as of this AM.

 

WOW! More torque than the ML500 and MUCH better fuel efficiency! Amazing! I'm seriously looking at these.

 

I know it get's better mileage, but have you seen any figures?

 

I saw 22/29, though i can't remember exactly where. Also saw 22/28 for the GL 320 at the same site. Darn, i wish i remembered where.

 

The best I could find so far on MBUSA was looking at the FAQs under the description of the diesel engine, and it stated the cruising distance in comparison to the R and E class. Divide that by the gas tank size.

 

This is not the article i was thinking of, but it underscores the impressive experienced fuel economy of a light-footed driver of the ML320CDI...i think i'd be hard-pressed to personally achieve these numbers!

http://www.easier.com/view/News/Moto...cle-27584.html

 

Saw one at dealer yesterday w/monroney label. R class cdi 21/28

 

Saw one at dealer yesterday w/monroney label. R class cdi 21/28

 

ML320CDI 21 CTY / 27 HWY

A $1,000 premium for the E, R and ML classes diesels for 2007

Full Press Release

 

According to the article 24 city and 31 "average"! WOW! I get around 17 city and 21 highway but I consider myself a "spirited" driver.

 

Thanks for posting the info.

Looks like Autoblog got confused by the recent BlueTec discussions. Contrary to what they wrote the 2007 E320 BLUETEC uses a DeNOx catalytic converter which does not require servicing. That's BLUETEC Step 1. Step 2 is to follow in calender year 2008.

 

I still don't get the difference b/w the Bluetec version and the CDI.

 

Well I just got back from the dealer and our ML320 CDI is in. Can't wait to start a thread with pics (forgot my camera) It was late and the sales manager was gone for the day, so I couldnt do the paperwork/financing to take it home today. Started it up and you can't even tell its a diesel. I'm excited!!

 

Compared to the CDI the E320 BLUETEC also has a DeNOX catalytic converter and SCR converter shown in the pic below to reduce nitrogen oxides. Without those it does not reach Bin 8 required for passenger cars with GVWR under 6000 lbs starting in 2007.

http://www.whnet.com/4x4/pix/bluetece320.jpg
http://www.whnet.com/4x4/pix/diesel_standards.jpg

 

So, same engine just different exhaust components then. And the 50 state version will add the urea injection?

 

Exactly.

http://www.whnet.com/4x4/pix/om642_01.jpg

 

IMO, Bluetec has no practical benefits other than reduced emmissions. I'm sure some people like to feel warm and fuzzy knowing their car has reduced emmissions. However, I couldn't care less if I don't meet CA standards. If it meets federal, its clean enough for me. It's one more thing you need to monitor and pay for since AdBlue will not be free, and its basically **** water.
If only they had a DIY set-up, wouldnt that be fun?

 

If it were not for BLUETEC the E320 diesel could not be sold anywhere in the USA starting in 2007. All other diesels like VW Jettas in its category were discontinued since they could not comply with the minimum required emission limits. Trucks with a GVWR over 6000 lbs are exempt for another 2 years, when they also have to comply to those same emission limits, at which time Mercedes plans to switch from CDI to BLUETEC so they can continue to offer the diesel trucks. So the practical benefit from BLUETEC is to make diesel passenger car and trucks sales possible in the USA. And more recently other auto makers like Audi, BMW and VW have joined the BLUETEC bandwagon, so we can expect their diesels in the USA in the future.

But there are more benefits beyond diesel vehicle availability in this country, in particular when considering BLUETEC Step 2, the one with AdBlue injection. It allows the engine to run efficiently and powerfull without much detuning, and thus actually reduces the fuel consumption compared to engines without the system. This reduction in fuel expenses can be used to offset the costs of the AdBlue fluid. That's one reason why the majority of commercial truck operators in Europe have opted for BLUETEC when given the choice. Another, maybe smaller, practical benefit is the clean diesel tax credit.

 

I should have phrased that Bluetec has no benefits for my purposes. I feel it is an inconvenience knowing that you have to monitor AdBlue fluids. Also, I couldn't care less if the CDI isn't available in all 50 states, as long as I can buy it in mine.
I do concede that it is a great technology allowing folks in the States to enjoy the new Diesels that would not be available otherwise. I still can't help but think that a system that requires the purchase, maintenance and monitoring of an additional fluid to help emmissions is a band-aid solution more than anything.

 

Aha, I see.

Monitoring AdBlue is just like monitoring the engine oil level, which some folks probably feel is inconvenient as well...

