E-Class Coupe Test Drives Thread

[Merc1]

Welcome Home, Mercedes-Benz


For sure the drive to the country club parking lot isn't going to do it. Probably you should figure at least 400 miles, some kind of all-day trek, maybe to Chicago or San Francisco or Atlanta or Saint Louis, a distance that you'd ordinarily cover in a Boeing.

Because once you actually go some place and spend all day on the road and maybe even a bit longer than you'd like, then you'll figure out just how good the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe really is.

This is more like the car that Mercedes used to make, an automobile meant for serious traveling, especially when the roads are unknown, the weather is dicey and time is pressing. It's a car that recalls a time before there were autobahns or interstates, when it was difficult to get from Stuttgart to Milan or from Dallas to Denver. And when you did it in a Mercedes-Benz, you'd get there not only on time but also surprisingly refreshed, simply because you didn't have to endure the long wait at the airport or the press of crowds at the train station.

Luxury is the place where efficiency meets pleasure, and that's where you'll find the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe. It's a serious motorcar.

Truth in Packaging

Of course, the E-Class coupe isn't an E-Class at all. Well, partly it is. Except for the part that isn't. It's kind of confusing, although it really doesn't add up to anything of consequence for anyone except maybe those who claim to be able to count exactly how many angels can dance on the head of a pin.

You see, the E550 coupe actually begins with the C-Class platform and body, as you'd guess from this car's wheelbase of 108.7 inches, some 3.7 inches shorter than an E-Class sedan. The difference is, Mercedes has poured all the bits from the E-Class bin into the C-Class container.

There is some wrangling about this among the rabble, as there are those who claim that it's a kind of marketing scam, meant to create more headroom for the new car's price tag than a C-Class label would allow. This might be so, but we're hard-pressed to care, because we think a car's price is determined by its merits, not some antiquated marketing concept from the era of GM's Alfred P. Sloan that says bigger is better (and expensive), while smaller is crappy (and cheap).

For us, the E-Class coupe is the right size for an automobile that is meant to travel, not simply transport. A coupe is a car for you and maybe a friend, and after that you're talking about very occasional utility. That's why you'll find only two seats in the back of this car. If you think everybody should pack into one car for dinner, as if you were either a bunch of college students in workout gear or a gaggle of septuagenarians wearing whatever it is that septuagenarians wear, then you should wait for the shuttle bus, because the grown-ups are leaving.

The Miracle of Self-Propulsion

Any Mercedes V8 used to be a miracle because European carmakers didn't make V8s and such rarity bestowed a magic quality on the Stuttgart engine. Now, of course, every European carmaker has a V8 and it's become a little difficult to distinguish one from another. The Mercedes 90-degree V8 has always been thought of as the impassive one, all torque and no punch.

But the truth is, the Mercedes guys have always sought to deliver a wide power band, and for this you need an engine that accelerates resolutely from low rpm right to the redline. That's what you need if you're going to get a car hammering down the road at terrific speed, which is the philosophical imperative of every Mercedes. So while we're impressed with the 391 pound-feet of torque that this DOHC 5,461cc V8 makes between 2,800 rpm and 4,800 rpm, we're equally taken with its power peak of 382 horsepower at 6,000 rpm.

It all adds up in acceleration, because the combination of the right kind of power and a right-size, 3,883-pound package (400 pounds lighter than an E-Class sedan) delivers 60 mph in 5.3 seconds (5.0 seconds with 1 foot of rollout like on a drag strip). Check out the E550 coupe's quarter-mile run of 13.4 seconds at 105.2 mph and you'll see what kind of muscle it has.

And it's not like there's much magic required to maximize performance. The stability control system is a little watchful and intrusive here (as you'd prefer in a car with nearly 400 hp that is meant to be driven with purpose in places where it rains and snows), but you can disengage the electronics (a less intrusive safety net remains), toggle the shift lever into Manual mode where the transmission automatically shifts up at the redline of 6,500 rpm, and then let the seven-speed automatic do the rest.

