So I read this board, and not much info on diesels here, thus I hope my little contribution will help those of you in Europe who are looking at diesels.
Please excuse my bad English, as I am from Czech Republic.
Ok, so the story is short and simple. I went to MB dealer here in Brno, CR , and ORdered R-Class despite the fact I've never seen it in my life. This was 2 months ago. I put a big junk of cash down to reserve the vehicle....... VERY LOOONG two months of waiting followed.
Just yesterday they delievered it to the dealer, and called me up to go check it out. So here are the results. Please keep in mind, these are MY THOUGHTS!
The vehicle is much larger in real-life then on the photos...it calls for respect when you see it. IT is big enough to scare people away if they are driving too slow in your lane, they will quickly notice you and move away so you can pass them.
If you like the car on pictures, you will love it in natura. My version has a sport packet, and 19" wheels which really give the vehicle sporty look. I got light blue color...hard to see in snow storms, otherwise extremely pleasing color.
Fog lights - nice little touch...when you are turning steering wheel in slow speeds, the left and right front fog lights will illuminate in the direction you are steering...the harder you turn, the brighter the correspodning fog light gets......asked the dealer what is that suppose to mean..he said it's a safety thing , to let others know what you are doing. I thought it was cute.
INTERIOR
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I have the short version - not the long one. I've read all around the net how very EASY it is to get to the very last row of seats, so that was the first thign I tried...results - it's not that easy! But it's doable. The back doors ARE large, just like all magazines say, however the second row seats don't fold down all that much , you kinda have to jump over them to get to the 3rd row of seats.
My dad and sister sat in the 2nd row seats while I test drove...they said they were VERY comfortable and had PLENTY of room , eventhough it was the short version of R. I sat on those seats before we left for a test drive, and it felt GOOD.
First row seats are a different story. Best seat is the driver's one, of course. Let me tell you, the most comfortable car's chair I've sat on. I have Nissan 350z, had MB E 420 before, and BMW M5...compared to all these 3 vehicles, R's driver's seat is the best by FAR! Got me really excited, I think 12 hour trips in that chair would be no problem.
Important note - the sport packet I got on the R has different seats from other versions of R, so I can't speak for the other versions.
My interier is Carbon + Metal , looks new and modern. Some of you posted comments about R's interior being "HARD" or "CHEAP"... I strongly disagree. It feels luxurious, has very soft arm rest cussions, and I loved it.
THE TEST DRIVE
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I have to repeat one more time...the cars I have or had, which I will be comparing to: Nissan 350Z, MB E 420, BMW M5.
First thing you notice when you start the engine: QUIET! I must dare to say....VERY QUIET! Even though it is a DIESEL which makes more noise then GASSOLINE.
Getting out of the parking lot, next thing I noticed, was stearing - extremely easy and soft, one finger is enough to stear and manuver from parking spot.
BREAKS: MOST PRECISE BREAKS I've ever used in a vehicle. All my other vehicles can be ashamed compared to R's breaks. You can easily come to the smoothes stop ever on a red light. Not even the BMW M5 had such awesome brakes!
And then we left the parking lot and went on the road. Guys and Gals, I am not exhagerating when I say the steering in this vehicle is also the best I've ever used in any vehicle. The car will do exactely what you want it to do. Not even my sporty 350z is so responsive to steering, not even the M5 was. I cannot stress enough how AWESOME and RESPONSIVE stearing R class has. It is an absolute pleasure to steer this car around curvy roads..AWESOME!
QUIETNES: Yes, the vehicle IS quiete if you aren't driving sporty. If you go down the throttle, car downshifts and accelerates, producing noise with it. But it is still the quietest diesel I've ever been in. If you go a steady speed, you will be able to whisper inside the car, and your passangers will hear you. And windnoise? NONE
SNOW: I of course, had to test the 4 wheel drive so we went into this nice snowed in parking lot. I had my share of "donuts" and crazy slides in there. I did not get the impression car was heavy, it acted like a regular sedan, and was easy to do directed slides with it.
AIR MATIC:
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My version has air matic suspension. So I had to test all of it as well. COMFORT setting IS comfy indeed. Vehicle doesn't tilt on the curvs like the new ML does. You also don't feel small bumbs on the road and you have a feeling of being on a boat. Everything is smooth, even when you do hard cornering. I set it to sporty , it got quiete different. Much harder suspension, it started tilting when cornering, but I felt much safer getting through the curves faster.
Then there is another button which will raise your entire car couple inches higher to get across a high snow. When fully raised, it's as high off the ground as the M Class.
ENGINE POWER:
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So those of you who red my neverending bable, noticed, I didn't find much negative things about the R class. Here it comes.
the 320 CDI R Class......well....first of all, all my previous cars were fast. those of you who don't know BMW M5 is VERY FAST! 0-100km/h in 4.5 secs. My 350z 0-100 in 5.9 secs. E 420 had also nice 6-7 seconds. But all of these vehicles sucked gas like no others, and that is why I wanted 320 CDI.
.....and what I wanted is what I got. 320 CDI sucks around 9 liters of diesel on 100km ride. Sporty ride got us to around 12 liters/100km, however this will get much better when I put 11,000 km on it,...is what dealer says.
