When you click on links to various merchants on this site and make a purchase, this can result in this site earning a commission. Affiliate programs and affiliations include, but are not limited to, the eBay Partner Network.
I just purchased a new ML diesel and have 2000 miles on it. I am not seeing very good mileage at some speeds. At around 40 - 55 MPH I see mileage in the 40 mpg range and it does pretty well in city driving. On the highway at about 78 mph I see mileage in the mid 20s mpg range. As the engine breaks-in, the mileage seems to be improving, but I am not seeing anything close to the 28 mpg as is on the sticker at the higher highway speeds.
I was wondering what others are seeing on the same vehicle.
78 MPH is a very inefficient speed for MPG. Drive slower, get higher MPG. Simple. 28MPG at 78MPH is pretty incredible. 40MPG at 40-50MPH is even more incredible. Is there something being lost in translation?
78 MPH is a very inefficient speed for MPG. Drive slower, get higher MPG. Simple. 28MPG at 78MPH is pretty incredible. 40MPG at 40-50MPH is even more incredible. Is there something being lost in translation?
Maybe Mercedes didn't mean 78mph when they stated 28mpg highway. Here in the Chicago area, the highway speed limit is 55
Which Diesel have you been using? D2 seems to get better mpg than B5 or B20.
Maybe Mercedes didn't mean 78mph when they stated 28mpg highway. Here in the Chicago area, the highway speed limit is 55
Which Diesel have you been using? D2 seems to get better mpg than B5 or B20.
Thanks. I get very good mileage at 55 and, as you say, the sticker mileage rating is probably established at less than 78. I wanted to verify that there wasn't something unusual about my vehicle and from the forum inputs that does not appear to be the case. Our speed limits in FL are typically 70 and they will be going to 75 shortly. I am not familiar with the D2, B5, and B20. Which vehicles are they in?
Our ML is broken in with approx. 40k miles. We got 28 mpg on a 6 hr trip a few weeks ago with cruise set at 75mph. I did notice a drop in fuel mpg when driving into wind...but on a non windy day, near 25-30mpg is the norm if your driving above 70mph. I can get 30+ if stay around 55-60.
I'm very pleased with the fuel economy, especially for a vehicle of this size and comfort.
Our ML is broken in with approx. 40k miles. We got 28 mpg on a 6 hr trip a few weeks ago with cruise set at 75mph. I did notice a drop in fuel mpg when driving into wind...but on a non windy day, near 25-30mpg is the norm if your driving above 70mph. I can get 30+ if stay around 55-60.
I'm very pleased with the fuel economy, especially for a vehicle of this size and comfort.
Thanks for your input! Can you tell me what year your vehicle is and what engine it has. Your results sound very similar to mine and as my vehicle goes through break-in, I have noticed an increase in mileage. As you point out, it is a large vehicle with a lot more frontal area than most.
78 MPH is a very inefficient speed for MPG. Drive slower, get higher MPG. Simple. 28MPG at 78MPH is pretty incredible. 40MPG at 40-50MPH is even more incredible. Is there something being lost in translation?
As I stated maybe a "little" less as just like another poster, I DO see 28MPG at 75MPH with no problem. I do agree that the BT will get much better milage at a slower pace and a good bit of my highway driving is at 65-70 mph.
From Ft Worth, Tx to Corpus Christi Tx............421 miles to destination, did a constant 65mph coming and going and got 31.7 mpg. That 65mph is well below the speed limit on I-35 and I-37 and I kept to the far right lane and did the driving in the early am hrs. Like 12am to 6am. It was torture and added a good hour to my usual time.
From Ft Worth, Tx to Rohnert Park, Ca and back........24.5 mpg doing the speed limit plus the added five mph which translates to 80mph except in Ca (a third of the trip) I did 75mph in the 70mph zones in Ca. Prius's shot past me like I was sitting still. I didn't see any limit over 70mph in Ca. Are they retarded or what?
Just my way of saying, that if you want to get 28mpg your going to have to drive below most posted speed limits. That's just my opinion. My '14 ML has 14K on it and I do not expect any 'breakin' driving to make it get better milage. That EPA figure is done at some speed lower than posted speed limits imho. I don't KNOW that for a fact and have never researched what speed the EPA drives to simulate hwy speeds.
Also if you drive into a head wind of say 20 plus mph at 80mph your not going to even get the 24.5 I mentioned, but if that 20mph wind is a tail wind you can do 80mph and get in the 28mpg range. Been there, done that going from Ft Worth to Amarillo and back in the same day.
