Rode in a Mercedes B-Class Taxi...

Started by cawimmer430, July 17, 2017, 10:02:37 AM

2o6

Quote from: Tave on August 09, 2017, 10:30:15 AM
Got some time in a rental CLA250 over the weekend.

Pros:
-great front seat legroom
-power
-interior materials seem fairly rugged

Cons:
-the 7spd transmission is extremely jerky with bad ratios, just terrible
-rear seat room is nonexistent
-plastic plastic everywhere
-build quality doesn't feel anywhere near the traditional "Mercedes Tank" standard

Final Verdict:
No thank you

Is it bad that with a manual transmission, I would buy one? I drove a Car2Go one in Seattle and Portland, and I liked it (but not for the price).

cawimmer430

The 7Gtronic always got some criticism for being "jerky", but I've never experienced one that was, and I've driven a number of MBs with that transmission.

My dad's E350 CGI has one and it's smooth and works quietly and unnoticed in the background. Never had an issue with it.

Felt smooth and fine in the B-Class taxi as well.
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
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93JC

Transmissions in an E-class and B-class are completely different. One is a car with longitudinally-mounted engines and rear-wheel-drive, the other has transversely-mounted engines and front-wheel-drive. One has a torque converter, the other has dual-clutch plates. They're not even close to the same.

The problem I had with the B250's 7-speed dual-clutch was mostly first gear: it's too short, and the shift to second gear is jerky. The new Smart ForTwo's six-speed has the exact same problem. Once up to speed the shifts are okay, but getting off the line is terrible. I haven't had any seat time in a CLA or GLA yet (Car2Go just started offering them for rent about a week ago) but I suspect it's very much the same as the B-class.

93JC

Drove a CLA250 last night.

The driver's seat did have plenty of leg room, but getting in I bumped my head on the A-pillar, and leaning forward to find the steering wheel tilt-telescope release I bumped my head on the headliner. This car is preposterously short of practical head room; the entire roof line is a moronic concession to 'style' over substance. Rear seat room is, as Tave said, practically non-existent. This is a four-door car but in practice you wouldn't want to subject any adult passengers to the back seats.

Unlike the B-classes I've driven and Tave's assessment I found the 7-speed in this thing was actually pretty smooth. The problem is first is still far too short, and I found if I drove the car leisurely it would downshift to 2nd rather than all the way to 1st at stop lights. The programming is aggressively 'thrifty', upshifting whenever it can. I puttered along a stretch of 70 km/h (40 mph, fairly low-speed) freeway on my way home last night and the transmission went into 7th gear at around 65 km/h. When I started up a gentle slope, a gradual undulation in the road, it had to shift down to 6th to maintain speed and jumped back into 7th on the way down. The car has power but it does not want you to use it, and like the B250s I've driven it doesn't feel very swift at all.

I will give it props for being very quiet though.

cawimmer430

What bothers me most about the A, CLA and GLA are the fat A-pillars. That's quite a nuisance (and safety issue) if you're say driving in a city or residential area environment and don't see cyclists, pedestrians etc. coming from either side.

I'm sure people figure out a way to live with it, but I just wanna say that the thin A-pillars in the 1er are a breath of fresh air. The driver's visibility outwards is perfect.

-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
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93JC

Oh yes, outward visibility in the CLA is atrocious. At times I felt like it was driving while looking out a pillbox's gun-slit. The one I drove had blind-spot monitors, and it absolutely needs them as standard equipment because shoulder-checks are pretty much pointless.

cawimmer430

Quote from: 93JC on August 17, 2017, 12:01:08 PM
Oh yes, outward visibility in the CLA is atrocious. At times I felt like it was driving while looking out a pillbox's gun-slit. The one I drove had blind-spot monitors, and it absolutely needs them as standard equipment because shoulder-checks are pretty much pointless.

Yeah, I hate the view outwards from the CLA, in all directions. It's not a bad-looking car, but it suffers from poor outward visbility.

Were you also bothered by the wide transmission tunnel up front? I mean the engine and transmission are transversely mounted, there's no excuse for the transmission tunnel between the driver and front passenger to be so wide and space-robbing.
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
www.facebook.com/wimmerfotografie

2o6

Quote from: cawimmer430 on August 18, 2017, 04:47:34 AM
Yeah, I hate the view outwards from the CLA, in all directions. It's not a bad-looking car, but it suffers from poor outward visbility.

Were you also bothered by the wide transmission tunnel up front? I mean the engine and transmission are transversely mounted, there's no excuse for the transmission tunnel between the driver and front passenger to be so wide and space-robbing.