And as long as California doesn't have diesels, well, that's easy for me, hop on the plane and drive them all day long on the Autobahn in Germany. I just hope that one of these days my gas guzzling California neighbors here have better options with diesels, than all the hybrids I see in so many driveways.

 

As always Wolfgang a very informative post. I can't wait to see if Mercedes is going to offer a S320 Blutec, that is going to be some car.

M

 

The system Honda plans to have deployed by 2009 seems very interesting--no added chemicals, but it does use quite a bit of electricity:

"Honda gives diesel a cleaning
By Alan Ohnsman and John Lippert Bloomberg News

SUNDAY, MAY 28, 2006

LOS ANGELES Honda Motor, aiming to build the first diesel car that meets pollution rules across the United States, has patented a new method to curb smog-forming gases.

The tailpipe emission of nitrous oxides has clouded diesel's appeal in the United States, the world's biggest auto market. Honda is betting the new technology will win customers attracted by the greater fuel economy and faster acceleration of diesel cars.

In Honda's treatment system, exhaust flows through a plasma reactor, or gaseous layer of electrically charged atoms, according to a copy of the U.S. patent obtained by Bloomberg News. That separates out harmful nitrogen oxides and forms nitrogen dioxide that is then reduced or absorbed by alkali metals and silver.

"If they can get it out there, it's an engineering tour de force," said Robert Weber, who analyzes exhaust systems for Tiax, a consulting firm in Cambridge, Massachusetts.

No automaker has built a diesel- powered car that can meet pollution rules in California and some Northeast states, which are tougher than federal requirements. DaimlerChrysler and Volkswagen, the largest sellers of diesel autos, are working on systems that would meet the stricter rules by squirting urea, an ammonia-based chemical found in urine, on diesel fumes. Diesel emissions, including nitrogen oxides and other harmful gases, have been linked to cancer, asthma and lung and heart disease.

Honda, the world's largest engine maker, aims to sell a U.S. diesel model by 2009, five years after introducing its first such car in Europe. The company has not said which models will be available with its new engine. Takeo Fukui, Honda's president, said last week that diesels may eventually be available in the United States in the Odyssey minivan and Acura MDX sport-utility vehicle.

Diesel vehicles can travel as much as 30 percent farther on a gallon of fuel than gasoline-powered cars, Ed Cohen, a government-affairs official for Honda in Washington, said last week.

Diesels are also appealing because they generally have more torque, allowing vehicles to surge forward from a standing stop. Six-cylinder diesels can provide as much torque as V-8 gasoline engines, said Simon Godwin, DaimlerChrysler's regulatory affairs manager in Washington.

David Iida, a spokesman for Honda's U.S. unit, declined to comment on the contents of the 19-page patent, issued May 16, the day before the company announced plans for a U.S. diesel.

Diesel vehicles were 3.2 percent of new light vehicle sales in the U.S. in 2005, according to J.D. Power & Associates.

Interest in alternatives to traditional gasoline-engine autos is growing in the United States amid near-record fuel prices and concern about emissions of carbon dioxide and other gases linked to global warming.

Diesel vehicles typically emit less carbon dioxide than equivalent gasoline autos, broadening their appeal in western Europe, where about half of new cars are diesels. Diesel fuel also is taxed at a lower rate in Europe, making it cheaper.

Diesel is more expensive in the United States than regular grade gasoline, according to AAA's Daily Fuel Gauge report Web site. Gasoline cost an average of $2.863 a gallon, 35 percent more than year ago, according to AAA. Diesel costs $2.949, 31 percent more.

Honda has said it expects to meet U.S. "Tier-2, Bin-5" level emissions with its technology, which is roughly equivalent to the lowest level acceptable in California, according to the state's rules.

California since the early 1970s has had federal authority to set air-pollution rules that exceed national standards. U.S. states have the option of adopting either U.S. or stricter California rules.

Among diesels sold in the United States, the Volkswagen Golf and Chrysler's Jeep Liberty are rated Tier-2, Bin-10 by the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency, making them too dirty to be sold in states including California and New York.

Honda's diesel system uses electricity to generate and maintain the plasma, drawing energy from the engine. It may require as much as a kilowatt of power, or about the same amount needed to power headlights, Weber said.

"You're basically running a small generator," he said. "That's been one of the major hurdles of plasma systems, because it starts to affect fuel economy." "

 

Yes, they are rumored to work on an S320 Bluetec, but I have not figured out yet if a final decision has been made. That'd be some car! An S-Class with 30+ MPG.

BTW, like that pic in your sig.

 

Thanks. I love the car in the pic even more!

M

 

I'd say an S400 CDI Bluetec would be even better.