cyeung65

http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...NmHtkOTpnTr3_Q

Looks like those internet mule pics are of test protos of the next Gen R class.

cyeung65

This looks like an 06:

http://www.telegraaf.nl/autotelegraa...-Klasse__.html

English
http://www.google.com/url?sa=t&sourc...eOs8PbaJ1FdJ2A

brabus g36

What you see on the picture of the telegraaf article is a 06 or 07 model. But what is writen in the article is more interesting. There will be a face lift for the 2011 model and it will be presented at the Geneva motor show next year. I think that the Geneva show is in march.

So the 2010 is almost the same as the 09 model.

R. Reyes

I agree that it appears that the '10 is just an options upgrade (not including the 350 Bluetec), from the '09. I have also read that the new body style will be for '11.

My biggest complaint is that for a MB, and the price, that a back-up camera and folding/heated mirrors should be STD. It's also nice to see that a trailer hitch is now available on this model. I hope it will be able to be retro-fitted to earlier models, but knowing MB, it probably won't.

avlis

Amazon has the Draw-Tite class III hitch for $212. I doubt any dealer supplied hitch will compete with this price. It turns out to be a very simple part to make so even at $212 I'm sure Draw-Tite and Amazon are making decent profit.

lkchris

All well and good, but there ain't no chevy mechanics that can do the wiring and there ain't no aftermarket hitch guys that can sell you the wiring components you need.

melvinh

$212 is good price. Have you bought one and installed yourself? Also, what about wiring?

R. Reyes

Also, per a direct quote from MBUSA and MB Germany (me paraphrasing)...if you install a aftermarket hitch it WILL void your warranty. Period. End of story. The pre-'08 R's are not suited or rated for a hitch.

I don't know about you, but I've still got 40k miles on my extended warranty, and I intend to keep it that way.

rosswell

Probably not worth the hassle - AND you need to know the factory ones are the small square hitches for light tent trailers etc. not the big one.

If you're an absolute Mercedes nut (like many of us here on this message board) - and you really wanted to install one properly - Mercedes engineered a hitch for the car. You may just have to go to Europe (or Tuscaloosa) to buy the parts - Your first step is to buy the STAR Service Manual Library for Model 251 and do some reading (includes pics of this hitch).

From memory it involves removing the entire rear bumper cover or some such thing. But it's the proper part.

As I am also a nut - I successfully installed my own fog lights and headlight switch - only having the factory do the StarTools activation. The trailer hitch would be a similar job. But what do you plan to tow with it? And it had better be a diesel given the torque advantages...

MyMercedes012

can't tell....

rgood10921

When you say "Will void your warranty if you install a hitch" do you mean that any repair will be denied? or just a transmission related repair? I installed a hitch on my 2006 R500 to carry bicycles and a luggage carrier...did not hook up any lights/wiring. The install was simple, 4 bolts. I can't see how MB can claim that the hitch could be the cause for every future issue with the vehicle. I am wondering if I need to remove the hitch before taking it to my dealer next time or if I am OK with leaving it on? Anyone with a hitch get any negatives from their dealer when they saw theirs installed?

R. Reyes

Not 100% on the bicycle hitch, however it was explicit that any trailer hitch installed prior to '08 would void warranty. I was asking about a 5th wheel, and not specifically a bike hitch, but you may want to check by calling your service rep first. I don't see how a bike hitch would void ENTIRE warranty, but then again, it's MB, who don't see a reason to add back-up camera as a STD item on a $50k min boat (car).

chilledbenz

https://mbworld.org/forums/r-class-w...***-lives.html

I started this thread awhile back, it explains the refresh for 2010, which is said to consist of new grille, head lights, tail lights, and bumpers. The all new from the ground up model won't be till 2011.

avlis

If your dealer denies covering a faulty steering wheel button because you installed an aftermarket hitch to carry bikes -> find a new dealer. Period. End of story. Many dealers use scare tactics such as these to weasel out of doing repairs. Again, if yours does this, find a new dealer.

A fifth wheel hitch on an R-class? I'm pretty sure 5th wheel hitches mount to the floor of pickup truck beds and tie into the frame rails.

