W124 E220 vs E320 MPG,much difference??

Waft

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1993 E220 Sportline Coupe
Hi!

Well,I ask this question fully aware that a 6 pot will use more fuel than the 4.
I wanted to ask the owners here,who have experience of the 2.2 and 3.2 cars,how much difference there is all told.

I do about 300 miles minimum per week.I'm in South Lincolnshire which is flatter than Holland after a firm ironing.
I tend to drive respectfully and only give my cars any sort of throttle once a week.I use A roads and don't get snarled up in any kind of town traffic,in general.

The car feels like a 6 pot car with a 4 pot in her.I bought her expecting good-ish mpg for the size of the car as I'd done my homework.I was stunned to be getting 33 mpg combined and on a run....43 + mpg.

I have only managed to find one piece of information on the web from an owner saying he'd reguarly see 32 mpg from his E320 Coupe.Is this true? As I'd like to have a car which pulls the weight so I give less throttle.Am I kidding myself with this theory? I know many have tried it :D

Over to you and thanks!

Steve:)
 

kth286

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E320 Coupe 95
the 124 brochure states for 4 speed auto on the 56 mph cycle as follows:-

E220 coupe 40.4 mpg

E320 coupe 31.7 mpg

I achieve that 320 fig
 
OP
Waft

Waft

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.

Thanks David!

I think not,in that case.

I've come to the conclusion today that,to get more weight/power balance,the only way is LPG.

Mine will be in the For Sale section shortly,and is on Mercedes Finder now.

Won't be budging on price though of £1900,as she is very tidy.

Steve:)
 

Bolide

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A 320 will easily see 30+ mpg on a run if you're sympathetic. However I'd expect low twenties or high teens in London traffic with the a/c on

But, then again, any petrol car with six cylinders will give poor mpg in London traffic

Nick Froome
 

EmilysDad

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ML350
I wouldn't necessarily say that a 6 pot engine uses more fuel than a 4 pot if they are in the same body. A 4 pot is going to be working far harder than the pot so could easily use (nearly) as much fuel as the bigger engined car.
 

television

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On the earlier 300TE I got 25ish where a friend with a 230 got the same, this was an average figure
 

d215yq

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1987 W124 300D 280k miles
I've found the 220 lump to be exceptionally efficient for what it is. In my coupe it was more efficient than in the estate (aerodynamics/weight i guess) and 40mpg+ really was possible regularly on a run, even in the estate and up hills/getting caught in queues and fully loaded it has never returned less than 31mpg brim to brim, and 35 is quite normal on runs.

Whilst not overly powerful, the 220 lump doesn't struggle or work hard to pull the car about (under gentle acceleration its in 4th at below 30mph/1350rpm and pulls acceptably!!), so a 320 will use more fuel, as per the figures, unless perhaps you are thrashing it everywhere which the OP doesn't seem to be doing to achieve the figures!! It also has bigger wiring loom issues.

The 4th gear could be longer for economy/refinement but as far as I know the ratios are the same with the 320 anyway (4sp), although if it's the 320 5 speed (5sp not available with e220) the extra ratio may reduce the economy gap significantly at motorway speeds?? I think I read on here that the 5 speed box was more problematic than the 4 speed though.
 
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hotrodder

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The 6 pots are higher geared but it's more a case of taller final drive i.e. 4th gear is 1:1 on all of the autos. The 5 speed autos (later 6 pots only) have a shorter final drive but the overdrive 5th means they sit a few hundred rpm lower than the 4 speed models

Not owned a 220 but FWIW i've had a 230 (obviously more basic engine management) and 320, while i've seen 30ish* from the 320 on a run i typically get mid 20s mpg overall and i don't recall getting anymore than that from the 230 although that says more about how i drive 'em than anything (the 230 needed ragging and the 320 sounds nice when you exercise it properly)...

*don't pay enough attention to mpg to do better than 'ish'... 20, 30 or £40 at a time when the reserve light comes on and zero the trip
 
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OP
Waft

Waft

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LOL @ ragging and engine sounds.

I confess to having 6-envy,and clearly a 2 ton car is going to struggle with a 2.2.
The previous owner did say over 40mpg was possible with this car.
I'm just being greedy really,and wanting it all.
I had seen a fellow owner write that his could achieve over 30mpg on a run and got too excited me thinks.

Mind you,it's doing just this kind of homework which got me a £450 Coupe,which detailed up a treat,and is of course a hell of a car for the money.

I must add,that my previous two cars ( a Saab 900 Turbo and my Lancia Thema Turbo) sadly didn't prove such trouble free as this beauty.
I know I know,what do you expect with a Lancia.
Well,those who love them will put up with their foibles.
And sadly,the 900 Turbo wasn't a Classic shape,but was the red top pre-GM car.Everything which is prone to going wrong did,and by the time I'd replaced it,had also lost heart.

