MERCEDES celebrated the 125th

anniversary since the invention of the auto-mobile with a special edition model of the Tourismo RHD characterized by the “125! Jahre Innovation” slogan printed above the front wheel arches on top of the five stars symbolizing the history of the Mercedes brand. The Star is also featured on the radiator grille while the blue Mercedes Benz logo is visible on the steps of both access doors. This special edition, available also in the Tou-rismo versions of 13 and 14 meters, among other things features LED lighting on the stai-rs edges, a selection for upholstery fabric and for seat’s headrests colour, and the Harmonia Tropical Ship wood-like floor covering. The 12,14 meters Tourismo RHD supplied for the drive test of BusToCoach has the look first

www.bustocoach.com - Newsletter 15th January 2012

A collection’s ITEM

TEST

Mercedes Tourismo RHD

Lenght mm 12,140 Width mm 2,550 Height with AC mm 3,620 Wheelbase mm 6,080 Front Overhang mm 2,760 Rear Overhang mm 3,300 Luggage m3 8.5 Turning Circle mm 21,200 Fuel Tank litres 490 AdBlue Tank litres 61 Empty Weight kg 13,549 Perm. GWV kg 17,790

DIMENSIONS

Performance Index0 7,91 10

€ 249.000Net price in

Germany

4.054.515.28

2.603.26

FUEL

km/li

tre

Up on the HighwayPlain on the Highway

Main Road Down on the Highway TOTAL AVERAGE

Routes km km/h km/litreMain Road 43.4 56.6 3.26Highway (up) 40.5 71.5 2.60Highway (down) 52.2 62.6 5.28Highway (plain) 206.3 93.1 4.51TOTAL 342.4 78.1 4.05

THE decorative friezes are not the only fe-

atures that distinguish the “125! Jahre Innovation” Tourismo from other standard versions.The interior is enhanced by custo-mization and comfort accessories. The seats can chosen from three versions available in new Travel series (see photo on the right). The vehicle that we tested had Star Xtra mounted on. In any case, all seats are reclining, extendable and fully equipped. The special atmosphere that can be experienced on-board is due also by features such as the fabric coverings on walls and racks, the wood effect on the floor and the selectable lighting system that allows for the isolation of perso-nal spotlights, oval white or blue lights on the ceiling and green outline stripes for night drives. The edge of the steps on the en-trance doors are also illuminated.

In addition to the automatic air conditioning and heating coils systems, among the other features that complete the range of comfort accessories there is an excellent audio/video system with speakers under the racks (the left one with

built-in hand rail) and two 19-inch displays located one in the front and the other in the centre. Furthermore, the bus is equipped with a fully accessorized toilet (including a fire detector) and a kitchenette. •

PASSEGGERI Seats n. 49 Internal Height mm 2,100 Aisle Height mm 1,250 Aisle Width mm 365 Entrances Width mm 620/590 Raks Volume m3 1.7 Comfort Type Seats Travel Star Xtra A.C Automatic 32 kW Heater Convectors Roof Hatches 2 electric Glazing Double Audio/Video Radio CD, DVD Toilètte water or chem.

inaugurated at the IAA in Hanover in 2006 (4,700 units sold to date), after more than 10 years of success in the previous version, the O 350 Tourismo, which in many parts of Europe has been maliciously defined by competitors as ‘the Turkish’ because of its production at the Mercedes establishment in Hoşdere. Today, among the tourist range offered by Mercedes this is the vehicle of great accom-plishments for it combines a full range equi-pment with an advanced safety system and price competitiveness: in Ger-many the Special Edition is marketed at 249,000 Euros.The Tourismo RHD that we drive tested was balla-sted to the limit of 18,000 kg gross vehicle weight, run on a 408 hp Mercedes engine and an 8-speed GO 240-8 PowerShift automated gearbox.Therefore the kinematic chain of the model that we tested was somewhat enhanced com-pared to the standard equipment that in most European countries consists of the same 12 litres OM 457 HLA engine but with a calibra-

Beyound Standards

THE TEST ROUTEPASSENGERS

THE driver ’s wor-kstation of the

Tourismo is well known and appreciated by drivers for its spaciousness and rational arrangement of instruments. The housing of the joystick gear lever on the dashboard to the right of the instrument panel and just below the radio and the cli-mate controllers is considered particularly favourable. The air suspension seat can be adjusted to suit all kinds of set-tings. Furthermore, it can be he-ated, it has folding armrests and swivels by 90 degrees. The seat is located on a position that is about 40 cm lower compared to the cor-ridor and thus it facilitates outward visibility through the two rear-view mirrors that are electrically adjustable, heated and mechani-cally foldable according to needs. There is also a third emergency rear view mirror that can be used on both sides and it is fixed inside

the luggage compartment. Reverse manoeuvring is further assisted by a camera, mounted on top of the rear window, that feeds images to the screen monitor to the left of the driver, above the dashboard. The camera is also equipped with and

integrated cleaning system.In the central section of the da-shboard there are various recessed shelves and a locker for personal objects, while to the right, there is the custom 51 litres fridge in the middle of the cockpit. •

