Hi all,

Newbie here, and never owned a MB but have a new 2013 ML350 on order.

While doing my "due diligence" I notice that on page 365 of the owner's manual that it says that the engine is designed to consume .9 qts of oil per 600 mi and this is considered normal. This also appears in owner's manuals of other MB vehicles. Are they kidding? I have owned Cadillacs, Lexus, Infiniti, Corvettes and never heard such a thing. It is hard for me to believe that MB owners would tolerate this. Are owners of new MB products really expected to carry spare qts of oil on a cross country trip?

I asked the Service Mgr of my new MB dealership and he claims that oil consumption in their vehicles is NOT an issue. If this is true, then why the disclaimer in the owner's manual?? If I go ahead and purchase this vehicle and later experience an oil burning problem is MB going to sidestep any warranty claims because of the disclaimer?

I would be interested in any comments from long time MB owners...

 

I think they are only covering their @ss.My 08 C230 doesn't use a drop.

 

My reading of the owner's manual is, not that it is normal for the engine to consume the stated amount of oil, but that it is acceptable under certain conditions, which are not clearly specified.

"Depending on the driving style, the vehicle consumes up to 0.9 US qt (0.8 liters) of oil over a distance of 600 miles (1,000 km). The oil consumption may be higher than this when the vehicle is new or if you frequently drive at high engine speeds."

The wording is sufficiently unspecific that a lawsuit would be necessary to settle matters were the owner and dealer/car maker be unable to agree. It is not clear what MB considers unacceptable in ordinary driving. I would consider anything less than 2000 miles per quart after the car is broken in to be unacceptable in light driving such as in town or when the car was used in normal traffic flow on American highways.

 

Alright so I own a 2004 ml350 luxury. It now has 320,000km on the clock. Only repairs it ever needed were a water pump, and timing chain. And that was only preventative maintenance. I am meticulous with oil changing, and yes I noticed it has always used about .8 litres per 1000km in normal conditions, but hey its purring like new and its 18 years old! Topping up the oil regularly is a small price to pay for a quality piece of machinery im expecting to hit 2000000km in!