Mercedes-Benz R-Class

Local launch

NOT SO MUCH
Access to back seats not ideal
Body roll
V6 underpowered with full load

The R-Class is produced at Benz’s Tuscaloosa plant in the US -- primarily for that market and went on sale there in October last year. Mercedes launched the R-Class locally in Sydney in April.

Taking note of a general backlash towards SUVs and looking for a point of difference, Mercedes-Benz offers the R-Class for customers wanting a lighter, sleeker 4WD with better fuel economy.

Cornering a niche, the R-Class sits somewhere between a luxury SUV and a station wagon. Featuring car-like styling with permanent all-wheel drive, it offers many of the features of an SUV sans those that most bitumen-bound customers don’t need.

The complete range consists of two body variants -- short and long wheelbase -- and offers four engines.

The base R 350 features a 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine and a host of standard equipment and is priced from $82,900. The more potent 5.0-litre V8-powered R 500 is priced from $119,900.

A 3.0-litre V6 diesel CDI engine is also offered from $85,900. Mercedes predicts almost half of R-Class sales in Australia will be of this variant.

A powerful AMG version will arrive later this year boasting a 375kW/630Nm 6.2-litre AMG-tweaked V8.

All models feature a long list of standard features including seven-speed automatic transmissions, permanent 4Matic (AWD), 17-inch alloy wheels, 4ETS traction system, park assist, central locking with remote control, six-disc CD changer, chrome tailpipes, courtesy lights in the doors, cruise control with speedtronic, multiple cup holders, heated and electrically adjustable exterior mirrors, power windows front and rear, rain sensor for windscreen wipers, rear windscreen wiper, adjustable steering column, automatic climate control and tinted windows

In addition the top-of-the-range R 500 adds 18-inch light-alloy wheels, leather upholstery, electrically-adjustable and heated front seats including automatic steering wheel adjustment, DVD navigation, Airmatic air suspension, centre console for second row seats, Harman Kardon stereo system, Thermatronic climate control, velour floor mats and touring package as standard.

The optional $8500 touring package (standard on R 500) includes burr walnut interior with chrome highlights, compass, electric rear vent windows, full electric adjustment on front seats, leather upholstery, rear centre console, aluminium window frames, silver grille, colour-coded door handles and full illumination of all interior areas.

The sports package -- also $8500 but a free option on R 500 -- includes 19-inch alloys, chrome radiator trim and blue-tinted glass. Inside is a specially-designed instrument cluster, stainless steel sports pedals with rubber studs and electrically-adjustable sports seats in Alcantara and man-made leather.

MECHANICAL
Mercedes’ famous supple ride is ever present in the R-Class. To achieve this the vehicle is underpinned by a newly-developed double wishbone front axle with a four-link rear axle with air suspension. (Airmatic and the adaptive Damping System is an option on the R 350). The 350 and 320 CDI sit on 17-inch alloys with the R 500 on 18s.

The Airmatic suspension on the R 500 provided an incredibly smooth ride and it has the added bonus of automatically lowering the body at speeds over 120km/h for improved aerodynamics.

Bringing a car of this weight down to speed is a daunting task. The job is left to 330mm front (350mm for the R 500) ventilated discs with 330mm solid discs (vented on the R 500) at the rear. They perform the task admirably.

The base R 350 features Mercedes’ new 200kW/350Nm 3.5-litre V6 petrol engine. Even in this guise the R-Class gets along pretty well but the weight of the car can be felt especially on hills. Here the V8 is just hitting its straps while the V6 is getting a little bit breathy.

The more powerful R 500 boasts a 225kW/460Nm 5.0-litre V8. The fastest R-Class at the moment has a top speed of 245km/h and although it is not equipped with M-B’s latest V8, the ‘old’ version is still creamy smooth with more than enough power.

