When I got to work on Friday I finally got the chance to drive another V8. This one was very different, it didn’t have as many wheels and it went a bit faster than the previous Scania’s I’ve been used to.
It was a Mercedes-Benz E-Class AMG and belongs to my old boss who had been promising me a go in it for a long time now. He finally threw me the keys and told me to go and enjoy myself for a half an hour!
I couldn’t believe he wasn’t coming with me so enjoy myself.....I did:)
The A47 was busy as usual on a Friday afternoon but I soon found the car has more grunt than a room full of stroppy teenagers and pulls like a footballer in a nightclub.
It’s also the only car I know which makes a noise to be proud of!
I’d heard it was limited to 155mph and realised I needed a bit of open road to see what it would do. I’m ashamed to say I chickened out at 140MPH and couldn’t believe how effortlessly it got there, how comfortable it was and how there seemed to be no sense of speed whatsoever.
I tried Sport Plus mode and had a play with the paddle shifters behind the steering wheel.
I also managed to limit it to 17mph at one point and didn’t know how I did it!
Downside is that it doesn’t need any skill whatsoever to drive it. The big electronic safety net seems to have taken some of the fun away and no matter how hard I tried it stuck to the road like glue.
I loved the seats and as I said on another thread last week, you’re never too old to experience something new.
As this car is owned by a man in a permanent hurry, I have already submitted my CV for the future post of chauffer …..and I suspect he will need one with his love of speed!
Pat
Last edited by: pda on Mon 15 Jul 13 at 05:03
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I would guess from my knowledge of the area, you terrified Terrington st John!
Well done
Bet you wouldnt have the balls to do 140 mph alongside the 16 foot drain.....
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Oh yes well done Pat, that car need to be exercised regularly, addicted?
Have the AMG (applies to both sexes if they have a soul) maths been done yet, quite sure a towbar would fit and a decent LPG tank in the boot would see it giving about the same fuel costs as say a Mondeo.
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Ian has researched them and found it comes in an estate version. He's currently seeing if there is a tow bar available!
Pat
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You'll need something with a little more sporty looks to haul behind it
www.streamlinecaravans.com.au
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>> Ian has researched them and found it comes in an estate version. He's currently seeing
>> if there is a tow bar available!
Do lots of in depth research, pre facelift W211's so approx pre 07 had some electrical issues and rust can show its ugly mug especially round the wheelarches, and you need to be aware of SBC braking system counting down to a £1500 bill, you will need a good make specialist indy because MB dealers talk in monopoly money.
I don't know what your MB indy situation is out in the fens, mine is in East Northants.
Facelift models gained galvanising. lost the ticking time bomb and frankly ridiculous SBC braking system and have turned out to be very good cars, unfortunately AMG versions come into £480 VED rip off...23rd March 06 regd date is the cut off point for the tax hike, anything with a decent engine regd after that (except the Diesels) gets hammered.
You might be pleasantly surprised just how fast and frugal a Diesel MB can be too, especially a 270/320.
A long established private hire company whom i used to drive for years ago to get some extra bunce runs a few humbler E classes, E220d 4 cyl, my MB indy maintains them from new rather better than the main dealer would, they cover over 400k trouble free miles with very few problems before he flogs them on easily.
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edit too late.
The SBC problem is an awkward one, because the pump timer/counter can be reset without the unit itself being changed, so buying used needs careful appraisal of car and owner.
SBC failure leaves you with the equivalent of no servo assistance, as the SBC pump might have timed out, as caravanners this would probably be A Bad Thing..;)
The dash will warn long in advance of any of this but you never know what systems an unscrupulous previous seller might have interfered with.
Until recently MB would replace these under goodwill, but the newest car with this syetem will be about 6 years old now and from what i read goodwill is no longer offered, hence a £1500 pump replacement.
Also an SBC equipped car requires special techniques to disarm the system, otherwise should you decide to fit new pads without doing so and the car senses the gap when the pads are removed it can pump the pistons immediately out, not a good place to have your fingers if you were doing a bit of cleaning and lubing.
Maybe a chat with a good MB indy might be time well spent if you are seriously considering one, get the full story from the organ grinder, and worth spending some time on the two very good UK MB owners forums.
Last edited by: gordonbennet on Tue 16 Jul 13 at 10:12
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>> Bet you wouldnt have the balls to do 140 mph alongside the 16 foot drain.....
Under or over at the railway?
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depends if there is a train coming.
Edit, Actually the B1093 that crosses the 16 foot drain is slightly more undulating. 80 down there is fast enough to get airborne in multiple places.
Last edited by: Zero on Mon 15 Jul 13 at 10:55
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I'd like to have seen you passing at a relaxed 140 Pat. Despite bluster here I have never driven anything that quickly. In fact I have never driven anything capable of that speed, although I know someone with a Merc that could do it and I know he'd let me if I wanted to.
I suppose you must know the places where you can do that and get away with it. Yeee-HAH!
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Blimey! - you're up early today Sire, or are you just orf to bed, like.
:}
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Good experience Pat... well done for giving it a workout.
>>>I suppose you must know the places where you can do that and get away with it. Yeee-HAH!
We are lucky in the North Cambridgeshire & West Norfolk area with many quiet roads well suited to nipping on a bit. As others have mentioned though they can be a little undulating hence not ideal for the lowered suspension on my Alfa. On such roads the excellent ride of my previous C5 enabled better progress.
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Nice one Pat.
I have to admit these AMG Mercs are a rare breed of car in that they prove manufacturers still know how to make a car sound good.
They are apparently ruinous to run though.
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>> or are you just orf to bed, like.
Funeral in herself's family today, a gruelling event with Mass in London followed by interment near here followed by a wake even nearer here. The deceased, younger than me poor old girl, had a good obit in the Grauniad on the 5th.
I'm giving the Mass a miss but had to get up to deliver herself to the station. I was expecting to be teased by Pat the Stakhanovite mothertrucker, not by some well-heeled old hipster who could stay in bed all day if he wanted...
:o}
Last edited by: Armel Coussine on Tue 16 Jul 13 at 13:57
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My condolences Sire.
= = > some well-heeled old hipster who could stay in bed all day if he wanted...
That'll come to us all one day, sadly, I'm outside with 5ltrs of Sandtex getting tanned (and white!)
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Gadzooks Fido
You must have large whitewall tyres.
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Love it Pat. The noise AMGs make always puts a smile on my face, it just seems so wrong coming from a strait-laced technical Teutonic manufacturer.
I sometimes get to drive 400hp+ cars unsupervised but haven't got the nerve to see how hard I can squash flies onto the front, however the shove of doing 60-100mph quicker than my car can do 0-30 is more than enough to make me grin for the rest of the day. Well done :)
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The Alternative V8 Experience! - Zero
