The Godfather

How's the 430 with gas? I'm worried that w/ a V8 I'll drain the tank quick. In my 320, I'd get like 300 miles 330 miles or so. That's with somewhat spirited driving, and doing 80mph on the freeway. I drive 60mph now, so yeah that's better (in my dad's E320).

What's you E430 guys' experience with gas comsumption? And don't refer me to that gas thread, just tell me here please

Also, is there any special feature on the V8 like only using 1/2 cyl, on freeway or whatever, to save gas?

Thanks.

sbarsap

I have an 01 E430 and I average 16-18 mpg on highway and street driving. I don't know of any option to use the 1/2 cylinder.

jago1244

doctor
i used to get close to 20mpg average on 4matic, over 2 years of a very consistent 50-60 mile daily drive, and i'd describe my driving as similar to your style, mixed bag , say 2/3 hiway , and i went 80-85 whenever possible. and the other 1/3 split between stop-and-go and local roads with lights. i got close to 400mi range. my new w211, btw, also a v8 4matic, cant yet get to an 18mpg average after 3500 miles..
overall i was pleasantly surprised at my w210 doing as well as it did.

taeandji

My driving is similar to jago1244 and I also get normally 20mpg and it goes about between 375 to 400 miles.

Air Marshall Eldritch

I normally get 400-450 miles on a tank before the light goes on. I do 60 miles per day, around 90% highway at around 70mph.

I guess that works out to around 22 mpg or a bit better?

Whitey

What I've concluded from the gas thread is a smaller engine capacity does not necessarily always result in much better fuel economy. My 2.4l V6 gets 18-19mpg with essentially a full city cycle, thats less than many 320's (mostly V6's) which have reported 20's+. Granted cars in the US do a lot more highways, I was still somewhat disappointed by the finding since I had assumed my consumption would be a lot better than the 320. As someone rightly explained, its probably something to do with the power-to-weight ratio that also affects consumption - my smaller engine simply had to rev much higher, more frequently i.e. work harder to achieve the torque needed to move the weight of the car at respectable speeds.

However, I seem to remember the 420's and 430's had in fact reported very appalling results so from this, I've concluded the optimum capacity for the weights of our cars is probably around 3.2l.

Air Marshall Eldritch

What I've concluded is that either 420/430 owners have lead feet and don't realize it, or I've got a magic version.

Of course, I've got the chrome headlight rings, so my coefficient of drag is 30% less then the typical E320.

strat

I have a 99 E-320, I filled up 3 weeks ago and have put almost 300 miles on it with a quarter tank left almost!...mostly about town stop and go driving here in Chicago...

Whitey

Really, is that what they do??? What brand? I have Schatz ones and they do that for me

Messerchmidt

if you want the torque of a v8, but fuel economy, get the e320cdi

or an e300TD if your looking for something used

Air Marshall Eldritch

Actually, the cdi torque is much better than the v8, and the fuel economy is at least 50% higher. It's a win-win.

Whitey, mine were custom made out of space-age materials and forged in the fires of Mordor. So they are tough to find on ebay.

rjm

I have an 2001 E-430. I used to drive between Dallas and Austin (200 miles) frequently. I got, on the average, 28-30 mpg on the highway, depending on wind conditions. During that period, I was given E-320 loaner cars from the dealer and made that same trip in the E-320's. They would consistently get about 2mpg LESS than the E-430. I told my service advisor about it and he said he was not surprised......the V-8 had to work less than the V-6. YMMV.

Whitey

Mmmm, wonder if that holds true for city cycles as well......

livetodrive

Being it's a rainy Saturday morning, I had nothing better to do than to tally up the gas consumption over my 2001 E430 4Matic's 35k miles. The average gas mileage was 19.0 mpg, which accounts for a great deal of suburban driving (30-45 mph, with lots of lights, but not stuck in traffic too long). The last 5k miles has averaged somewhat better, at 19.8 mpg. The best she'll do at 65 mph on cruise control is 23.5 mpg. The average distance between fill-ups was 195 miles, and the maximum was 402 miles on straight highway driving. The 2001 E430 fuel economy was rated at 18/24 mpg, and the 4Matic was rated at 17/23.
Incidentally, I've been changing the oil and filter myself at the half-way point between FSS intervals. On average, it gets changed every 6k miles.

mobinakhtar

My 97 E420 in spirited city drive gives between 18.8 to 20 mpg giving me a range of about 379 before light comes on. On Hwy is a different story. I cruise around 74 pretty constantly and it goes about 409 before light comes on (recently tested between Houston, TX and New Orleans, LA.

