Trodas

In my area diesel cost about 40-45cents more per gallon than premium..so in reality im not sure how much more economical it would between the 320CDI and the 550....any thoughts on this??

oknish

do you need torque (lots and lots of it) or power off the line?

LEOSOPHIE

This might help. Crude is up $5.11, products up 11 cents a gallon today. Choose your priority, 550 for performance and styling or 320 for practicality.

TV550

www.fueleconomy.gov

You can customize your driving habbits and local gas and diesel fuel costs and see how much you would save. You can compare both vehicles side by side based on yearly mileage then just divide by 12 months to see how much you save monthly. Just in fuel alone you should save 55-60 dollars a month between the two but factor in the price difference between the two and its significantly more. Its not that I can't afford gas its that I hate making time to stop to get gas.

I am in the same boat you are about deciding between the two vehicles. Every time I think I have made up my mind, something changes it. When I go to my local dealership and see 4 GL 550s sitting there all shiny I want a GL 550 but then when I see gas prices will hit 4.00 a gallon by summer I want the GL 320. The price difference between the 320 and 550 would give you almost 5 years of free diesel. I do alot of outdoors activities such as Cycling, hiking, scuba and skiing which all require long drives to the mountains or 6 hours to the ocean and fuel economy would sure make a big difference especially when you can go 500+ miles on one tank of diesel. The GL 550 sure does look pretty though. I am waiting for the 2009 models to come out before I decide.

Trodas

And to compicate things a little further...i just got back from driving an 08 Porsche Cayenne Turbo..that now is in the mix as well. the new direct injection has highway miles up to 19mpg, but i know its driving at 55mph. Anybody have an 08 Cayenne Turbo or know anyone that has one

TV550

There is no way a Cayenne Turbo will get better mileage than the GL 550, If anything it will tie it. I know the 5.7 Toyota engines are really efficient but have the same mileage ratings as the 550 engines from MB.

oknish

Do a search in the forum on Cayenne and you will see some previous discussions. Most agree that Cayenne and GL are different cars and comparing them is like comparing apples and oranges. It really depends on what you are looking for in the car.

nantucketsleigh

April Car&Driver article makes a pretty good case that diesel fuel prices will likely continue to rise at a considerably faster rate than gasoline in the U.S.

scottybdiving

If you use the EPA's latest figures for combined driving, 14 for the 550, and 20 for the 320, and premium is $3.20, diesel would have to cost $4.57 for them to break even. I know there may be 550's getting better than 14 as well as 320's getting better than 20 combined. Mine is getting 22 combined.

You can't really compare the two from an economic standpoint.

carpersn

Just to toss in, i did buy my 320 for the great mileage, but also because that mileage allows me to use less oil and get the utility i needed. So, even if diesel continues to rise, i'd rather still be using less fuel and paying more...

LEOSOPHIE

I agree your mileage may vary. My history for 3900 miles is 16.7 mpg at an average speed of 33 mph. This is 80% city 20% highway and I have never been as low as 14 mpg in my 550. My Navigator beater is another story, 11.8 mpg for similar driving. I justify the purchase on the fuel savings.

scottybdiving

I hear you. My C3500 Duramax weighs 8,000 lbs and gets 15 - 17 and has a towing capacity of 13,000 lbs. The equivalent gasser uses 30% more fuel and has less towing capacity. I justify it by my fuel savings also.