Mercedes E 220 CDI

[Brian_374476317]

I have been towing for years but always with a big 4x4. Now my annual mileage (28,000) dictates that I need to make some economies re fuel efficiency. have been looking for good Merc E320 or E280 but no luck. have now been offered a new (Old Model) E220. Good deal but will it tow a Coachman 520/4 very well its a heavy van!

Brian A

 

[jmg12]

yes i would think the e220 would be up to the job I know a friend that used to tow their coachman vip with a 1998 e200 if thats any help think their coachman was a 2 berth though about a 2001 i think

 

[Martin24]

Your 520 is probably not far different in weight to our 560/6 and when we were looking to come away from a 4x4 we looked at the mercs and decided it had to be the 320 est for weight and power. The 220 is a nice car but hang on for the 320 if that's what you want. We actually ended up staying with a 4x4 as we never go on sites except CLs CSs and rallyfields

 

[DomDom]

Having had several E class estates I would suggest you might do better to find a late E270. The older engines are more frugal but still have massive torque.

The newer V6 diesels are quite a bit more thirsty for not a lot of torque gain, just more BHP.

Avoid the 4 cylinder engines of all age for such a heavy van. They're fine on the flat but getting up to speed or up hills is a noisy and unpleasant experience. (unless you have the patience of a saint)

Also, the earlier engines had a 5 speed auto compared to the new ones having the 7 speed. 7 gears sounds better but in practice the car is never in the right gear at the right time.

My E270 returned over 40mpg solo and about 30 towing. The E320 V6 CDI was about 25% less. The E500 V8 petrol was unspeakably bad when towing, (12ish to the gallon) although a damn fine machine when solo.

Hope this helps.

 

[T_5064313]

We now use an 08 320CDI E class estate to tow our Lunar Lexon EB (soon to be a Lunar Clubman SE) and find the car tows brilliantly. 7 auto gears pose no problem and it cruises down M-ways and autoroutes effortlessly, and inclines or hills are dealt with easily. It only does about 24 mpg towing, and can do 40 mpg solo, but it's more like 30 mpg on a daily commute.

We tried a 220 CDI estate but felt it wouldn't provide the pulling power we required.

 

[anotherDavid]

I am towing a 1600Kg Fendt with an E280 CDI Estate and have had the same experiance as "T" with his slightly more powerfull E320 version.I dont get much more than 25mpg towing and mid 30s solo but its a super car and with the rear seats down the carrying capacity is enormous.

Dave

 

[John_374480058]

I am towing a 1600Kg Fendt with an E280 CDI Estate and have had the same experiance as "T" with his slightly more powerfull E320 version.I dont get much more than 25mpg towing and mid 30s solo but its a super car and with the rear seats down the carrying capacity is enormous.

Dave

Just got rid of my 2006 C220 CDI estate which I used for towing a Bailey Senator Arizona. Although the car coped OK the biggest problem by far was how low it was on uneven ground. Mine was an Avante Garde which is 35mm lower than normal so avaiod at all costs. New car is and XC90 T5 and tows a dream, getting 27 -28 mpg.

 

[RayS]

Earlier this year I change my 8 year old ML 270 cdi for an E Class 220cdi auto - not the brand new model but the last of the previousrange. It has more hp and torque than the 270 although much lower weight. I tow a burstner S500 with 1500kg. overall weight, so dont get such a good "match".

just back from 2800 miles in France with 75% towing. The fuel economy was 10-15% better than the 270 when towing and 100% better when solo - showing nearly 50 mpg on some lesiurely touring days. It is a bit more affected by side winds than the ML but that's to be expected given the difference in weight. I miss the high seating position and was a little apprehensive on some of the all grass sites after rain but in practice had no trouble. interesting to see that the servicing schedule calls for regualr changes of auto box fluid and filter, whereas the similar gearbox on the ML was "sealed for life"

Touch wood, it seems to have been a good change. If you can get a van with say 1300kg all up weight it should be just the job.