From Ft Worth, Tx to Corpus Christi Tx............421 miles to destination, did a constant 65mph coming and going and got 31.7 mpg. That 65mph is well below the speed limit on I-35 and I-37 and I kept to the far right lane and did the driving in the early am hrs. Like 12am to 6am. It was torture and added a good hour to my usual time. From Ft Worth, Tx to Rohnert Park, Ca and back........24.5 mpg doing the speed limit plus the added five mph which translates to 80mph except in Ca (a third of the trip) I did 75mph in the 70mph zones in Ca. Prius's shot past me like I was sitting still. I didn't see any limit over 70mph in Ca. Are they retarded or what? Just my way of saying, that if you want to get 28mpg your going to have to drive below most posted speed limits. That's just my opinion. My '14 ML has 14K on it and I do not expect any 'breakin' driving to make it get better milage. That EPA figure is done at some speed lower than posted speed limits imho. I don't KNOW that for a fact and have never researched what speed the EPA drives to simulate hwy speeds. Also if you drive into a head wind of say 20 plus mph at 80mph your not going to even get the 24.5 I mentioned, but if that 20mph wind is a tail wind you can do 80mph and get in the 28mpg range. Been there, done that going from Ft Worth to Amarillo and back in the same day.
Thanks. I get very good mileage at 55 and, as you say, the sticker mileage rating is probably established at less than 78. I wanted to verify that there wasn't something unusual about my vehicle and from the forum inputs that does not appear to be the case. Our speed limits in FL are typically 70 and they will be going to 75 shortly. I am not familiar with the D2, B5, and B20. Which vehicles are they in?
Thanks,
D2 is pure Diesel, B5 is Diesel with up to 5% Biodiesel content and B20 is Diesel with up to 20% Biodiesel content. Here in Illinois it's hard to find pure Diesel because the Gas stations get tax incentives for selling Biodiesel. Unfortunately Biodiesel is not good for modern engines. I have a flyer from Mercedes that says:
- fill up with B5 or less whenever possible
- monitor your engine oil level if you use B20 on a regular basis
- strictly follow the oil change intervals quoted
- if you do not plan to drive your vehicle for several weeks, fill up with ULSD fuel
That max speed of 60mph in the EPA drive cycle explains a lot. I think they drive like that in the northeast. I talked to a bank manager who played highschool football in New Jersey and then went to college in Iowa, and he told me that til he got out west of NJ, he had no idea people were allowed to drive that fast i.e. above 60mph.
I was thinking of driving up to Winnipeg, Canada and driving to the west coast on Hwy 1, til I looked at a site on the web that said the speed limit on that hwy was 100 kph or 62mph. I don't have passion to visit Canada after reading that.
I did 75mph in the 70mph zones in Ca. Prius's shot past me like I was sitting still. I didn't see any limit over 70mph in Ca. Are they retarded or what?
No; the interstate leeway here is generally 10MPH, so it works out the same. I guess they figure the locals are the ones that matter, and most of them know how it works .
That's helpful. The 110kph should let me do a 70mph and a touch more without wallet damage next week. Invermere B.C here I come.
That was uncalled for where I put "are they retarded or what" especially since I was born in Ca. Now I feel free to to do 75 mph easily on the I-5 as long as I stay in the far right lane where us slow pokes hang out.
Did a trip from Ft Worth, Tx to Rohnert Park, Ca then to Inverness British Columbia .....drove around the national parks like Banff, Yoho, Jasper, Kootney etc....back to Rohnert Park, Ca then back to Ft Worth, Tx. Total trip was in the 6500 mile range and average fuel was 29.4 mpg. Not bad for a 5000 lb vehicle imho.
The roads in the park areas of Banff, Yoho, Jasper, Kooteney were really, really good where I drove and the seemingly low speed limit of 100kph sort of grows on you since the traffic is so spread out and nobody is on your bumper constantly. I fudged a bit but not a lot in Canada. I highly recommend visiting those parks mentioned above. As for the rest of Canada....got me, never been anywhere else in Canada.
My 2014 also continues to improve. Averaging around 29mpg on the highway (600 mile trips between Northern NJ and Charlotte NC. Drops down below 28mpg if I push 80mph for any extended periods.
Did a short trip here in NJ on the GS Parkway the other night. 111 miles, 2hrs, and did not go over 70mpg. Averaged over 32mpg for the 2hrs.
I am very impressed with this car...........our old 2002 ML500 was lucky to get 17mpg on the highway.
We've got 3,500 miles on it and we're averaging 22.5 to 25 per gallon. That's a mix of 45/55 city to highway driving. Measured at the pump, not on the digital readout.
Strictly highway driving shows 27.5 on the digital, haven't taken the time to measure at the pump immediately after a highway trip.
I find the digital mpg to be dead nuts accurate when I compare it to my pencil and paper mpg. That is on long trips only. This ML is much better than my SL digital readout or my XK readouts. Newer technology I suppose.
I don't check around town milage at all. Waste of my time and effort. Too much 'sitting in the driveway with the engine running" to be meaningful.
05-29-2014, 09:59 AM
