hotrodimpy

I have been driving my new car for three weeks now and I just don't like the low speed performance. From 30 t0 45 MPH the car is in 7th gear if you lift off the throttle pedal and slowly roll back into the throttle there seems to be no pickup. I have to keep giving more throttle pressure untill the transmission kicks down. It downshifts two gears most of the time in some cases it downshifts three gears. Anyone else experance this. I really like this car but I do most of my driving off the interstates.

hyperion667

try e63

telemakhos

I haven't paid that close attention to the transmission but I think that my tranny does more or less the same thing. Probably programmed that way to maximize fuel economy. Have you tried switching the tranny to "S" from "E"?

ghstudio

How do you switch from S to E?

listerone

The button right next to the Comand joystick.

ghstudio

I never noticed the button....thanks.

LaicepsYdobon

Its the lack of torque at lower RPMs of the V6 engine. The torque really kicks in at 1,800 RPM. If your engine is below this value you need to push the gas pedal harder to force a kick down of gears and have your RPM raised to start moving faster. The naturally aspirated V6 engine is not ideal for the transmission equipped with the car. The transmission keeps going into higher gear to force the engine to run with a lower RPM to improve fuel economy. To start to accelerate faster you need to push harder on the gas pedal to reach the beginning of the torque curve which is pretty high at 1,800 RPM. The E550 with its V8 engine has a much lower torque curve and more pull which gives it a much smoother acceleration curve compared to the E350 with its, somewhat weak, V6 engine. If only the V6 could have a lower torque curve start than 1,800 RPM it would be more effortless.

To overcome this you can try to put transmission into S mode. In S mode the transmission is more willing to shift into a lower gear. In E mode it tends to hold a higher gear to improve fuel economy but produce slower acceleration. Mercedes also implemented a quick way to put the transmission into the best gear that will give you the most torque. Hold down the left paddle for a second and this will drop the transmission into the gear that will produce you the most torque and power for a quick acceleration.

This is why the Twin Turbo V6 engines are a better choice for the E class; much lower torque curve without needing to bury your right foot when accelerating out of 7th gear.

ImInPA

Perfectly stated. It is interesting to me because the tranny seems to be perfectly matched for the Bluetec. It just seems to function better with lots of low end torque down low.

hyperion667

eagle_lex

i wish they would blow the 350 soon!! even the 300 in the C is weak like this. id hate to pony up for a 550 but the current 350 is awefully weak...

hotrodimpy

I really thought that was going to be the answer to this question. I never drove the sedan. I drove the coupe found that the financing options were no where close to the sedan and I just could not swing the higher payment. I just got it back from the dealer all the updated and everything is there. I only have 900 miles on the car. I have decided to just run it in 5th gear around town. Thanks for the help

LaicepsYdobon

This week on "The Car Show" they drove an E350 Diesel and they said it was even better then that 550 when driving around town. Dan from the show even stated that every E class should be a diesel because of the fantastic engine combined with the 7-speed transmission is unbeatable. Too bad the US will never see a diesel 4matic e-class. Our only options for diesel 4matics is the ML and GL. I thinking about getting a diesel ML for my wife as her next car because I would "borrow" that car a lot

LaicepsYdobon

Agreed. The new 2012 V6 engines do have more grunt to them but only the V8 is turbo charged at the moment. I haven't driven a 2012 E class but the reviews are quite favorable saying the engine has more power then the 2011 engines. My wife's C300 is actually quite peppy in sport mode around town; or at least it feels like it. Not sure about where the torque curve starts on that engine but its much lower then the E350. I asked for a C350 loner one time to see how much "better" it was then the C300 but I didn't like it at all. Because it has the same engine as my E350 is also has a high torque curve and I had to be a little heavier footer when in higher gears. I prefer the C300s engine over the C350s.

LaicepsYdobon

Just keep driving it the way you want it to behave and the transmission will learn and adapt to your driving style.

BenzMan369

Very well stated and exactly what I felt when I test drove a 2010 E350 Coupe with the previous V6 and trans. It was actually a somewhat frustrating experience at times.

More grunt to say the least! It is an entirely different driving experience. Highly responsive in most situations - even in E mode, although off the line S mode is better, since the car starts out in 2nd gear in E mode unless you really punch it.

The engine's improved responsiveness is also helped by the 2012 improvements to the trans. which seems like a better match-up than previously.

My hands-on experience comments refer to the coupe, but I'm sure the improvements will be proportionately noticable in the sedan as well, despite the weight increase and other differences.

I hope you get a chance to drive a '12 and see what you think.

