Curt's Newsletter

May 2006

37 MPG, 780 Miles Per Tank

MONTVALE, NJ – Do you get sticker shock at every gas pump, but don’t want to sacrifice your people- and cargo-carrying space? Are you now resigned to ever-higher fuel prices, but not ready to take the hybrid plunge? Mercedes-Benz, the company that invented the diesel passenger car, suggests that the time is right to consider a switch to new clean diesel technology.

Here’s what still seems to be a well-kept secret – the latest CDI (Common-rail Direct Injection) diesel engines offer 20-40 percent better fuel mileage as well as long range between fill-ups and powerful acceleration. Most of today’s diesels utilize state-of-the-art engine technologies making them among the cleanest, quietest and most powerful engines on the road.

V8 Power and Four-Cylinder Fuel Economy for SUVs and Large Vehicles

While it’s no secret that SUVs satisfy the American consumer’s demand for large, powerful vehicles, diesel technology offers a fuel-efficient way to enjoy the benefits of these larger vehicles without sacrificing space or performance. In fact, a diesel-powered SUV can yield an estimated 30 percent increase in fuel economy in these larger vehicles.

Diesels inherently produce high engine torque, delivering four-cylinder fuel economy with V8 pulling power. Starting this fall, Mercedes-Benz will offer a new V6 CDI engine in its popular M-Class sport utility vehicle and in the six-passenger R-Class sport tourer with the launch of the ML320 and R320 CDI diesels. A diesel version of the all-new seven-passenger GL-Class will launch in early 2007.

New York to Detroit on a Tank of Fuel – and Then Some
The Federal EPA rates the current Mercedes-Benz E320 CDI – a full-sized four-door luxury sedan – at 27 miles per gallon around town and 37 mpg in highway driving. Additionally, it can cruise up to 780 miles (New York to Detroit with miles to spare) on a single tank of fuel. Perhaps most impressive, the 201-hp six-cylinder diesel engine can accelerate this luxury four-door sedan from 0-60 mph in 6.6 seconds – comparable to the gasoline-powered E350 V6.

BLUETEC – Diesel for the Future

Also scheduled to make its world retail debut in Fall 2006, Mercedes-Benz BLUETEC technology combines sophisticated engine design with a special exhaust after-treatment system to offer the cleanest diesel technology in the world. The E320 BLUETEC incorporates an oxidizing catalytic converter, a particulate filter, an advanced “denox” storage converter and a SCR catalytic converter.

To meet even more stringent emission requirements, the BLUETEC system could also be equipped with another innovation -- AdBlue injection. When AdBlue, a water-based urea solution, is injected into pre-cleaned exhaust gas, ammonia is released, converting nitrogen oxides into harmless nitrogen in a downstream SCR catalytic converter. Called SCR for Selective Catalyst Reduction, this process creates the most effective method of exhaust gas after-treatment currently available.

The Mercedes-Benz Museum
A Heritage For The Future

Stuttgart, Apr 28, 2006 The inventor of the automobile has also reinvented the motor museum: the New Mercedes-Benz Museum in Stuttgart opened its doors on May 19, 2006. Within a construction time of only two and a half years, from September 2003 to April 2006, an architectural highlight has been created which constitutes a remarkable design feature for the Stuttgart region. It is the only museum in the world able to present the 120-year history of the automotive industry from day one. The display concept is likewise unique: 160 vehicles and more than 1500 other exhibits are presented to visitors on two connected tour routes occupying an area of 16,500 square meters on nine levels. The Museum’s physical proximity to the main Mercedes-Benz plant in Stuttgart-Untertürkheim creates the link between tradition and the present day: the Museum shows that automotive history has always been forward-looking, based on the continuous innovative strength of the Mercedes-Benz brand.
The new Museum not only presents the exciting history of the Mercedes-Benz brand, but also affords a revealing look into the future. This dual function is also reflected in the architecture, which was created in the “UN studio” of the world-famous Dutch architects Ben van Berkel and Caroline Bos. The striking modernity of the design appears to have come from the future – and yet preserves the tradition of the brand. The architecture illustrates the genetic make-up of the brand. The interior of the building is modeled on the double-helix structure of the DNA spiral which carries the human genes. This in turn illustrates the original philosophy of the Mercedes-Benz brand, namely the continuous invention of completely new things to maintain personal mobility – from the invention of the automobile to the future-oriented vision of accident–free driving.

