16 inch or 17 inch Wheels on an E320?

[benzo]

Hi

I have been looking at a few W211s, seen some with 16inch and 17 inch wheels. Would just like to know what difference those wheel sizes make on the drive, handling etc.

I know what the difference will be wrt cost.

Also on another note, one of the best cars I have seen so far is a 211 E320 cdi with 102000 miles on the clock. Never bought a car with such high mileage so a bit cautious about what to expect or whether it's a good idea. It's a 2003 03 plate car (Elegance spec and fully loaded).

 

[jberks]

I can't comment on the mileage - mine is a lowly 32k thus far but is taking the 2k per month in it's stride. The 320 straight 6 is a well tried engine and more than capable of 200k+ if properly maintained. You will probably need some bits (MAS, glow plugs etc) in the next couple of years but that's really just maintenance. The shell should be more than up to it though some suspension components are considered a bit fragile.

The 2002-3 cars (early 211s) were known to have a few teething gremlins and there were a few real lemons around, but if yours has done over 100k it should have been one of the good ones to have been on the road long enough. Even so, ask to see a list of warranty repairs and service history. Anything done is not a concern as its been fixed, but it should give an idea of whether its been fine, had a few problems early on and been fine since or has (and will continue to) given continuous trouble.

As far as wheels are concerned, it all depends on what you want from ride, looks and handling. I think the 211 with the 17'' "5-twin spoke" alloys looks fantastic, and that's what pushed me into buying the car I did. Handling wise, yes it really handles, as much as a car that size and weight can anyway. My test is the sharp corner on the M621 going into Leeds. Most folk go round it at 65-70, the rear on my old elegance would start to wallow and sway at anything over 80. This one is rock solid at 90.

The downside is as you thought. The 17'' wheels from the factory have a requirement of "Sports Suspension". As I understand it, this is a bit stiffer than the avantgarde setup so a lot stiffer than the elegance. Coupled with thinner tyre walls and yes, the ride is harsher and a a little bit noisier. That said, it still soaks up the bumps and is fairly quiet. Compared to the Elegance it's quite firm, though compared to most other cars on the road, I'd say the ride is still better, possibly due to the longer wheelbase. The other downside is the cost of the tyres. Probably another £100 or so per set and, whilst I can't comment on the 320, my lesser powered 270 appears to eat rears. I expect to see around 20k out of them and most of that is motorway driving. Fronts are good for 40k though.

Whether I would have another with this set-up I don't know. I previously had an E240 elegance so my 'sports' diesel is a completely different animal in terms of noise and refinement but if I switched back, I would miss the looks and the handling.

It's daft, but one of the reasons I changed was because my old E class was starting to look old and dowdy. Yet I see similar age E's that still look great and the only real difference is that they tend to be avantgardes with shiny 17'' alloys.

Take both out for a decent test and see what you think.

 

[pb33]

I have a 2004 E320CDI W211 Avantgarde Estate with 17inch alloys. The car looks a lot more aggressive and is really quite striking. A number of friends have commented on the lowered suspension. I think its just stops short of "pimp my ride".

The ride is still very smooth and it handles bumps in the road just fine. I'd say the setup is at least partially responsible for the "smile factor" of driving the car.

I do feel quite low down in traffic and my wife comments on it being a bit too "sporty" for her tastes.

17inch plus sports suspension might cause difficulty when towing large loads??? No experience of this, but mine does have a towbar from the previous owner.

Paul

 

[benzo]

Thanks for the quick replies . It's an E320cdi Elegance with upgraded 17" alloys. Does that mean it won't have the stiffer suspension?

What's the fuel consumption and acceleration like on both your cars? I tend not to believe the optimistic figures quoted by the manufacturers.

Reason I am going for a larger engine; It will be replacing my 2001 Volvo S60 2.0T. I also have a 2000 W202 C180 and the difference is clear when I (need to) put the pedal down, the acceleration of the C180 is almost frustrating when compared to the Volvo.

 

[jberks]

The 'upgrade' is normally a factory option so it will probably have it. Have a look at the on line price list on the MB site for clairification. If you can get the vin number, you can check http://www.mbclub.ru/mb/vin/index.html
The item you are looking for is is something like 403 (I've lost my price list so can't check)

Performance wise, mine is a 270 so 35 or so BHP less than the 320. Floored off the line she's a rocket. Once running the performance certainly matches the quoted figures but as with all CDIs it all depends how you hit the turbo curve. When 'in the zone' performance is impressive, it's just that it doesn't last as long as a petrol engine so you get the performance big dollops rather than a constant surge. So, sometimes, if the revs are below 1200 or so, it can feel a bit sluggish for a moment whilst it builds up, and taking off from a slip road you can surge forward on kick down, followed by a moment or so's wait after the gear change before the next dollop arrives.
As a result, a 0-60 time of 8 seconds is really 3 seconds of bugger all and 5 seconds of ferrari like acceleration!