The Godfather

I do mostly city driving now come to think of it. I think the 320 would be better fitted for my driving habits.

Dema

I have very similar numbers. Regarding 320 I do not think you can save too much on gas, 1000/22 - 1000/19=7.2g * $2.05 =~$15 saving in a month or $180 in a year. Actually it isn't too bad, because you can subscribe to XM radio for $10 a month.

vinceC

1999 E430. Worst mileage ever 17.5mpg. Average mixed city/highway 23.0 mpg. Best ever highway 29.2mpg.

zam2000

My 98 E320 gets about 22 mpg. About 80% is (stop-and-stop-and-go, southern CA) freeway. That's with 235/45/17 Goodyear GS-D F1 tires. Before, with Michelin MXV4 (OEM 16" wheels), I got about 23-24 mpg.

On trips out of town (San Fran, Vegas, Arizona...), I'd get about 25-27 mpg. I once made it from Orange County to UC Davis in <b> ONE GAS TANK and in 5 hours !!! </b>, That's 450 miles.

Here's the funny thing: my 04 E320 average 21 mpg !!. Same engine, stock sport wheels, newer & lighter car, lower milegage (5K mile now). Go figure.

fatchance

I'll chime in as well, just for the sake of more data for your brain...

Our '98 E430 gets about 19-20 mpg average on mixed driving (50/50 city/highway). Probably around 17-18 city only and mid to upper 20's on the highway. I too was amazed at the highway mpg when we went from SF Bay Area to Yosemite and got a report 30 mpg at 70-75 mph cruising speed!

Has Mobil 1 0-40w and the original plugs. Probably will be putting in some copper plugs at the next oil change(65K) just to see if there is any gain. It's a cheap mod.

-travis

Helmut430

Well, doctor,, in my 2001 430 , I get 18 in town and 27 on the highway. I am what my friensds call an "aggressive" driver in town . I would never be able to deal with the lack of power from the 320. Plus with the 430 , you don't have to listen to the whining of the engine trying to keep up!!!

mushedroom

i own a 99 e430...no engine mods..
i love driving spirited on streets...
my average is 14-18 city
and 22-26 hwy
and that's documented by my tests....
the person that was getting 18 mpg on hwy in the 2001, have you checked out the car?
cause that seems awfully poor mpg...
even stats online say you should be getting better mpg...

DslBnz

Ditto. I think it's absolutely amazing how efficiently these suckers can really run.

BTW, the CDI diesel may have great thrust off the line, but any gasser (6 cylinder or 8) will start reeling it in quickly at the higher speeds. That's what happens when you have a low peak torque curve and max hp. The gearing won't allow it.

Since I love high speed driving. I couldn't deal with the lack of torque available from a good downshift to 3rd gear at 105 mph.

Well, -heh-, maybe the diesel would keep me out of trouble. Have the meaty thrust down low, and not worry about getting into trouble by blowing past 120, accidentally.

Yeah, I have an E420.

MikeyE430

I get a solid 20-21 in town and 25-26 on the highway. That's normal driving with AC on.

2000 E430 w/39K miles

cdiken

1/4 mile time = 14.9 sec, same as E420 1997 build.

CDI is much faster 0-30, so like you said the gasser does reel it in, but it may take longer than expected.

Starting from 0, if the CDI driver "line-braked" to spool the turbo, the instant holeshot would set you back 2-3 car lengths, by 50 you would have matched speed, at 60-90 you are "reeling in" the CDI.

At 90 you are going the same speed but the CDI is still out front

At 100 you are neck and neck

Over 100 you are leaving the CDI behind.

KB