Now that this ZF-built transmission does fast rev-matched downshifts — and now that we've come to realize that automated manual transmissions don't yet deliver the smooth drivability that we all secretly desire more than speedy shifting — this transmission seems like the best automatic in the world, the perfect partner for an engine like the Mercedes V8.

Driving in Luxury

You feel like you're in an E-Class as you get down the road in this coupe. The driving position is full size and the view over the hood is expansive. The squarish C-Class dash has been carved away to enhance the feeling of interior spaciousness, and while the graceful Italianate sweep of the old E-Class interior style has given way to a more geometric, masculine look mandated by new Mercedes design chief Gorden Wagener, this car's interior is a very nice place to be.

You're very aware that there's no B-pillar to interrupt the arc of this coupe's roof line, and so the roof seems properly self-indulgent in that daring-the-boundaries-of-physics way. Your vision isn't as perfect over your shoulder as you'd like, but maybe you don't drive in Los Angeles where there's an F-250 pickup lurking in your blind spot wherever you go.

Meanwhile, every cool little thing in Mercedes' bag of tricks is onboard, as this E550 example is naturally fully optioned with a hard-drive-based navigation system with real-time traffic, an audio system with 5.1 surround sound and iPod compatibility, the usual trickery in the brake system, seatbelts that think and the ever-popular Driver Drowsiness Monitor.

The thing that we really care about, though, is the simple presence of the E-Class suspension. In addition to the configuration of the front suspension struts, this E550 coupe has standard adaptive damping based on inputs from seven sensors, plus the availability of both manually selected normal and Sport mode. The car circles the skid pad at 0.83g on its wide 18-inch Pirelli P Zero Nero tires and stops from 60 mph in 130 feet.

More Than Numbers

But there's more than numbers in the way the E-Class coupe goes down the road. Despite such formidable tires (235/40R18 91H front, 255/35R18 94H rear), it picks up its feet over the bumps, delivering a supple ride. There's a little road roar coming through the hard bushings, but that's what you'd expect in a car tuned to deliver a certain amount of directional crispness at autobahn speed.

More important, when this car jounces over a bump or rolls into a corner, the body moves once and then settles into position and it's ready for what's next. Apparently Mercedes is working with a dynamic concept it calls the "Body Index," a way of quantifying the car's tautness according to its response to a number of pre-determined handling situations.

This car has its liabilities, as it dislikes rapid transitions (as reflected in its speed through our slalom of 60.4 mph), yet it always feels utterly poised, which is a fancy way of saying it's always ready for anything.

As with so many cars, you can feel the character of this Mercedes in its steering. Though the rack-and-pinion steering's ratio is quicker in the E550 coupe than in the sedan, the car still steers a little slowly, though with perfect directness. We're not talking linear (which generally produces a very peculiar response, believe us), but instead a very natural way of guiding the car. It serves a driver who thinks ahead and steers with a slow, delicate touch.

The Coupe Life

The 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe is not inexpensive, with a starting price of $55,525, but neither does it cheat you in any part of the experience it affords. This is a traditional Mercedes, one that affirms the character of the company. The styling is a little delicious, but aren't we all a little tired of the whole Hugo Boss austerity thing?

A Mercedes knows what it must do — take us to distant places. The E-Class coupe has a lot of style, yet it fulfills its mission with a satisfying lack of pretense, and that is what makes it a serious luxury car.



2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe Full Test and Video on Inside Line


M

[NarutoRamen]

Wow, that color looks stunning.

[Shining Star]

I really love that color, and the interior looks great.

[Merc1]

Had a chance to sit in the E-Class coupe again, the 550 version I'm coming around too. The interior is the one of the best looking and sportiest that Mercedes has ever done in a coupe. The materials are really good as are the seats and the whole interior ambiance. I'm coming around to the sedan, but looking at side by side with the old W211 the W211 is still the much cleaner, more cohesive design.


