Test drive Mercedes Benz R-class since 2010 Minivan

Mercedes-Benz R-Slass. Vortexes are hostile

Mercedes-Benz R-Slass. Price: from 2,690,000 rubles. On sale: since 2010

Even the cold -blooded individual has a threshold when self -control changes him, leaving alone with panic. Someone enters a stupor if a cold blooms in the morning before a date on the lip, others float when they understand at the airport registration stand that the passport remained in the pocket of a jacket given to dry cleaning. No, believe me, all the flowers ...
 
Test pilot
Mikhail Medvedev, 34 years old, automobile journalist, driving experience of 14 years, personal car - Mazda3

The day in general began so -so. At night, the charge of the snow continued its white business and in the morning, turning the work of road services into a farce, and the roads themselves are in directions. With difficulty breaking out of the Moscow Ring Road, I thought that the nightmare was finally over. An empty highway, a thoroughly heated salon, a full fuel tank what else is needed for an ideal winter trip? Suddenly...

Everything happened literally in an instant. A second ago, I seemed to fully possess the situation and, about to overtake a flock of quiet -coats that had been in the extreme row, turned on the left turn signal, and then visibility instantly fell to zero. Ahead of the meaningless waves of brushes hung a solid snow veil. For a moment it seemed that a passenger liner was going on directly over me from surprise, I was numb. What to do? To brake? But then another, which lost the visibility of the poor fellow, will probably enter me from behind. Accept to the side of the road? But there should also be cars that I was going to overtake ... From indecision, they brought out the stop-signals that emerged from the snow veil in a few meters in front of me. Now not to sentiment. The steering wheel to the right is not too sharply, but not too smoothly, I eliminate two gears down and practically force myself to keep gas ...

All is well that ends well. The snow removal truck, which raised entire snow vortices that made me go on devices, I passed me in attraction, and thanks to the all -wheel drive transmission, even the passenger cars did not hit on the right. But only an hour and a half ago I asked, it seemed, a logical question: is it worth such an already inconsistent car as Mercedes-Benz R-class, offer in our market exclusively with all leading? Now doubts have disappeared. A hundred thousand, cut off from the price tag, the weather will not make an Erka in any case an expensive car, accessible to few, and how useful in our conditions are four rowing wheels, managed to make sure of their own experience once again. Actually, our date with the car was timed to the restyling of Erka. There are no words, the fresher exterior of the R-class came right. A predatory optics and an aggressive grille of the radiator favorably distinguish the updated version from the former, surprising amorphous headlights and a spineless jaw of the front bumper. The machine became prettier than the appliances in sports bells-collars, the steering wheel of a new design, an elegant stitching of leather armchairs ...

The possibilities of a 3 -lifted turbodiesel, which was not offered in our market, was also impressed. Believe it or not, but the 224 -horsepower six in dynamics is not inferior to a more powerful, but less painful 3.5 -valve gasoline V6. Moreover, if the R350 during a trip from Moscow to Volokolamsk ate about 16 liters per 100 km, then an average and 11 liters were enough on the return trip.

At the wheel of diesel Erka, I entered the evening Moscow with a clear consciousness that if I had extra 2 million 700 thousand per new car, I would definitely buy R350CDI. Convenient, fast, comfortable and economical machine. It was only one glance around it was enough to understand my prestigious single -collar on the Moscow snowy streets as a white crow in herds of Audi Q7, BMW X5, Lexus LX 470. So far, the consciousness of our fellow citizens is owned by a demon of worshiping all -terrain vehicles and crossovers, even such talented non -conformers as R-Class, not many chances of recognition.

What are you deigned?
All the eroks sold in Russia are versions with an elongated base, an all -wheel drive transmission 4Matic and a 7 -speed automatic. The price list begins from a mark of 2,690,000 rubles. So much is asked for the R350 gasoline, as well as the diesel R350CDI. A special series is difficult to find fault with the standard version of the version: a leather interior, bixenon headlights, separate climate control, six airbags, a dynamic stabilization system, a musical center with eight speakers and much more. The top R500 with a 5.5 -litar V8 engine and, of course, improved equipment will cost more than 3,550,000 rubles. However, if you think that Mercedes-Benz cars should not resemble twin brothers, then a rich list of additional equipment in which there is everything that the darling: from 21-inch all-deposited discs from AMG for 205 thousand . rub. to the sport packet of interior decoration for 310 thousand.
 
Driving
For a seven-seater car, R-Class is phenomenally reliable in maximum modes thanks to the full drive.

Salon
Better any BMW, but still a little worse than, say, Audi Q7.

Comfort
Exemplary noise insulation, as well as a soft suspension implies only one rating perfectly!

Safety
Everything that is possible, and a little more.

Price
The most important minus of the car of Erka is more expensive than the ML class. And this despite the fact that the SUVs are much more popular in us.
 
Advantages and disadvantages
+ A spacious salon with wide transformation capabilities, reliable and predicted handling of a quarrel of coating.
- High price, low road clearance
 
Specifications
Mark and model - Mercedes -Benz R350CDI 4 - Matic (R350CDI)
Dimensions - 5157x1922x1674 mm
Engine - turbodiesel, 2987 cm3, 224 hp/3800 min -1
Transmission - automatic, 7 -speed
Dynamics - max 222 km/h; 8.8 s to 100 km/h
Competitors - Audi Q7, BMW X5, Lexus LX 470

Our opinion
If you forget about the existence of all-wheel drive crossovers and all-terrain vehicles, then R-Class seems to be an ideal all-weather machine: prestigious, comfortable, fast, reliable, and its high price compensates for the indisputable authority of Mercedes-Benz. But, alas and ah, unit in our market is a piece product, which means that I cut the surge of interest in an updated block one does not have to be expected. Alas

Author: Mikhail Medvedev

 

Source: Magazine 5 wheel [March 2011]