The New R2!

[R2D2]

Having tested performance at 6 secs to 60. I went after a British and Commonwealth record on my mpg. Last night I achieved :bannana:
Pretty amazing for a 3.5 litre V6 I think.

 

[bpsorrel]

If I'd known how good the 350 petrol can be, I'd have chosen it for my CLS instead of the diesel..

 

[R2D2]

If I'd known how good the 350 petrol can be, I'd have chosen it for my CLS instead of the diesel..

That was driving on cruise at 60mph to London and then down to 50mph on the final run in. I drove it like a saint but it shows what's possible I'll have to see how low I can get it!

 

[bpsorrel]

Driving like a saint I can just about manage 45 from my 320cdi but round town it's probably not much better than yours! I do like the shove in the back torque though...

 

[clk208]

Having tested performance at 6 secs to 60. I went after a British and Commonwealth record on my mpg. Last night I achieved :bannana:
Pretty amazing for a 3.5 litre V6 I think.

Good work. Had a little economy run in my petrol over the weekend for 20 miles or so, similar speeds of around 60mph.

I hit an indicated 32.4mpg which is the best I have seen in this car by a long way. I guess this is probably pretty much the maximum achievable in my car.

It's a long way off my M112 3.2 CLK which would hit around the 35mpg mark in normal 70-90mph motoring without going out of my way to drive it economically.

That said around town there isn't much in it. The 10mile or so run to my mums which consists of mostly 30mph roads, a few miles on a 60mph road, a few sets of traffic lights, some hills etc the CLS will show 26mpg which is pretty similar to the old CLK.

 

[R2D2]

I'm amazed that such big cars can get such good mpg. I can't wait to do a Scotland run (which will be a few months away). In my C180 K I returned 36mpg on the 500 mile drive albeit fully laden and not driven particularly for economy. If I get anywhere near 36 mpg on that same run in a 3.5 then I'll be chuffed. Your, 32.4mpg, clk208, is still pretty good for a big car.

 

[C43AMG]

Just been from home to Brighton then to Heathrow 155 miles at 59mph 27.6 mpg in the S-Class

 

[Shude]

I'm amazed that such big cars can get such good mpg. I can't wait to do a Scotland run (which will be a few months away). In my C180 K I returned 36mpg on the 500 mile drive albeit fully laden and not driven particularly for economy. If I get anywhere near 36 mpg on that same run in a 3.5 then I'll be chuffed. Your, 32.4mpg, clk208, is still pretty good for a big car.

It's not that amazing though really is it? It's not working any harder than a smaller engine in fact it's probably doing less work for the same result. Tootling down the motorway at a steady speed is probably the same economy for most models of the same range, it's the stopping and starting that hurts I think!

 

[R2D2]

Just been from home to Brighton then to Heathrow 155 miles at 59mph 27.6 mpg in the S-Class

That sounds pretty good for S500L

It's not that amazing though really is it? It's not working any harder than a smaller engine in fact it's probably doing less work for the same result. Tootling down the motorway at a steady speed is probably the same economy for most models of the same range, it's the stopping and starting that hurts I think!

My one doesn't like being stationary and idling!

 

[BlackC55]

If I'd known how good the 350 petrol can be, I'd have chosen it for my CLS instead of the diesel..

I would avoid the 350 petrol due to the balance shaft issues.

 

[C43AMG]

I would avoid the 350 petrol due to the balance shaft issues.

Olly, Balance Shaft ??

Where you sitting down Greg ?

 

[R2D2]

BTW I looked up the technical bulletins which said:

"Applicable Models (Not Applicable to Model 164.156, 204 or 216.386): Equipped with M272 Engine Up to Serial No. 2729..30 468993 or M273 Engine Up to Serial No. 2739..30 088611.
The material for the balance shaft sprocket and the timing chain guide wheel (idler) was modified on engines past the serial numbers listed above. "

Up to Serial No. 2729..30 468993

Mine is 2729..30757600 ie after the problem ones.

All checked out

 

[bpsorrel]

Any known problems/issues with the CLS500?

 

[whitenemesis]

Any known problems/issues with the CLS500?

Points/licence/petrol/tyres not necessarily in that order.....

 

[R2D2]

Any known problems/issues with the CLS500?

Not that I can find or am aware of. M272s and M273s had balancer shaft issues but only certain numbers.

 

[C43AMG]

All checked out

Good news Greg.

 

[st4]

Not that I can find or am aware of. M272s and M273s had balancer shaft issues but only certain numbers.

Agree but same diligence in checking a 500 for the issue is required for checking a V6.

Oh and 7g valve bodies, they can fail.

