Scott5000

Just wanted to chime in on my newly purchased gas powered ML which I have owned for 2 months now. Wonderful vehicle. I test drove both a gas and diesel and actually preferred the gas version. The gas version seemed to have a touch more throttle response and just felt lighter on its feet. After 5000 miles, been averaging ~20 MPG city 80%/highway 20%. A huge upgrade over the Denali which was lucky to get 13 MPG avg. Low end torque on the DI 3.5L gas motor is very nice and the upper RPM silken rush of power is intoxicating. It does make a little racket while at idle at times, but so did my DI 3.5L Lexus IS 350. It's just a trait of the HP fuel injectors. Also love the way the tranny seems to automatically engine brake going down hills or when coming to a stop. Overall the truck is just a very solid piece of machinery and so far has been a wonderful ownership experience.

caf

Though I went for the diesel, I think the best thing about the gas version is the lighter weight.

Glad to hear you're enjoying it.

jweezy

I did test drive them both too, even though MB says its the same 0-60 it very much seems different. I am a slow driver so speed doesn't matter to me anyway.

Play with your throttle a bit to find the sweet spot. In 80/20 driving I average about 21.5 - 22.5

With more cruising its more 24 - 25 mpg - lets say 40% - 60%

Last weekend I went on the interstate and got 26 avg. over 61 miles. Sweet spot being around 55 - 60 miles per hour I believe.

Its amazing how much get it up it has for passing, its quick and responsive. As soon as the transmission shifts to a lower gear its scooting. The front lifts and I know I better have 2 hands on the wheel. Its not SRT8 or AMG fast, however it will jerk ya around.

The slight ticking is fine, and it is the fuel injectors - its still a lot more quiet running than the BlueTec.

One thing I do wish is that because of the fact the gas verision does not use adhoc, it would have been nice for them to just make that extra tank for gas to improve the range. I think the diesels have a extra 7 gallon tank for AdHoc, so for us it would be like having a 32 gallon tank, thus improving range for me to almost 750 miles on a full tank avg only 23.5 mpg. For highway miles it would get over 800 miles

I guess they wanted the Bluetec to have the range title. It just seems like a waste of space to me, although it would increase the weight - the ML350 gas weighs in around 4800 pounds. (My Charger weighed about 4350)

GregW / Oregon

FYI, its "AdBlue," or more generically, DEF (Diesel Exhaust Fluid).

jweezy

damn, I have been calling it adhoc, my cellphone did it. I use to say adblue and it changed it to adhoc, then it just caught on with me.

my bad.

GregW / Oregon

"It's a poor workman who blames his tools"

GregW / Oregon

A couple problems with that idea. First, the DEF tank sets on the right side of the muffler, with the tailpipes exiting to the left. The gas version has tailpipes both sides, not to say they couldn't make it work one-sided. Secondly, the tank is in a vulnerable location behind the rear axle - no way MB would position a gas tank there. Nice thought, though; the range on the diesel is a nice feature.

jweezy

You know what Greg, I have respect for you.

You are very active on the forums and you know a lot about your car. You are able to create a bunch of threads that people find useful and your opinion seems to have facts included with your comments.

For that you get respect. With out you the ML forum would have 3 threads created.

Keep it up buddy.

jweezy

Tools are only an extension of a workmans craftsmanship, without the workman the tools would be nothing.

Scott5000

Yes, I could be a little easier on the throttle to try and maximize MPG, but getting ~20 mpg with mainly city driving not even trying is pretty amazing for this heavy of a truck with the gas engine.

Also, I thought it was adhoc "uretha" injection...

jweezy

I know we shouldn't be concerned about mpg that much, we are driving SUVs.

I just like to see how far I can go with each tank, its not about saving money or anything. Even if so its not enough to put a dent in the total cost, its more for personal satisfaction.

However, the other way I think about it is this - I go 1.5 weeks with out feeling up at an average of 21 mpg with the whole tank.

We have 24.6 gallons of gas we can hold at one time, knowing that if I can average up to 23 mpg over the life of a tank that would get me 49 more miles with filling up. Thats another day I can go with out going to the gas station.

The longest I have went is 2.5 weeks (only driving to and from work M-F), without filling up.

GregW / Oregon

If you look at the document I posted here https://mbworld.org/forums/new-m-cla...omparison.html it looks like all models have a 27.7 gallon tank. Anyone been able to put more than 25 gallons in?

GregW / Oregon

I appreciate your kind comments. I have been helped myself many times on the forums I participate in, so I just try to do the same for others. I always go through this intense interest phase before and after each new model comes out of trying to get as much information as possible. Since I have a number of months until I get mine, my interest is likely to remain high!

Scott5000

Nothing wrong with trying to conserve fuel and I'm more than happy with the gas motor's fuel mileage, especially for a green engine. I'm sure it will only get better as it breaks in further.

jweezy

Was going to post something for you today. I took this photo on my drive home, seems like my engine is breaking in....