Team-BHP - New E350 4Matic
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-   -   New E350 4Matic (https://www.team-bhp.com/forum/international-automotive-scene/22816-new-e350-4matic.html)

We got our 2007 W211 E350 4Matic this past weekend. As some of you may know this was a replacement for the 3 month old E60 530xi that met its early demise due to a puddle. I was never thrilled with getting the E as a replacement espescially since I see quality issues with the new MBs barring the W221 and also the E being in the last leg of it's model life cycle but there was nothing else out there that fit our requirements or budget and we were'nt getting another 5 series because of some bad BMW customer service.

But when the E arrived, I was pleasently surprised. The overall build quality rivaled the 5 Series and it was more attractive espescially with the late 06 updates and the package we ordered made it stand out more. I will post pictures when I have time to take some this weekend and also document my driving impressions. For now - here is a teaser on the specs:

MB E350 4Matic

3.5L V6
268 HP / 258 Lb-Ft of Torque

Pewter Metallic Exterior
Cashmere Leather Interior with Black Birdseye Maple Trim

333 Sport Package - Lowered Suspension / 18" 10 Twin Spoke Wheels / Side Skirts / Sport Bumper / Dual Chrome Exhaust / Blue Tints / White Gauges and Matte Chrome Cluster. / Low Profile Continental Tires / Chrome Body Exhausts.

Wood / Leather Steering Wheel
Bluetooth
DVD COMAND Navigation
Sat. Radio
Heated Front Seats
Power Rear Window Shade

Alright - More to come later.

-vcash

Congratulation on the new ride, i somehow find the E better looking than the 5 myself. would love to hear more, how much did it run you..

Congrats on ur new possession dude. Do update the post with pics et al.

All wheel drive? I wasnt aware of that option being available? With the options you got, pricing in the S-Class territory?

Must be a rocket with that engine though.

GTO, The 4Matic option has been there in the E for a longtime now.
Just not in India.

@1Day / hmishra83 - Thanks - I will post pics and driving impressions this weekend. The car came to about 59K and change.

@GTO
The 4matic option is available for the C, E and S as well as all SUVs. Might be a US / Europe thing since we really don't need AWD in India / Asia.

We looked at the S but MBUSA only sell the S550 and the S63 in the US. The 550 with 4matic and some options that we wanted was working out to $100K plus which was too expensive. If they had the S450 at around $75K, we might have considered that but the way 550s are selling MB will not bring that model in till the Lexus LS460 starts cutting into sales which is a ways away. Between 60K and 75K the only other options were the A8, the 750Li and LS460 which are all great cars but the latter 2 are RWD and the A8 was for lack of a better word 'uninspiring'.

So the E350 fit the bill and another pleasent surprise was that the 333 Sport package was offered as a No cost Option! You could get the car with or without it and frankly that sweetened the deal - a comparable sport package on the Bimmer was about $4K.

The 3.5 V6 is pretty fast but not as agile and quick as the 530xi. Also I drove the E320 Bluetec Diesel and that is a torque monster!! The E550 with a 5.5L V8 was marginally more money and much more powerful, but we we'rent planning on any drag races anytime soon, so the 3.5L met our engine needs.

Dear friends, I have the 4matic tranny in my 1995 SL!!
how can 4 matic be construed as all wheel drive??
and this is surprising when they offer the 6 speed now?

[quote=vcash;405346]@@GTO
The 4matic option is available for the C, E and S as well as all SUVs. Might be a US / Europe thing since we really don't need AWD in India / Asia.
QUOTE]

Only LHD cars, not many takers in the RHD market so it was dropped. Was avaialble on w124 300

Quote:

Originally Posted by scooby05 (Post 405350)
Dear friends, I have the 4matic tranny in my 1995 SL!!
how can 4 matic be construed as all wheel drive??
and this is surprising when they offer the 6 speed now?

4MATIC (4 Wheel Drive and Automatic) is MB's AWD system. 4MATIC - Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia and http://www.mbusa.com/models/4matic_overview/index.do
I think you may be getting confused with some other MB terminology.

As for transmissions - the E350 4MATIC has a 5 speed Auto Tranny. the E350 comes without AWD comes with a 7 Speed.

@Ajmat - Thanks for the lesson on 4MATIC. I never knew that the 4MATIC was only available for LHD cars. This must make life difficult during heavy snow for our UK Brethren.

The Mercedes Benz 4Matic four-wheel drive system is very effective. It has a mechanical centre differential that can vary front-to-rear torque distribution. The 40% front and 60% rear bias makes the car feel like a rear-wheel drive car.
The system operates in conjunction with the Electronic Stability Program, standard on all Mercedes Benz vehicles. It uses an electronically controlled traction system called 4ETS to move power between the wheels. If one wheel loses grip, the system applies brake pulses to that wheel, and redirects power to the opposite wheel. If both rear wheels spin, the brake is applied to both wheels, and the power moves to the front axle. Up to three wheels can have brake pulses applied.
The premium to purchase 4Matic on a C-class car is $4450, and on an S-Class car it's $4100. The Mercedes Benz system either has no effect on fuel consumption, or adds a fuel penalty ranging between 0.1 and 0.9 L/100km, depending on the vehicle.
Mercedes Benz vehicles with 4Matic range from $42,900 - $122,550.

Source Courtesy: The Canadian Driver Review
All prices are in Canadian Dollars

Congrats on the new car.

Know that yours is the 4matic version[different gearbox] but is the 7G-TRONIC transmission as great as the reviews rate it as.

As for the folks in UK they have to rely on traction control.

I stand corrected for what I stated earlier!!
Sorry folks, a lil old,l so look at meanings that were prevalent in the 90s!!
but does it mean the ML is a 4matic?

Quote:

Originally Posted by scooby05 (Post 405428)
I stand corrected for what I stated earlier!!
Sorry folks, a lil old,l so look at meanings that were prevalent in the 90s!!
but does it mean the ML is a 4matic?

Our old ML 320 circa 1999 has 4MATIC as an option. Again - not sure if the RHD MLs have the AWD option or are RWD with 4WD option?

Ajmat - Care to field this one?

Scooby, the ML as i understand is a 4X4 which translates to not being permanant 4 wheel drive so cannot be termed as a 4Matic. If it is, then its an AWD like the Forrester. The problem here is that motor car companies have patented certain terms and as such the other companies cannot use them. 4Matic is a merc owned term or word as a logo as Quattro is used only used by Audi. I think your previously owned Sti would meet the norms and can be termed as a 4Matic but not legally. Take common rail diesel technology for instance. Hyundai cals it Crdi, Mahindras call it CrDe, Ford calls it Tdci, Mercedes calls it Cdi but they all mean the same using the same technology. Im my opinion the 4Matic = Permanant 4Wheel Drive. What the companies do is add different features like Hill Descent etc and change the power transfer ratios to the wheels and advertise their product as superior. But if one can change the power transfer from front/rear to four wheel as in the humble jeep it not a permanent 4 wheeler.
Phew! hope that helped.

Quote:

Originally Posted by V-16 (Post 405498)
I think your previously owned Sti would meet the norms and can be termed as a 4Matic but not legally.

It wouldn't be so because the WRX is not equipped with an automatic transmission.


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