Read the Mercedes R500's real-time logbook entries.
Tall-bodied, high-capacity wagons have only just begun to emerge in the luxury car world. Chrysler's Pacifica undeniably started the trend a few years ago, but now buyers with more to spend also have the six-passenger Mercedes-Benz R-Class and Audi Q7 to choose from.
Introduced for 2006, the all-wheel-drive R-Class can be had in V6-powered R350 and V8-powered R500 versions. We conducted a full test on an R500 and found it as elegant as it was family-friendly. Mercedes has created a vehicle that manages not to look or feel much like a minivan, yet sacrifices few of the conveniences. Mercedes calls it a Sports Tourer; we called it "the best possible combination of car, minivan and sport-utility vehicle the market has to offer."
But drafting a $56,000 vehicle for everyday use is no small hit to a household budget, so we've decided to conduct a yearlong test on a 2006 Mercedes-Benz R500 to see if it's worth those big monthly payments.
For this kind of money, you expect to get plenty of standard amenities, and in addition to its 302-horsepower, 5.0-liter V8, the R500 offers 18-inch wheels, leather upholstery, eight-way power front seats with heaters, an eight-speaker stereo, three-row side curtain airbag coverage, fold-flat seating in the second and third rows, and separate front and rear air conditioners. Not a bad list, but most buyers will want to add plenty more features to get the R-Class ready for family duty.
Mercedes allows you to buy most options á la carte, but our wagon has the $4,400 Premium Package, which bundles a navigation system; an 11-speaker Harman Kardon sound system; a huge double-panel panoramic sunroof; a power liftgate and power rear-quarter windows. Plus, it has the Parktronic front and rear parking sensors, which cost an extra $750. Tack on an additional $690 charge for our tester's Pewter Metallic paint and you're looking at a total price tag of $62,115.
The one obvious feature it lacks is a rear DVD player, a hefty $3,000 option on the R-Class. No one has complained about being bored yet, but we haven't taken any long trips. During the R500's first few weeks with us, its duties have been limited to local use, but opinions are already filling the logbook.
"Six of us piled into the R500 for a ride to lunch, and it proved suitably comfortable for the task," wrote Senior Editor Ed Hellwig. The third-row seats are a little tight on headroom for adults, but with ample hip- and shoulder room, reclining seat-back cushions and the second-row seats' fore-and-aft adjustment, the setup works fine for carpooling.
Additionally, the second-row seats perform a simple slide-fold-and-drop maneuver that makes it very easy to get in and out of the third row. The wide rear-door openings were also helpful in this situation, though parents on staff report that the overly long rear doors aren't kid-friendly.
"Holy door dings, Batman," Director of Automotive Testing Dan Edmunds penned in the logbook. "My 7- and 10-year-old daughters would never be able to handle those doors themselves." Another issue is that there's only 15.3 cubic feet of luggage space available when all six seats are in use. Our wagon is scheduled for several road trips in the coming months, so we'll let you know how we manage to cram in all those coolers and duffels.
One advantage the R500 has over traditional minivans is quickness. At the test track, it accelerated to 60 mph in 7 seconds flat and went through the quarter-mile in 15.2 seconds at 91 mph. Most minivans take more than 8 seconds to reach 60 mph.
Ask the Benz to dive for an opening in traffic, though, and the seven-speed automatic transmission hesitates before downshifting regardless of whether you have it in sport or comfort mode. "This makes the R feel large and unathletic around town," Executive Editor Scott Oldham noted. "But you can get around this problem by using the manual shift buttons on the back of the steering wheel spokes."
After seeing the 13 mpg city/18 mpg highway estimates on the R500's window sticker, we knew we might have some scary fuel receipts this summer. However, we're averaging 16 mpg, just as we did in our V6-equipped Pacifica.
Opinions are mixed on how well the Benz handles. Some, like Senior Content Editor Erin Riches, are impressed by our 17-foot wagon's poise in crowded conditions. "Steering is precise, rear sight lines are good and the front and rear parking sensors have a lot of subtlety. This allows you to snug up to other cars and parking garage walls without hitting them — a necessity in the city."
Others are skeptical. "It's not a great driving experience," Editorial Director Kevin Smith wrote in the logbook. "I think the brake pedal action is soft and vague, the steering has a lot of friction in it and the handling is OK but nothing special. And a $60,000 automobile had better feel pretty special."
At the test track, the R500 turned in a respectable slalom speed of 55.5 mph and a 0.73g on the skid pad, though both numbers were limited by the wagon's intrusive stability control system, which can't be disabled.
The wagon's best stopping distance from 60 mph was a mediocre 128 feet. However, this came on our sixth braking run, which means the wagon's four-wheel discs don't fade with repeated, hard use.
And rest assured that we will be subjecting our six-passenger R-Class wagon to plenty of repeated, hard use over the coming months to see if it passes muster as a family vehicle. You'll be able to read about the day-to-day minutiae of installing car seats and paying for oil changes in the Long-Term Road Test blog.
Current Odometer: 1,750
Best Fuel Economy: 17.6 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 15.8 mpg
Average Fuel Economy (over the life of the vehicle): 16.1 mpg
Body Repair Costs: None
Maintenance Costs: None
Problems: None
Read the Mercedes R500's real-time logbook entries.