M

[Shining Star]

Take a deep breath, i-i-i-n-n, hold it, now release slowly breathing o-u-u-t. As that warm air exits your body, imagine it blowing away all your mind's preconceived notions of this stylish Benz as the spiritual successor of the CLK. Any such notions can only serve to pollute your expectations with memories of the Black Series and other AMG variants. This new Mercedes-Benz E-Class coupe is a horse of an entirely different color and a decidedly tamer demeanor, and the lower your heart rate, adrenaline levels, and expectations are when you take the wheel, the more you're going to enjoy this slinky, social-climbing coupe.
E coupes share a host of styling cues with their sedan step-sibling, growing considerably longer, lower, and wider in the process (by 1.8, 2.9, and 1.8 inches respectively relative to the CLK), but unlike the last true E-Class coupe and cabriolet (the W124, circa 1984-1995), which priced out well above the sedans, this one rings in $550-$1650 less than its like-engined sedan sibling. Those savings don't reflect the bill of materials for two rear doors (engineering the structure for B-pillarless glass more than covers that); they reflect the lower cost of a bunch of C-Class parts underneath.

Lean on those parts hard, as red-misty-eyed car journos are wont to do when turned loose on a closed handling circuit, and they groan under the 200 or so extra pounds the V-6-powered E350 coupe burdens them with relative to a C350 sedan. Tires howl, the steering turns lifeless (in marked contrast to the E sedan's), stability lights flash in minor slides, and the seatbelts bear-hug you when the system's convinced of imminent doom. The chassis basically feels slightly overwhelmed -- a phenomenon that's maybe a third again worse in the V-8 E550 coupe, which is 300 pounds heavier than the C350. Probing autobahn speeds on our proving ground's oval also revealed slightly wandery steering. All this high-adrenaline driving inspired staff comments like "feels like it was assembled as a marketing exercise rather than engineered to a purpose," and "has the trappings of a Mercedes-Benz but doesn't feel 100 percent like a Mercedes-Benz."
If my colleagues would've done their breathing exercises and mentally visited their happy place before sliding behind the wheel for a drive through city traffic with the harman/kardon stereo cooing at them, then rolled all the windows down and hit the rural tarmac in Sunday-drive mode, they'd have found themselves in the car's happy place and they might've had some nicer things to say. Like, "4-70 air conditioning [four windows down, 70 mph] makes me nostalgic for the '60s, except now there's way less turbulence and noise." The rear seats are comparatively easy to enter and exit and they afford reasonable short-haul comfort for adults, though we wonder why there's no center armrest in this dedicated four-seater. Visibility is excellent, and the standard panoramic sunroof lends a light, airy feel to the entire cockpit (perhaps a bit too light on sunny days, as the cover isn't opaque).

Starting at $48,925, the E coupe makes a nice, unabashed boulevardier, and in a market devoid of Buick Rivieras, Lincoln Mark VIIIs, and big, palatably styled Lexus coupes, there is arguably room for this pretty Benz. The one slight problem is that Audi makes a mighty nice-looking coupe of its own that, in A5 and S5 trims, covers the E350/E550 coupe pretty handily on the performance front, out accelerating, braking, and handling them, despite heavier all-wheel drivetrains and more front-biased weight distribution. The A5 stays just a tenth or two ahead of the E350's run to 60 (6.2 seconds) and through the quarter (14.7 seconds at 95.6 mph). The Audi takes a similar lead in all braking and handling tests, stopping a few feet shorter, gripping a few hundredths harder, and circulating the figure eight about a half-second quicker. The V-8 S5 widens all of those gaps relative to the E550, but it's really more of an AMG competitor.
An AMG Black Series variant has been rumored, and reports are that its performance will be enhanced as much by weight reduction and suspension tuning as by brute force of combustion. That sounds like a version our gang will be able to enjoy without any meditative preparations.


2010 Mercedes-Benz E350 Coupe First Test - Merceces E-Class Coupe review - Motor Trend

[Karabiner98k]

[Just_me]

Originally Posted by Karabiner98k

..........

Karabiner98k , do you think you can post thumbnails instead? (these images are too large for my computer?)

[NarutoRamen]

Thanks for the HUGE ass pics man. A lot of detail in those pics and they are definitely welcomed.

[Untertürkheim]

What a waste to have the speed limiter at 130mph / 210km/hr. Why would anyone pay for the 550 over the 350 when the cars are so restrained in the US?

