News: No Smoking
April 1, 2008
More than half a century ago, Mercedes-Benz diesels arrived Stateside amid a haze of blue smoke. While the fumes have finally cleared, Mercedes-Benz’s commitment to diesel has not. The GLK, available January 2009, is the smallest SUV in the Mercedes-Benz stable and the latest to offer the company’s highly advanced Bluetec diesel-engine technology. The adventure-ready Vision GLK Freeside and urban-chic Townside concepts feature a 2.2-liter 4-cylinder Bluetec engine, driving all four wheels through a 7-speed automatic transmission. With common-rail direct-injection and a precisely managed variable nozzle turbocharger that reduces lag and sharpens engine response, the 4-cylinder Bluetec produces only 168 hp, but what it lacks in power it makes up for with 369 ft lbs of torque. And, like the E320 Bluetec’s 6-cylinder engine, it boasts a multi-stage exhaust tract that purges unburned hydrocarbons, removes soot particles, and converts poisonous nitrogen oxides to harmless nitrogen and water—leaving its tailpipe emissions as clean as a gasoline engine’s.
Mercedes-Benz, www.mbusa.com
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