While BMW is trying to create silly "efficientdynamic" vehicles that still cannot get above 20 mpg, Mercedes is developing luxury cars that have around the same efficiency as subcompact cars. The first vehicle Mercedes created was the E-class Bluetec which could get around 26 city mpg and 37 highway mpg. These amazing figures were especially astonishing since the diesel engine puts out 210 hp and nearly 400 ft-lbs of torque. This car has been out for a few years, so Mercedes is adding a couple more fuel-efficient vehicles to the line-up. Mercedes placed that same engine in the R-class, and the M-class and a slightly larger Bluetec V6 in the GL-class. More recently, however, Mercedes is going in the direction of hybrids to add greater efficiency to some of its vehicles. The M-class is receiving hybridized drivetrain that will help the vehicle achieve 21 city mpg and 24 highway mpg. These figures are pretty good considering this is a two and a half ton vehicle. In addition, Mercedes is adding a hybrid drivetrain in the most classy and luxurious Mercedes, the S-class. With the same drivetrain as the system in the M-class, the S-class can achieve 19 city mpg, and 26 highway mpg, a 26% increase over the S550. These efforts by Mercedes to build fuel-efficient vehicles will definitely pay-off as buyers now need fuel-sipping vehicles.