320 CDI is actually not a 3.2 litter, it's a 2.993 liter. Turbo charged....I guess if the R class didn't weight over 2 tons, it would be nice. But since the vehicle is so extreemly heavy, the poor little 3 liter can't do much about it.
But to be fair.....from 0-100 you will need about 8-9 seconds...the first and second gears will give you the torque you need to feel fast. It will push you in the seat, and it will probably outrun many cars on the red light.....3-7 gears are much slower. Accelerating from 0-30 is FAST, from 30-60 is ok, from 100-200 SLOOOOWWWWWWWWW!!!!!! All of these figures are in metric system....please notice that.
But,...one can't expect much speed when wanting to preserve gas and save some money at the gas stations. And that is exactely what I wanted, and what I got. I may be spoiled from my sport cars. But 320 CDI is slow....it is.....but WHO CARES!!!!! I have plenty of time when I sit in the most comfortable ride on the street! WHen you get on the highway and reach your 220km/h you will be very fast and you will be comfy. And racing on stop lights? Pleeaseee....not with the R class... everyone around will be glad you are slow, so they can eyeball that awesome design!
Result
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I am getting the car on wednesday. Will show everyone pics!
I am jealous.
Diesels are not sold in California and the bad fuel they sell here will not improve for another year.
Acceleration from stop lights is the European thing.
For long commute I am driving 1.9L 90 HP -VW tdi and I am the fastest at green light in 99.99% of time.
Our ML supposable makes 25 MPG (that's like 10L/100km ?) but at low speeds. The way we drive it goes about 18. The electronic traction control sucks. 1-second delay lets the spinning wheel rest on the axle, when on soft ground, or gravel.
How is traction control on R?
Congratulation on your new drive gotys.
I am jealous.
Diesels are not sold in California and the bad fuel they sell here will not improve for another year.
Acceleration from stop lights is the European thing.
For long commute I am driving 1.9L 90 HP -VW tdi and I am the fastest at green light in 99.99% of time.
Our ML supposable makes 25 MPG (that's like 10L/100km ?) but at low speeds. The way we drive it goes about 18. The electronic traction control sucks. 1-second delay lets the spinning wheel rest on the axle, when on soft ground, or gravel.
How is traction control on R?
Congratulation on your new drive gotys.
Hi Kajtek,
25 MPG is a great fuel consumption,that's 9.4 liters per 100 km, but depends on the ML's engine size.
I got my R 2 days ago, I am still getting ready to take the photos to post here, but I've been just too busy driving it around :) The traction controll on the R is good. It doens't slow you down, beacuse other wheels keep pulling you forward, since it's a 4wd. But I know what you mean by that 1 second delay....i have the same problem with my 350Z Nissan...it's done on purpose, because they want you to have some fun with it. In my opinion, it's not the safest way of handeling things --- to let you spin out of controll for a second.
Thank you for congratulation, I worked real hard to save up money for this puppy... I paid around $98,000 USD for it :(
I am happy with it so far......not very excited about the power of the 3 liter CDI, but the fuel economy is great. For example, today I was trying to go 200 km/h --- in US it's 124 mph, and my computer showed just 11 liters/100 km --- in US that is 21 mpg. Going 124 mpg at 21mpg is a GREAT fuel consuption in my opinion.. When I go that fast with my 350z, it doubles that!
Besides the weak power of the engine...the R class has nothing bad to be talked about....perhaps one thing that bothers me a little is the trunk space....even after folding down the last row of seats...you still get an OK trunk space..because of the HEIGHT of the car you can't place tall objects in it. I didn't try folding all chairs down yet though...it's to come when needed :)
Now I am jealous even more.
Our ML is having 115 MPH limiter, what can be reached on the 3-rd gear!
Almost 100 grands for R? WOW!! they are way cheaper in US. Hate to ask what you do for living [;)][;)]
I grew up in Poland, so knew Czechoslovakia quite well.
Of-course now I have to cross the border between Chech and Slovakia. [:0]
Now I am jealous even more.
Our ML is having 115 MPH limiter, what can be reached on the 3-rd gear!
Almost 100 grands for R? WOW!! they are way cheaper in US. Hate to ask what you do for living [;)][;)]
I grew up in Poland, so knew Czechoslovakia quite well.
Of-course now I have to cross the border between Chech and Slovakia. [:0]
Hehe, hate to say it here...but I am a webmaster...own couple very large internet size which I am sure you know of :) You know...those sites for adults only.
My R has a limit set on 220 km/h = 136 mph. That brings few adjustements to the chasis and special little things such as more powerful brakes. I know the cars are 99% of the time much cheaper in US, but they built it a bit differently for Europe which costs money :( Unfortunately :(
couple very large internet size which I am sure you know of :) ;)
No, not really. But you know, slim and tall Chech women were always my favorite, so how about "free sample"?
Just kidding [:D]
My Polish wife come from the same Slovenian race, so can't complain. Especially when I see Spanish ladies at Burger King.
Where are the car pictures? I've seen the car at CA showroom, but the cdi is not available here.
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