Random questions and thoughts about my new E300 hybrid

[CYPER]

So I've done close to 600 miles in my new E300 Hybryd and wanted to share a few thoughts about it and also ask a few questions.

1. Is it just me or is the gear lever counter intuitive to use? I feel like pressing forward should be Drive and pulling backwards should be reverse, but it's the other way around. It still takes me 1-2 seconds sometimes to figure out which way I need to press.
   
   
2. Why are the wheels spinning and the car being jerky when I accelerate harshly when the car is cold? Same thing on my Honda Civic 8th gen. Traction control? Abnormal behaviour?
   
   
3. My Civic has a dedicated button for heating the side mirrors. Is this integrated in the back window heating button on the Merc or it just doesn't have it as an option?
   
   
4. Is it normal for the DAB radio to cut out from time to time? It feels like it is losing connection or something.
   
   
5. Mercedes said they will update my Navigation map for free as the car is still under warranty. Anything else worth updating, so I ask them?
   
   
6. There is also some recall and was told some liquid needs topping up. Any info on that?
   
   
7. Why is the reverse camera so bad? The side and front too. During night time you can barely see anything as it is so dark and the brightness is set to maximum. A friend got a prius and his reverse camera is so much brighter and you can actually see things around you quite clearly. Any way I can increase the camera sensitivity?
   
   
8. Can the 360 camera system can somehow be hacked to be used as a dashcam and record while driving? Or even better record if the alarm goes off?
   
   
9. The steering wheel squeaks quite loudly when the interior is cold. It sounds like the rubber housing is rubbing against some plastic and it's very annoying. Any fix?
   
   
10. I think I have what is called a Multicontour seat with air chambers, but this is only on the drivers side. I have seen other cars that have it on both sides, which makes me wonder why I don't have it on the passenger side.
    
    
11. I got folding rear seat and under the central arm support there is a small hatch that can only opened from the boot. What is the logic behind that? I find it more practical to be able to open it from inside the cabin or even better from both sides.
    
    
12. I got 2 unknown buttons on the roof - one shows a car with some signal level and the other a car with a hook. Any idea what are these for?

I would appreciate if you share your thoughts and answers

 

[whitenemesis]

3 .. Mirror heaters come on automatically at temps below approx 12c

12 .. Buttons disable the internal movement sensor for the alarm and the tilt/tow away sensor respectively

 

[PXW]

So I've done close to 600 miles in my new E300 Hybryd and wanted to share a few thoughts about it and also ask a few questions. [*]Is it just me or is the gear lever counter intuitive to use? I feel like pressing forward should be Drive and pulling backwards should be reverse, but it's the other way around. It still takes me 1-2 seconds sometimes to figure out which way I need to press. [*]Why are the wheels spinning and the car being jerky when I accelerate harshly when the car is cold? Same thing on my Honda Civic 8th gen. Traction control? Abnormal behaviour? [*]My Civic has a dedicated button for heating the side mirrors. Is this integrated in the back window heating button on the Merc or it just doesn't have it as an option? [*]Is it normal for the DAB radio to cut out from time to time? It feels like it is losing connection or something. [*]Mercedes said they will update my Navigation map for free as the car is still under warranty. Anything else worth updating, so I ask them? [*]There is also some recall and was told some liquid needs topping up. Any info on that? [*]Why is the reverse camera so bad? The side and front too. During night time you can barely see anything as it is so dark and the brightness is set to maximum. A friend got a prius and his reverse camera is so much brighter and you can actually see things around you quite clearly. Any way I can increase the camera sensitivity? [*]Can the 360 camera system can somehow be hacked to be used as a dashcam and record while driving? Or even better record if the alarm goes off? [*]The steering wheel squeaks quite loudly when the interior is cold. It sounds like the rubber housing is rubbing against some plastic and it's very annoying. Any fix? [*]I think I have what is called a Multicontour seat with air chambers, but this is only on the drivers side. I have seen other cars that have it on both sides, which makes me wonder why I don't have it on the passenger side. [*]I got folding rear seat and under the central arm support there is a small hatch that can only opened from the boot. What is the logic behind that? I find it more practical to be able to open it from inside the cabin or even better from both sides. [*]I got 2 unknown buttons on the roof - one shows a car with some signal level and the other a car with a hook. Any idea what are these for? I would appreciate if you share your thoughts and answers

Re 7 - silly suggestion but have you ensured the lens is clean? Makes a massive difference on mine...

 

[grober]

1. is the way autobox Mercedes selector gates have been for years - from the front back P R N D 1,2 etc Rest assured there would be howls of protest from traditional Merc buyers if it was changed.

2. most cars standard behaviour alters slightly when cold either to simply keep the engine running or to compensate for various parts , fluids, brakes, propulsion batteries etc to reach fully operating temperature. Increasingly its to do with emissions where its difficult to keep the engine running when cold and keep emissions down. In the old days the driver was simply expected to modify all these parameters himself by altering his driving style. Now its more likely its done by an array of sensors and ECU's working seamlessly in the background. In the case of a hybrid it may have something to do with the balance/proportion of traction input from the electric motor side and combustion engine side at cold temperature.
4. with DAB there's no fading r interference like FM its there or its not. Despite what the broadcast authorities say DAB coverage can be "patchy"

6. fluid could be anything-- possibly ADBLUE for emissions??