AUTISTA Platform Height mm 860 Cockpit Width mm 850 Cockpit Depth mm 1,420 Cockpit Height mm 2,220 Adjustment Seat mm 240 Equipment Seat type Pneumatic A.C. Front box 8 kW Window electric Sunshade 2 electric Blinds (left) Manual roller Fridge 51 litres

tion of 354 hp coupled to a manual 6-speed Mercedes GO 190 gear.The results at the diesel pump were in line with those obtained by the competitors that we tested so far (VDL Futura FHD2 and Irisbus Magelys Pro, see table at end of the article).On the 342 km of mixed route, the Tourismo RHD consumed an average of one litre of diesel fuel per 4.05 km, compared to 4.01 of the Magelys Pro and 4.09 of the Futura. These are mi-nimal differences, but alto-gether they give the Tourism the edge to top the perfor-mance index (7.91), also ta-king into account the average speed (78.1 km/h).The average consumption was quantified by taking into consideration also the part of AdBlue (6.2% of oil) injec-ted into the exhaust gas to re-duce pollutants at the Euro V standard through the SCR.Fuel consumption on the hi-ghway was decisively good (4.51 km/litre), the starting point was excellent (it goes from zero to 100 km/h in 40 seconds and one-tenth) and also good were the breathing margins for the engine that guarantees 100 km/h running under 1,300 rpm (2/3 of the maximum speed), that is du-ring optimal full range use (1,000-1,600 rpm). The Special Edition presents passengers with ‘Three-stars’ equipment star-ting with 49 Travel Star Xtra (TSX) seats. These are reclining and extendable, they have aluminium side finishing, two handles, a table and accessories on the back. Alternatively, it is possible to opt for the mounting of seats from the Soft Line Travel or the Lux series. Seats have matching felt coverings on the walls and matching fabric under the racks, where service sets with personal lights and adjustable air vents, fed by an automatic cli-mate control from 32 kW of cooling power

Relaxing Driving

DRIVER

THE kinematic chain has been dimen-

sioned to optimize the perfor-mance/consumption ratio. The “125 Years” edition is powered by the 12-liter Mercedes OM 457 hLA with 408 horsepower and a peak torque that starts at 1,900 Nm at 1,100 rpma and that slightly bends while re-maining above the 1,800 Nm at up to 1,500 rpm, thus ensuring a good shot of the engine. The horizontally mounted engi-ne is compliant to Euro V level emissions by means of the SCR (Selective Catalytic Reduction) system with the injection of Ad-Blue in the exhaust gas. Upon request, the addition of a parti-culate filter can make the engine compliant to the EEV classifi-cation.We confirmed the smoothness in gear changes of the 8-speed Mer-cedes GO 240 PowerShift auto-mated gearbox , which ,in addi-tion to work fully automatically,

it gives the driver the possibility to have direct control of the gear by pushing the lever forward or backwards, or else to completely shift to the manual mode by sim-ply pushing the lever to the left.The Voith 115 E retarder included

into the gearbox integrates the braking system with the electro-nic control (EBS) providing all sorts of assistance systems. The control of air suspensions, that are independent on the front axle, are also electronic. •

that blows through the slot above the side windows, are located.Other features include a 51-liter refrigerator on the dashboard, a toilet (with chemical or water functioning) in the central stairwell, and a kitchenette with hot water dispenser, stove and drawers. On the central door steps there’s an opening slot for waste discharge that ends up in a container in the luggage area, where there’s also a vacuum cleaner.For entertainment purpo-ses there is a Coach 2000 radio system with CD and DVD players that feed six speakers and two 19 inches flat monitors.Special attention has been paid to the driver who en-joys a climate system po-wered by a front box with 8 kW cooling and 18 kW heating capacity. The pneumatic adjustable driver seat is freely ac-cessible thanks to the po-sitioning of the gear lever on the cockpit. On the left side of the da-shboard there is a screen monitor where the driver can see images from the navigation system and from the cameras on the central door and on the rear for reverse manoeuvring.As expected, the bus relies on a comprehen-sive safety package that in addition to the Brake Assist system (including the ESP), it includes an immobilizer and fire detectors located in the engine, luggage and toilet compartments. •

Powerful and Fluid

MOTORE Mercedes OM 457 hLA Displacement cc 11,967Bore/Stroke 128/155Geometry horizontal 6 in linePosition backPower 408 hp (300 kW)/2,000 rpm Torque Nm 1,900 to 1,100 rpmInjection PldCompression Ratio 18.5:1Efficiency 46 percent Oil Tank 38 litersPollution Class Euro VExhaust Gas Treatment ScrLife test vehicle km 19,080

TYRESContinental HSR2 295/80 R 22,5

SUSPENSIONSFull pneumatic with level’s elec-tronic control. ZF RL-75E front axle with indipendent wheels. The mo-tor axle is the Daimler H06.

BRAKESKnorr SB 7000 full disc brakes. Elec-tronically controlled EBS pneumatic system with ABS, ASR, Brake Assist (BAS), Continuous Braking Limiter (DBL) and Retarder.

SAFETYESP, Engine and luggage fire de-tection. Cruise control. Rear view camera.

TRANSMISSIONThe tested vehicle has the automated Merce-des GO 240-8 PowerShift with eight speeds and the Voith VR 115 E integrated retarder.Transmission Ratio 3,909Acceleration 0-100 km/h sec. 40.1rpm/min

Km/h

Model km/h km/litre IndexMercedes Tourismo RHD 78.1 4.05 7.91Irisbus Magelys Pro 12,8 78.4 4.01 7.86VDL Futura FHD2 129/410 76.9 4.09 7.86

COACH: 2-AXLES COMPARED

15 23,5 35,5 56 77,5 98 124 155

8a 7a 6a 5a 4a 3a

2a

1a

0 20 40 60 80 100 120 140 160

rpm/min

2,000

1,500

1,000

500

0

GEARBOXkW

300290

260

230

200

170

Nm

1,900

1,493

1,086

1,000 1,200 1,400 1,600 1,800 2,000

ENGINE