The 3.0-litre V6 diesel CDI engine produces 165kW and an impressive 510Nm. Better still it is claimed to produce 8.9lt/100km economy. Unfortunately we were not able to test this model but it is sure to be popular with petrol prices continuing to head north.

The grunty AMG version will arrive later this year.

M-B’s accomplished 7G-Tronic automatic appears on all variants and, if driven appropriately, provides almost seamless shifting adding to Mercedes’ magic carpet ride.

The Direct Select system is simple and easy to use with a short stalk on the right side of the steering wheel requiring a press up or down to select drive, neutral or park. The smart auto does the rest. Removing the auto shifter from the centre console also creates the bonus of some more storage space for front occupants.

COMFORT
The R-Class interior is a well thought out piece of kit. With a mix of electronic and manual adjustment (fully electric on 500) a perfect driving position is never far away. The adjustable steering column also plays its part here.

The cabin has three rows of seats but without sliding doors, access to the back seats is not straight forward. That said, once you are in all six seats are supremely comfortable and there is plenty of leg, head and lateral room for all occupants.

The R 500 comes complete with three suspension settings. In Comfort mode we found the car wallowed far too much on anything less than billiard table-smooth roads. Standard mode provided a good mix of comfortable cruising without the flabby feel of the Comfort setting. Sport mode is a relative term for a 2205kg-plus six-seater but the airbag suspension did firm up noticeably providing a sharper drive.

The R 350 only comes with the one setting which ironically is probably all you’ll ever need. A case of simplicity overcomes the unnecessary?

The smooth ride is matched by the creamy engines and auto transmission.

Measuring 5157mm from stem to stern the R-Class is a big car and boasts up to 2385 litres of luggage capacity with the four rear seats folded flat -- plenty of room for family holidays.

M-B’s Presafe system detects critical handling situations preparing occupants and the car for an imminent collision. Front seat belts are pulled taught, the front passenger seat electrically adjusted to the ‘safest’ position and the sun-roof automatically closed.

These measures are said to improve occupant position prior to an impact enhancing the effect of seat belts and airbags -- the most important life-saving features in any car.

ON THE ROAD
Launched locally in Sydney, the long straight highways leading out to the wine country of the Hunter Valley provided plenty of opportunities for the R-Class to shine. When the roads got twisty though, naturally enough, it was time to pull in the reins and take it easy.

It does get along though with the R 320 diesel said to sprint to 100km/h in 8.7secs, the V6 R 350 gets there in 8.3 and the powerful V8 R 500 in 6.9secs. That latter figure compares very well with many much smaller sedans.

No one is pretending this is an agile sportscar -- one is always aware of the car’s immense weight and with six people in the car in the R 350 could be a bit on the sluggish side. Weight is really where the R-Class misses the mark performance-wise.

Cornering is best executed at slower speeds especially if loaded with people and luggage. It leans into corners too, but nothing like the taller M-Class.

It is true that the R-Class borrows some of the best aspects of a number of vehicles. It has some off-road capability courtesy of the M-Class’ all-wheel drive system, it possesses the load bearing capacity (with seats in suitable configuration) of the E-Class Estate and has something of the styling of a sporty saloon. And to Mercedes’ credit it does all these things quite well.

It’s when you combine parts of purpose-built machines into one vehicle what you get is compromise with a capital C.

The R-Class’ bush-bashing abilities are probably questionable, it lacks the Estate’s compactness for little or no more load baring capacity, it misses out on the grace of a sweetly-styled E-Class saloon and of course it doesn’t possess the performance or handling of a smaller sporty sedan.

But to be fair Mercedes-Benz makes no boasts about the R-Class being a dedicated 4WD and what it is really doing is adding choice for a customer who cannot find exactly what they are looking for in a traditional luxury SUV or Estate wagon.

Mercedes predicts it will sell around 260 vehicles for the remainder of the year and perhaps 350 the next. So we are talking small numbers here -- a very niche market indeed. That said, the R-Class fills a gap and will be appreciated by those who know what they want.