So,I feel back on track with this car,as I had 5 Audi in a row before that.Now they were nearly as splendid as this car.

Thanks everyone for your help,as ever :D

Steve;)
 
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d215yq

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1987 W124 300D 280k miles
It's not a 2 ton car! It's around 1400kg, or in other words 100kg less than a brand new diesel golf. If your coupe is great i wouldn't worry too much about it not being a "6". You've still got a lovely car and everytime you drive it instead of a 6 you're winning in the fuel economy, insurance, reliability and possibly fine saving stakes.
 

grober

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Overall MPG's in my 220 coupe I found were around 27-28 MPG overall up to 33-34 MPG high speed cruising and down to 22- 23 MPG in short town journeys----- leading me to conclude gentle cruising would lead to consumption in the high 30's I would expect the sixes to be a couple of mpg's down on these figures. These are consumption figures I would expect driving the car in an enjoyable fashion---- they could always be bettered of course by very gentle use of the loud pedal --- but life's too short.;)
 
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teddycatkin

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W107-SL W124-220te W123-230e W201 2.0
Overall MPG's in my 220 coupe I found were around 27-28 MPG overall up to 33-34 MPG high speed cruising and down to 22- 23 MPG in short town journeys----- leading me to conclude gentle cruising would lead to consumption in the high 30's I would expect the sixes to be a couple of mpg's down on these figures. These are consumption figures I would expect driving the car in an enjoyable fashion---- they could always be bettered of course by very gentle use of the loud pedal --- but life's too short.;)

I get similar figures from 220Te--on a long run keeping to legal speed limits its not far from 40mpg ---but nowadays with everything in Euro ( ltrs ) its hard to work out ---Anyone know why we have all the pumps serving fuel like this --we drive on the right use MPH on the road signs judge fuel in MPG and are supposed to be in GB ?---lost the plot if you ask me.:mad:
 

syncropaddy

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.... too many cars!
I rarely get less than 35 mpg and regularly crack 40 mpg out of my E220 Saloon. I dont drive it in traffic cuz I use the train when I go up to the 'city' !!
 

eyelight

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My wife had a 1994 E220 Coupe, and I had a 1994 E280 estate a few years ago.
There's no comparison in the fuel consumption stakes.
We regularly drive to Ireland.
The E220 would go from Henley on Thames to Holyhead, which is 275 miles, a day or two driving around Dublin, and then all the way to Mitchelstown, County Cork, before needing to fill up again. About 450 miles I think.
The E280 never made it to Holyhead before needing petrol.

Yes, the 220 is a bit anaemic in such a car, and it didn't like getting near 80 on the motorway. Could have used a 5th gear. But far more economical than it looks.
And far more reliable than my lemon of a 280.
 

ShivaYash

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S124 1994 E200 (M111 engine), S123 1983 230TE (M102)
A 320 will easily see 30+ mpg on a run if you're sympathetic. However I'd expect low twenties or high teens in London traffic with the a/c on

But, then again, any petrol car with six cylinders will give poor mpg in London traffic

Nick Froome

Am I doing something wrong, or did I buy a lemon? I have a S124 E200 and on a run, London to Cranbrook, plus driving around, and return, I managed only 27 mpg. I drive normally with the a/c on in EC mode. The boot was loaded with our things but nothing out of the ordinary and by that I mean, heavy. Tyre pressure is correct, filled with Nitrogen gas instead of regular compressed air. Running Michele Energy Savers on 195s. I fitted a new thermostat about two months ago and this has improved things. Any other ideas? Its due an A service in April '13.
 

grober

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W204 C200cdi estate
Is your self levelling rear suspension working OK. Car body attitude is quite important in high speed cruising as a "nose up" attitude will cause some loss aerodynamic efficiency. Has your car still got its plastic engine undertray? Lots of older cars have lost these over the years and can again have a marked effect on how " slippery" the car is. Aerodynamic/ fuel efficiency is often down an accumulative effect of several small details but when added together can make a big difference--- say 5mpg. The older single cam 2 litre M102 engine is slightly less efficient than the later M111 twin cam engines-- not sure which you have?
 

sbryantgb

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1989 230CE, 1995 E320C
I don't know what my 320 does per gallon. But I average 4 miles/£ using mainly Shell vpower.
 

gizze

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I don't know what my 320 does per gallon. But I average 4 miles/£ using mainly Shell vpower.

About 26mpg then.

Do you put more than a pound in each time? Just wondering how you came up with 4miles/£? :D
 

sbryantgb

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I usually put in 40 quid at first flicker on the low fuel warning and reset the odometer to zero. Which usually gives me about 160 miles until the light comes back on. 40/160 =4 miles to the pound
 
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