Why should the non-turbo model be more efficient?

i actually bought a car years ago that was driven by a little old lady to church and back on sundays.1965 pontiac catalina 2 door post car.problem was she had bad eyesight and couldn't judge distances.all 4 corners were beat up.and the pass side had scratches the whole length of the car,but other then that it had super low miles and ran like a raped ape.she actually didn't want to sell it but her son who was about 60yrs old at the time made her.god i loved that car.

I think a lot has to do with the individuals driving habits too.

kelly blue book figures for 96 non turbo

Quick Facts Details
Gas Mileage 28 mpg City / 35 mpg Hwy
Engine 6-Cyl. 3.0L Diesel
Transmission Automatic
Drivetrain RWD
Max Seating Capacity 5
Doors 4
EPA Class Compact
Body Style Sedan
Country of Assembly Germany
Country of Origin Germany

Kelly blue book figures for 98 turbo
Gas Mileage 26 mpg City / 34 mpg Hwy
Engine 6 Cyl. Turbo Diesel
Transmission Automatic
Drivetrain RWD
Max Seating Capacity 5
Doors 4
EPA Class Midsize
Body Style Sedan
Country of Assembly Germany
Country of Origin Germany

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96 E300d

these are the federal revised mpg figures.



1996 Mercedes-Benz E300 Diesel
1998 Mercedes-Benz E300 Turbodiesel

Use Your Gas Prices & Annual Miles

Switch Units:
Gallons/100 Miles
Liters/100 km



Diesel Vehicle
Diesel Vehicle
Estimated New EPA MPG
MPG ratings for 1985-2007 models have been revised

Diesel 96 non-turbo
24
City
27
Combined
32
Hwy


Diesel 98 Turbo
23
City
26
Combined
31
Hwy

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96 E300d

The point is, there's no difference. Look at the ratings for a '97 and they'll be even slightly lower than those for a '96. It's all within the margin of error.

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2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL

... this thread is worthless without pix.

Good thread, I have to chime in though. I have a '98 and get very high 30's consistently. I drive about 40k a year and keep meticulous records (fuel reciepts v. mileage) for business purposes. I also keep my tires inflated to 41 (cold) and drive very sensibly (on acceleration). I probably benefit from a temperate climate (Carolina's) and flat roads - I drive mainly in the SE.

The '96 has a different tranny (mentioned before) and the EPA revised the way they calculate EPA in the late '90's. I also know of others with '98 & '99 diesels that get similar MPG. There also was an Autoweek (??) article on the '98 where the press took the car from LA to SF and back on one tank. It was 800 miles, / 21.1 is...

You can extract very good mileage (relatively) out of any vehicle if you drive it right, or hyper-mile it as some people call it. However, in normal driving & conditions most people won't see such numbers. From the fueleconomy.gov site, the average user mileage for a '99 E300DT is 29.7 mpg based on 6 reviews.

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2004 VW Jetta TDI (manual)

Past MB's: '96 E300D, '83 240D, '82 300D, '87 300D, '87 420SEL