The X-Class bakkie is now available with a Swabian-sourced V6, and the addition of this Stuttgart-designed six-cylinder powerplant to the Nissan-derived pickup makes it the true Mercedes-Benz of double-cabs.
The claims for X350d are significant. Mercedes-Benz engineers whispers that this is the fastest double-cab bakkie in its class. Boasting 190 kW and 550 Nm, it runs the 0-100 km/h benchmark acceleration test in 7.5 seconds and will run a 205 km/h top speed too.
Very little differentiates the X350d from its four-cylinder siblings: there is V6 badging on the front quarter panel, but not much else. Start it up and the clues to that engine being larger and benefitting from two additional cylinders are even less obvious. Married to the engine is an automatic gearbox of Mercedes-Benz’s own design and it converts the 550 Nm of the X350d to a surge of propulsion. Despite the substantial mass of the bakkie, it feels indisputably athletic and the seven-speed shift pattern algorithm is not confused by trailing throttle up steep gradients either.
The X-Class V6 is effortlessly powerful, crushing long climbs with an overwhelming combination of abundant torque and an exceptionally broad spread of gears, and its swiftness and overtaking muscle is a major boon. It now finally has the power to compete with the Amarok V6 and is unquestionably the quietest bakkie to travel in; but pricing is steep, with the lower-specced Progressive retailing for R904,188 and the top-line Power for R973,188, without options or any dealer associated costs …
– Ferdi de Vos