I guess when the fuel is that cheap and the environment is considered irrelevant one does not need a reason.

[NarutoRamen]

Originally Posted by Untertürkheim

I guess when the fuel is that cheap and the environment is considered irrelevant one does not need a reason.

Fuel might be cheap compared to the rest of the world, but it's relatively priced compared to our wages, which aren't much.

If the environment was considered irrelevant, CARB wouldn't have the strictest regulations in the world.

[Untertürkheim]

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

Fuel might be cheap compared to the rest of the world, but it's relatively priced compared to our wages, which aren't much.

If the environment was considered irrelevant, CARB wouldn't have the strictest regulations in the world.

CARB is a joke, they only care about NOx emissions. CA and the US also have very low quality fuel.

I live in Los Angeles, people here and the rest of the US clearly do not care about the environment. They will say they do because it is fashionable, but just look at how people live.

The US has the cheapest fuel by a huge margin compared to any developed country, and the difference is even more exterme relative to average income.

[NarutoRamen]

Originally Posted by Untertürkheim

CARB is a joke, they only care about NOx emissions. CA and the US also have very low quality fuel.

No shit, why else do you think the fuel is so cheap? The other reasons have to do with the fact that US has it's own refineries, unlike many other countries.

The fact that you're comparing the people from LA to rest of the US shows how little you truly know. LA is all about looks and fashion, go out of your bubble and explore the rest of the US, you'll see a whole different side of it.

On a side note...the whole eco-mentality is bullshit anyways. It's just like how people love "organic" but have no idea what the hell organic really is. Sustainability, I'm all for...Eco-tree hugging BS, get that weak ass shit out of my face. If people love the environment so much they should go live in the forrest...then get back to me about "destroying the world".

[dOmInIX]

Why is the car restricted to 130 mph? Is this new regulation in US?

[Sunny]

Originally Posted by dOmInIX

Why is the car restricted to 130 mph? Is this new regulation in US?

Nope.

[Merc1]

Tires.

I'd still go for the V8 550 in any Mercedes model over the 350 version. Much faster, much more refined and nothing beats the sound of a V8. That shove in the back that the V8 gives compared to the V6 350 is worth it.


M

[ree]

Marketing does funny things. Recently the word "coupe" has been rendered null and void of meaning by crafty marketing types behind cars like the Mercedes-Benz CLS, BMW X6 and Volkswagen CC, while the BMW 5 Series Gran Turismo has sucked every last ounce of truth, honesty and passion from the term "Gran Turismo." It's now just advertising flim-flam. The BMW 8 Series was a grand tourer. The 535i Gran Turismo? We hear it's very practical...

We mention co-opting of the terms "coupe" and "Gran Turismo" because marketers pulled a similar stunt back in the early '70s with the phrase "Personal Luxury Car." Some cars did fit the definition well (roughly, a luxury coupe exists where practicality and efficiency are traded in favor of style, plush and image), others did not. For example, in the U.S. where we like our luxury by the yard, a 1971 Buick Riviera is a perfect example of a personal luxury car. An AMC Matador Brougham complete with Oleg Cassini interior isn't. Regardless of reality, by 1973 every car with two doors and faux-vinyl seats got tagged with the PLC label. As such, the phrase "personal luxury car" became meaningless.

Apropos of all that, Mercedes-Benz was kind enough to let us test its two-door version of its new W212 E-Class, the 2010 E350 Coupe. The new model marks the first time in three generations that Mercedes has offered a coupe version of what's generally considered to be its sauerbraten und spätzle. You'd have to go back to Bill Clinton's first term (that's pre-Lewinsky) to find the two-door W124 E-Class. Obviously, the B-pillarless two-door qualifies as a coupe, but a personal luxury car? Or, dare we say it, a GT?

Interestingly, this two-door E-Class costs less than the four-door version ($550 less, $48,050 for the coupe versus $48,600 for the sedan). That's the complete opposite of a sacrifice and actually pretty rare. Looking at just Mercedes, the four-door S550 starts at $91,600 while the two-door CL550 goes for a cool $110,400 with no options. Additionally, even though prices have yet to be announced, you can be damn sure that Cadillac's new CTS Coupe will carry a premium over its four-door brethren. Why then is this new E350 Coupe less expensive than the sedan?