Where they really come into their own is the low down torque. I travel daily over the pennines and climbing the hills, especially after a 40mph wait behind a truck, whilst to be honest most things can stay with me, the difference is that they have all dropped a couple of gears to keep up whilst I'm still sitting in 5th. There is a real pleasure in just squeazing the pedal at 70 and watching the needle sweep up the speedo instantly without the need for kick down.

Having driven a couple of 320s I can say they are simply the same thing amplified. 50-80 acceleration becomes almost instantanious and totally effortless.

Fuel consumption is always a hard one. I do around 24 miles heavy stop-go traffic and 65 miles of motorway driving each day. The motorway speeds range from 0 to 60 to 90 roughly. Add in a few trips to the supermarket and ferrying the kids and my overall average is just short of 36. The trip tends to read 42 on the way in and 37 on the way home each day. Round town I have seen 23 and on a long run 48 (not achieved 50 yet). It seems to be improving slightly as the miles pile on. I found the 320 to be around 3mpg lower.

 

[OlafMaxwell]

I must admit I have Avantgarde with standard suspension and 16" alloys, special request and better for bad roads.

As for mileage, having 113k and looking at all the problems my worst time was between 60 and 75k. At 102k all of the problems should have been fixed. budget for wear and tear items, drop links [life 25-50k], MAF [life not much over 70-90k], ball joints [no more than 100k] air con condenser radiator [60-70k], glow plugs [50-60k]. Check the history well, it should be ok. Personally I would go for the higher milage as a lower milegae is more expensive and has a higher risk.

 

[Blobcat]

I agree with jberks and OlafMaxwell's comments.
My 320 came with AMG 18" wheels which I changed for the standard AG 16". They look good to me and the increased comfort and lower price of new hoops is why I changed.
As for the 320 engine I really love mine . It is running better at 107K than in did at 17k. Fuel economy average is 36.5 although the trip computer has even shown 49.5 for a 300 mile journey . (Mailnly due to setting the cruise and not braking). As noted by others if you are looking at a Euro 4 model the fuel economy is generally not as good as the older ones.

 

[benzo]

Hello folks,

Unfortunately, I lost out on the E320cdi. Someone else bought it before me -I guess I was too busy asking questions

Have now set my sights on an E270cdi. Same kind of mileage with FMBsh.

It's an avantgarde with SatNav, but I want a car that has split folding rear seats , for the ocassional akwardly sized baggage.

I have not seen it yet, but the dealer says it has a ski hatch but can not see any split in the seats.

I took the VIN and searched on the Russian forum (http://www.mbclub.ru/mb/vin/?lng=eng), came up with the following. Odd thing is that it does not mention the SatNav or ski hatch, so not sure how accurate it is...

Details below -sorry for the long winded post....


VIN WDB2**********
Plant 50
Model E 270 CDI
Chassis 2*********
Engine 6****************
Transmission 72***************
Tyres
Primary MICHELIN
Order ***************
Delivery date 20.03.03
Dealer Great Britain (537)
Interior leather "nappa" pacific blue (842)
Paint
353 light blue metallic (с 1978)
Options
M27 capacity 2,7 litre (с 19.01.1996)
U36 Unknown code
053 aej. 02/2 (с 22.09.1997)
249 automatically dipping inside rear view mirror (с 01.06.1990)
280 steering wheel (400 mm dia.) and gearshift lever in leather trim; on W202 390 mm dia. (с 01.05.1984)
423 5 speed automatic transmission / nag (с 01.03.1994)
461 instrument with mileage reading and english lettering (с 01.04.1990)
500 outside rear view mirror left and right, folding (с 01.10.1993)
525 Unknown code
543 sun visor with vanity mirror, illuminated, left and right (с 01.11.1978)
551 anti-theft/anti-break-in warning system with anti-towing system (с 01.04.1998)
600 headlamp wiper/washer (с 01.08.1971)
618 halogen lamp unit with high beam/low beam/fog light (r.h. traffic) (с 01.04.1970)
668
672 5-star light alloy wheels 7,5x17 (с 01.04.1997)
690 blue heat-insulating glass all round, rear window (laminated safety glass) (с 01.10.1995)
803 Change of year of model, last figure shows new model year
819 CD changer - alpine - in trunk (с 31.07.1992)
882 passenger compartment protection/towing-off protection (with anti-theft warning system only) (с 01.07.1993)
910 14V/65A alternator
alternator with increased capacity (с 01.11.1990)
915 fuel tank, 70 liter (с 01.05.1988)
954 equipment package for avantgarde vehicles (с 01.06.1993)
rotating emergeny flasher, front (red light)
984 elimination of ownership certificate but with coc papers (с 01.06.1993)
989 identification label under windshield (с 01.10.1997)

 

[jberks]

I believe there are 2 pages - one is the summary which appears to be what you have there,, but there is also a link to a more detailed one.