[nikhil.nayak]

Here is the mileage we had from Mumbai to Pune and Mumbai to Hyderabd on our return leg. We left early afternoon so thankfully no traffic at all on the ghat section. But climbing on a steep uphill drive is still a decent load on any engine. The car handled the road with ease and made short work of the Mumbai Pune Expressway. Once again the car handled the highway near Solapur really well. Just soaked up the road like a magic carpet. Once we were past Umerga we had an absolutely fantastic ride back into Hyderabad. We gunned the engine one last time on the Ring Road before coasting home early in the wee hours of the morning.

Even with the hot summer sun overhead the car stayed nice and cool. An interesting note is that we have a senior dog who travels with us. With age his breath has become quite bad due to a gum infection etc. The separate climate control did a wonderful job of keeping all smells and odors very manageable. I haven't explored the options available with air fresheners etc but just based on that alone I have to say the climate control gets an absolute A plus!

[nikhil.nayak]

Visited the MB Silver Star Service Centre this afternoon to have a look at the Ground Clearance of the vehicle. Have to say that the service experience at Silver Star continues to be very good. I was greeted enthusiastically by the friendly staff who immediately made me comfortable with their signature coffee in the customer lounge. While I waited my car was hoisted on the lift to inspect the underbody for any damage.





Mercedes Benz India needs to showcase this car hoisted up like this to show the attention to detail that has gone into this car. Looking from underneath one can see all the details that have been done to ensure why this car does what it does. One can see the damping, the suspension, etc all neatly covered with a fiberglass cover to ensure minimal damage. Thankfully in my case my earlier scrapes were largely minimal. There was just one area near the center left of the vehicle where one could see where the vehicle had scrapped. No damage to any parts. Just on the cover which has done a fine job of keeping the underbody safe.



The Service Staff checked the car and found everything in order. I logged in my request to have the car lifted to which they replied that they do not have a solution as yet. It was interesting to note that they have a solution for the C class which apparently had ground clearance issues. Hopefully we will get a favorable response from Mercedes Benz India soon because quite frankly the ground clearance has made the car quite limited in it's use.

In general we have to drive quite gingerly over most speed bumps and ditches much to the annoyance of traffic behind us. We just haven't been able to drive it freely as yet. One has to watch the road for any dips and ditches. The drive to Mumbai and back has given me a lot of confidence in the car on the highways but city driving, with all the construction and repairs, is a challenge. I have started to wonder what I will do if there is no solution on offer from Mercedes Benz India. There is so much about the car that I like but without sufficient ground clearance driving the car with confidence is starting to become an issue.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by nikhil.nayak

There is so much about the car that I like but without sufficient ground clearance driving the car with confidence is starting to become an issue.

Speed breakers are totally harmless. No amount of slow speed scraping on speed breakers and ramps will cause any damage. Ignore the scraping noise and drive with confidence. Have you ever heard of anyone including supercar owners suffering a damage because of speed breakers or ramps - unless they failed to notice them at good speeds? Just get over this mental block that low GC is such an inconvenience. If you see the underbody without the cover, you will notice that everything is neatly packaged to prevent any significant damage due to speed breakers or ramps. Of course, it can drive you crazy if you have to use roads that have 10 humps per every 100m (very much the case in Bangalore).

What you want to avoid are flooded streets and sharp projections or deep potholes - which I am guessing would not be part of your daily commute. You need engine + gearbox protection add on insurance cover to take care of such damages as normal insurance doesn’t cover it.

Edit: the underbody panels are for aerodynamics. They offer very little protection and there is nothing to protect in speed-breaker scraping scenario. Going over large projections and deep potholes is a different matter as engine/gearbox between front wheels can be at risk.

[nikhil.nayak]

Thanks androdev. That is reassuring. For the most part you are right, you really don't have any issues. On most main roads it's fine. Highway driving was excellent. It's just that so far there always is that odd bump or uneven surface that gives you cause for concern. At least for now I still wince when I have to crab over a dodgy speed breaker.

I need to check on the engine + gearbox protection add on insurance.

[androdev]

This is how the underbody of E-Class looks (image taken from internet, not LWB spec):



The green portion that houses engine, gearbox, steering/suspension bits, etc. gets lifted along with the wheels and is not exposed to any risk while going over speed breakers. The yellow portion will scrape when you go over a nasty hump, but all the abuse will be handled by the high-strength metal frame highlighted in red. Not many critical parts are located in this yellow portion and the few that are present are neatly tucked in to avoid any damage.

As you can see, the engineers have thought about speed humps while designing the car. It's always a good idea to go really slow while going over a hump to avoid scraping noise and discomfort to passengers (just ignore the impatient peasants who honk) but there is no need to be overly anxious about potential underbody damage. Even if you forget to notice a speed breaker in time and go over it at moderate speeds, you will mostly end up with a minor suspension/control-arm-bushing damage.

However, going over sharp projections, large stones, deep potholes, etc. can cause impact to the really expensive parts between the wheels. These are not common driving conditions for most people and a good insurance can take care of an unlucky day.

A sedan typically scores better in cost, luxury, comfort, driving dynamics, and safety. I'm sure you realised this during your shopping/test drives. Dealing with low GC is a reasonable trade-off IMO, but it's also true that many people prefer the peace of mind that comes with an SUV.

Originally Posted by nikhil.nayak

.. At least for now I still wince when I have to crab over a dodgy speed breaker..

Will soon become a muscle memory thing :-)

I need to check on the engine + gearbox protection add on insurance.

Highly recommend it, and the extra premium will not be that high.

[Tvk1991]

Been using an A35 AMG for the last 2 years and 18,000kms with a ground clearance of a RS/Huracan. I did the same exercise of putting my car in the lift after the first long distance road trip from Chennai to Banglore after buying the car.

The best advice is to try approaching one wheel at a time in really big ones and drive really slowly as possible if you feel its going to scrape.

Slight increase in tyre profile will help you a bit. I changed mine when due to replacement with 235/40/18 to 235/45/18. You can try improving the same if possible as this helped me a lot.