Sprint Review: Mercedes-Benz X250d bakkie

A hyped-up new bakkie, lots of details in short paragraphs.

What you need to know: Mercedes is apparently back-paddling and emergency-meeting the living daylights out of themselves because of the X-Class. No matter what they do, no matter what anyone says or writes, all people remember is that it’s based on a Nissan. Navara with mascara. And nothing, nothing else matters.

Renault also has a Navara-based bakkie called the Alaskan but they didn’t (yet) make a huge hoo-hah about it to one of the most brutal automotive audiences on the planet: lekker bakkie ouens. If you want to start arguing about whose dad can beat up whose dad and mine’s bigger than yours, start talking bakkies at a braai.

More facts: The Volkswagen Amarok with its car-like finesse already had a tough time breaking into the beer guzzling, rugby ranting clientele. Truth be told, it still isn’t 100% accepted by the Toyota manne who now have to concede that milk might come in three-litre bottles. That also doesn’t matter…

Where we went: A lot of places and plenty of people who gravitated towards our bright red X250d press vehicle with wide-eyed interest. Unfortunately, every single one of them retreated after a while with frowning disapproval. It’s not that the Merc bakkie is bad, it’s just not as good as everyone expected.

I personally thought it rode reasonably well, felt smooth and substantial, was quite fuel efficient and had acceptable cabin materials… kinda like a Navara. The steering wheel, indicator stalk, instruments, media screen and controls are from Merc while Nissan provided the window switches, ventilation controls, rear-view mirror and… umm, everything else?

Watch out for: For starters, the manual gearbox in this X250d 4Matic Progressive model. Really, Mercedes? Next up is the price of around R702,000 which is 15 grand less than a base (automatic!) V6 TDi Amarok. The top-dog X250d Auto is R17,000 more than the meanest Amarok V6. It’s ridiculous.

Why you’ll want one: To drive a big bakkie with Mercedes badges; and nothing else. Again, it’s not terrible, but it’s no better than the Nissan it’s based on and nowhere near as refined or brawny as the VW. But worst of all, it taints the image of an otherwise illustrious brand. Drop it like a hot potato, Mercedes, before the fallout becomes too bad.

All Mercaras are sold with a two-year/unlimited mileage warranty and a six-year/100,000km service plan.

---

FULL SPECLIST:

Engine:                        2.3L i-4 turbo-diesel
Transmission:          6-speed manual, selectable 4×4
Max. Power:              140kW
Max. Torque:             450Nm
Avg cons.:                   7.0L/100km (claimed 7.7)
0-100km/h:              10.91 seconds
Top Speed:                 Claimed 180km/h
List Price:                   R701,615

---

DOUBLE CAB PRICE COMPARISON (Sept. 2018)

Toyota Land Cruiser 79 4.5 D4-D LX V8 (M)                             R743,200
Volkswagen Amarok 3.0 V6 TDi Highline (A)                            R717,600
Mercedes-Benz X250d 4Matic Progressive (M)                   R701,615

Ford Ranger Wildtrak 3.2 4×4 Wildtrak (A)                               R633,700
Toyota Hilux 2.8GD-6 4×4 Raider Dakar (A)                             R621,000
Nissan Navara 2.3D 4×4 LE (A)                                                   R616,500

Isuzu KB300D-Teq 4×4 LX (A)                                                     R594,500
Mitsubishi Triton 2.4Di-D 4×4 Athlete (A)                                R579,995
Fiat Fullback 2.4Di-D 4×4 LX (A)                                                 R573,900
Mazda BT-50 3.2 4×4 SLE (A)                                                      R561,300

Nissan NP300 Hardbody 2.5TDi 4×4 (M)                                 R413,100

Mahindra Pik Up 2.2CRDe 4×4 S10 (M)                                    R357,995
GWM Steed6 2.0VGT Xscape (M)                                               R314,900

GWM Steed5E 2.0VGT Xscape (M)                                            R279,900
GWM Steed5 2.0VGT SX (M)                                                      R259,900
Mahindra Bolero 2.5TD 4×4 (M)                                               R240,995

---

Performance:

0-10km/h: 0,55 seconds
0-20km/h: 1,08 seconds
0-30km/h: 1,86 seconds
0-40km/h: 2,87 seconds
0-50km/h: 3,67 seconds
0-60km/h: 4,63 seconds
0-70km/h: 6,16 seconds
0-80km/h: 7,47 seconds
0-90km/h: 8,98 seconds
0-100km/h: 11,09 seconds
0-110km/h: 13,14 seconds
0-120km/h: 15,49 seconds
0-130km/h: 19,15 seconds
0-140km/h: 22,42 seconds
0-150km/h: 27,04 seconds

0-100m: 7,58 seconds @ 80,82km/h
0-200m: 11,50 seconds @ 101,96km/h
0-300m: 14,77 seconds @ 117,14km/h
0-400m: 17,72 seconds @ 125,15km/h

100-0km/h: 3,26 seconds @ 41,40 metres (once-off)
Maximum deceleration G-force: 1,07G

——————————-

0-10mph: 0,83 seconds
0-20mph: 2,00 seconds
0-30mph: 3,53 seconds
0-40mph: 5,60 seconds
0-50mph: 7,53 seconds
0-60mph: 10,45 seconds
0-70mph: 13,74 seconds
0-80mph: 18,77 seconds
0-90mph: 24,46 seconds

1/4 mile: 17,78 seconds @ 77,96 mph

Maximum acceleration G-force: 0,65G

Altitude: 60m

All data captured by Racelogic® Performance Box