35 mpg Mercedes S Class hybrid with 2.2L twin-turbo Bluetec 4 cylinder making 204 hp
By now, we have all come to realize that not all hybrids are created equal. Some hybrid drivetrains are designed to maximize fuel mileage, while some cater to the performance crowd. Hybrids are available or are being designed for everything from basic transportation to Sport Utility Vehicles and Luxury cars and even sports cars. So, I was not all that surprised to read that Mercedes has plans for a hybrid version of their range-topper, the S Class sedan. But, I found it a bit odd that the car was to use a small 2.2 liter four-cylinder engine. Now, this engine is a twin turbo Bluetec diesel, but still, the idea of a four cylinder extra large, extra heavy luxury sedan must be met with some surprise, right? Anyway, the drivetrain is apparently capable of hitting 35 miles per gallon, which is very good for a vehicle this size, and it should be capable of even better figures in the smaller E Class and C Class vehicles that will inherit the engine later as well. No word yet on whether these vehicles will make it over to the U.S. or what they will cost.
[Source: Motor Authority]
Reader Comments (Page 1 of 1)
Dave 6:06AM (10/03/2008)
Dont know about you US boys. Most new large Mercedes cars in Europe are sold as Company cars - 60-70% of the sales. As a user of a company car you are taxed by the value of the new car depending on country also on the size of the engine-weight of the car. European Union countries also cut your company car tax different percentages if the car is below a certain amount of emmissions or if its an "inviromental" car. Inviromental cars are at the moment below a certain co2 emission level, in some European countries Ethanol and or gas (not gasolene) cars are considered inviromental. Also a hybrids like the Prius and Lexus are in tax terms considered inviromental. Now lets say I have the S-class 300 gasolene version as a company car it would cost me about 1000 USD a month in company car tax at the moment. A hybrid version would cost me 40% less in tax at the moment! So I can definetly tell you I will be lining up to get a hybrid in the future because as a company car user my only expenses are the tax and fuel. Since gasolene and diesel are almost double or triple of wht you currently pay in the US You can easily use 500 USD a month just commuting ad this to the 1000 USD tax cost. So a car that cuts my tax by 40% and my fuel consumption by 50% while still being an executive car well I would get it.
The Eclass 2.2 estate hybrid due in late 2009-early 2010 coincides with my next car change. Cant wait....
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Phil L. 10:33AM (6/06/2007)
This vehicle is surely oriented toward European sensibilities - and tax structures that favor small engines. There simply isn't (yet) a market in the US for only-adequately-powered sedans in the Mercedes S-class price range.
And I suspect it will take more than $3 to $4 a gallon fuel to make this kind of vehicle popular in the States.
I'd like to see what improvements Mercedes could make in a diesel car like this with a "less mild" hybrid system.
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small-wee-wee 11:54AM (6/06/2007)
Benz knows their market pretty well. I am sure this drive train will deliver on performance.
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Guenther 10:43AM (6/06/2007)
The Authority article says this is a mild hybrid, not a proper parallel hybrid. While that's good for emissions, It has to be tough hauling a big, fat S-class around with that. I suppose in the executive service market this might be OK though.
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ThwartedEfforts 11:02AM (6/06/2007)
S-Class drivers have been enjoying 38mpg, a 600-mile tank range and 235hp/155mph performance of the car's exceptional diesel engine for almost a decade now. Seven in every ten buyers in Europe go for the oil-burner, so unless this strange 4-cyl hybrid offers something truly exceptional over the existing 'sensible option' -- who exactly is going to want one? It's not as though wealthy buyers on either side of the Atlantic have small-car fuel economy high up their list of priorities!
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MikeW 11:42AM (6/06/2007)
Mercedes doesn't even offer their direct injection 3.5 V6 here. (stupid sulfur)
When the fuel is ready (hopefully very soon) take that engine, the dual electric motor 'hybridized' 7g-tronic. Almost 300hp & almost 30mpg.
or DB could just offer the short wheelbase s-class with the 4.7 V8, and drop the price 10 grand. baby steps.
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Tman 12:02PM (6/06/2007)
The European S class 320cdi achieves 34mpg Imperial(28mpg US) with 235hp and more importantly for a heavy luxury car 398lbft of torque from 1600-2800rpms( more than a the 395lbft a Hemi can muster and at half the rpms)
This article excites me not because of the Hybrid idea, but because of the engine. 204hp from a 2.2L diesel is about 93hp/Liter very unusual for a diesel and the twin turbo suggests its a sequential turbo like that on the BMW 535d. We can estimate 290lbft of torque with this engine which can pull this large sedan without any troubles.
Judging from the fuel economy of 35mpg US from the single turbo 170hp version of this engine in the E-class, that 35mpg stated for the S-class should not be that far of for a slightly heavier S-class with start-stop("Mild hybrid" does not exist in my dictionary) function. This is just common sense. I would not be surprised if BMW follows up with a similar execution in the 7series. Mercedes does understand the Luxury car market more than any other automaker and this is proof of that.
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jshadows 3:11PM (6/06/2007)
Mercedes/Dodge Sprinter can go 80mph and tows somewhere north of 4000 lbs with a 2.7L CDI.
No surprise that the S-class hybrid can be respectable.
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Don 5:11PM (6/06/2007)
Again, what self respecting rich person is going to buy an S-Class with a 2.2-litre in it?
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Der Alte 5:35PM (6/06/2007)
This car will likely be popular with for events such as the G8 summit where heads of state can arrive and not look too hypocritical for arriving in a big luxury sedan and then go debating climate change.
As another poster put it....this car is more in line with European sensibilities. Americans just wouldn't get it.
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mikeinBuilding7 10:51PM (6/06/2007)
Hey, No. 8, 1960 is calling, they want their 2.2 liter engine back.
This is 2007 and 235 horsepower is STILL TWO HUNDRED AND THIRTY-FIVE HORSEPOWER, and what about the TORQUE from a Diesel. Time for you old folk to RECALIBRATE.
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Tman 3:29AM (6/09/2007)
Like has been stated before, a 2.2L engine with 204hp and nearly 300lbft of torque @ 2000rpms is good enough for this car if about 60% of current worldwide S-class sales is the 235hp 3.0l CDi.
This enigne makes perfect sense as it would raise the fuel economy of the worlds best selling luxury car even further.
Only Americans cannot understand the logic behind diesels their strength is not from hp, but from the more important torque that made Americans Say "there is no replacement for displacement" in the first place. Unfortunately that statement no longer holds true.
This is the 21st century and that replacement is a "turbo diesel" which gives the lower fuel consumption we need today.
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66coronet 4:38AM (6/22/2007)
Wow! 204hp from a 2.2Lcrd. Too bad they didn't list the torque. http://www.whnet.com/4x4/diesel.html
shows that it should be between 480Nm/354lb-ft & 500Nm/369lb-ft. That's better than a few 3.0Lcrd's.
The previous 2.2Lcrd ranged from 110hp-150-ish hp.
The next gen 2.2Lcrd OM651 in the C class is 170hp 295lb-ft. http://www.autoblog.com/2007/02/26/mercedes-unveils-four-cylinder-vision-c220-bluetec/
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66coronet 4:47AM (6/22/2007)
http://www.automotive.com/future-cars/90/0604-2008-mercedes-benz-s-class-bluetec-hybrid/index.html
This shows the S-class bluetec hybrid has a combined 243hp and 400+lb-ft.
0-60=7+sec.
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