[bmyth]

Hello everyone,
I'm new to this forum and just took delivery of my new Metris last night. I've enjoyed reading some of the very informative posts here and appreciate the insights provided by everyone. I'm excited about the new car and can't wait to personalize it in my own way.


The car I purchased was from my local dealer here in Southern California. It's a Flint Grey metallic car with the following options:


VU9 Black leatherette
C01 Driver comfort package
C02 Driver efficiency package
C04 Active Safety w/Active parking assist
C05 Premium appearance package
C08 Cold weather package (wife wanted heated seats!)
C09 High performance A/C
C10 Interior appearance package
FZ5 Anti-theft
W65 Single flip-up tailgate
T55/T56 Sliding doors
U71 Additional seat, 2nd row


First impressions:
- Same as test drive... really easy to drive, love the front fascia, and excellent turning radius!
- The braking is a bit spongy, but I can get used to it
- The removal of the 8th seat is easy, but re-installing is cumbersome (at least in the dark and by one person, for the first time!)
- The stereo speakers are surprisingly nice, although I am definitely interested in hearing about upgrade options from this forum for other head units/speaker/amp combinations
- The lift tailgate is quite low overall (even for someone only 5'11")... and if I pull the strap underneath, it would hit my head... need to just step out from under and close with hands
- I have 2 young kids and 1 infant... the installation of booster seats is extremely easy and they fit very well, 3 across (the main reason for my purchase)
- No idea on how it fits in the garage yet... will be moving a few cars around today to test this out!


Does anyone know the specs and offset of the wheels for the US-based car? I have the allow wheel package, but am interested in looking at after market upgrades, possibly to upgrade to more of the AMG V-Class look?


Looking forward to future interactions with other members here... in the meantime, I think I need to go drive my car to get more firsthand feedback!!


Thanks, B.

 

[aebad]

Picking up mine tomorrow, but a bit confused by your comment regarding headroom under tailgate. I went to do inspection of mine yesterday and was admiring how much room there was under the open tailgate, and I am 6'2". Maybe yours is not opening fully?

 

[Greenmanedlion]

Yeah, I have to concur on the tailgate. It's high enough. It's just a really long tailgate so you sorta have to walk it closed.

As far as I know, and can tell, the Metris with alloy wheels (dunno about the steelies) uses the standard Mercedes 5-bolt pattern. I say 5-bolt instead of 5-lug because Mercedes (unique from almost every other manufacturer I can think of) uses bolts (male fasteners) to secure wheels instead of nuts (female fasteners).

Therefore, with allowance made for offset, just about any wheel designed for Mercedes oughtta fit.

 

[bmyth]

Thanks for the replies, guys... about the tailgate, there is ample room to walk under. I was just referring to when you pull down on the strap, you have to quickly step out from underneath it.
Have put on a few more miles on the car now and here are some additional impressions:
- the pick up on the car is pretty impressive. The "E" setting is woefully underpowered, so I find myself driving in "C - comfort" setting most of the time
- haven't really been able to experiment much with any of the parking assist functions, but the lane assist works as designed and is very sensitive
- we set the speed limit monitor to 10mph over and in areas where there is a posted speed limit, the voice that comes on does warn you to slow down. However, it does make mistakes, too... so be mindful when turning on.
- Right now, getting about 19 mpg, not 22. It's probably b/c I'm not driving in E mode.
Thanks for the feedback on the wheels... I was just looking for offset information as I may be considering slightly larger wheels. I may consult the dealership just in case as well.


Happy new year, all!

 

[aebad]

Okay, I get what you mean about the tailgate now. Yes, it has a big swing that forces you to step back and then back in to close. I have had a VW Eurovan for 15 years, so I am used to.

 

[Greenmanedlion]

I set my limited to max, 30 mph over. That gives it roughly 20 mph before a warning. I would set it lower, but I do 80 in a 65 as my regular cruise speed and I was sick of listening to its reminder every minute or so. ("Yes, yes, I observe the limit is 65! I am going 92, shut up!")

Better ticket avoidance technique: the cruise control regulates speed with the brake. Set the speed on the CC to whatever your local PDs tolerance is and use the throttle to go above it. If you release the throttle the van will rapidly brake and go back to your preset speed.

I can tell you that the van is comfortable and stable up to its (unnecessarily low) governed top speed of 101 mph. Top line Vitos are governed to 124mph, by the way.

As for the economy mode- I'd use it. It really really does save fuel. It reduces the cars tendency to downshift and it limits throttle operation to about 55%. You can still reach top speed in economy mode. Here's the important point though: the throttle pedal has a kick down switch at the end of its travel. If you push that switch in economy mode (i.e. You really suddenly need that extra power) it immediately reverts to standard mode and drops to the lowest efficable gear- that is, you will have the maximum acceleration the van is capable of almost instantly.

One caveat though: once you hit the switch, you must manually replace it into economy mode.

 

[bmyth]

Very helpful, G! Thanks for the tip. I noticed that new Mercedes seem to all have the kick down switch ... I have it in my electric B class as well. It almost seems like a bit of a boost (reminiscent of knight rider days!)

What are some of the group's thoughts about middle console options between driver and passenger? Any it there that would preserve a clean look?

 

[Greenmanedlion]

My '79 300SD had one. I know the 500/540K cars of th 30s had a switch that operated the Supercharger.

At present there are a lot of generic center consoles available at auto parts stores and the like. Give it a few months and some Metris specific ones will likely appear.