Unique museum concept

The display concept created and realized by the consultancy HG Merz is also highly original. During their at least 2-hour tour of the Museum, visitors experience the 120-year history of the automobile as a journey through time. A lift takes them to the uppermost level of the Museum, from where two sweeping tour routes spiral down through nine levels to the starting point as a double-helix metaphorically representing the genetic make-up of the brand. Along the first tour route there are seven “Legend rooms” which relate the story of the brand in chronological order. The second tour route groups the enormous display of vehicles into five separate “Collection rooms” which present the huge variety of the brand portfolio over time. As a completely new feature, the new Museum also documents the more than 100-year commercial vehicle history of the company.

A look at the working day of the engineers

Visitors are able to switch between the two tour routes at any time. Both end at the banked curve - “Silver Arrows – Races and Records” – where the Mercedes legend is experienced at first hand. This display is supplemented with “The Fascination of Technology” exhibition, which provides a look at the day-to-day work of the engineers and affords a glimpse into the future of the automobile. This detailed picture of the Mercedes-Benz brand consists of more than 1500 exhibits, of which 160 are vehicle exhibits. According to Max-Gerrit von Pein, the Chief Executive of Mercedes-Benz Museum GmbH and Director of DaimlerChrysler Heritage, “The Mercedes-Benz Museum is a unique location where the history of the automobile and the aura surrounding the Mercedes-Benz brand from the early days to the present can best be experienced in a completely new and exciting way”.

Brand history grouped into topics areas and historical eras

The Legend rooms tell the story of the Mercedes-Benz brand by way of topic areas and historical eras. Accordingly the areas are in chronological order, with the exhibits placed in their historical context.
• Legend 1: Pioneers – The Invention of the Automobile, 1886 to 1900
• Legend 2: Mercedes – The Birth of the Brand, 1900 to 1914
• Legend 3: Times of Change – Diesels and Superchargers, 1914 to 1945
• Legend 4: Post-war Miracle– Form and Diversity, 1945 to 1960
• Legend 5: Visionaries – Safety and the Environment, 1960 to 1982
• Legend 6: Moving the World – Global and Individual, 1982 to the present day
• Legend 7: Silver Arrows – Races and Records

The Collection rooms show the enormous variety of Mercedes-Benz vehicles according to topic areas. Here the visitor can view exhibits such as a perfectly normal Mercedes-Benz O 305 regular-service bus, the famous “Millipede” – the LP 333 heavy truck, an LF 3500 fire-fighting vehicle with a turntable ladder or the “Popemobile” used by Pope John Paul II. Vehicles which have a history of their own and in some cases also helped to write history.
• Collection 1: Gallery of Voyagers
• Collection 2: Gallery of Carriers
• Collection 3: Gallery of Helpers
• Collection 4: Gallery of Celebrities
• Collection 5: Gallery of Heroes

“The Fascination of Technology”, which is freely accessible as a self-contained exhibition, occupies a special position. Exhibits in highly sophisticated contextual surroundings provide a look at the day-to-day work of Mercedes-Benz engineers and developers, and therefore at the future of the automobile. A café, a restaurant and various shops round off the facilities available to visitors. A direct physical link with the showroom in the Mercedes-Benz Center provides a seamless transition of the Mercedes legend from the classic models to the current product range.

How to Run Your Battery Down

1. Leave the headlight switch anywhere except OFF or AUTO. On everything except pre-2006 MLs, that means anywhere but STRAIGHT UP or ONE NOTCH TO THE RIGHT on cars with AUTO.
If you’re sloppy and over-reach straight up, reaching one notch to the left, you get to “Right Parking Lights,” and they’ll stay on all night. The car will not beep or chime.