K-A

I think I got somewhat of a "freak" 3.5L this time around, as since I've had the exact same drivetrain in 2 of my previous cars (W211 E350, 2010 E350, and now the 2011 E350), this one is noticeably peppier than either of them, which is mostly notable from the 2010, which is the exact same car, just with the added weight of the Pano (unless the weight was enough to make the difference on its own).

The only time in my 2010 that had me longing for more power was when I was on the highway with 2 other passengers in the car. In my 2011, I've had a total of 5 passengers, and the car didn't feel bogged or weighed down.

All in all, at least in my current car, I can't say that I've ever required more power, and obviously I don't drag race, so having to "beat" another car isn't a playing factor.

Also, I find that I drive this car a bit more "aggressively" than my either of my two previous E's, as the throttle response is more "present" for me. Maybe I just got lucky with a good and snappy transmission, since I find the 7G's can be pretty inconsistent.

hotrodimpy

Well I drove my C300 and my E350 back to back this weekend. Hands down I made a big mistake on the purchase of the E350. If I had drove it before I got it I don't know that I would of picked up on the low speed issue. I really like the car as a whole. It has good power on the highway the handling is good. I went to the dealer and I asked if there were any options on trading it for a coupe or 2012 350. I got the, WELL we would have to book it and see what it's worth ans see if there is any way that we could work with you. But it is only a 33 month lease so you could get out early. So I guess they really dont need my business for the next 15 years or maybe they dont need it. a car with less than 1000 miles BLK on BLK loaded up. Hmmmmmm. Thanks to all for your help

LaicepsYdobon

If you are seriously dissatisfied with the car and don't want to/can't go the dealer route you can always try Lease Trader (http://www.leasetrader.com). I never done this so I can't tell you much about them but I do browse around on that site and look at current lease rates.

K-A

That's pretty interesting to me. Whenever I go from driving a C300 to my E-Class, it feels like I went from a $20K car to a $100K car (pre facelift C-Class at least). The C is just lacking in so, so many ways. Not to mention, the C300 I find to be very noticeably less powered, especially when you need the power quickly. What it does offer over the E is a tighter, firmer, harsher, sportier ride, and better handling.... But that that goes without saying, and frankly, the E would be a terrible car if it outdid the C on all those, as it would sacrifice the very luxury point that is the E-Class.

I guess I just don't get how, if HP and sportiness is enough for you to think that a C300 is superior to your E (i.e, the vast benefits of the E otherwise from that, don't mean enough to you to massively outweigh them), then why you would choose the E in the first place. The E350 is probably the worst place to spend $50+K on, if you're a performance junkie. Reason being that it's probably the best place to spend $50K on, if you're a luxury-car junkie.

Good luck. Lots of Dealers are hungry right now, and the Used Car Market has cars at record high prices. It's a "Lease and get out early"-ers dream right now. Just shop as many aggressive Dealers as you can, and somebody's gotta bite hopefully. I wasn't even trying to get out of my 2010 E350, but a Dealer convinced me to swap it for a 2011 with a higher MSRP, by (after negotiations and me "putting my foot down") dropping the payments $50 a month on it.

hotrodimpy

Wow I guess I didn't get my point across. I thought I said I liked everything about the E except the low end Between 1200 to 1600 rpm. Don't know about where you drive but here in Tenn. most of the off highway speed limits are 30 to 40 MPH. just saying the rear end gear ratio of the C and the power to wt. ratio makes the C a better low end drive for myself. I will just drive it in 5th gear around town and that seems to fix my issue. MB fixed the issue by adding torque and horsepower in 2012.

K-A

I guess I missed/forgot the initial post. I'll pay attention to how my car responds at around those RPM's, however, I'm constantly pleasantly surprised by the peppiness of my current E. Especially in day to day traffic, it feels "snappier" than either of my last E's. Almost like it has what I perceive a Sprint Booster to provide (maybe you should look into one of those BTW).

I have a feeling a lot of this might be the tranny. The car does make a healthy enough dose of Torque (260) at very low RPM's. It seems these trannies learn a certain form of driving and stick with it.

hotrodimpy

How many miles does the trans take to learn a style of driving?

K-A

Mine was fussy and bumpy until about 1-2K. I even took it to the Dealer, as being so accustomed to a couple generations of the 7GTronic, I felt I know a bad one when I feel one (i.e, my W211, that was a mess, and needed a Valve Body replacement), and they said to give it time. Eventually, it totally smoothed out, and is great now. I feel the peppiness and "sense of urgency" of my current car is noticeably better than my last two E's.