm downsizing, i'd say the Viano is a glorified minibus, the comparison is both the Jag and the R had 265bhp and both ride on air, they are about the same length.

 

[sweeper]

Well I used a R for about three weeks a few years ago,and they are a big 7 seater I found it comfortable and the guys I ferried around in it had no gripes,the R has never been popular and it shows in the second hand price,as you found they tend to have a number of small faults because people live with them as they need 7 seats and money is in short supply,at least you are handy with a spanner and so the faults are put right quickly and well at the cost of parts,for me it did not do anything very well but was ok for lugging people and cases.

I found the prices high, especially for the face lifted, which benefit from more power and less road tax, plus I think they look better, you could get a S class cheaper and a E half the price, I do like a bargain and will usually go for one with a few miles (the Viano has done 324000), the R is huge and adults can sit in the third row and now i have driven it a bit more it is growing on me, I made the wrong comparison, I should compare with the outgoing Outlander which is what it really replaced and she took the Viano for ferrying kids and junk, against the Outlander the R is bigger, faster, almost as economical, on a run at least, looks better and is probably cheaper to run, it rides better (even with the 20" wheels) and only scores lower on handling where the steering is less sharp and the weight can be felt (it actually weighs more than the Viano). But I feel I may need a replacement for the Jaguar to fill a slot, i'm thinking of a toy, maybe something sporty!

 

[ChipChop]

I found the prices high, especially for the face lifted, which benefit from more power and less road tax, plus I think they look better, you could get a S class cheaper and a E half the price, I do like a bargain and will usually go for one with a few miles (the Viano has done 324000), the R is huge and adults can sit in the third row and now i have driven it a bit more it is growing on me, I made the wrong comparison, I should compare with the outgoing Outlander which is what it really replaced and she took the Viano for ferrying kids and junk, against the Outlander the R is bigger, faster, almost as economical, on a run at least, looks better and is probably cheaper to run, it rides better (even with the 20" wheels) and only scores lower on handling where the steering is less sharp and the weight can be felt (it actually weighs more than the Viano). But I feel I may need a replacement for the Jaguar to fill a slot, i'm thinking of a toy, maybe something sporty!

The facelift R class is a much better looking car imho. There was another R class thread on here and a member who is in the trade expressed the opinion that many R classes have had a hard life as mum buses. Despite this i like them especially the R500.

 

[sweeper]

Well now I have had a chance to use the R a bit more I’m really starting to enjoy it’s good points, the faster you go the better it gets and high speed cruising is where this car belongs, problem being it is very easy with the high gearing to find yourself going very quickly, the ride on bumpy stuff is still a bit firm and hitting a hole in the road isn’t great, I’m thinking new shocks may help here, more so on the back, pulling away you can feel the weight and there is a little too much torque converter slip which I don’t think is necessary. I’ve put some new discs and pads on the back and will follow up with new ones on the front as they are looking rusty on the outer edges, the mrs still hasn’t driven it as she has been busy backing the Viano into “hidden” posts, as she also did with the 406 we had and the outlander, she also crashed our old C class and the VW Golf and a company Citroen Xsara! always someone else’s fault and never takes responsibility, just like the kids really.
I had to get a spare key and was unable to get an aftermarket one, the guy doing it just couldn’t program it without removing the unit so I plumped for a genuine one which at least works and the unit hasn’t been messed with but was of course £240, the car looks great with the new wheels, it has a scuff or two on the bumpers but it’s good enough for me, I find with really immaculate cars I worry too much about scratching them. fuel consumption is average around 30 with 35 on a run but better is possible if right foot is controlled better, so not bad for a 2.3t tank.

 

[sweeper]

I finally managed to use the R Class for a decent trip, i'm still rather disappointed with it, road noise on some surfaces is shocking (maybe not helped by the all season tyres) S mode for the gearbox is a must or you find it is in too high a gear with little throttle response, bit more throttle and a down change and a lurch forwards, horrible! Ride is still far too firm, surely with all the fancy air and adaptive damping the ride should be very smooth especially in comfort settings, I find the engine noisy and unrefined, the handling is a mixture of excess weight, slow steering and po-going around on the bumpy stuff, What has it got going for it, well it has the space I need, with third row seat being big enough for adults and bags of leg room in the middle row and third row if you pull the middle forwards, once approaching license losing speeds the car is transformed, becomes smooth and effortless flooring it at *** even when hauling steep inclines gives a satisfying surge of power, with a mixture of slow, fast B road, slow motorway, fast motorway and normal motorway we averaged 35mpg over the 330miles yesterday, which is pretty good for a car this size and weight, The lake roads have bedded the brakes in nicely, I could smell them once or twice.
Honestly though, if i could find an alternative i'd be doing some test drives, I just cant find anything which has the space and 7 seats, plus i really want to like it, **** me I gave up the Jag for this, a car I had 7 years and still looked forward to driving it, every time it felt special, not so the R, every time I drive it I hope i'll like it, but I don't.

