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Just a reminder that the MB chat is on tonight (6-7pm Pacific/9-10 pm Eastern). Hope to see you there!
http://www.edmunds.com/townhall/chat/mercedeschat.html
I found a set on the net fairly cheap - but little information about them. Are they durable, and do they look good?
Incidentally when I went to the U.S GP in Indianapolis a green ML400 went by me on the Interstate, that is the second one I have seen on the road, I have noticed the engine has something like a high turbo whine, sounds very strong.
Are you serious? I thought it couldn't survive on our fuel??
Drool....
Birger is in Belgium. They can get it there :-)
Thanks for the pointer towards the M-Class Mailing List. I should go there and see what else I have been missing!
Jamie
I am sorry to hear that the window switch problem exists on the 2001 models as well. Maybe the 2002's will be different since I believe that they will have windows with the One-Step up and down feature.
John
Thanks for the tip on how you solved the MP3 problem. My friends too suggested that I purchase the Rio 500 along with a car kit. They know that I am mechanically challenged and that I would never even dream of trying to monkey around with any piece of electronic equipment!
Pox
Also, we have since replaced the '99 with a 2002 ML320 (M1, M2, Xenons, Bose, Sunroof) - Desert Silver/Java. Can't tell you how much we are enjoying this new vehicle. I can assure you as a long-time owner of the ML that the 2002 is several steps ahead of the '99. Many improvements that are apparent to the eyes (and ears) and many under the skin. Since this is my wife's car, she has the final say and is really pleased. Happy to offer any insight to anyone interested.
I'll also add that we were ready to cross-shop the ML, although we really liked the vehicle. MB and our prior dealer kept the monkey on our backs w.r.t. getting through the hassle of dealing with the manufacturing defect shown in the pictures I plan to post. We let them know that we understood the problem to be an anomoly and only wanted MB to provide assurance (via letter) that the vehicle was repaired to MB specs so we would not get dinged at resale/trade-in time. Quite an ordeal to get the letter, but my wife had lost confidence in the vehicle at that point.
Well, the final solution arrived in the form of a local dealer (and our former saleswoman). They made my wife "feel" important and treated her more than fairly on the trade-in. Also got the loaded 2002 for a great price. If anyone looking for an ML lives in or near Atlanta, I'd be happy to recommend this dealer/saleswoman.
Sorry for the lengthy post, but wanted to get this out. Any advice on posting pics of our bumper issues appreciated!
M
Don't miss the weekly MB Tuesdays chat at 6-7pm Pacific/9-10pm Eastern! All MB fans/enthusists/owners/potential owners are welcome to participate. Hope to see you there!
Click on the link below to enter the chat at the times above. Note that the link to the chat is always near the top of this page, just under the discussion topic title:
http://www.edmunds.com/townhall/chat/mercedeschat.html
Neicey
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
Rather reluctantly, I handed back the ML400CDI this morning (well, I didn't care too much about the color (designo cognac!)) after a longish test drive of some 135 miles.
My impressions are still a little mixed: Yesterday I wasn't overly impressed, but then ten miles isn't really enough to assess a vehicle.
The new HVAC system is a DEFINITE improvement over the preceding year's, but the chrome rings on the dials are IMHO a little too much.
The Bi-Xenons give a very impressive output - unfortunately the factory adjustment results in a nearly unuseable low beam, and adjustment requires tools I didn't have handy last night. On high beam, however, night driving is a true pleasure.
I've been used to big mirrors on my last four vehicles, and thus find the downsized ones on the 2002 ML's a drawback - and I didn't not any significant improvement in wind noise. But the auto function on the RH mirror when reversing is very neat.
The most significant difference between my present truck and this one is of course the engine. And boy, it's nice! It's also expensive, of course - but it might be worth it. Power, as much as you could reasonably wish for, anytime, and without much fuss. The way those two tons can transit from a 90 mph cruise to a quick pass at 110/115 mph has to be experienced.
The pleasant thing is that once you have digested the initial shock of some US$ 11,000, the added power doesn't eat you out of the house. Of course, fuel consumption figures on such short a drive with an engine only 1,000 miles old are not definitive, but considering that I was cruising at around 90 mph and could not resist some brief excursions beyond that (and some pedal-to-the-metal starts) I found that using 26.71 litres of diesel over 211.2 kilometres (in euro-speak 12.65 l/100 km) can be considered more than reasonable. Yet, last weekend driving back from Italy in the ML270CDI with now nearly 15K miles, restraining the speed to no more (but not much less either) than 80 mph, I got a mileage of 9,2 l/100 km. But then that wasn't much fun either ;-)
And the fuel gauge returned to normal sometime during the drive ;-)
I still really miss steering-wheel mounted radio controls, and didn't find that the new high-mounted tweeters made a a vast improvement to the sound, but these are details.
Now, do I go for it? I don't know - delivery will in any case not be until May/June 2002. Before deciding, I'll see if I can get a test drive in the X5 with the three-litre I-6 diesel, which is quite a bit less expensive - but also less powerful, spacious etc. Food for thought.....
Enjoy your day,
Birger
BTW: I don't quite get it why you should not be able to get the MB CDI's in the US or Canada. While the general diesel quality level in Europe might be better, we certainly also have variations, and nothing - also not the instruction manual - warns about this. Also, there is now arning about i.e. going to Eastern Europe, where diesel fuel is (literally!) dirt cheap. I suspect something political behind this - maybe Wolfgang, who seems to have vast information sources, can tell more?
A solution to MP3 playback is the Duo Digisette. It's a tape shaped MP3 player that works as a stand alone player AND it can be slipped into the tape deck to listen to the MP3 songs stored on the player. All the functions of the cassette deck would still work. I don't have the player, but it seems like a very logical solution to the MP3 compatibility question. JAT
Dave
Dave
Also - my dealer used Castrol synthetic - not Mobil 1
collection of some diesel fuel links etc
Wolfgang
http://community.webshots.com/album/23386394QQdHRPXosr
Hope this helps!
