box_trotter
New member
With the exception of a few minor annoyances, I love the van. We bought ours for family adventures, and it appears that it will serve its purpose well. Most of my driving so far has been in the PNW in dark, cold, wet weather.
What annoyances?
(A) The fuel guage seems to be wildly inaccurate (see my mileage vs fuel consumption here http://i.imgur.com/1Sof2XX.png). This appears to have nothing to do with hills.
(B) noise. Resonating engine drone (worst at 2100rpm), panel noise with bumps, and the slight winding sound (which I'm told is produced by the transfer case). I've been reading into sound dampening/sound deadening, but the noisy ride is one of the first mods on my (and wife's) list.
(C) clunks? I read about people's clunks. I've had a few, but not enough to be super concerned. I started noticing at around 600 miles. To me this appears to have a pattern with torque and cold temps, and I can feel the engine-braking is usually engaged when it happens. If this gets worse, I will raise the issue. If the van didn't make the noise on the test drive, MB saying "that's normal" isn't an acceptable answer. Again, I don't remember noticing clunks when the van is warmed up.
(D) I got into a bit of a crosswind and the van definitely feels it. I guess that's just something that comes with tall vans.
(E) Navigation with google maps on my phone is far superior to the Becker navigation, but I think I would still use becker if I was in a place with no good data coverage.
And the pros:
(A) 4x4. I haven't had any trouble engaging/disengaging 4x4. My manual says to engage it while the vehicle is stopped. I have read in areas of this forum that "you have to be going 4-6 mph" but according to my manual (and experience) that is not accurate for 2016 models. We had a chance to try this out up a steep access road, and it performed very well. The low-range torque on the climb felt every bit as good as my 4x4 Toyota. The engine braking while coming down was impressive. Even the stock configuration gives plenty of clearance. Of course I'm not going to be rock-crawling with this van, but it's nice to know we can still get into some of our favorite spots that we got to with our old truck.
(B) I've been getting 17 to 19 MPG with an in-town empty van.
(C) I've found the van easy to park and I like the handling. Praise the the huge rear view mirrors, convex mirrors, and backup cam.
(D) I'm definitely glad I got heated mirrors, lumbar seats, and rear defrost.
(E) visibility for me and passengers is awesome (we almost got a cargo van with no windows).
(D) when it gets up to speed on the freeway, it's smooth as butter
I've been hesitant to start drilling and sticking things to the van until I'm 100% sure I like it. Here are some other mods I want to do (feel free to make suggestions):
(A) Louder, bassier speakers.
(B) 10" slot windows on the rear panels like these: http://www.outsidevan.com/custom-narrow-window.php
(C) curtains
What annoyances?
(A) The fuel guage seems to be wildly inaccurate (see my mileage vs fuel consumption here http://i.imgur.com/1Sof2XX.png). This appears to have nothing to do with hills.
(B) noise. Resonating engine drone (worst at 2100rpm), panel noise with bumps, and the slight winding sound (which I'm told is produced by the transfer case). I've been reading into sound dampening/sound deadening, but the noisy ride is one of the first mods on my (and wife's) list.
(C) clunks? I read about people's clunks. I've had a few, but not enough to be super concerned. I started noticing at around 600 miles. To me this appears to have a pattern with torque and cold temps, and I can feel the engine-braking is usually engaged when it happens. If this gets worse, I will raise the issue. If the van didn't make the noise on the test drive, MB saying "that's normal" isn't an acceptable answer. Again, I don't remember noticing clunks when the van is warmed up.
(D) I got into a bit of a crosswind and the van definitely feels it. I guess that's just something that comes with tall vans.
(E) Navigation with google maps on my phone is far superior to the Becker navigation, but I think I would still use becker if I was in a place with no good data coverage.
And the pros:
(A) 4x4. I haven't had any trouble engaging/disengaging 4x4. My manual says to engage it while the vehicle is stopped. I have read in areas of this forum that "you have to be going 4-6 mph" but according to my manual (and experience) that is not accurate for 2016 models. We had a chance to try this out up a steep access road, and it performed very well. The low-range torque on the climb felt every bit as good as my 4x4 Toyota. The engine braking while coming down was impressive. Even the stock configuration gives plenty of clearance. Of course I'm not going to be rock-crawling with this van, but it's nice to know we can still get into some of our favorite spots that we got to with our old truck.
(B) I've been getting 17 to 19 MPG with an in-town empty van.
(C) I've found the van easy to park and I like the handling. Praise the the huge rear view mirrors, convex mirrors, and backup cam.
(D) I'm definitely glad I got heated mirrors, lumbar seats, and rear defrost.
(E) visibility for me and passengers is awesome (we almost got a cargo van with no windows).
(D) when it gets up to speed on the freeway, it's smooth as butter
I've been hesitant to start drilling and sticking things to the van until I'm 100% sure I like it. Here are some other mods I want to do (feel free to make suggestions):
(A) Louder, bassier speakers.
(B) 10" slot windows on the rear panels like these: http://www.outsidevan.com/custom-narrow-window.php
(C) curtains
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