Mercedes Vision GLK Features First Implementation of 4-Cylinder Diesel Engine with BLUETEC

15 January 2008

Mercedes-Benz presented two versions of its concept Vision GLK compact SUV at the North American International Auto Show in Detroit. Both models, which differ in styling approach, feature new BLUETEC four-cylinder diesel engines mated with the 7G-TRONIC seven-speed automatic transmission and the new 4MATIC all-wheel drive.

This marks Mercedes’s first implementation of the BLUETEC emission control system with a four-cylinder engine. A similar 2.2-liter diesel with BLUETEC will be used in the planned S 300 BLUETEC hybrid. (Earlier post.)

The new 2.2-liter unit delivers 125 kW (170 hp) of power in its application in the “Freeside” GLK style variant, and 150 kW (204 hp) in the “Townside” variant. The Townside engine employs more boost pressure for a sportier drive.

The engines both offer 500 Nm (369 lb-ft) of torque at 1,600 rpm. Both feature a fourth-generation common-rail direct injection with an injection pressure of 2,000 bar, as well as a two-stage turbocharger system.

This puts our four-cylinder engine on a torque level recently only matched by 3-liter, six-cylinder diesel engines or even eight-cylinder gasoline power plants. And we achieve excellent fuel consumption figures of about 35 mpg, which is equal to 6.7 liters per 100 kilometers.

—Thomas Weber, Member of the Board of Management of Daimler AG, Group Research & Development Mercedes-Benz Cars

In the GLK implementation, BLUETEC relies on an oxidizing catalytic converter and maintenance-free particulate filter supplemented by an AdBlue urea-based SCR catalytic converter. The Ad-Blue-based SCR system converts up to 80% of the NO_x into nitrogen and water. Mercedes projects that the GLK diesels would meet both coming Euro 6 and US Tier 2 Bin 5/CA LEV II specifications. The S 300 BLUETEC hybrid will also use an AdBlue SCR system.

With the engine installed longitudinally and the transmission and transfer case designed as a single block, the new 4MATIC all-wheel-drive system featured in the Vision GLK models minimizes frictional losses, as well as providing a number of further benefits compared to other systems where the drive unit is installed crossways. As a result, fuel consumption is on a par with that of a comparable model with conventional two-wheel drive.

S 300 BLUETEC Hybrid. The S 300 BLUETEC mild hybrid, planned for 2010, delivers 150 kW (204 hp) and a maximum torque of 480 Nm from its version of the 2.2-liter, 4-cylinder diesel engine, coupled to a 15 kW (20 hp) hybrid module.

When combined with the standard-fit 7G-TRONIC seven-speed automatic transmission, the S 300 BLUETEC Hybrid accelerates from 0 to 100 km/h in just 8.4 seconds and can reach a top speed of 240 kph (149 mph).

Fuel consumption is projected to be 5.4 liters of diesel per 100 kilometers (44 mpg US), corresponding to 142 g CO₂ per kilometer.