If you turned on your fog lights you had to first switch the headlights from AUTO to ON. The car will BEEP or chime as you leave it.

2. Use valet parking. Valet parkers will ALWAYS turn the lights from AUTO to ON. You’re used to just taking out the key and walking away. The lights will go off in 30 seconds, so you pay no attention to them. Ouch. DON’T LEAVE A CAR THAT IS BEEPING OR CHIMING EXCEPT FOR CARS WITH KEYLESS GO.

3. Store your key in the garage near the car if you’ve got Keyless Go. This will keep the system on and run the battery down.

4. Leave the key in the car but turned off. Ditto.

Miscellaneous Ravings

Memorial Day

This will probably reach you after Memorial Day (no doubt on the snail-mailed version!) I hope you enjoyed Memorial Day. Memorial Day is designed to be a day to honor those who have died in service to their country. Of course, the fact that we can still celebrate it, in English, with the government of our own choice, honors them enough. I have a lot of friends to talk to on Memorial Day. They all have their name on a wall in Washington. Veterans Day, on the other hand, honors living veterans.

Since I work in retail, I work on both Memorial Day and Veterans Day. For some reason we get Labor Day.

Quotes, some involving chocolate

Stress comes from putting yourself in the position of constantly reacting to others’ input.

Sara Schurr

Save the earth. It's the only planet with chocolate.

“There is nothing better than a friend, unless it is a friend with chocolate.”

Charles Dickens

Activate your Tele-Aid!

A service writer came to me to ask if Tele-Aid could be activated after a car was stolen. A customer of ours was carjacked, and now he wanted Tele-Aid activated so he could get the car back and catch the thieves.

Too late.

To compound this error, the car was less than a year old, so if he had activated the Tele-Aid at delivery, he would have had a year free.

Rant Follows:

I really don’t understand why everyone with Tele-Aid in the car doesn’t activate it and keep it activated. These are expensive cars. It’s not as if you can’t afford $20/month for the protection. Actual cost is less than that because of insurance discounts for a Vehicle Recovery System.

“Well, I’ve had it for 2 years and never needed it, so I’m canceling.”

I suppose you’ve canceled your life insurance, too. You’re still alive.

Personally, I don’t intend to ever again have a car without Tele-Aid or equivalent, and all I’ve used mine for was to unlock the car when my key disappeared. I’ve heard the testimonials of people who had it and had a bad accident and got help and comfort very quickly. I heard about the woman who was carjacked with her children in the back seat. The police returned the car and the children unharmed within an hour. A lot of people have gotten answers to the questions about their car without having to read the operators manual (a fate worse than death apparently.) And countless customers have punched the button for roadside assistance and watched from their air conditioning as a technician changed their flat tire in 105° heat.

Ann Coulter Quote of the month:

“I would be more interested in what the Democrats had to say about high gas prices if these were not the same people who refused to let us drill for oil in Alaska, imposed massive restrictions on building new refineries, and who shut down the development of nuclear power in this country decades ago.

“But it's too much having to watch Democrats wail about the awful calamity to poor working families of having to pay high gas prices.

“Imposing punitive taxation on gasoline to force people to ride bicycles has been one of the left's main policy goals for years.

“For decades Democrats have been trying to raise the price of gasoline so that the working class will stop their infernal car-driving and start riding on buses where they belong, while liberals ride in Gulfstream jets.”

She just about sums up the oil crisis du jour. In addition to pushing policies that virtually guarantee recurring oil crises, the left has a poor memory. All of the things proposed by the left have been tried. Price controls? Tried, by Nixon—result, looooong gas lines. Allocation? Longer gas lines. In today’s dollar prices reached nearly $5/gallon under Nixon. Speed limits? Results—an entire country of “criminals,” higher insurance rates, richer courts, time wasted. We don’t have the best radar detectors in the world for nothing. Investigating the oil companies? Result—30 such investigations found that, surprise, surprise, oil companies don’t set the price of crude, and their profits are legitimate. Alternate energy sources? Windmills? Result—Ted Kennedy killed the windmill farm off Nantucket. Those things are only acceptable where the common people live. Alcohol? Takes a lot of energy to produce. I’m not sure it works out to be ahead. While farmers want it, the problem is we don’t have enough farmland to make enough alcohol to make E85 the universal fuel, and the US puts a tariff on imported ethanol. Electricity? There’s that pesky range thing. Stopping every 140 miles for an eight hour break would makefor a leisurely vacation, though.

