Hi guys,
I recently took my e63 estate (wagon to you good folk in the states) to my local drag strip for the first time and was a bit dissapointed with the results.
My times are as follows:
Reaction - 1.089
60ft-2.463
1/8-9.220
1/8- 81.49mph
1/4-13.240
1/4-106.86mph

As you can see, my reaction time was a bit slow and I did do a couple in the .8 region, but I only got around 105mph on those runs. Doing a bit of reading, I seem to be around 8-10mph and a second down on what I should of been getting. My car is stock with the conti tyres on, and no mods at all.
It's only done 2800 miles, so do you rekon it's not loosened up enough?
The way I did it was comfort suspension, sport mode on gearbox, traction on, but also tried traction off, but seemed to get roughly the same results.
I use hand controls due to the fact I'm in a wheelchair, and the guy who fitted them took the kickdown button out because he could'nt quite get it to work consistantly due to cable stretch etc on the hand controls. Do you think that is the problem even though I do get full throttle? Is it better to have the mirrors folded in or out? I cant hold the throttle against the brake pedal with my hand controls so is this it? Should I use the auto park brake when starting or just hold it obn the brake? It's just one swift pull on my hand controls to get from brake on to the throttle.
Also, does anyone know if the charcoal filters are fitted to uk spec cars? Because I'm in a wheelchair I can't even get the bonnet up myself to have a look, but if they are fitted, does it make a lot of difference removing them?
Any tips would be appreciated. It was great fun, but getting beat by a mazda mx5 (miata) with 320bhp was a bit of an embarrasment when I've got 196bhp more, granted he was a lot lighter than me, but cmon, I should have stuffed him!
Lastly, excuse me if this is a real dumbo question, but is uk mph and miles different to us, like our gallons are slightly different?
Thanks guys, I'd really appreciate some advice.

 

..............The story on E63 1/4 mile performance is still unresolved. MB/AMG publish vey fast numbers that are not duplicated in real life. Usually the official numbers are conservative, but this time the opposite is the case. Having said that, your car is slower than it should be. I don't think low 12's as you are expecting is possible in a stock E63 in consumers hands. I have seen E63's run high 12's and others have managed to squeeze out mid 12's. Only AMG in Europe gets the fantastic numbes you are hoping for.

Ted

 

Miles are miles everywhere on the planet - that doesn't use metric.
Gallons are not the same - I think there are at least 2 different gallons - imperial and US (there might even be a third).

 

Which track were you at? Santa Pod?

The reaction should have no effect if it was a timed race rather than a head to head. The light trigger at the start would trigger the timer rather than the xmas tree lights.

Having said this the 60' is pretty low for ET ... but more importantly based on 4310lbs and a trap speed of 106.86mph the car is producing approx 410hp. ... honestly thats very poor for a 517hp rated car.

115-116mph traps would equal a ~517hp car of 4310lbs....

Perhaps there is some limiter involved early on in the E63 run in period but have not heard any confirmation of this....

I would be more worried about the Trap than the ET to be honest. ET can be fixed coz you had v poor 60' times but those poor traps are wierd - any bad head wind?

 

What kind of hand controls are you using? Does yours have a "twist" setup like this - http://www.drivingaids.com/products.html That may be your problem - not reaching WOT.

Do you have portable hand controls? Something like this would eliminate the cable so you could test - http://secure.srginc.biz/search_list...#source=google - my buddy has used those on his supercharged 05 Mustang.

 

Your ET is low for your mph. You should be in the high 12s. I suspect you're spinning the tires, resulting in the slow 60 time. With a little traction, you should break into the 12s...

Keep working at it.

Scott

 

The accelerator is a drive by wire - you should be able to calibrate the throttle better on the hand controls by using an electronic system rather than cables... ...

 

The actual hand controls are pretty basic, with a steel bar running to the brake pedal, and a steel metal cable running through that to the accelarator.
I think I may have been getting some wheelspin, but couldn't quite hear it over the other cars with my skidlid on. I thought my car was pretty loud till I went there, but everybody was commenting on how quiet it was, and I had to agree, it was near silent compared to most of the other souped up cars. The commentator loved it, he was really taking the p**s about grandad getting lost going for his Sunday papers and ending up here by accident! Grandad? I'm only 36! There was no wind to speak of, just the odd light gust.
P.s,
It was at york raceway.

 

It sounds to me like there is a problem with your hand controls system, its not giving you full throttle for some reason. E63 should definitly produce wheelspin on full throttle, you will notice it without a doubt. It should also be very loud at WOT.

 

The most important factors when discussing the 63's times are to discuss atmosphere.

1.Altitude?
2. Temp
3. Humidity?
4. Barometric Pressure


I bet your car looks amazing on the track. Low 12's will take absolute perfect run. Your wagon should run 12.6@115 all day long however.(under sae conditions).

My CLS 63 weighs 4625 and I am certain your car weighs more than published weights. 12.4 @115 is the best 63 time attained in the States to date. He has done it 2x

 

http://s57.photobucket.com/albums/g2...=tomvsjosh.flv

 

.............? mid 12 run in a 63. Did I miss something?

Ted

 

nope..just backing up what you said. 12.4-12.9 110-115 is the expected run at sea level. A wagon should be on the lower side of the range and trap on the high end 115 and above.

 

A recent round of major US car mags has 63 wagons acheiving 114-115 mph traps...63's are plenty fast....