11. Mercedes have always had a fixation on boot security from their taxi days. Being able to access the ski hatch only from the boot would mean the boot might remain secure even when the car interior was open- a question of security priorities perhaps?

 

[moonloops]

Why are the wheels spinning and the car being jerky when I accelerate harshly when the car is cold? Same thing on my Honda Civic 8th gen. Traction control? Abnormal behaviour?

Try not accelerating harshly when the car is cold?

Or you have Pirelli tyres..

 

[CabrioDave]

Re 4: the DAB radio will "cut out" when the signal is not strong enough. I don't know the Mercedes DAB set-up, but in other cars, if the settings are appropriate, you usually fade softly to nothing for half a sec, then fade back up on the equivalent FM channel (and vice versa when the DAB signal is strong again). The fading helps you not notice the time difference - DAB being a few seconds behind FM (never set your watch by the DAB pips!)

 

[SomebodyCalledJ]

Is it me or does Q2 sound like your just putting down to much acceleration and your losing traction in these current cold conditions? Yes the engine will be cold, but so will the tyres, road surface, etc and how worn are your tyres? At this time of year you will often lose traction when flooring it.

Your Civic would have been FWD and your Merc is RWD, both will wheel spin under the right conditions, and your traction control will stop you putting down all the power, making the loss in traction worse.

Or did I miss the point?

 

[Doodle]

Don't forget that electrical motors give maximum torque at zero speed. 180ftlb straight from rest, on top of what the engine is providing, will easily overwhelm the tyres.

 

[CYPER]

Re 7 - silly suggestion but have you ensured the lens is clean? Makes a massive difference on mine...

Yes, lens is superbly clean. Again compared to a Prius reverse cam the difference is night and day literally. Totally disappointed with the quality.
Personally for me the camera in 360 mode or just reverse is totally useless when dark.

11. Mercedes have always had a fixation on boot security from their taxi days. Being able to access the ski hatch only from the boot would mean the boot might remain secure even when the car interior was open- a question of security priorities perhaps?

That makes sense.And good tip on the ski name. Never thought it is for that.

Try not accelerating harshly when the car is cold?

Is it me or does Q2 sound like your just putting down to much acceleration and your losing traction in these current cold conditions? Yes the engine will be cold, but so will the tyres, road surface, etc and how worn are your tyres? At this time of year you will often lose traction when flooring it.

Your Civic would have been FWD and your Merc is RWD, both will wheel spin under the right conditions, and your traction control will stop you putting down all the power, making the loss in traction worse.

Or did I miss the point?

I am not accelerating harshly. RPMs are below 2000, probably just 1500.

___________________________________________________________________________________________________________________

Anyone else on my other thoughts?

5 - Mercedes said they will update my Navigation map for free as the car is still under warranty. Anything else worth updating, so I ask them?

8 - Can the 360 camera system can somehow be hacked to be used as a dashcam and record while driving? Or even better record if the alarm goes off?

9 - The steering wheel squeaks quite loudly when the interior is cold. It sounds like the rubber housing is rubbing against some plastic and it's very annoying. Any fix?

10 - I think I have what is called a Multicontour seat with air chambers, but this is only on the drivers side. I have seen other cars that have it on both sides, which makes me wonder why I don't have it on the passenger side.

Cheers

 

[steve333]

Don't forget that electrical motors give maximum torque at zero speed. 180ftlb straight from rest, on top of what the engine is providing, will easily overwhelm the tyres.

Exactly-for maximum grip and acceleration(but not when engine is cold) I only use sport or sport plus in my c300 hybrid(the electric motor will not operate in sport/sport plus and stop/start is also disabled).

 

[S205-FTW]

8)

Possibly but it'd be a pretty useless dashcam a it's just looking at the ground (360 is obviously designed for parking).

Plus there's definitely no easy hack to do this.

What would be a better would be the two cameras behind the rear view mirror as these point forward and are high enough to see the road ahead but this again won't be an easy hack.

Hopefully one day MB will get the message that punters want dashcam and that they should just build one in. Although no doubt it'll be some £1,200 option.

 

[S205-FTW]

5)
My experience with updates is that they will only update firmware/software if there's an actual fault. The update system is pretty primative from what they've described - it takes around 20-30 minutes even for a basic update as they download them all from Germany and each update is specific to each VIN.

 

[CYPER]

Exactly-for maximum grip and acceleration(but not when engine is cold) I only use sport or sport plus in my c300 hybrid(the electric motor will not operate in sport/sport plus and stop/start is also disabled).

I am confused. Isn't the electric motor needed for max acceleration?
I read somewhere that E300 engine is 500Nm and the electric motor adds 250Nm more.