Diesel works, so the gumment on the left coast made up rules designed to ban forever automotive and light truck diesel. Now those regulations will become national on January 1, 2007. Just as American auto companies don’t like to be told yes, some auto companies don’t take no for an answer, and diesel engines exist that will meet those regulations, most of them made by Mercedes-Benz. All we need is ultra-low sulfur diesel to be 100% available. The drop dead date for that was to be September 1, 2006. Oops, that pesky hurricane Katrina, the one who proved that Louisiana DOES have the most inept, corrupt government in the US, caused President Bush to push the date back 2 months to November 1, 2006. Since cars that meet those regulations require that fuel, they might be delayed until November or December. Most of the diesel fuel in the US is already ultra low sulfur, however.

Europe has already gone diesel, and if the politicians don’t screw up too completely it could reduce our needs for automotive fuel by 1/3.

Seen on Bumper Stickers:

--Air Pollution is a mist-demeanor.
--Editing is a rewording activity.
--Circular Definition: see Definition, Circular.
--Make yourself at home .....clean my kitchen
--Allow me to introduce my selves
--Better living through denial
--I'm just working here until a good fast food job opens up....
--The one who snores, falls asleep first.

George S. Patton, Jr’s Vacation

George, our 17 lb. not so miniature pinscher, decided he needed a vacation. Guarding the house from all those birds, deliverymen, repairmen, etc. was getting him down. So he decided he needed a week in northern New Mexico. He arranged everything for us to go. He noted that the Single Action Shooting Society has bought a ranch there and is having their world championships, End of Trail, there in June. He sent in an entry for me and signed The Redhead up for a guest badge (and gave her a map to the casinos nearby to keep her happy while I’m shooting and BSing). He found someone renting RVs and arranged a 30 ft. travel trailer to be delivered to the ranch for the week so we can stay in the RV park with 500 of our closest friends. Now I would have been really happy about all this if he hadn’t put it all on my Amex card. He could have put it on his. He’s the one with the black one.

Anyway, we’ll be gone June 19th-24th, probably back by the 26th, but, since we’re driving, it could be the 27th.

The Ten Things
Your Dog Wants You To Know
by Daniell Hollister

If Your dog could talk, these are some of the most important things he/she would like to tell you .

1 - My life will probably only last 7-14 years. It will hurt me more than you know if I have to be away from you for longer than a day or two.

2 - If you have patience with me and give me time to learn what you would like from me, I can promise you, you will never be disappointed.

3 - Trust me with our life and have faith in our future together. If I don't feel that you honestly believe in me, I will suffer great emotional stress. My sense of self-worth is totally dependent upon your confidence in me.

4 - Don't stay mad at me for long or confine me to a cage to punish me. You have your friends, your job, and your recreation. I HAVE ONLY YOU!

5 - Talk to me about anything you want as frequently as possible. Even if I can't comprehend your precise words, I can understand the meaning of what you're telling me by the tone of you're voice.

6 - Remember no matter how you treat me, I will NEVER
forget it.

7 - When you consider raising your hand to hit me, remember I have teeth that could break the bones in your hand, but I choose not to bite you.

8 - Before you scream at me for failing to respond to your commands as I usually do, take time to think about what might be wrong with me that would cause me to treat you differently. Maybe I haven't been eating right or drinking enough water. Or maybe my age is catching up with me and I just can't do what I used to do.

9 - Take good care of me when I get old. Someday you will be as old as me and you will see how it feels.

10 - Be there for me through good times and bad. Never say you can't handle taking me to the vet for stitches or surgery. Nothing could make me feel worse. Everything in my life is easier for me to deal with when I have you standing by my side. Remember my love for you is unconditional and it will last for your entire life.

Curt Rich May 2006