BudC

How is the suspension different between Sport and Luxury models on E550's with AirMatic. I ask the question because there is a Sport setting on Luxury versions of the E550.

BudC

Can anyone tell me what kind of fuel economy your computer reports at Interstate speeds? I've got one on order and I'm wondering how much worse it's going to be than my 2008 E350 which can generally get 27 MPG or better on long Interstate drives.

Tjdehya

No difference in airmatic.If you want to know what the computer reports then its 26mpg. But if you want the truth then its 20mpg.

BudC

I carefully compared mileage on a 6,000 mile driving vacation between the mileage reported by the computer and what I determined to be the actual mileage. The computer in my '08 E350 was only optimistic by 1 MPG.

I got similar results on a very long trip with my '04 E320.

If our new E550 only gets 20 MPG at Interstate speeds, my wife will kill me for trading her beloved E350 for a *gas guzzler*.

Tjdehya

However my car is the 4matic so expect 1-2 better mpgs for rwd's. Also there is rumor going around that the 2012 will have the new twin turbo engines which will have better gas mileage. I dont know what the 2012 mpgs will be but it could be as high as 25mpg.

BudC

I'm getting a 2011 E550 with the current engine. The new bi-turbo's mileage won't be all that much better w/o the start/stop feature and the lean burn technology that won't be coming to the U.S. because of poor fuel quality in this country.

I hope to average 25 MPG with my new E550 on long, driving vacations but I'll have to go easy on all that power.

hyperion667

good luck with that, LOL.........
I have averaged around 22 0r 23

RichardB

The 550 engine is actually very efficient for what it is and only slightly less than the 350 when driven the same. The difficulty comes trying to restrain yourself from enjoying and appreciating the capabilities of the 550.

fromthebeginnin

I'm right there with Hype, this is a great car but the mileage is "horrible". I took a trip up to Sacto and back from the East Bay a few weeks ago and the best I could do was 22.5, and I was trying. My last tank I got 18.9 overall (an all time best) but that was about 60% freeway and I intentionally didn't push at all, which wasn't much fun (usually I average around 17.5).

Good luck the car is great, hopefully you'll recover quickly from the wifey's beaten!!

RichardB

Wow, we get that on the highway with our S, but that is off the computer. I don't know that we've actually calculated the milage on the S based on volume yet. Ill have to do that the next trip. Really though, at 15,000 miles each year and $4 for gas, it's about $400 extra a year depending on how and where you drive. Not that much really all things considered.

fromthebeginnin

I actually on the highway averaged around 24.5 on my 2002 S550.

BudC

Thanks to everyone for their feedback. I know you can't fool mother nature so I shouldn't expect miracles. I'm going to be taking a 6,500 mile trip in September so I'll keep careful track of actual mileage and compare it to the computer.

IMO, you can't judge mileage on one tank full of fuel, you have to average it over several tanks.

We drive so little mileage each year that I'm not worried about the cost of fuel. I'm assuming on the trip that it will cost me a couple hundred dollars more than it would have with the E350. That's about one day's expenses on the trip.

Sumfuncomet

I know this is an old thread but I thought it might be helpful to compare the old motor and the new. I have gotten as high as 26.4 mpg at a steady 70 with he cruise control on an 800 mile trip. I tend to drive 70% light city and open highway and I drive like a teenager......18.9 mpg. Like another poster wrote if I pay an extra 400 a year in fuel over the noisy, lethargic E350.....so what! Life is too short to drive a slug! For all of you bean counters who rationalize an E350 because it gets "good" mileage, you would save a hell of a lot more money buying a Hyundai Elantra. I didn't buy a Mercedes E550 because I wanted to save a buck, I bought it because of the quality, solidity, safety, awd and the fact that it hauls ***!
As far as reliability goes, 57xxx miles and NO problems. Just regular maintenance, oil every 5K. A truly well made vehicle.

Johnny Rad

RichardB is so on the money - in my experience, the biturbo M278 can deliver 26mpg on the hwy IF you're not flogging it.