Tall-bodied, high-capacity wagons have only just begun to emerge in the luxury car world. Chrysler's Pacifica undeniably started the trend a few years ago, but now buyers with more to spend also have the six-passenger Mercedes-Benz R-Class and Audi Q7 to choose from.
Introduced for 2006, the all-wheel-drive R-Class can be had in V6-powered R350 and V8-powered R500 versions. We conducted a full test on an R500 and found it as elegant as it was family-friendly. Mercedes has created a vehicle that manages not to look or feel much like a minivan, yet sacrifices few of the conveniences. Mercedes calls it a Sports Tourer; we called it "the best possible combination of car, minivan and sport-utility vehicle the market has to offer."
But drafting a $56,000 vehicle for everyday use is no small hit to a household budget, so we've decided to conduct a yearlong test on a 2006 Mercedes-Benz R500 to see if it's worth those big monthly payments.
For this kind of money, you expect to get plenty of standard amenities, and in addition to its 302-horsepower, 5.0-liter V8, the R500 offers 18-inch wheels, leather upholstery, eight-way power front seats with heaters, an eight-speaker stereo, three-row side curtain airbag coverage, fold-flat seating in the second and third rows, and separate front and rear air conditioners. Not a bad list, but most buyers will want to add plenty more features to get the R-Class ready for family duty.
Mercedes allows you to buy most options á la carte, but our wagon has the $4,400 Premium Package, which bundles a navigation system; an 11-speaker Harman Kardon sound system; a huge double-panel panoramic sunroof; a power liftgate and power rear-quarter windows. Plus, it has the Parktronic front and rear parking sensors, which cost an extra $750. Tack on an additional $690 charge for our tester's Pewter Metallic paint and you're looking at a total price tag of $62,115.
The one obvious feature it lacks is a rear DVD player, a hefty $3,000 option on the R-Class. No one has complained about being bored yet, but we haven't taken any long trips. During the R500's first few weeks with us, its duties have been limited to local use, but opinions are already filling the logbook.
"Six of us piled into the R500 for a ride to lunch, and it proved suitably comfortable for the task," wrote Senior Editor Ed Hellwig. The third-row seats are a little tight on headroom for adults, but with ample hip- and shoulder room, reclining seat-back cushions and the second-row seats' fore-and-aft adjustment, the setup works fine for carpooling.
Additionally, the second-row seats perform a simple slide-fold-and-drop maneuver that makes it very easy to get in and out of the third row. The wide rear-door openings were also helpful in this situation, though parents on staff report that the overly long rear doors aren't kid-friendly.
"Holy door dings, Batman," Director of Automotive Testing Dan Edmunds penned in the logbook. "My 7- and 10-year-old daughters would never be able to handle those doors themselves." Another issue is that there's only 15.3 cubic feet of luggage space available when all six seats are in use. Our wagon is scheduled for several road trips in the coming months, so we'll let you know how we manage to cram in all those coolers and duffels.
One advantage the R500 has over traditional minivans is quickness. At the test track, it accelerated to 60 mph in 7 seconds flat and went through the quarter-mile in 15.2 seconds at 91 mph. Most minivans take more than 8 seconds to reach 60 mph.
Ask the Benz to dive for an opening in traffic, though, and the seven-speed automatic transmission hesitates before downshifting regardless of whether you have it in sport or comfort mode. "This makes the R feel large and unathletic around town," Executive Editor Scott Oldham noted. "But you can get around this problem by using the manual shift buttons on the back of the steering wheel spokes."
After seeing the 13 mpg city/18 mpg highway estimates on the R500's window sticker, we knew we might have some scary fuel receipts this summer. However, we're averaging 16 mpg, just as we did in our V6-equipped Pacifica.
Opinions are mixed on how well the Benz handles. Some, like Senior Content Editor Erin Riches, are impressed by our 17-foot wagon's poise in crowded conditions. "Steering is precise, rear sight lines are good and the front and rear parking sensors have a lot of subtlety. This allows you to snug up to other cars and parking garage walls without hitting them — a necessity in the city."
Others are skeptical. "It's not a great driving experience," Editorial Director Kevin Smith wrote in the logbook. "I think the brake pedal action is soft and vague, the steering has a lot of friction in it and the handling is OK but nothing special. And a $60,000 automobile had better feel pretty special."
At the test track, the R500 turned in a respectable slalom speed of 55.5 mph and a 0.73g on the skid pad, though both numbers were limited by the wagon's intrusive stability control system, which can't be disabled.
The wagon's best stopping distance from 60 mph was a mediocre 128 feet. However, this came on our sixth braking run, which means the wagon's four-wheel discs don't fade with repeated, hard use.
And rest assured that we will be subjecting our six-passenger R-Class wagon to plenty of repeated, hard use over the coming months to see if it passes muster as a family vehicle. You'll be able to read about the day-to-day minutiae of installing car seats and paying for oil changes in the Long-Term Road Test blog.
Current Odometer: 1,750
Best Fuel Economy: 17.6 mpg
Worst Fuel Economy: 15.8 mpg
Average Fuel Economy (over the life of the vehicle): 16.1 mpg
Body Repair Costs: None
Maintenance Costs: None
Problems: None
Read the Mercedes R500's real-time logbook entries.
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