 

[R2D2]

Well unbelievably I have owned my latest R2 for 1 month already. I have driven 1250 miles in that month and have had great fun.

Confessions.
I was so thrilled with the car that I bought it believing that it was Obsideon Black metallic. It is not and in fact is non metallic Black which is a very soft paint.

This has meant that I have had a lot of paintwork issues to deal with and hence why I am not only waxing a lot but using sealants in order to protect the paint from marks.

The end result is an amazingly shiny car but not without much effort.

Confession 2. The Cars MOT had advisories for "bonded suspension units deteriorated but functioning". This was explained away by the broker who sourced the car from a MB dealer up north as, nothing just a bit of ware on some bushes. In reality the bonded suspension units were completely spent and needed replacing. This was not a straight forward job as it required a specialist tool to be sent from the factory and actually doing it took half a day. The good news was that MB/broker picked up the bill.

While it was in the main dealer I had the entire car checked and all software/maps updated and all exposed suspension parts either greased or waxoiled. I tend to keep my cars a long while. The wheels have been off at the hubs lubricated to stop the wheels sticking on and the brakes and underside has all been checked. The underside is now as good as the rest of the car.

The car itself has been amazing, it is a real Q car. When the boy racers tail gate, one just flies off leaving them behind. The fuel consumption has ranged between 36.8mpg on a gentle cruise and 19mpg on a "less gentle cruise". I love the new Comand and Linguatronic which is SO easy to use. I love the ride (I have yet to find a corner where I wish I had the sports suspension), I love the seats and leather and the "luxury" steering wheel feels nice even after my AMG one in my last car. I love that it does 60 in 6 seconds.

I have had an occasional slight dash rattle but nothing that is lasting or problematic and other wise it is perfect.

Am I pleased with the car - yes! Would I recomend it or buy another one - yes! But I'm grateful that MB picked up the prematurely worn sealed bonded bushes as that would have been an unexpected big bill on a 17k mile car.

Mods to date; Black wheel centres to match the car, Comand and Linguatronic installed and PCMIA 16GB of music added.

Tomorrow, in order to celebrate its 1 month birthday I think I'll detail it (again!):bannana:

 

[st4]

Well unbelievably I have owned my latest R2 for 1 month already. I have driven 1250 miles in that month and have had great fun.

Confessions.
I was so thrilled with the car that I bought it believing that it was Obsideon Black metallic. It is not and in fact is non metallic Black which is a very soft paint.

This has meant that I have had a lot of paintwork issues to deal with and hence why I am not only waxing a lot but using sealants in order to protect the paint from marks.

The end result is an amazingly shiny car but not without much effort.

Confession 2. The Cars MOT had advisories for "bonded suspension units deteriorated but functioning". This was explained away by the broker who sourced the car from a MB dealer up north as, nothing just a bit of ware on some bushes. In reality the bonded suspension units were completely spent and needed replacing. This was not a straight forward job as it required a specialist tool to be sent from the factory and actually doing it took half a day. The good news was that MB/broker picked up the bill.

While it was in the main dealer I had the entire car checked and all software/maps updated and all exposed suspension parts either greased or waxoiled. I tend to keep my cars a long while. The wheels have been off at the hubs lubricated to stop the wheels sticking on and the brakes and underside has all been checked. The underside is now as good as the rest of the car.

The car itself has been amazing, it is a real Q car. When the boy racers tail gate, one just flies off leaving them behind. The fuel consumption has ranged between 36.8mpg on a gentle cruise and 19mpg on a "less gentle cruise". I love the new Comand and Linguatronic which is SO easy to use. I love the ride (I have yet to find a corner where I wish I had the sports suspension), I love the seats and leather and the "luxury" steering wheel feels nice even after my AMG one in my last car. I love that it does 60 in 6 seconds.

I have had an occasional slight dash rattle but nothing that is lasting or problematic and other wise it is perfect.

Am I pleased with the car - yes! Would I recomend it or buy another one - yes! But I'm grateful that MB picked up the prematurely worn sealed bonded bushes as that would have been an unexpected big bill on a 17k mile car.

Mods to date; Black wheel centres to match the car, Comand and Linguatronic installed and PCMIA 16GB of music added.

Tomorrow, in order to celebrate its 1 month birthday I think I'll detail it (again!):bannana:

Tell me about the bonded suspension components. Research on the 204 shows rear coils can partially snap meaning new spring but drive able rattling car?

 

[whitenemesis]

Amazing that MB never fitted black centre caps as standard. It was the first thing I changed when I got the CLS (which is Obsidian black!)

Have MB changed the design of the bonded components? If not can you expect to renew again in ~17k miles?