General Comments:
This is my second Vito of the latest shape, I also had a 2004 111CDI from new & did 120000 miles in that one. Lots of niggly problems with that one, but after driving other vans & coming back to the Vito it felt more substantial than other vans to drive, if that makes sense. Also, after a car drove into me at speed front-end on I was very impressed with the crash protection afforded & the drive train is bullet-proof, so the replacement had to be a Vito.
First impressions of this newer Vito are quite favourable. The engine is a lot less agricultural & the fuel economy is much improved, all due to the Piezo injector technology implemented. They quote another 5 bhp over the old 111 but to be honest you'd be hard-pushed to notice the difference.
Another plus is that the variable service intervals seem to be much higher now, my old 111 was averaging every 15000, this one 20000, a result because Mercedes servicing isn't the cheapest or best experience.
Whatever you do get the optional solid bulkhead, as at motorway speeds the noise from the load compartment is almost deafening without.
If you experience strange wear patterns on the front tyres, get the tracking checked/adjusted. Both of these Vitos I've had needed the tracking adjusting otherwise they will wear out the front tyres within 10 - 15000 miles, they should last double that.
Otherwise it's pretty much the same as my old 111, not bad to drive, torquey engine, nice interior for a van.
But come on Mercedes, where's the centre driver's armrest that you get standard on other vans?
9th Apr 2008, 12:05
OK, this log is at 15000 miles & all is good so far, no faults to report. The variable service indicator is showing 6000 miles to the first service (minor). It would seem that Mercedes have listened to customer complaints & addressed them. BUT, a workmate ordered a Transit GLX for the same money & you get a lot more toys like Bluetooth & steering wheel mounted stereo controls to name but a few.