Hi,
First of all thanks to GregW for the pricing info on the W164 - it is indeed sticker shock to me!!! It's extraordinary that you can still almost apply 1USD=1EUR to MB prices, when the reality is somewhat different. At BurgerKing in nearby Trier (they have quite a lot of US customers) the exchange rate is 1.5USD to 1 EUR. This may be exaggerated, but still.... - food for thought.
The first test of the 320CDI engine which will be fitted to the ML just came out - in the smaller, lighter C-Class. But since the current I-5 270CDI is also offered in that body I couldn't resist checking the fuel economy and pollution figures - with an astounding result: The new engine uses 3-5% MORE fuel and has worse CO emission. Coming from a company as experienced in engines, perticularly diesel ones, as Mercedes this astounds me, especially taking into consideration the new CDI technique with higher pressure, 7-speed auto and all.
As the official fuel economy figures for the Lexus RX400h have now also been published, I couldn't resist taking the calculations a bit further (complicated like **** because gas and diesel prices vary wildly from one European country to another, and I travel a lot). Of course my calculations are not a scientific study, but the result really surprises me: The total fuel costs were within a hundred euros of each other, with the Lexus being more expensive! Now it has to be said that the calculations for the W164 are projected ones, and include the gas I use for around-town driving with my 600cc smart microcar. I do not currently use the W163 for around-town driving, nor would I use the coming M-Class, as it would be horribly expensive and not very good on the car - the Lexus seem more adapted to that. Even though the smart is economical in tax and insurance, I spend considerably more than 100EUR to run it a year.
Normally, due to price and consumption, diesel is the only reasonable choice here in Europe. But even though we have low-sulphur diesel, there can be critic from some citizens, and problems with being able to drive in some areas. The hybrid technology could change some things here - I have until now been a fervent diesel fan, but in this case you can have your cake and eat it too.
These calculations, in addition to the probable projected price of the W164 compared to the offer I have for the RX400h, is bringing my decision to leave the three-pointed star closer. Too bad - I have been very happy with Mercedes, but their hybrid debut seems years away, and they haven't got the knowhow Toyota has acquired over the years.
Of course, not everything is about fuel economy (and now I'm preparing myself for an avalanche of critics and photos of horribly smashed RX's [
]), but with one litre (not a gallon) costing around an Euro, it has to be taken into consideration.
Cheers,
Birger
PS: Sorry about the excessively long post [:I]
First of all thanks to GregW for the pricing info on the W164 - it is indeed sticker shock to me!!! It's extraordinary that you can still almost apply 1USD=1EUR to MB prices, when the reality is somewhat different. At BurgerKing in nearby Trier (they have quite a lot of US customers) the exchange rate is 1.5USD to 1 EUR. This may be exaggerated, but still.... - food for thought.
The first test of the 320CDI engine which will be fitted to the ML just came out - in the smaller, lighter C-Class. But since the current I-5 270CDI is also offered in that body I couldn't resist checking the fuel economy and pollution figures - with an astounding result: The new engine uses 3-5% MORE fuel and has worse CO emission. Coming from a company as experienced in engines, perticularly diesel ones, as Mercedes this astounds me, especially taking into consideration the new CDI technique with higher pressure, 7-speed auto and all.
As the official fuel economy figures for the Lexus RX400h have now also been published, I couldn't resist taking the calculations a bit further (complicated like **** because gas and diesel prices vary wildly from one European country to another, and I travel a lot). Of course my calculations are not a scientific study, but the result really surprises me: The total fuel costs were within a hundred euros of each other, with the Lexus being more expensive! Now it has to be said that the calculations for the W164 are projected ones, and include the gas I use for around-town driving with my 600cc smart microcar. I do not currently use the W163 for around-town driving, nor would I use the coming M-Class, as it would be horribly expensive and not very good on the car - the Lexus seem more adapted to that. Even though the smart is economical in tax and insurance, I spend considerably more than 100EUR to run it a year.
Normally, due to price and consumption, diesel is the only reasonable choice here in Europe. But even though we have low-sulphur diesel, there can be critic from some citizens, and problems with being able to drive in some areas. The hybrid technology could change some things here - I have until now been a fervent diesel fan, but in this case you can have your cake and eat it too.
These calculations, in addition to the probable projected price of the W164 compared to the offer I have for the RX400h, is bringing my decision to leave the three-pointed star closer. Too bad - I have been very happy with Mercedes, but their hybrid debut seems years away, and they haven't got the knowhow Toyota has acquired over the years.
Of course, not everything is about fuel economy (and now I'm preparing myself for an avalanche of critics and photos of horribly smashed RX's [
]), but with one litre (not a gallon) costing around an Euro, it has to be taken into consideration. Cheers,
Birger
PS: Sorry about the excessively long post [:I]
