Peabody

The engine modification I'm looking at getting is supposed to increase my top speed to over 170 mph. Looking at my speedo, I'm seeing that it only goes to 160. Will I damage the analogue dial by taking it over that? The digital readout will still be accurate I'm assuming.

albert101

you might mess up the gears for the analog dial since it runs on a gear. you might mis-align it and your speedo will be off. The digital in theory should still work. Though if you plan to go at speeds past 170mph, I highly suggest you modify your suspension and brakes. Or better yet, get a C63 AMG.

Peabody

I'm looking at new brakes already.. In retrospect I probably should have got the AMG, considering how much cash I'm dumping into mods.. oh well, it's my first Mercedes. Next one will be AMG. The suspension shouldn't be as much of a problem here as it is in the states as German roads are far nicer than US highways. According to Kleemann, the M272 can have the vmax set wherever you want it, so I'll just set to 160 MPH instead of risking screwing up the dial, replacing the dash seems too much cost and fuss.

mat2hu

MAKE SURE YOU HAVE PERFORMANCE TIRES!!! Make sure your tires speed rating could handle the speed you wanna go up to.

mirage15

+1. At 160 or 170 I would also start worrying about aerodynamics a lot. Having a 170mph C300 plane would suck for the split second that it lasted.

Peabody

Agreed, though I think the worst case scenario will be lowering if I actually plan on driving 160 MPH as a habit.. I think the fuel economy on the C350 would suck too bad for this. The dealership gave me a CLS55 to drive for a week when my customs paperwork got tied up and my delivery was late, and the most lasting memory I have of driving it was going through almost 3 tanks of gas.

The stock tires are rated to 186 MPH.

Peabody

Well, here's what it looks like on the speedo.. I'll post a video to YouTube later.

Peabody

Carlsson told me that the digital AND analogue dials would stop at 160, and 258kmh is 160.3MPH. I hit a speed limited area as I was hitting 160 so I will try again later and see if I can get the digital up to 260, which would be 161, but they told me only my tachometer would rise after 160 that not even the digital would go up.

PRO TIP: Cruise control maxes at 130 MPH. Jerks.

The video is a bit shaky at first, but here it is.

mirage15

Video taping and taking pics at 160 in a C300... Been nice knowing you man...

Peabody

I just set the camera on top of the steering wheel, no need to be so dramatic, especially when the road was completely empty.. plus it's not a 300.

Peabody

It was mentioned before so I will say the aerodynamics and feel of the car is amazing. It holds rock steady.

JimPap

Did you get the sense that the car was more stable above 100 than say at 70?

Are you on "H" rated tires?

acr2001

Seriously? Not on a modern car. That 'analog' dial is running purely off of a digital signal. It just stops at the max point, no damage will result.

Peabody

I'm running Michelin pilot sport plus, they are ZY rated (186+ MPH).
I've never noticed performance issues until ~125MPH, and that is some moderate rear shimmying during hard braking. As far as stable aerodynamics the car seems flawless at every speed. Your only enemy will be the road you're driving on.

Sincity

I was going to ask why do you need to go 160 and then I see you live in Germany. Like you said, you should have gotten a C63, tune it, and call it a day.