I did ~900mi from SF to UT at 70-85mph and hand-calculated 26mpg for the trip.

In town, the trip computer says 21-22mpg. In reality, it always seems to be 20mpg when I do the #'s.

Munich77

Ditto here....my E550 is actually more fuel efficient than my wife's 2008 E350 4matic on the highway.

iGeorge

I road tripped to Florida in my 2012 E550 4matic, and I managed to hold about 26 mpg. But I also run my tires at about 40 psi.

z06michael

I drove 1200 miles from Bay Area to Palm Springs,tons of traffic and still got 28MPG,not bad

Alex.currie44

I realize the discussion is in regard to the 550s but for what it is worth I often see what my 2011 E350 will do on fuel according to the system.
First of all, my driving is a mix of highway and around town but little stop and go to contend with.
Invariably the system will report 10.3-10.5L per 100 km which is 22.9 Miles per US gal.
I have taken highway trips where my speed is on average 115-120 kph (72-75) mph and consumption has been as low as 8.6 L/100 km or 27.7 MPG US.
In a 4100 lb car I consider that to be reasonable.
MBUSA is advertising the E350 3.5 L 302 hp V6 at 20/29 city/highway and the same numbers for the E400 3.0L Biturbo. The Hybrid's numbers are 24/29 so my old girl is running OK.
What I am confused about is why they bothered with the biturbo. Seems to me to be just one more thing to go wrong. At least I cannot find the 9G on any current models on their site.

Cocca

In very conservative highway drives I touch 22 mpg. You could do better w/cruise control and lower speeds (55 to 65 mph).

Nevertheless, based on the quote above, my friend, it seems your choice is clear....... Trade the wife!

thefisch

I just did a little over 1000 miles roundtrip around new years in my 2011 E550 NA. I averaged ~25.5 mpg on the way up and got over 500 miles on the tank before fueling up. On the way back I got 27.6 mpg on a half tank of pure highway driving at 70-80mph (stopped for gas before state line). I was very impressed as my normal driving is all short trips with very little highway so I only get 16-17mpg. These are all hand calculations. Car readout is always higher by 0.5-1.0 mpg.

Airmousam

I'm getting about 18-20mpg, with a fairly heavy foot, mixed, but mostly highway...the 550 is so much more fun than my previous 350....well worth it!!!

Rovel

I have 2013 E550 with Airmatic suspension. Previously I had 2007 E350.
When I first picked up the E550, I was a bit disappointed as I thought the suspension would be much softer in Comfort mode. And I thought it was just as soft as my E350.

But eventually I understood two things:
1) Perhaps comfort mode shouldn't be softer, as the car has much more horsepower than the E350. Perhaps Comfort mode in E350s with Airmatic is softer than in E550 (you can order airmatic on E350 in Europe)
2) Having sport setting is the best part. On the highway at higher speeds, I feel much more comfortable in sport setting. It makes the suspension stiffer and the car lower. It gives you the confidence in handling when you go fast.

I am so glad that I don't the standard spring suspension, as with that one, MB tried to catch a balance between the comfort and the handling at higher speeds.

P.S. the standard suspension in W213 E300 sucks. It is soft enough, but it feels like Toyota Camry's suspension - even the sound it makes over the bumps. W211 E350 had much better standard suspension than the W213.

jahquan3

I feel like the comfort suspension is like driving a boat lol. I almost never use it anymore except for rare occasion like pothole infested areas or when I have a full load of people in the car during city driving.

I use to drive at a 50-50 split but can't take the feeling of driving an 80s Cadillac to often

Rovel

Funny

I don't drive in sport in city for two reasons: roads in Boston area suck. So many bumps, imperfections, potholes, etc.
I don't want to loosen (shatter) my interior elements, such as dashboard and stuff. As I am afraid it can start making squeaking sounds if I drive in sport mode on terrible roads.

belarus27

That part +1