Mercedes Benz E500 Estate (W211) aka 'Thirsty Merc'
Discussion
The latest addition to the household has arrived, and after a decade of my father consigning himself to diesel fuelled VAG misery (admittedly followed by a year of him tooling around in my old S60 T5) the rather more burbley, if less parsimonious, replacement is here.
The big seller for us was the vehicle's provenance. I wouldn't want to embarrass the personal friend and PHer who we bought the car from by calling him out here, but suffice to say you couldn't have asked for a better former keeper. This shows in the immaculate condition from the bodywork, to the wheels, to the interior. Hard to believe this car has really been subject to six years and 70,000 miles of family duties. From the pride he takes in his driving we knew it hadn't ever been mechanically mistreated, and that means a lot with a car of this age and complexity.
To drive, you immediately notice the sheer mass of the car (c.1.8 tonnes) but how, despite this mass, it floats so delicately on its air suspension. I've seldom ridden in a car with a better ride than this, and virtually no ill-effects from bumps and potholes are transmitted through to the cabin. The payoff is that there is a lot of body movement. That's not to say it's uncontrolled (for example, the Airmatic will increase pressure on the outside wheels when cornering, mimicking an anti-roll bar) but it isn't the vehicle to be thrown through transitions.
This being a 2007 model year W211 E-class, it has the new 5.5 litre V8 rather than 5.0 seen in the pre-facelift. That means 388 bhp peak and 530Nm of torque from 2500rpm - 5000rpm, so it shifts itself along quite adequately. Acceleration isn't neck-snapping like the AMG variants, but this is a very different beast - one which trades on effortless elegance and understated capability over brute force. It could be argued that a remapped 320 CDI would give performance that isn't noticeably different in the lower half of the rev range, but for me a big petrol block is about refinement, and escaping the 'bag of spanners' idle that always sends NV and H though the very core of diesel cars.
The 7G-tronic torque converter shuffles away imperceptibly. Only a close eye on the rev counter will notice cogs changing at just 1500 revs, and cruising at not far off tickover. Because of this, the engine is never heard, but burying your foot into floor will emit the subtle but instantly recognisable sound of eight cylinders working in harmony. In terms of economy, it's early days to be reporting figures, but the last full tank returned 23.5 mpg over a mix of road types, while a steady legal motorway cruise gets it into the early 30s.
Inside the car, the seats give infinite adjustability, but are harder than the sumptuous ones of the Volvo. While the interior quality is good, there are two faults that spring to mind. Firstly the unorthodox position of the indicator stalk, which is at 8 'o' clock, while the cruise control stalk sits where you'd expect the indicators to be, at just above 9 'o' clock. Secondly, while it's nice to have the integrated navigation, it doesn't warrant leaving the TomTom at home - the maps are out of date and cost as much as a brand new off-the-shelf unit to update, the interface is clunky and postcodes inputs are limited to four characters.
Overall, the car gives off a sense of old-school solidness, exactly how you imagine a Merc should feel. Petrol costs will be higher than before, but in reality this is only five mpg fewer than the T5, and given this adds the power of a modest family hatch over the already brisk Volvo, we're hardly in a position to complain. On the plus side, maintenance costs aren't exhobitant and depreciation is minimal at this stage. The bork factor looms, but research indicates these post-facelift models are sturdy, the air suspension being the only worry.
Optional extras spec'd on this car:
2007 E500 base price: £47,820
Total cost of options: £10,640
Total ORT cost (inc delivery and other fees): £59,641.04
What we paid? Considerably less than what the first owner spent on options alone. Happy days.
E500 front threequarters by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 rear threequarters by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 panning by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 badge by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 headlights by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 engine by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 interior by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 loadbay by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 clocks by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 engine start by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
The big seller for us was the vehicle's provenance. I wouldn't want to embarrass the personal friend and PHer who we bought the car from by calling him out here, but suffice to say you couldn't have asked for a better former keeper. This shows in the immaculate condition from the bodywork, to the wheels, to the interior. Hard to believe this car has really been subject to six years and 70,000 miles of family duties. From the pride he takes in his driving we knew it hadn't ever been mechanically mistreated, and that means a lot with a car of this age and complexity.
To drive, you immediately notice the sheer mass of the car (c.1.8 tonnes) but how, despite this mass, it floats so delicately on its air suspension. I've seldom ridden in a car with a better ride than this, and virtually no ill-effects from bumps and potholes are transmitted through to the cabin. The payoff is that there is a lot of body movement. That's not to say it's uncontrolled (for example, the Airmatic will increase pressure on the outside wheels when cornering, mimicking an anti-roll bar) but it isn't the vehicle to be thrown through transitions.
This being a 2007 model year W211 E-class, it has the new 5.5 litre V8 rather than 5.0 seen in the pre-facelift. That means 388 bhp peak and 530Nm of torque from 2500rpm - 5000rpm, so it shifts itself along quite adequately. Acceleration isn't neck-snapping like the AMG variants, but this is a very different beast - one which trades on effortless elegance and understated capability over brute force. It could be argued that a remapped 320 CDI would give performance that isn't noticeably different in the lower half of the rev range, but for me a big petrol block is about refinement, and escaping the 'bag of spanners' idle that always sends NV and H though the very core of diesel cars.
