What Is Engine Displacement?

March 17th, 2009

“Is the volume swept by the piston(s) in a single movement. In the very familiar four-stroke piston engine (but also in the two stroke engine) this is the volume that is swept as the piston(s) move from top dead center to bottom dead center.”
In simple terms, displacement is the amount of gas or fuel that your engine can burn thus the maximum power output it can produce. There is a direct relationship between engine displacement and horsepower. Simply put, the bigger the engine displacement the bigger or higher the horsepower. Nowadays, engine displacement is generally used in the manufacturer’s nomenclature. For example, the 2009 Mercedes CLK550 Coupe. It has a 5.5 liter DOHC 32 valve V8 engine that produces 328 horsepower and can accelerate from 0-60 in 5.1 seconds. Next is the 2009 Mercedes CLK350 Coupe. The 350 has a 3.5 liter V6 engine that pumps out 268 hp. 0-60 in 6.4 seconds. As seen above, the 550 has an engine displacement of 5.5li and the 350, 3.5li . Based on acceleration alone the CLK 550 wins hands down. Though there are other factors that determine the cars performance/top speed such as curb weight, torque and such, engine displacement is one of the more visible indicators. This extra “oomph” does come at a price though in terms of fuel economy. The CLK 550 is at 15/22 mpg while the CLK 350 has a 17/25mpg rating.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Technorati
  • Live
  • LinkedIn
  • MySpace
  • MySpace

Do You Want A Vehicle That Looks Nice, Performs Well, Comfortable, Safe And Easy To Maintain?

March 6th, 2009

Continued: I’m not much of a car enthusiast. I just want a vehicle for myself that looks nice, comfortable, performs well, safe and easy to maintain? I’m looking at Mercedes brand though.
Next we have the Coupes. Mercedes has 3 classes of coupes: the CLK, CLS and CL. In each class there are several body styles and each with its own makeup. The CLK series comes in either as a Coupe or Cabriolet. Fyi, Mercedes is one of the manufacturers that use engine displacement in the nomenclature.
• 350 series – 3.5L 268 hp V6 engine
• 550 series – 5.5L V8, 32 valve engine
• 7-speed driver-adaptive electronically controlled automatic transmission
It’s a rear wheel drive, 2 door 4 passenger car that’s classified as a subcompact by the EPA. Simply looking at both the 350 and 550, one can say that the 550 has a manly or sporty look to it whereas the 350 has an almost refined, cultured maybe even dainty look to it.
Looking in your eyes take in the active ventilated leather seats, the Harman Kardon seven-channel digital surround-sound stereo, the steering wheel mounted controls and the COMAND System with Hard Drive Navigation among other things. Tucked away are the Four side-impact airbags. The Coupes come with full-length side curtain airbags while the Cabriolets have front seat side impact airbags that provide head and thorax protection.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Technorati
  • Live
  • LinkedIn
  • MySpace
  • MySpace

Chauffered In A Mercedes S-550

February 7th, 2009

With a couple of weeks of vacation time on my hands I decided to go abroad and get out of this bad weather.
I’m currently in Hong Kong and I have to say it is COLD! Well maybe not as cold as back home-I was expecting since I’m in Asia it would be a pleasant change from the winter temperatures I just left but no. It is currently about 5C here. And no I didn’t bring a jacket.

I arrived 2 days ago. The MTR (Subway) station is about a block or two from the hotel where I’m going to be staying in.

Parked on the driveway were 3 black Mercedes Benz’s- 2 S550’s and a S600.
All apparently well maintained and polished, the sunlight bouncing off the hoods.

While checking in I found out that the 3 cars were the hotel limousines. I also found out that the 2 550’s were 4matics.

The manager didn’t know how much they cost here but back home it has an MSRP of $92,350 and the S600 $147,450.

Asked how Mercedes Benz is doing here and the lady says that the Mercedes Benz is one of the more popular brands of cars here especially for limousines.

She offered to chauffer me for the day in one of the 550’s.

The roads here aren’t as wide as those stateside but surprisingly there wasn’t any traffic to speak of but I guess you really wouldn’t mind not since you’re in a cabin which is just simply luxurious.

The 5.5 382hp V8 engine of the 550 was just purring even when accelerating.

The ride as expected was extremely quiet and smooth. More to follow.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Technorati
  • Live
  • LinkedIn
  • MySpace
  • MySpace

Researching The Mercedes Benz S600 Guard

January 29th, 2009

After seeing and experiencing the Mercedes Benz S600 Guard, I decided to do a little more research.

Mercedes Benz Pullman S600 or some say Mercedes Benz S600 Pullman was first launched in 2006.

Pullmans were actually those railroad sleeping cars equipped with luxurious appointments and originally made by the American Pullman Palace Car Company.

Mercedes Benz started making vehicles with “special protection” way back in 1927. Emperor Hirohito of Japan rode in a 770k.

What really makes this car really special is the way it’s built.

Instead of retrofitting the armor into the vehicle as it would have been done in the past, Mercedes Benz it into the body thus adding further reinforcement.

The S600 is powered by a v12 byturbo engine which produces 380KW/517 hp, has run flat tires and has Level IV (B6/B7) protection. Governments, heads of Stae, royalty and the rich are impressed with the level of protection, comfort and entertsainment that they get when inside the car.

It’s like having your own Abrams M1 or Bradley IFV.
The only difference is that it doesn’t weigh that much and the sound system is better!

The only drawback – you might not find this on the showroom floor of your Mercedes-Benz dealership

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Technorati
  • Live
  • LinkedIn
  • MySpace
  • MySpace

Mercedes and Fuel Economy

January 5th, 2009

Just recently, a friend of mine managed to get a loan to buy a car – not really a wise choice considering the financial fiasco that everybody is dealing with.

When the car came, I did not expect that it was a Mercedes Benz. I was about to chastise him for being a so inconsiderate when, as if reading my mind, he told me that it is one of the new models of Mercedes Benz. And being the idiot that I am when it comes to cars (and a lot of other things), I did not get what he meant and just mumbled about all the negative car issues that I could think of.

Then, he interrupted and said, “You know, sometimes it helps to do some reading. FYI, almost thirty-eight percent of the new Mercedes Benz models consumes less than 6.5 liters of fuel for every a hundred kilometers.”

“Oh, really? Er, why not let me try it out for a test drive.”

Maybe you should try one out and your local Mercedes-Benz dealer.

Share and Enjoy:
  • Digg
  • del.icio.us
  • Facebook
  • NewsVine
  • Reddit
  • StumbleUpon
  • Google Bookmarks
  • Yahoo! Buzz
  • Twitter
  • Technorati
  • Live
  • LinkedIn
  • MySpace
  • MySpace