ghstudio

I have to say that the manual(s) for the e 350 are not easy to read/follow...but I tried. I learned some things that weren't obvious...and I found some things that were troublesome. I figured that forum members could tell me why I shouldn't be troubled by what I found....so here goes:

1) Apparently, if my battery dies (or cable comes disconnected or maybe even if a fuse blows) and I have to be towed or even pushed off to the side of the road, I am in serious trouble. The manual says there is no way to put the car in neutral without a functional battery. This would seem to be a pretty serious design/safety flaw...perhaps NHSTA complaint worthy before someone gets injured. Did I misunderstand the manual?

2) Did I really lease a car that normally might use .9 quarts (or more) of oil in 600 miles.? In my case, it suggests that when I fill my tank with Diesel, I should be prepared to put a quart of oil in the engine and I need to check the oil level every time I fill the car with fuel. That suggests that I (no, all of us) better carry a quart of mobil 1 of the right grade in the car at all times, because I doubt that every gas station has it.

3) Mercedes Benz Diesels are used worldwide as taxis that are driven heavily in cities in stop and go traffic. How is it possible that there is a warning in the manual that if I use my e 350 BlueTec in city driving (which I sometimes do), I must drive it for 20 minutes on a highway every 300 miles or I can damage the exhaust particulate filter???

BudC

I believe there is a second battery as backup for the transmission.

As for the oil usage, Mercedes has been saying that for as long as I can remember. I don't think you need to worry about that engine using an unusual (or hardly any) oil.

If you go to MBUSA and download a Pdf version of your manual, you can look at it interactively. It's a whole lot easier than fooling with a hard copy.

Very high heat is used to remove the particulates from the filter. That's probably why they want you to drive for 20 minutes at highway speeds.

The primary reason I didn't buy a BlueTec is that it's far more complicated than the diesels of old and so far as I know, the exhaust system on my E550 is less complicated than the one on the BlueTec.

ghstudio

I have to check on that second battery for the transmission...that would certainly make the design safer.

Thanks for pointing to the MB site for the manual....much easier to use. Now why didn't my dealer tell me there was an owner's web site where I could find this type of useful information....grrr!

I live in South Florida, so I don't think heat will be a problem I am curious though how those taxi's that only travel in cities seem to survive forever without running them on highways for 20 minutes every 300 miles. I might just ask Mercedes that one.....

ImInPA

I love my Bluetec. 20K trouble-free miles. 40+ mpg on the highway. Powerful. What's not to like?

BenzMan369

Are you absolutely certain you cannot release the shifter from the Park position in the event of an electrical failure?

My 2012 E350 Coupe (and my old 2000 CLK320 as well) can be placed in neutral mechanically in such an event. It involves inserting a screw driver or similar object along the right side of the leather trim at the shifter and removing a "gaiter," then pressing down on two release buttons while simultaneously moving the shifter lever from Park to Neutral.

Kind of a scary maneuver, but I'm sure any experienced Mercedes roadside help person would know how to do it, if you didn't want to try it. The diagram in the manual doesn't look all that complicated.

I can't imagine they would exclude this emergency option from your model. Look for something in your manual about "releasing the parking lock manually." And yes, the interactive on-line manual would be easier.

As for oil consumption, my manual says the same thing. Indeed, this warning has been around for quite a while. It's too early for me to know what the new D.I. engine will do, but my old CLK never needed a drop of oil between scheduled changes.

BudC

Compared to the E350, it costs more, doesn't perform as well, doesn't have a spare, it can sometimes be hard to find fuel on trips and you have to deal with the complex exhaust system.

Now if I lived in Canada or drove a lot of miles I'd buy one but in my situation it doesn't make much sense.

What I would really like to have is a B-Class with the new 2.2 liter diesel. Unfortunately, we aren't going to see either the car or the engine in the US.

220S

That's correct.

Live Oak

If he has an E350 Sedan, there is no "shifter."

ghstudio

That's the problem My shifting is electric and on the steering column.

"the automatic transmission must be in position N when the vehicle is being towed. The battery must be connected and charged. You will otherwise be unable to turn the smartkey to position 2 in the ignition lock; shift the automatic transmission to position N" (page 343 of the manual)

If your car is being transported, they make the same comment...the car should be in N when it is pulled on to the truck.

Live Oak

I would guess that, if you simply had a typical dead battery, there would still be enough juice to shift to N.

HOWEVER, if the battery had been disconnected, I'd think that would be a big problem --- one would have to get a battery connected to get to N.

WEBSRFR

A bit unrelated but can someone chime in and let me know if it is safe to tow a 4MATIC car with the shifter set to neutral? I was under the impression that with the 4MATIC system you must not have the car towed in N and must always flatbed it.

konigstiger

There is a 1.2AH backup battery below instrument panel.

RNBRAD

Wonder what that thing costs to replace and how long it lasts?

Live Oak

AH! Is that what they are referring to when they say " Battery (main/starter/auxiliary) check condition . . . " in the service manual?