It's not that wide, and it's prolly to compensate for AWD.

cawimmer430

Quote from: 2o6 on August 18, 2017, 09:24:26 AM

It's not that wide, and it's prolly to compensate for AWD.

I would think for AWD they just need enough space to fit a prop shaft - that shouldn't take up so much space, especially since the engine and transmission are already transversely mounted and not inside the transmission tunnel.
-2018 Mercedes-Benz A250 AMG Line (W177)



WIMMER FOTOGRAFIE - Professional Automotive Photography based in Munich, Germany
www.wimmerfotografie.de
www.facebook.com/wimmerfotografie

AltinD

Quote from: 93JC on August 09, 2017, 06:36:53 PM
The problem I had with the B250's 7-speed dual-clutch was mostly first gear: it's too short, and the shift to second gear is jerky. The new Smart ForTwo's six-speed has the exact same problem. Once up to speed the shifts are okay, but getting off the line is terrible. I haven't had any seat time in a CLA or GLA yet (Car2Go just started offering them for rent about a week ago) but I suspect it's very much the same as the B-class.

It's the same for ALL DCT regardless of who manufactured them, probably an engineering design compromise. The VW DSG-s have the same problem (my 2008 Passat had one)

2016 KIA Sportage EX Plus, CRDI 2.0T diesel, 185 HP, AWD

2o6

Quote from: AltinD on August 20, 2017, 09:12:36 AM
It's the same for ALL DCT regardless of who manufactured them, probably an engineering design compromise. The VW DSG-s have the same problem (my 2008 Passat had one)

The Focus's DSG has a horrible time with overall jerkiness, but the 1st gear in it is pretty normal.

AltinD

Well, I was talking about regular DCT-s, not crappy ones. :D

2016 KIA Sportage EX Plus, CRDI 2.0T diesel, 185 HP, AWD

93JC

Quote from: AltinD on August 20, 2017, 09:12:36 AM
It's the same for ALL DCT regardless of who manufactured them, probably an engineering design compromise. The VW DSG-s have the same problem (my 2008 Passat had one)

Okay, but "They're all shitty!" doesn't absolve Daimler from the blame of having decided to use a DCT in the first place.

AltinD

Who said DCT are shitty? They are great

2016 KIA Sportage EX Plus, CRDI 2.0T diesel, 185 HP, AWD

93JC

:confused:

You did! I said, "The problem I had with the B250's 7-speed dual-clutch was mostly first gear: it's too short, and the shift to second gear is jerky. The new Smart ForTwo's six-speed has the exact same problem. Once up to speed the shifts are okay, but getting off the line is terrible," and you said "It's the same for ALL DCT regardless of who manufactured them, probably an engineering design compromise. The VW DSG-s have the same problem."

Ergo, in other words, "they're all shitty".

MexicoCityM3

I rode on a donkey the other day. Surprisingly nice, sorta like this B class.
Founder, BMW Car Club de México
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93JC

Quote from: 93JC on August 17, 2017, 11:52:55 AM
Drove a CLA250 last night.

The driver's seat did have plenty of leg room, but getting in I bumped my head on the A-pillar, and leaning forward to find the steering wheel tilt-telescope release I bumped my head on the headliner. This car is preposterously short of practical head room; the entire roof line is a moronic concession to 'style' over substance. Rear seat room is, as Tave said, practically non-existent. This is a four-door car but in practice you wouldn't want to subject any adult passengers to the back seats.

Unlike the B-classes I've driven and Tave's assessment I found the 7-speed in this thing was actually pretty smooth. The problem is first is still far too short, and I found if I drove the car leisurely it would downshift to 2nd rather than all the way to 1st at stop lights. The programming is aggressively 'thrifty', upshifting whenever it can. I puttered along a stretch of 70 km/h (40 mph, fairly low-speed) freeway on my way home last night and the transmission went into 7th gear at around 65 km/h. When I started up a gentle slope, a gradual undulation in the road, it had to shift down to 6th to maintain speed and jumped back into 7th on the way down. The car has power but it does not want you to use it, and like the B250s I've driven it doesn't feel very swift at all.

I will give it props for being very quiet though.

Drove a GLA250 4Matic yesterday; pretty much exactly the same as the CLA, just more head room. Not terrible, but I couldn't imagine paying the $40,700 MSRP.

Xer0

Quote from: 93JC on August 31, 2017, 11:26:41 AM
Drove a GLA250 4Matic yesterday; pretty much exactly the same as the CLA, just more head room. Not terrible, but I couldn't imagine paying the $40,700 MSRP.

The AMG GLA is one of the funniest looking vehicles on the road.  The styling tries to be an SUV, but the car is hunkered down and lowered to the point of being shorter than a GTI.  It's just hilarious.