2008 Mercedes-Benz R-Class

large SUV / 4-door SUV

2008 Mercedes-Benz R-Class 4-door SUV

Crashworthiness

Rating overview
Moderate overlap front: original test
Side: original test
Head restraints & seats

Key

  • G
    Good
  • A
    Acceptable
  • M
    Marginal
  • P
    Poor
  • Superior
  • Advanced
  • Basic

Some ratings use a scale of Poor to Good. Others range from Basic to Superior.

Moderate overlap front: original test

Rating applies to 2006-12 models

Tested vehicle: 2007 Mercedes-Benz R 500 4-door 4wd

The Mercedes-Benz R-Class was introduced in the 2006 model year and restyled for the 2011 model year. Frontal ratings are assigned by the Institute based on a test conducted by Mercedes-Benz.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Chest
Leg/foot, left
Leg/foot, right
Driver restraints and dummy kinematics
Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID VTF0719
Footwell intrusion
Footrest (cm) 6
Left (cm) 9
Center (cm) 10
Right (cm) 8
Brake pedal (cm) 10
Instrument panel rearward movement
Left (cm) 2
Right (cm) 0
Steering column movement
Upward (cm) 0
Rearward (cm) -4
A-pillar rearward movement (cm) 2

Driver injury measures

Test ID VTF0719
Head
HIC-15 350
Peak gs at hard contact negligible
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.4
Extension bending moment (Nm) 15
Maximum Nij 0.40
Chest maximum compression (mm) 41
Legs
Femur force - left (kN) 2.4
Femur force - right (kN) 2.0
Knee displacement - left (mm) 3
Knee displacement - right (mm) 9
Maximum tibia index - left 0.35
Maximum tibia index - right 0.63
Tibia axial force - left (kN) 1.7
Tibia axial force - right (kN) 3.0
Foot acceleration (g)
Left 98
Right 88

About the original moderate overlap front test

Side: original test

Rating applies to 2007-09 models built before October 2008

Tested vehicle: 2008 Mercedes-Benz R 350 4-door 4wd with standard head curtain airbags for all three rows of seats and standard front and 2nd row seat-mounted torso airbags

The Mercedes-Benz R-Class was introduced in the 2006 model year. Beginning with 2007 models, side torso airbags were made standard for second row seat occupants (they were optional in 2006 models).

Two tests of a 2008 R-Class were conducted because in the first test, the airbag warning lamp remained illuminated prior to the test, indicating a possible airbag malfunction. Mercedes diagnostics indicated the fault was confined to the second row right torso airbag, opposite the rear dummy's seating position. Nevertheless, the second test was conducted to determine if the airbag fault warning influenced the results. The second test (without a fault warning) produced very similar injury measures, which confirm the validity of the first test. Therefore, all ratings except for structure are based on averaged results from both tests. The structure rating is based on the two tests of 2008 models plus a later test of a 2009 model.

Overall evaluation
Structure and safety cage
Driver injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Driver head protection
Rear passenger injury measures
Head/neck
Torso
Pelvis/leg
Rear passenger head protection

View of the vehicle and barrier just after the second of two crash tests.

View of the vehicle after the second crash with doors removed, showing the side airbags and damage to the occupant compartment.

Smeared greasepaint shows where the driver dummy's head was protected from being hit by hard structures by the side airbags (second crash test shown).

Smeared greasepaint shows where the rear passenger dummy’s head was protected by the side curtain airbag (first crash test shown).

Technical measurements for this test

Measures of occupant compartment intrusion on driver side

Test ID CES0805 CES0816 CES0905
B-pillar to longitudinal centerline of driver's seat (cm) -11.0 -10.0 -11.5
Negative numbers indicate the amount by which the crush stopped short of the seat centerline.

Driver injury measures

Test ID CES0805 CES0816
Head HIC-15 112 81
Neck
Tension (kN) 1.3 1.0
Compression (kN) 0.0 0.1
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 47 47
Lateral force (kN) 1.8 1.8
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 51 50
Average deflection (mm) 41 43
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 4.30 3.97
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.88 0.98
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 1.2 1.0
Acetabulum force (kN) 1.7 2.1
Combined force (kN) 2.9 3.1
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.3 0.4
L-M moment (Nm) 150 153
A-P moment (Nm) -47 -51

Passenger injury measures

Test ID CES0805 CES0816
Head HIC-15 17 9
Neck
Tension (kN) 0.1 0.1
Compression (kN) 0.4 0.4
Shoulder
Lateral deflection (mm) 10 8
Lateral force (kN) 0.8 0.6
Torso
Maximum deflection (mm) 12 12
Average deflection (mm) 11 10
Maximum deflection rate (m/s) 2.02 1.88
Maximum viscous criterion (m/s) 0.09 0.11
Pelvis
Iliac force (kN) 1.1 0.5
Acetabulum force (kN) 0.6 0.5
Combined force (kN) 1.6 0.9
Left femur
L-M force (kN) 0.3 0.3
L-M moment (Nm) 103 72
A-P moment (Nm) -30 -39

About the original side crash test

Head restraints & seats

Seat type: Seats without auto-adjust head restraints AHR

Overall evaluation
Dynamic rating
Seat/head restraint geometry
Technical measurements for this test
Seat type Seats without auto-adjust head restraints AHR
Geometry
Backset (mm) 46
Distance below top of head (mm) 28
Seat design parameters
Pass/fail Pass
Max T1 acceleration (g) 13.7
Head contact time (ms) 60
Force rating 1
Neck forces
Max neck shear force (N) 114
Max neck tension (N) 466

About the head restraint & seat test
Currently, IIHS tests apply only to front seats.