Because it's not actually an E-Class. Well, it is, but it isn't. Despite any history, the E-Class Coupe is actually replacing the CLK in Mercedes' lineup. And the CLK is built off of the C-Class chassis, not the E-Class. And the new E-Class Coupe is seven inches shorter, four inches narrower and three-and-a half inches lower than an E-Class Sedan. For its part, Mercedes hasn't admitted that the E-Class Coupe rides on a C-Class platform, but when asked point blank if the E-Sedan and E-Coupe rode on the same chassis, one PR official answered, "I wouldn't say that." Regardless, that's why two-doors costs less. But are you getting less car?




We'd answer no. And while we're aware that you're in fact getting 400 pounds or so less car, that's a good thing in this case. Mechanically, you get the same motor with the same tune – MB's 3.5-liter V6 that produces 268 horsepower at 6,000 rpm and 258 pound-feet of torque at a wonderfully-wide 2,400–5,000 rpm. Suspension-wise, the two cars share the same three-link McPherson struts up front and five-point multi-link setup out back, along with Benz' Agility Control stroke-dependent damping (though part of an option pack on the Coupe, standard on the sedan). Again, the Coupe really just weighs less.

This fact pays big dividends on the road. We were instantly impressed (and remained so over the course of our testing) with the power supplied by the V6, especially considering the Coupe's curb weight is a considerable 3,683 pounds. While it certainly lacks the thrust of the more powerful E550's 382-hp V8, we were never left wanting for power – a neat trick, for sure. Are we saying that more power would be unwelcome, particularly from a 500+ hp E63 AMG Coupe? Absolutely not. But the simple fact is that E350 Coupe owners will have no trouble whatsoever attaining fast highway cruising speeds, and then some. The seven-speed slush box is further proof that Mercedes-Benz builds the best pure automatics in the business.



Furthermore, the ride and handling balance is excellent. Put simply, the E-Coupe just feels right. Put a little bit more laboriously, the car's road manners are exemplary, owing in large part to its "proper" front-engine, rear-wheel drive layout. Not a corner carver by any means, the E350 Coupe does follow in the aforementioned European tradition of a GT – a car that's able to enthusiastically soak up mile after mile while providing the driver with a sporting amount of feedback, feel and fun. Put up against an Audi A5, there really is no comparison. The Mercedes is a driver's car, whereas the Audi lacks some directness in the steering and gets rather tiresome during long drives.

As much as we enjoyed driving the E350 Coupe, we actually enjoyed just being inside more. The past decade or so has seen an explosion of entry-level luxury rides, and it was refreshing to experience some actual luxury. Just situating yourself inside the E is an event, as a smart extending guide hands you your seatbelt. The chairs themselves are superlative; many-way adjustable and the driver's seat feature four controls to inflate/deflate various air bladders that provide all sorts of bolstering and support. The passenger seat has three and the quality of leather is without peer for the price point.




The gauges are beautiful, especially the oversized speedo with its trick floating dial. An unnecessary bit of bunting perhaps, but it made us smile. The heated steering wheel features intelligently grouped buttons, as well as the thickness and heft that all vehicles with sporting pretensions should and therefor must have. We were particularly enamored with the simplicity and usefulness of the HVAC controls, specifically the little bars used to raise and lower the cabin's temperature. It's the little things that we came to appreciate, and on a long journey, the driver's ability to remain comfortable might just be the most luxurious thing of all.

As far as the exterior design is concerned, it's simply good. To take that a step further, as far as Mercedes' contemporary designs go, it's this writer's favorite. Pulling back a bit, the E-Class line comprises the best-looking cars in Mercedes' stable. The S-Class, while stately, remains rather goofy, what with those swollen arches and Hooydonked butt. Meanwhile, the C-Class – admittedly quite similar to the E-Class – looks a little shrunken, especially when viewed in profile. The E-Class then, is the Goldilocks of the bunch: not too tiny, not too outlandish. We're suckers for pillarless anything, and in our estimation, this raises the Coupe's good looks up over the four-door's. Pity about the Coupe's chunky rear fender, the lone misstep.