 

[BTB 500]

The R Class is effectively a (dated) 4WD SUV with a slightly lower bodyshell, so if you don't actually need the traction/ground clearance/etc. the compromises made to deliver that may not make sense. Have you ever tried a V6/auto Viano?

 

[sweeper]

The R Class is effectively a (dated) 4WD SUV with a slightly lower bodyshell, so if you don't actually need the traction/ground clearance/etc. the compromises made to deliver that may not make sense. Have you ever tried a V6/auto Viano?

I Like the 4 wheel drive for the odd occasions it snows and we have a Viano for the holidays etc, so what I was after was an R Class, powerful, plenty of space and hopefuly a quality ride, without being a Van, the R scores well in most areas but lacks the refinement I was expecting and I don't see any reason for making it such a hard ride, i'm hoping a new set of rear shocks will help with the thumping over potholes and will improve the ride enough to stop me moaning.

 

[merc85]

We have a Honda Stepwagon 2.4 auto, 8 seater which are all proper size seats, Large load capacity even when all the seats are up.

upto 40mpg on a run 30 around town, nothing has fallen off or broken smooth and comfortable and very car like to drive.

Also we have never worried about it not starting it just does everything really well, a little to well perhaps dull lol.

Face lift R is a nice looker but the Pre face lift, dear lord.....

 

[DSM10000]

I Like the 4 wheel drive for the odd occasions it snows and we have a Viano for the holidays etc, so what I was after was an R Class, i'm hoping a new set of rear shocks will help with the thumping over potholes and will improve the ride enough to stop me moaning.

It is the Springs that determine the ride quality (and also absorb the shock of impact

The dampers (shock absorbers to many!) just control the rebound rate.

 

[ChipChop]

Face lift R is a nice looker but the Pre face lift, dear lord.....

Yep pre face life R classes have a face only a mother could love. Still seem like a nice place to be on a long journey though, not that i have ever driven one.

Suspension wise i believe all but the R280 (detuned V6 diesel) are on air suspension as standard.

 

[Petrol Pete]

It's probably a fine car but I just can't get over it's looks . Not MB's finest moment IMHO . At least it's not quite as bad as the first gen SsangYong Musso which is basically a Mercedes Benz underneath . By all accounts it was quite an accomplished vehicle and won various awards...who would have thought ?

 

[mioba]

absoloutely love my W251, its a facelift model 2011 350CDI 4 matic LWB with AMG styling, fully loaded, leather seats, rear screens. on 55K miles. Prefacelift are just ugly and high VED.
Only gripe with 20 inch wheels, making a harsh ride, and relative poor fuel econmy, averaging about 28mpg. Then again its a heavy beast.
SWB models are not the best for size given what the car is.
The OM642 has a number of gripes that need keeping on top off. orange seals are a service item to turbo, i change anually.
Otherwise love the car and its looks - I call it the Rebel.

Only probs have been a driveshaft and a turbo actuator (which was a diy and a pig as the space is so limited).

 

[lostkiwi]

Had my R350cdi about 15 months and absolutely love it for what it is.
Not had any real issues with it in 20k miles aside from a broken front spring (ours is coil front, air rear). Lots of niggles to put right when bought (independent dealer was less than useless).

We use ours regularly for trips to France. It replaced a much loved E240 w210. It's far more driveable than the 210, (which was seriously lacking in torque) and more comfortable. Our trips to France see us regularly sitting at 130k for 8 hours or so and the R has proven extremely good for this. The ride is comfy, economy has nudged 40mpg on more than one occasion and it's pretty much a perfect motorway continent crusher. My only complaint would be a very dead vague feel around the straight ahead position.
Ours is on 18s which makes for a fairly tall sidewall. This undoubtedly aids the ride quality.

We also have the rare combination of Pano roof and rear Aircon with heated rear seats which I'm sure our dogs appreciate (they travel on the middle row). In hot weather we turn their Aircon to cold (18°C) as they get hot when traveling.

It's no sports car (I have a Smart Roadster, 129 and 230 for that) or hot hatch (other half has a Cooper S for that) but it is a very capable and comfortable load lugger and long distance cruiser. Yes the weight is an issue in the bends but accept it for what it is and go the speed it wants to and it's fine.

A couple of pics of economy.
First was trying to get the best I could from it. Second was going down to France.

 

[Bobby Dazzler]

Great cars and misunderstood by many. Glad to hear that you’re enjoying yours