M-Klasse Experience, Bitburg Air Base, 07/30/2005

[Birger]

Hi,

Last Saturday we had the chance to put the W164 through its paces at one of the 15 M-Klasse Experience events that MB Germany organises this summer at different venues in Germany and Austria.

"Ours" was at the former US air base in Bitburg, only 40 miles from our home. After the check-in we were first treated to a very generous and delicious snack here:

then we were given a 30-minute briefing on the W164 and what we were going to do with it (and what we should rather not):


Finally, we were divided into three groups and off to the waiting W164's:


Our group was first off to the safety section (basic emergency avoidance, braking and so on), but we could see that the off-road section would be interesting:


The safety section was short and essentially meant to let us get the feel of the cars (and probably to filter away certain drivers). Like those who were looking who had robbed the shift lever!:



OK - having found it we were allowed to participate.

This section included obstacle avoidance without braking, braking in a 90 degree curve, and emergency braking on a wet surface (with a very solid-looking gate at the end to make sure you hit the pedal[;)]. Here are some shots of that:















We then swapped cars with the off-road group, but before getting to do stupid things, our two instructors told us how[;)][;)]not to damage the cars unduly:





The photographer was VERY cute, which can be clearly seen from the younger of the instructors [;)]

Off we went, and by chance we got the (originally silver) 350 behind the instructor. All the cars were stock except for the Dunlop Grantrek AT2 tires

- a few had the ORP package, but most - including ours - had not.



First mudhole:




Then off into the woods (not our car):

following the instructor

The run through the woods was narrow - thus no photos, as my wife was occupied making surre that I made sure not to leave parts of the 350 on the trees[:D][:D]
Out on the other side, and UP:

more impressive from the inside:

- but we made it, at the first try:

Once you're UP, you also have to come down:

Again, from the inside it's more spectalular:¨

Then off to get some more mud on the paintwork:

The instructor was a bit of a mud addict (or maybe had a grudge against the guy who had to clean the cars after the day):






Getting ready to follow him through the "twister" section:






and at the end some of the cars showed some wear and tear:


Back to the base for some coffee and a group photo with one of the off-road instructors:


before going on to the low-speed handling section:

- the weather was starting to act up some, but was still OK here:





Note that "low-speed" doesn't mean very slow [;)]

Drive fast and precise like this:

and like this guy:

you get a keychain and a nice 1/43 scale W164 to take home. Others, like yours truly, will have to buy theirs [;)]
The last section of the day was called "Dynamics" and included some relatively high-speed driving, emergency braking and avoidance, plus a slalom section. Quite fun, until the skies opened up - but amazing that you could still do decent times with the rain pouring down - it was more visibility than sheer adherence that slowed you down:




Now, will you STEP ON IT (and not hit me):






And the tires took a beating:


It was one of the better days lately [:D][:D][:D]

Negative points? None, apart from the fact that all Ash-colored Alcantara/MB-Tex interiors suffered from "yellow fever":




- but the MB people on hand were duly concerned.

This Monday afternoon we had the opportunity of doing a normal road test of a ML320CDI. Quite some difference from the track testing, but very satisfying. There's a BIG difference from my present 270CDI, both in performance and NVH. We took it "gently" on the outbound leg of our test, but due to unforeseen circumstances we were more than a little late in bringing the car back, so the return leg was at a more spirited pace. It rolls, this Benz! But in a very refined way - I had it quite some distance at 200+ kph (we were in Germany, but still this is FAST), and when my wife gently told me to slow down a bit, it was just a request - not the usual "slow down before the thing falls apart". I'm afraid one will have to be very careful with speed in this new one.....

Sorry for the long post,
Birger

[marcelc]

Thanks for a very informative post, but please what is NVH ?

[dimitriss]

Birger,

Herzlichen Dank!
Very informative and a very nice set of pictures.

Next time I'm in Germany with the ML, we can get your wife and my wife to drive one car, while the two of us take a nice ride in the other [:D]

Having lived in Switzerland for 5 years and taking quite a few trips to Germany, I miss the Autobahn...

[Drew]

Thanks for the detail story and the pictures, Birger. Your M-Class event was far more comprehensive than the crappy PR event that the US M-Class Tour event ended up being. The one in Seattle was truly a disaster, with people getting lost.

So all in all, what is your conclusion of the ML, particularly since you have taken it through some light off-roading. [:)]

You also mentioned large differences between your 270CDI and the 320CDI. Any further comments on this?

[kenyee]

awwww...c'mon! Your wife could have taken pics of the wooded area while yelling at you to not rip the mirrors off ;-)

And no pics of the food or inside of the tent? :-(

[BrentG500]

WOW, Birger. I am genuinely impressed! Those ML's that you tested in the offroad portion of the event, did they have the offroad package on them or was it just the air suspension?

Thanks for such wonderful photos and allowing us to relive your experience. [:)] I think I like the Capri Blue ML you have in your pics - dark enough to be black, but really a subtle blue.

[Drew]

marcelc - 8/1/2005 10:37 AM

please what is NVH ?

Noise Vibration Harshness [:)]

[GregW / Oregon]

Thanks for the in-depth report, Birger. Looks better than the US events, though I did not attend one. I can't wait for some test reports with the full Off Road package.

[Birger]

Brent,

thanks!

"Our" 350 was dead stock except fot the tires. No Airmatic, no ORP - yet we made it through with (almost) no ugly noises. I'm VERY impressed.

Ken,

Yes, of course she coud have done that - but I guess she was just as scared s***less by maneuvering USD70K+ in close vicinity of not very crash-friendly trees. The same goes for the fast handling course when the rain came down.

As far as the food goes, I guess the motivation for not taking any photos was twofold: Not getting gresy fingers on the camera - and not shooting photos of people trying to stuff good-tasting, but awkwardly shaped pieces of food in their mouths [;)][;)]

To everyone: I forgot to mention, but the photos are a mix of "offical" photos shot by one or other of the two very cute MB girls and our own shots.

After finishing the day, we were all given a DVD containing the highlights of "our" group - including videos, of course. Very classy - also included the entire PowerPoint presentation of the W164 shown to us, plus two commercial films.

Cheers,
Birger

[Birger]

Drew,

I thought (not unlike you) that the W164 was a Lexus with a star. It isn't!

Compared to our present W163 ML270CDI (Carlsson-modified) it's quite another vehicle: The "old one" makes it heard when accecerating (cruising at steady speed it quiets down), and it's far more "brutal", "truck-like", whatever. It's fast, but you note when you're going fast.

The W164 ML320CDI is far more refined, which can be a risk: Even if you do not really intend to, you find yourself going at much more than the legal rate - and if you really want to "let it all hang out" (as we did on our way back from Germany this afternoon) the penalty in fuel isn't even bad: Some 60 kms (of which 40 kms were Autobahn at whatever speed was possible) turned out at 12.7 litres per 100), which is very reasonable.

Cheers,
Birger