Surely no car's perfect, particularly at this price point. Going over our notes, we found a few minor niggles. For instance, getting into the rear seat is more of a chore than it should be. When you flip either front seatback forward, a motor smoothly moves the entire seat towards the dash – a small thrill to experience the first time or two, bothersome and slow (it takes about eight seconds) each time thereafter. And the rear accommodations are snug, one of the sacrifices made because the Coupe doesn't share the same (large) chassis as the sedan. In fairness, the trunk is mammoth for any car.

Then there's the matter of price. As no one actually purchases (and no dealer actually stocks) base models of any Benz, our car's $48,050 sticker swelled to $59,945 with just two option packs and a few additional add-ons. Could we have done without the $6,350 Premium Package (COMAND interface, Sirius, rear-window sunshade, LED daytime running lights, keyless start) and the $1,950 Appearance Package (18-inch AMG wheels, MB logo front brake calipers, gearshift paddles)? Maybe, but we somehow doubt we'd be as pleased. And while we were impressed by the V6, we'd be derelict in our journalist duties not mention that the E550 Coupe starts life at $56,300. We have it on good authority that the V8 is much better, and just to restate the obvious, the E-Class Coupe with the 518-hp AMG miracle motor would land on any top 10 list you could think of.



That said, we didn't like it when Mercedes took their coupe back. Not only was it a willing and likable companion on two out-of-town road trips, it proved itself to be worthy of the title "personal luxury car." Getting back to our initial point, the E350 Coupe can be thought of as a 1971 Buick Riviera when compared to competing rear-wheel-drive V6 coupes that find themselves playing the role of Chevrolet Monte Carlos, Ford Thunderbirds and gaudily decked out Matadors. They're good, sure, but the Benz is better. Good enough to be called a GT? Not quite (real, real close), but there's always the E550...

Review: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E350 Coupe is a worthy companion — Autoblog

[Untertürkheim]

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

No shit, why else do you think the fuel is so cheap? The other reasons have to do with the fact that US has it's own refineries, unlike many other countries.

The fact that you're comparing the people from LA to rest of the US shows how little you truly know. LA is all about looks and fashion, go out of your bubble and explore the rest of the US, you'll see a whole different side of it.

On a side note...the whole eco-mentality is bullshit anyways. It's just like how people love "organic" but have no idea what the hell organic really is. Sustainability, I'm all for...Eco-tree hugging BS, get that weak ass shit out of my face. If people love the environment so much they should go live in the forrest...then get back to me about "destroying the world".

I can assure you that I live in less of a bubble than anyone. I have travelled extensively within the US and internationally, and lived in a few different places for extended periods of time.

The Netherlands have huge oil interests, France has some, Italy has refineries too, we are not anywhere near alone. Thinking that the US is special because we have refineries is myopic at the very least.

Thinking back to the many states I have visited, people drive guzzlers everywhere, Ca and LA are not alone in this by any measure. There may be more partially embalmed people driving 600hp sports cars in LA, but that kind of insanity is not exclusive to the area.

[Untertürkheim]

Originally Posted by dOmInIX

Why is the car restricted to 130 mph? Is this new regulation in US?

Because the cheap US customers complain if they have to buy better replacement tires. If the car is limited to 130, they can buy H rated garbage.

[Gullwing]

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

No shit, why else do you think the fuel is so cheap?

Taxes

[NarutoRamen]

Originally Posted by Gullwing

Taxes

Yet people bitch and moan that taxes are already high...

[Untertürkheim]

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

Yet people bitch and moan that taxes are already high...

Our fuel taxes are low, but income taxes are high. I have never heard anyone complain about fuel tax in the US.

[NarutoRamen]

Originally Posted by Untertürkheim

Our fuel taxes are low, but income taxes are high. I have never heard anyone complain about fuel tax in the US.

My family owns a Gas station...we here that shit all the time.

[Untertürkheim]

Originally Posted by NarutoRamen

My family owns a Gas station...we here that shit all the time.

I guess you would hear it most in that position.