The 7G-tronic torque converter shuffles away imperceptibly. Only a close eye on the rev counter will notice cogs changing at just 1500 revs, and cruising at not far off tickover. Because of this, the engine is never heard, but burying your foot into floor will emit the subtle but instantly recognisable sound of eight cylinders working in harmony. In terms of economy, it's early days to be reporting figures, but the last full tank returned 23.5 mpg over a mix of road types, while a steady legal motorway cruise gets it into the early 30s.
Inside the car, the seats give infinite adjustability, but are harder than the sumptuous ones of the Volvo. While the interior quality is good, there are two faults that spring to mind. Firstly the unorthodox position of the indicator stalk, which is at 8 'o' clock, while the cruise control stalk sits where you'd expect the indicators to be, at just above 9 'o' clock. Secondly, while it's nice to have the integrated navigation, it doesn't warrant leaving the TomTom at home - the maps are out of date and cost as much as a brand new off-the-shelf unit to update, the interface is clunky and postcodes inputs are limited to four characters.
Overall, the car gives off a sense of old-school solidness, exactly how you imagine a Merc should feel. Petrol costs will be higher than before, but in reality this is only five mpg fewer than the T5, and given this adds the power of a modest family hatch over the already brisk Volvo, we're hardly in a position to complain. On the plus side, maintenance costs aren't exhobitant and depreciation is minimal at this stage. The bork factor looms, but research indicates these post-facelift models are sturdy, the air suspension being the only worry.
Optional extras spec'd on this car:
- Electric driver seat + steering column + door mirrors w/ memory
- Electrically adjustable passenger seat w/ memory
- Multi contour driver seat
- Multi contour passenger seat
- Heated front seats
- COMAND (satellite navigation)
- harmon/kardon LOGIC7 sound system
- CD changer (6 disc)
- Telephone pre wiring (Bluetooth)
- Rear side airbags
- Tyre pressure monitoring system
- Keyless Go
- Distronic (radar monitored cruise control)
- Parktronic (parking sensors)
- Easy pack tailgate (motorised)
- Intelligent Lighting (Bi-xenon, adaptive)
- Tow bar (folding w/ 13 pin adaptor)
2007 E500 base price: £47,820
Total cost of options: £10,640
Total ORT cost (inc delivery and other fees): £59,641.04
What we paid? Considerably less than what the first owner spent on options alone. Happy days.
E500 front threequarters by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 rear threequarters by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 panning by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 badge by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 headlights by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 engine by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 interior by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 loadbay by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 clocks by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
E500 engine start by jlewisbarned, on Flickr
Just coming up to a year that dad's owned this now, so perhaps time for an update. Over the 9200 miles since we bought it it's averaged 22.5mpg which, for a 400bhp estate that resides in a city, isn't all that bad. Other expenses have been limited to tax, a main dealer service and two new parking sensors. Beyond the sensors, the only other failure has been the drivers door handle, which has stopped responding to the lock / unlock buttons when used 'keylessly', and this will be replaced in due course. So not a bad year for running costs, but a better one for enjoyment. Last week it took on its biggest challenge yet: a 1400-mile trip round Ireland, where its space, comfort and solidity shone. Ample luggage stowed, all four passengers sat in individually climate controlled luxury, and diesel clatter was there none. Could there have a been a better tool? Thirsty Merc (for all those who missed the Aussie pop-rock reference the first time round) is a keeper it seems. Sadly, that means it'll be all the more time until I get my promised first refusal on it!
Spyder3400 said:
That is a lovely car. I commented on the crosseyedlion thread a while back.
How is the car going? Mine has been amazing, but I've decided to move onto something else (ahem look in PH Classifieds if anyone is interested).
Thanks for sharing the car on here, it reminds us all how awesome these e500's are!
Thanks. I know I've been lax in keeping this thread up to date, but really that's been because there's been very little to report. Only costs have been the usual suspects; tax, insurance, MOT and servicing. Oh and it had a pair of front tyres. How is the car going? Mine has been amazing, but I've decided to move onto something else (ahem look in PH Classifieds if anyone is interested).
Thanks for sharing the car on here, it reminds us all how awesome these e500's are!
I know there's a big service coming up before Christmas though, including replacement of all 16 plugs!
Now just biding my time until my dad passes it down to me. Any ideas for a suitable replacement to lure him out of it?
Mr E said:
W212 500? 
And here's the predicament: it doesn't really offer him anything more than he has in the 211. And 212 500s seem rarer still - there are currently no saloons or estates on Auto Trader.Rat_Fink_67 said:
The M273 only needs 8 
In that case we were ill-informed by the dealer. Strange, our man there is normally pretty on the ball. Having said that, I'm sure we can let him off, I doubt he sees many E500s! Thanks for the info though. Might be interesting to keep shtum and see what they bill us for
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