220S

That's crazy. Why did they remove a viable mechanical option on the current E sedans.

And what if the "auxiliary" battery goes belly up. I'm sure it would be a rare occasion if it ever happened, but nonetheless it's just more dependency on electronics. And from a company that doesn't have the best track record with electronics.

btw, there's a current thread on a Porsche forum that's called "beginning to think old is better." Owners of the current 997.2 with their electronic complexity and tamer driving characteristics are reminiscing about the 'old school' feel and uniqueness of the earlier 911s like the 964, 930, 993.

konigstiger

Not certain about lifespan but part # is 000000004039, lists for $45 and replacement simply involves removing covers to left side and bottom of dashboard on driver’s side.

listerone

Although I'm not certain my hunch is that this isn't the case.I remember my M35 (Infiniti) had a little door through which you could place it in neutral if needed.However,I could very well be wrong on this point.

I have 4000+ miles (90% of whch are Interstate miles) on my Bluetec and it's down less than 1/2 litre according to the dipstick.Don't know if my experience is typical or not.

This is true of all current diesels equipped with a DPF.There's a "burn off" process that periodically takes place,automatically,when at highway speeds to burn off the gunk that's accumulated in the DPF.It requires something like 20 minutes of highway driving to complete.Thank the EPA and/or the CARB for that little gem.

listerone

Diesels aren't for everybody.But fuel,for example,isn't quite as widely available as gas but in my 40,000 miles of having driven one (in the East,the Midwest,central and eastern Canada) I've never even come close to having a "crisis" regarding the fuel guage.The exhaust system requires refilling,about every 10,000 miles,with a special fluid that costs about $30 and is so easy to do that even *I* was able to do it in about 5 minutes.

You're kinda correct on one point...diesels are best suited for those who do a lot of Interstate driving....which is absolutely me.I love/loved both my diesels and will never again drive anything else.

BenzMan369

DOH!!

Thanks for the brain jog. Totally forgot about the column mounted shifter.

Looks like that backup battery should be regularly checked as part of routine vehicle maintenance.

If all else fails, I wonder if it's possible to tow the vehicle with the drive wheels off the ground instead of vice-versa?

I suppose there are 30 or 40 pages in the manual warning against doing that for all sorts of reasons!

BudC

We had a diesel for 17 years and drove it all over North America. We could always find fuel but there were times when it was a hassle. We had less of a problem in Canada. Speaking of Canada, I believe that there is about one dollar USD difference between diesel fuel and Premium. That's why I said I'd want a diesel in Canada. Also, if I had something like an M-Class I might want a diesel but one that's bigger than 3 liters.

CEB

The DPF is a relatively new addition that you won't findon diesel taxis of 20 years ago (or 5 for that matter.) Most diesels in Europe are also available without the filter - probably for the taxi market.

ImInPA

Huh? Are you speaking from experience or just speaking? Mine cost about $1K more than the gasser, and that amount has been more than recovered during my first 20K miles with more than a 30% reduction in fuel costs when compared to a gasser. The math is simple. It may not perform as well, but, in this type of vehicle what is a half second 0-60 among friends? I have never had an issue finding diesel in almost 20 years of driving them here in the US. I do not even know what you are talking about with regards to "having to deal with a more complex exhaust system." Add AdBlue and drive. It is about as complex as adding Washer fluid to your Windshield wiper fluid reservoir. Your comments sound like Fox News Anti-Diesel BS. I guess all of the folks who buy a new DI gasser will have to "deal with that more complicated fuel injection system." Why would living in Canada make any difference? Anyhow, I am sorry you seem to be so grossly misinformmed, but, it changes nothing, I still love my E350 Bluetec.

giffie

Well, I guess you have never travelled through the great state of Illinois! We moved here about a month ago (central IL) and am having a heartburn trying to find a gas station that sells 'regular' fossil diesel.

ALL gas stations here carry a 5% to 20% BIO Diesel, which, I think will bring major engine problems in the long run!

There is only ONE gas station that carries regular Diesel in the entire city here (Champaign/Urbana).

BudC

Diesel fuel in Canada is $1USD cheaper than Premium so that's the difference. Diesel fuel generally costs more than Premium in the U.S. and in some cases quite a bit more. You don't save 30% on fuel, at least in Arizona.

The exhaust system also has something besides adding urea to consider, it has a particulate filter that requires very high heat to burn off the particulates. In other words, you need to drive the car at highway speeds every so often.

The car has run flat tires. I'd rather not have them.

If you have driven a diesel for 20 years you must know that the older diesels were simple engines that would truck on forever with little maintenance. The current engines aren't going to do that.

Frankly, the only advantage as I can see it is that the BlueTec gets better fuel economy than the E350 gasoline version. Otherwise, what advantage is there to own one if you don't drive enough to save on fuel?

ghstudio

If for no other reason, the 75% residual on a 24 mo 15K lease makes a bluetec car about $150 less per month than a gas e350.....