[JG in SB]

If you are someone who is seriously worried about spending a few extra cents per gallon on gas, what are you doing forking out north of $60k for an automobile? [:D] For the price of your MB, you could have purchased two very nicely equipped Toyota Prius'es (I think that would be the plural of "prius") and then you could really be saving money on gas.

One of the main reasons I liked the E500 was for its nice punchy accelleration. So the few extra cents per gallon for the highest octane fuel is worth it for me.

For the record, our other car, a 2002 Acura MDX SUV, also came with a recommendation that we only use "premium". It is rated as a ULEV (Ultra Low Emissions Vehicle)and the dealership techs told me that you actually get better gas mileage using the high grade fuel, as well as lower emmissions due to cleaner burning, than with a lower fuel grade. If this is true, than I imagine it would be the same for MB cars.