I haven't had a chance to install my hitch, but there are very well written instructions posted in one of the trailer hitch threads. I don't need wiring since my hitch is for a bike carrier.

manwagon

From a previous post -

"if you install a aftermarket hitch it WILL void your warranty. Period. End of story. The pre-'08 R's are not suited or rated for a hitch"

As the owner of a 2007 R Class that has installed a hitch for use with a Bike Rack, I would sure like to know what Mercedes has done that makes 2009 R Class vehicles "better suited and rated" for a trailer hitch.

The effort and cost to do this doesn't make sense for a vehicle that sells in the 500 per month range in this country.

Also, manufacturers cannot refuse to honor the vehicle warranty if the aftermarket part is not associated or the cause of the problem. Using this logic, the manufacturer could refuse the warranty on your vehicle if the owner installed an aftermarket steering wheel cover!

rgood10921

I called my dealer today and talked to the warranty manager about adding a hitch to my 2006 R500, she told me that it will NOT void my warranty, her only concern was to make sure I watch not hitting the rear hatch by opening it when there are bikes attached to the bike carrier which is attached to the hitch. Funny how every dealer seems to have a different opinion on what you can and can not do to a vehicle you own and how it may or may not void the factory warranty. I have the wiring for the hitch purchases, a hoppy harness, but will not install it until I need to use it, I have a Silverado pickup truck to pull stuff, the R500 is my family vehicle.

R. Reyes

A few things first off, I wasn't talking to a stealer...I was talking with MBUSA as well as MB Germany. Dealers will get you a different answer every day of the week, however ONLY MBUSA can tell you definitively about your warranty since they, AND ONLY THEY will do warranty work/cover warranty work.

As far as the hitch, yeah I'm working on something else, and put 5th wheel by accident. It was just a towing hitch.

Also, as I mentioned, a bike hitch shouldn't void the warranty, but you never know with the bean-counting, no to every answer corporate lackies, therefore the reason I said to check with MBUSA.

R. Reyes

Again, as I posted to a previous poster, a Bike Rack shouldn't be a problem, but I would check with MBUSA as the only MB bike rack solution in their inventory is the overhead bike rack.

I also would like to know what they've done, and hope that it would be applicable to previous models.

And third...manufacturers can 100% refuse to honor the vehicle warranty FOR ALMOST ANY REASON whether related to your aftermarket accessory or not. Unless you have proof of pattern related to the failure from TSB or recall bulletins, you're gonna get screwed.

Now, a bike rack which holds what...200 lbs. max, especially with no electrical wiring necessary to the vehicle, shouldn't be a problem. However, if they want to get technical...there is no tow rating on the R-class. NONE. Therefore installing a hitch for any reason can void your warranty. It's in the manual, it's in their literature.

Just FYI. It's your car.

Rturn

Greetings. LONG time lurker and just joined finally because I am looking to get a new car and was browsing what people were saying about new models. As for the R and the tow hitch. Our dealer told us the warranty would be voided too because of the wiring, not the towing itself. We were pretty bummed because we specifically asked if we could tow with it before we bought it (for jets skis or a trailer with a motorcycle on it) and were told yes, there was even a towing capacity listed. Needless to say we got over it. Love the thing regardless. Just returned from a 3rd vacation of over 2500 miles and to me it is the best family hauler, road trip taker there is.

Ted Flynn

I had an after market hitch put on my 08 R320 by the dealership.

The hitch came from Eau Claire WIS and the light package from JC Whitney.

They pointed me in the direction, I got the stuff, and they installed for about $250.

No issues with MB about the hitch being there and the dealer will back up their work since they did it.

Life is good with a hitch.

R. Reyes

Funny thing is when you go in and try to claim a warranty issue. The dealership isn't the one to pay for the work or the parts. MBUSA is. Dealer may do the work, but guess who's footing the bill. Guess what they will claim especially if it's electrical or has to do with your hitch. The dealer can promise anything. They have no authority to say it's covered or to put it as a covered part under warranty.