Coming to a stop at the next light, both the Z28 driver and myself were left with little doubt of Mercedes's claim that the E320 CDI could reach 0-100 km/h in 7.0 seconds, one third of a second faster than the current E320 gasoline engine model.
Highway driving was effortless, with the low-revving engine just ambling along and with a squeeze of my right foot the wealth of torque had the car at illicit speeds post haste. Not very "diesel-like", I might add.
What's Mercedes's secret? Well, the turbo-charger helps, but the real answer to the demystification of this particularly powerful diesel is in that unpretentious CDI badge. CDI stands for Common-rail Diesel Injection, the state-of-the-art fuel delivery system that promotes smoother, cleaner and quieter diesel operation that's popping up in all kinds of European-only cars.
CDI is partly responsible for the minimal glow plug warm-up time. It accomplishes this by injecting a small amount of diesel into each cylinder before the main charge is sent through a high-pressure delivery system. This initiates the fuel burn cycle so that when the main charge is ignited, the action inside the combustion chamber is more progressive, making for a more thorough burning of the diesel fuel, less noise and vibration, and ultimately, shocked muscle-car owners at stoplights.
Technical details aside, what matters most is that this gee-whiz fuel delivery system aligned with the variable-rate turbo-charger allows the 3.2-litre DOHC 24-valve inline-6 diesel engine to produce a whopping 369 pound-feet of torque. That's more torque than such sporty cars as a Ferrari 360 Modena, or a Mustang GT.
With a relatively low horsepower rating of only 201, the E320 CDI is a reminder that the tug of torque is as important to acceleration times as out-and-out horsepower.
Nice (very nice!) numbers for a performance car, but you're probably been patiently reading this article to hear about the fuel efficiency and cruising range. Compared to the E320's gasoline engine fuel economy, Transport Canada's test numbers claim the E320 CDI's city mileage improves by 40 per cent (8.7 L/100kms) and highway mileage by 27 per cent improvement (6.4 L/100kms).
At optimum conditions, Mercedes claims a 1,129 km range per fill up, which means you'll have to stop before the E320 CDI does.
Mercedes is asking for a $2,350 premium over its gas model with the E320 CDI's $74,400 base price. Depending on the amount of kilometres you drive, and the cost of diesel in your area, you'll have to figure out how long it takes for you get your initial investment back. As far as diesel sedan alternatives go, Volkswagen has just launched it's Passat 2.0 TDI, but its performance, features and price ($31,450), aren't really in the Benz's league.
Of course, your mileage may differ, blah-de-blah, however, I recorded 10.6 L/100kms during the week I had the car, which is almost a 40 per cent improvement over an E500 V-8 wagon I recently drove that had 60 less pound-feet of torque.
Mercedes is hinting that this is only the start of more diesels in their line-up. Imagine this engine in the new ML Class SUV, or an E Class wagon?
Highway driving was effortless, with the low-revving engine just ambling along and with a squeeze of my right foot the wealth of torque had the car at illicit speeds post haste. Not very "diesel-like", I might add.
What's Mercedes's secret? Well, the turbo-charger helps, but the real answer to the demystification of this particularly powerful diesel is in that unpretentious CDI badge. CDI stands for Common-rail Diesel Injection, the state-of-the-art fuel delivery system that promotes smoother, cleaner and quieter diesel operation that's popping up in all kinds of European-only cars.
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Technical details aside, what matters most is that this gee-whiz fuel delivery system aligned with the variable-rate turbo-charger allows the 3.2-litre DOHC 24-valve inline-6 diesel engine to produce a whopping 369 pound-feet of torque. That's more torque than such sporty cars as a Ferrari 360 Modena, or a Mustang GT.
 |
Nice (very nice!) numbers for a performance car, but you're probably been patiently reading this article to hear about the fuel efficiency and cruising range. Compared to the E320's gasoline engine fuel economy, Transport Canada's test numbers claim the E320 CDI's city mileage improves by 40 per cent (8.7 L/100kms) and highway mileage by 27 per cent improvement (6.4 L/100kms).
At optimum conditions, Mercedes claims a 1,129 km range per fill up, which means you'll have to stop before the E320 CDI does.
Mercedes is asking for a $2,350 premium over its gas model with the E320 CDI's $74,400 base price. Depending on the amount of kilometres you drive, and the cost of diesel in your area, you'll have to figure out how long it takes for you get your initial investment back. As far as diesel sedan alternatives go, Volkswagen has just launched it's Passat 2.0 TDI, but its performance, features and price ($31,450), aren't really in the Benz's league.
 |
Mercedes is hinting that this is only the start of more diesels in their line-up. Imagine this engine in the new ML Class SUV, or an E Class wagon?