Mercedes E320 CDI property | Shed of the Week

This week we might be viewing a mix of basic practicality and fashionable attraction within the commodious and executively posh form of this Mercedes-Benz E 320 CDI wagon. Sure, we did have an E 320 CDI a few weeks again, however you may hardly rely that because it was a Star Wars saloon with R2-D2 and C-3PO glued to the roof and a unclean nice X-wing bolted to the bootlid. Immediately’s E 320 instance is a much more sober affair.

Registered in June ’09 it will likely be one of many final W211s, or S211s to be exact on account of it being the property model, with the S/W212 coming in to exchange it for the 2010 mannequin 12 months. Our Shed subsequently advantages from the standard and technical upgrades introduced in for the 2007MY refresh. The perfect improve was truly a retro-upgrade, if there’s such a factor, with the removing of the Sensotronic Brake Management. This Daimler/Bosch electro-hydraulic brake system was purported to ship exactly calculated quantities of braking to every wheel, however regardless of being round since 2001 on the R230 SL, Sensotronic’s speciality turned out to be delivering imprecisely calculated and sometimes substantial quantities of aggravation to every proprietor. MB by no means actually sorted it in order that they merely binned it, and as famous this automotive doesn’t have it. 

Beneath the bonnet is the meaty long-stroke 3.0 V6 turbodiesel with 221hp at 3,800rpm and a lumptuous 376lb ft from 1,600rpm. That offers it a 0-62mph time within the low seven-second bracket, a high whack of 149mph and an official mixed gas consumption of 37mpg. Even the annual tax price is nice, type of. Its CO2 determine of 202g/km places it within the final ‘low cost’ band of £415 (or is it £430 now? Shed can’t sustain) earlier than the invoice skyrockets to £710 or extra for 226-255g/km vehicles. 

It’s tempting to take a look at all these stats and on the typically clear situation of this automotive and marvel the way it could possibly be yours for under £1,995. Nicely, 198,000 on the odometer might need one thing to do with it. We’re informed the automotive was primarily used for commuting between Heathrow and Manchester, so these are ‘motorway miles’. This fascinating phrase has been used as a constructive in lots of automotive advertisements, to the purpose the place it now feels a bit mythic alongside the traces of ‘one cautious woman proprietor’ or ‘by no means raced or rallied’, however Shed reckons there’s one thing to it.

On the motorway, your engine is working on the type of blockage-clearing speeds it was designed for. You’re getting good airflow to assist preserve it on the proper temperature, and also you’re not doing plenty of gearchanging, braking or steering. Wheel bearings and tyres will naturally put on out however they’re lots cheaper and simpler to exchange than clogged-up or in any other case abused engine internals. Clearly you’re nonetheless going to be doing a lot of miles and each mile you drive is one mile nearer to the automotive’s finish, however that’s all just about identified stuff. 

The joker within the pack in fact is trendy electronics. They’ll go pop at one mile as simply as they will at 100,000 miles, and issues in that space could be swinishly tough to diagnose and put proper. On this respect trendy vehicles characterize rather more of a big gamble than Shed’s personal and far beloved 30-year-old S124 property whose electronics quantity to not rather more than a heater fan and a few mild bulbs.  

The air-con condenser has gone west on this S211. Shed prefers to control cabin temperatures by winding a window up and down, which does annoy Mrs Shed considerably within the winter months, however should you actually will need to have functioning AC then a brand new condenser for one in all these will value you lower than £100 on t’web. The MOT runs to the again half of November. The final take a look at revealed one barely worn entrance brake (disc and pads) and a reasonably commonplace non-excessive oil leak. The supplier says there’s loads of paperwork within the service pack. Shed thinks that this may make for very fascinating studying. Latest MOT historical past suggests it’s had new brake traces within the final couple of years however a hell of much more stuff appears to have gone into it previous to that. 

Understandably the inside does bear indicators of use. One facet of the steering wheel is worn by means of the place the bloke’s proper thumb has presumably been resting in between nostril picks, however the needle on the temperature gauge appears to be in the precise place and there are not any warnings on the sprint. Despite the fact that it’s executed 68,000 miles within the final 4 and a half years, Shed’s spidey senses inform him that if the paperwork provides up, this automotive, like his Amstrad PC, might be good for many extra years but. 

Oh expensive. We seem to have reached the tip of this story with out together with a single smutty reference. Ah effectively, as Shed’s late Dad at all times informed him, generally it’s higher out than in.