SL-Class (R230) 2003 -- 2012: Discussion on the SL500, SL550, SL600

SL/R230: Fuel Consumption

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Old Oct 12, 2002 | 04:42 AM
  #1  
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SL55 AMG
Fuel Consumption

Used the car in the clogged London traffic yesterday. Fuel consumption while there was 7.3 mpg, then drove about 100 miles, a better figure of 21.8 mpg of relaxed cruising, too tired to push hard. Never had a car where the difference is so marked.

Overall, about 16 mpg but clearly depends heavily on your driving style and where you're driving.
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Old Oct 12, 2002 | 04:52 AM
  #2  
Bilal
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Bloody hell 7.3MPG !!!, I guess, you can't use it as your daily driver! MB say that the car does 20-21mpg in combined driving and about 15-17mpg in traffic, well so much for their analysis! I wonder what car they got the fuel consumption figures messed up with, probably an E320 CDi!

Best regards
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Old Oct 13, 2002 | 03:13 AM
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7.3 mpg - nice depressing reading for a Sunday morning! Would be interested to hear city and touring SL55 consumption figures from other listers.
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Old Oct 13, 2002 | 07:56 AM
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the 996TT has similar wild fluctuations in mileage. first time i'd seen it too. it'll do sub-10 in nasty traffic. but at high cruising speeds it'll do 30. i get about 15 on average depending upon how hard i'm driving it.

i am surprised to hear that the numbers are so low on the traffic side for the SL500. presumably the SL55 will suck a bit more petrol?

doody.
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Old Oct 13, 2002 | 11:01 PM
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blueSL's Avatar
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Just to clarify, those figures are for an SL55. The SL500 will be a little better. I guess we all know the gas mileage is bad in heavy traffic but seeing it on the digital display just drives the message home.
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Old Oct 15, 2002 | 06:24 PM
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It's possible the computer is measuring for US gallons (it was a problem on my ML55 when I got it) and that would be a 10% difference...worth checking.

Paul
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Old Oct 15, 2002 | 06:42 PM
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who cares what the miliage is ,,,,you can afford the gas,,,just drive the hell out of the car the way it was meant to be driven
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Old Oct 15, 2002 | 10:46 PM
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It's not an issue of course, but it does cost $100 to fill up in the UK. As for US gallons, the average reading does tie up with what I'm putting in the tank.
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Old Oct 16, 2002 | 08:37 AM
  #9  
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move to a place where gas is less expensive...
man i dont think i would drive if i lived there
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Old Oct 16, 2002 | 11:36 AM
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Hmmm, not sure the price of gas is the sole factor to consider when choosing where to live...
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Old Oct 16, 2002 | 07:58 PM
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I average about 18 mpg in mixed city/hwy traffic. City will get me 16 and hwy maybe 20-21. That's in an SL500.
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Old Oct 18, 2002 | 04:29 PM
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Haha...someone who can't afford the gas to put into these kinds of luxury cars shouldn't be buying them in the first place. However, that mileage is still horrible and your gas bill should be nice and high.
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Old Oct 19, 2002 | 11:53 PM
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The issue is not so much cost - you're correct that the cost of gas is nothing compared to the long term running costs of this car - but how often you have to fill up.

My SL600 does more than two return trips to my office on a tank, the SL55 will not and because I like to put in a gas called Optimax which is not available everywhere, I wind up filling up more often and usually no more than 2/3 of a tank.

Actually, for my straight commute, such as it is, one day a week, I've now gone back to using the SL600.
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