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
Thanks for the information on running a wire through the MCS. I probably should just purchase a Rio 500 with a car adapter and see how it works.
Pox
Thankfully the factory is only about a 4 hour drive for me so I will be able to go again if and when it opens back up to the public.
Also received word that in fact my new ML was built today! Happy Birthday! Wednesday is a good day right? Heard Mon's and Friday's are bad days for builds.
Now that takes me two the second part, that is P poor craftmanship, a weld can look good but be faulty, there are tests available, X rays and stress, but they are costly and slow and are usually reserved for critical aspects, like pressure wessels, aviation etc. A bad welder can pass a lot of bad work before he is detected in some cases, I will not speculate on that. I know that Mercedes does not make the frame but it subs it out, someone correct me on that if I am wrong, Drew? but I visited the assembly line twice and that is what I remember, could easely be a case of a subcontractor passing bad conponents, happens everyday, I did have my reservations about this U.S built ML business, but what the heck, is nothing that we can do about, standarts are falling every day everywhere, schools, hospitals, industry, art, morals, you name it.
Regardless as to who did the boo boo, the general is the one accountable for losing the battle, no one acuses the soldier on the trench, he should have seen to it, likewise MB should clamp down on this and they are ultimately responsible. Again this are dissapointing pictures, I am glad things resolved favorably.
Andrew
Since they know that they are obligated to have parts available on-time and in-sequence, Ogihara tries to keep a day's worth of parts at its plant ready to be transported to MBUSI at any given time. Apparently Ogihara had originally planned to expand its operations and attract other automakers' business but supplying MBUSI has consumed all of its capacity.
Sounds to me like this case may be just a fluke. First time I have ever heard of it since the M-class came out! I do know that the ML's frame is specially heat treated for strength, and hence normal welding is not allowed as it changes the strength of the frame. The techs are taught what to do and how to do any alterations, and the limitations that they have.
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
:-)
Kidding, obviously - great to hear it's ready and waiting! Wish I was only 4 hours from the factory... I'd *love* to have that tour sometime.
This has been the subject of much debate with my vehicle - the fact that I was told delivery would be pushed off a couple of weeks by the WTC attacks, and still don't have a firm date for either build or delivery.
I originally was told beginning of November; it was pushed off to Thanksgiving. No exact dates though.
I'm wondering if I should expect a solid date some time soon, or if I'm just going to get a call to come down and pick up my car.
Drew
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Vans, SUVs, and Aftermarket & Accessories message boards
What was the built date of your ML? My SA is telling me that my ML's built date was 8/00 and that it already has the updated fuel pump. He said that all ML's built after 5/00 has the newer fuel pump. He said the stall must have been caused by something else and they will solve the problem when I bring it in. Is this true? Does anyone know when the new fuel pumps made it's way into the ML? Drew? Thanks.
Dave
Here's a link.
Steve
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Vans, SUVs and Aftermarket & Accessories Message Boards
Glad MB stepped up to the plate on that one. I would have felt the same way your wife did.
What's the build date on it? Just wondering if others on that date were affected.
johnnyc:
You should have a production# when they booked your order. With that #, you can check on the build date. Your salesman should have called you one month before the build date to confirm your options. At the one month point, it will have a build date and you can't change options. At this point, you will also have a VIN assigned.
What I'm hoping is that Everest is the color that you see on so many of both the previous generation Acura Legends. Just a deep black-green, with little metallic to interfere.
Info, anyone?
Also, I'm the one the dealer told to start using 87 octane fuel to manage the hesitation caused by the anti-knock sensor software- Who would've guessed, but it actually DOES WORK! If I were planning to keep the car past a couple years, I'd be pissed about using the lesser-quality fuel and damage to engine components, but since not, it's cheaper and it works. Go figure-it would still be nice if MB could actually fix the inherent problem and not have to resort to that kind of ridiculous recommendation.
Thanks.
The gasoline companies do their best to confuse you, calling one 'premium' and the other 'regular' (for those not native to the US, that's 93 and 87 octane, respectively).
Octane isn't a measure of quality in a fuel. Granted - some gas formulations come with extra 'detergents' in the premium gasoline to merit calling it that - but it's not an indication of how clean the gasoline is. It's a measure of just how effectively it will resist detonation.
Detonation is the enemy in a gasoline combustion engine. Basically - you've got an additional explosion happening within the cylinder - one being the expected one, coming from your spark plug - and the other, being detonation occurring from the gasoline and air mixture becoming unstable and catching fire. Octane measures just how resistant the fuel is to catching fire this way. The pings you hear are detonation.
No measure of gasoline quality there. Many car manufacturers design their cars to run on regular gasoline, 87 octane or equivalent, and if yours runs there without detonation, that's where you should run it.
As far as the date given to me. On 8/31/01 my dealer faxed to me a "Factory Delivery Summary" which gave all the personal details of who was going to actually be at the factory during delivery. My address, travel info etc. It also shows the "off line date" and delivery schedule which includes the tour, off road experience and handover time. This form also came with a "Factory Tour Guidelines" sheet which is now obsolute b/c of the shutdown.
I believe you're getting the run around. As mentioned before our vehicles are identical (which includes bose/M7) and there is no delay with that as of today.
Thanks
Does anybody know if it is feasible, having failed to order option package M2, to add the trip computer / power folding mirrors combination in the aftermarket, or by MB service dept.?
I would love to add the option to our '02 ML320, if possible.
Drew? Wolfgang?
Any suggestions would be greatly appreciated.
-- Gustav