Drano64

Thank you for the Special Order Options.

I had ordered my new 14 M350 BTC two weeks ago fully loaded based on the MBUSA website. Until reading the forums, I did not realize the Airmatic or the Active Curve was available to order. Thanks to the List, I have just sent my dealer my revised list of adds.

This will be my fifth Mercedes in the last six years, my first SUV. What seemed to be standard on my other vehicles, I find out are options on the ML. Thanks for the great insight here on the forums.

Streamliner

Yes, and the dealers will never even mention the special order options. They figure that the vast majority of consumers are "sheep," and will settle for what is in stock on the dealer lots. Did you go for the MB Tex Wrapped Dash? Probably the nicest SPC option for the least amount of money and it really dresses up the interior. Happy new year to all on MBWorld!

Drano64

I indeed added the wrapped dash, the Active Curve and Airmatic suspension, the black headliner, the 3rd zone A/C (live in Arizona), the passenger memory (thought it was a standard item for MB) and the soft close doors. The ventilated seats and the pass thru seat I already had.

Happy New Year to all also!

MLee

Ok guys, ACTIVE CURVE.
All the action applied is to decouple or lessen the amount of roll stabilization.

A fully "coupled" anti sway bar performs exactly the same function as a standard non adjustable bar.
My amg sport pack ML handles in sport mode axactly as MB says the active curve system does. ie. flat cornering, indiscernable sway or, body roll if you wish.
What the active curve system does is to "disconnect" or decouple the sway bar when in straight line driving or off road (raised suspension)mode.
The advantage this gives on a straight road is a better more comfortable ride by allowing the suspension on one side to move independantly to the other.....independant suspension..... Get it ?
The dissadvantage of independant suspension is body roll on corners. Hence, anti sway/roll bars connecting the suspension side to side to fascilitate flat cornering.




The advantage of decoupling when off road or with raised suspension setting is better wheel / suspension travel on undulating surfaces. ie. allowing one wheel to to go up over a big rock or down a hole.
Just think what would happen if you have a strong anti roll bar and one wheel entered a deep hole. If the body was stiff enough and the anti roll bar strong enough, the wheel presented with a hole would be held up off the ground and you would then have a 3 wheel drive. I hope you are getting the picture.

Summary...
Standard anti sway bar is always "on"
Active curve anti sway bar is ON when cornering.
Active curve anti sway bar is OFF when driving straight and in off road mode.

There is a variable aspect to the system between on and off which is achieved thru the hydraulics that do the coupling, but the basics for understanding, are "on or off".

Consider the default setting as ON.
What you pay for with active curve is to turn the anti sway bar OFF.
Mlee

Wolfgang

^ Nice explanation. MBC is somewhat similar in that it doesn't have a sway-bar.



http://techcenter.mercedes-benz.com/...ol/detail.html

Streamliner

Thank you MLee. Your detailed explanation is much appreciated. I have two questions: Does the Active Curve System do all that it does automatically, all the time, or is there a control by which the driver can switch it from one mode to another or simply on or off? Secondly, if money was no object and the vehicle would always be under factory warranty, if the smoothest most comfortable ride--on paved roads, was your goal, would YOU order it? And, if not, why not? Thank you.

MLee

I did not order active curve because I test drove without it and was suitably impressed with both the handling and comfort ride.
Money was no object in my decision.
Yes, the system is fully automatic from straight line driving to corners and switches off automatically when you select "off road" height.
Airmatic has sport and comfort settings....comfort setting is more than I require and in fact is rarely used by me. About the only time
I recall using it is when my 86 year old blind mother is on board. I prefer to "feel" my car on th road.

Mlee

Streamliner

One last question, if you don't mind: is there anyway to tell if a non-ML63 is equipped with Active Curve, other than looking underneath the vehicle? And, when looking underneath, just what would one see that would distinguish an Active Curve equipped vehicle from one without it? Thanks, Streamliner

DUTCH

If you would like to email me your VIN, I can look up your Vehicle Data Card, which will tell you if it was on the vehicle from the factory.

gwagen2000 [at] comcast [dot] net

Streamliner

I appreciate the offer, but I don't have an ML yet, mine is on order, with Active Curve. It's just that there is so little information available about this very expensive option and I am trying to figure out just exactly what you get when you order it.

HAILERS2

http://techcenter.mercedes-benz.com/...em/detail.html

http://www5.mercedes-benz.com/en/inn...ive_cornering/

https://mbworld.org/forums/new-m-cla...ve-system.html

MLee

[QUOTE=Streamline. sNIP. information available about this very expensive option and I am trying to figure out just exactly what you get when you order it.[/QUOTE]

A bigger bill.

Streamliner

Well, with these links, I finally believe that I have all the info I need. I will leave my order standing with both AirMatic and Active Curve. Thanks to all who provided useful info. Streamliner

ciparis

For what it's worth, Airmatic in sport mode is pretty incredible, even without Active Curve. Very flat, very stable. When the model first came out, Car & Driver (I think, or maybe it was R&T or ...?) commented on how flat the Sport mode handling was, even without Active Curve, so I skipped it with my special order. I haven't regretted it one iota.

dbowman2

Has anyone come across a bluetec ml350 with active curve, airmatic, and a hitch? aftermarket hitch sites all seem to exclude MLs with active curve.

Streamliner

I ordered my 2014 ML350BT with AirMatic, Active Curve and the factory hitch. I never towed anything with it. Missed my S Class so got rid of it and am into a 2015 S550.

drwolf

before i got my 2014 ML350 i looked around for a CPO, finding a 4MATIC was really rare first and foremost, esp with the lighting and active curve/HK7 on it. I did find a 13 ML350 BTC but all it had was the HK7 system and lane tracking package

cmginc

I currently have a 2013 ML550 with AIRMATIC but not Active Curve. I am turning it in next week on a new 2016 GL63 with AIRMATIC and Active Curve. Driving them back to back, the Active Curve makes a huge difference. The GL stays flat in almost every circumstance and what I thought was tight handling seemed loose in the ML550 when I drove home. Yes, the GL is an AMG, but it is bigger, longer, and heavier, and it outperformed at every turn. I associate that with Active Curve.