Hi all,

I picked up my first Benz just last month and lovin'it

Since its my first German car I have no idea how gas is like.

My C230 is Black with cloth and no sunroof, very much basic as it gets.

12480KM on it and coming close to the 2nd Service. Inside the owners manual it showed me all service was done by dealership.

On one full tank I get roughtly 510-530 before my low tank error comes on.
Gas prices currently in Canada now is 1.28/litre @ 93 octane, $77 for full talk per week for me.

I mostly drive city to work, and highway home, a combination of AC during the drive and crank up the music while driving with a bluetooth attached to the 12V.

Any suggestion on how to improve my mileage? Power is already good as it is so no need more.

would spark plugs, changing the pulley, change the intake, lowering the car , ECU chip or Adding a GAS device attached to battery make any difference to save gas?

 

The only thing you listed that would make any difference in mpgs is chipping. My mpgs went down about 3-5mpg with my OE tune; I am not aware of any companies chipping Benzes for higher mpgs.

Of course, if the plugs are old and not working properly, replacing them would help.

 

Which brand or company does a good job for performance and MPG's?

 

They all basically advance the timing and add more fuel, (and more boost if you have forced induction), so while many have said they have seen a marginal increase in mpgs, it's not a benefit you could rely on.

The two "normal" companies here are Eurocharged and OE Tuning. People have generally been happy with both. However, you're not going to be blown away by any tuning for our cars, but you do get a nice bumpup of maybe 10-15 at the flywheel.

EDIT: Since you have a 2002 with an S/C, the best bang for the buck you can get is an s/c pulley replacement; it's an immediate increase that you can feel in hp.

 

Tommy, what's the gain in the pulley replacement?

 

Edgar, dynos from back in 2002- 2003 by Buellwinkle, showed around 25-30 HP and also increases in torque. The best part is just the increase at idle...the torque comes in smooth right from the bottom, and less shifting by the tranny trying to find the right gear. Search back to around that era. Lots of info on pullies.

As far as mileage. Around town can be brutal. If you can get on flat highway, set the cruise control, and not slow down and speed up at all, you can get up to 30 mpg.
But the minute you speed up and slow down...pffft. 20-22.
And around town? Fuggetaboutit! If you are sitting at lights, 12-18 mpg.

Here in San Jose, the lights last like 5 minutes each, and it can take 20 minutes to go a mile, with 10 lights. I turn off the engine when I know I'm going to be sitting there.
Go real easy on that gas pedal, keep the revs low.

So basically best mileage
1. Use the cruise control.
2. Coast down hills (in gear of course) use gravity try not to brake and then gas it, just let gravity take you down the hill, and use the gears to get to the right speed.
3. You WILL get better mileage around 40-55 mph get that tranny into the lowest gear.
Driving 65+ mileage goes down, especially if you do 80 mph all the time.
4. Go easy on the gas, keep the revs low. Lift you foot and let it downshift, or do it manually. Coast whenever possible.

One good romp will take your mileage to oblivion.
When I push it hard on mountain roads, revving to the max, I get as little as 12.

Lastly, you can get better mileage by riding your bike or using mass transit, something I've just started doing. I can take an Amtrack Express bus to the beach for $4x2=$8 and take my bike with me, whereas it costs me $25-30 in gas not counting wear and tear. My baby does get driven as much as it used to since gas went over 4 bucks. Which is probably just as well, since I just passed 190K miles.