E-Class Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe Test Drives Thread
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The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is a range of executive cars manufactured by Mercedes-Benz in various engine and body configurations. Produced since September 1953, the E-Class falls as a midrange in the Mercedes line-up, and has been marketed worldwide across five generations.
ree
Kraftwagen König
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Interior is much better, then the one of the W212!! Sat in C207 on saturday and was surprised by its quality! Much better build quality and materials in my opinion. Seats are awesome…
Shining Star
Chicane Challenger
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Road and Track: Road Test: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 coupe
So your friend has been telling you about this girl who would mesh with you perfectly...compatible astrological signs, likes Thai food, kind to small animals, shares your fascination with the early works of David Cassidy. Geez, where do I sign the pre-nup? And then, the bomb drops. "She's got a great personality!" friend says with feigned enthusiasm, which we all know is code for "She could be James Lipton's body double."
Looks do matter, in a long-term relationship with either a car or significant other. And Mercedes-Benz, always a comfortable fit on the engineering front, has been on something of a design bender over the last decade or so, remaking its once stiffly formal lineup into some of the most expressively styled cars on the planet. Think of the CLS's muscular sleekness, or the dramatic fender forms on the current S-Class. Now it's the E-Class's turn, and the makeover is similarly stunning.
We'll concentrate on the coupe version here, which replaces the CLK — always a curious "tweener" that blended E-Class styling cues with smaller C-Class structure. But now this coupe is built on shortened "E" architecture and has the extra girth to prove it. Wheelbase is 108.7 in., up 1.8 in. from the CLK's, and that increment roughly applies to the increases in width and overall length, too.
Aside from the benefit of increased interior room, the larger size yields a broader sheet-metal canvas on which to paint. Here, cues that first emerged on the auto-show turntable (the Fascination concept, Paris '08) are now production reality — the more extreme rhomboid headlight forms, the increasingly beak-like nose and grille, the deeply etched character lines and the "Ponton" rear fender traces, inspired by their namesake 1953 Mercedes S 220. As with the CLK and countless other Benz 2-door hardtops, this E is a true pillarless coupe, with a subtle convex arc to its beltline, and rear windows that roll down. The overall effect is a sexy, wide and ground-hugging look that makes the CLK appear a little malnourished by comparison.
Read the rest at Road & Track Magazine - Road Test: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe (9/2009)
So your friend has been telling you about this girl who would mesh with you perfectly...compatible astrological signs, likes Thai food, kind to small animals, shares your fascination with the early works of David Cassidy. Geez, where do I sign the pre-nup? And then, the bomb drops. "She's got a great personality!" friend says with feigned enthusiasm, which we all know is code for "She could be James Lipton's body double."
Looks do matter, in a long-term relationship with either a car or significant other. And Mercedes-Benz, always a comfortable fit on the engineering front, has been on something of a design bender over the last decade or so, remaking its once stiffly formal lineup into some of the most expressively styled cars on the planet. Think of the CLS's muscular sleekness, or the dramatic fender forms on the current S-Class. Now it's the E-Class's turn, and the makeover is similarly stunning.
We'll concentrate on the coupe version here, which replaces the CLK — always a curious "tweener" that blended E-Class styling cues with smaller C-Class structure. But now this coupe is built on shortened "E" architecture and has the extra girth to prove it. Wheelbase is 108.7 in., up 1.8 in. from the CLK's, and that increment roughly applies to the increases in width and overall length, too.
Aside from the benefit of increased interior room, the larger size yields a broader sheet-metal canvas on which to paint. Here, cues that first emerged on the auto-show turntable (the Fascination concept, Paris '08) are now production reality — the more extreme rhomboid headlight forms, the increasingly beak-like nose and grille, the deeply etched character lines and the "Ponton" rear fender traces, inspired by their namesake 1953 Mercedes S 220. As with the CLK and countless other Benz 2-door hardtops, this E is a true pillarless coupe, with a subtle convex arc to its beltline, and rear windows that roll down. The overall effect is a sexy, wide and ground-hugging look that makes the CLK appear a little malnourished by comparison.
Read the rest at Road & Track Magazine - Road Test: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe (9/2009)
HighestOfHigh
Cornering Kingpin
- Messages
- 9,345
- Name
- Ben
Yea, the wooden steering wheel is a nice touch. Should be a hot seller here in the U.S.
Shining Star
Chicane Challenger
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- 2,462
Love how the wood extends far up the steering wheel, looks nice.
ree
Kraftwagen König
- Messages
- 10,814
Depends on how do you want to use your E-Coupé! If you driving a lot of autobahn / countryroads and more then 20.000 km a year, the 350 CDI should be the better engine. It is cheaper to run - less fuel economy etc.
If the running costs are irrelevant the 350 CGI is a great choice. The engine produces 292 hp and should drive like hell…
…would always choose the diesel engine though, becaue I love the balance of these engines and everytime I'm stopping for fuel (not very often), I can smiley…
bmer
Tire Trailblazer
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- 6,956
Since its debut at the 2009 Geneva Motor Show, the all-new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe - which replaces the outgoing CLK-Class coupe - has been turning heads all over the web. Both longer and wider than the CLK, the new E-Class Coupe is also more expensive, pushing the car a bit further up-market, potentially leaving room for a new C-Class Coupe below it. But the flipside of that coin means that it’s not as close a competitor to the BMW 3-series Coupe as it might have been. Does that mean the new E Coupe is left in a no-man’s land? Or does it hit the mark exactly? High Gear Media’s editors took advantage of a press preview event in Las Vegas to put the car to the test, sliding behind the wheel of both the E350 and E550 Coupes.
As with all Mercedes vehicles, the alpha-numeric nomenclature signifies the powerplant under the hood in addition to the vehicle’s class. In the case of the E-Class Coupe, the E350 gets you a 268-horsepower V-6, with a base price of under $49,000. This is a better value and a peppier performance than the model it replaces, but it’s not the performer of the pair, scampering to 60 mph in about six seconds and carrying on to a 130-mph top speed.
Step up to the E550 for some serious kicks, however, as it packs a 382-horsepower V-8 that dashes to 60 mph in five seconds and delivers a gorgeous eight-pot exhaust note throughout the cabin, though it’s as civilized as any Merc when you keep your foot out of it. Both cars come with a paddle-shifted seven-speed automatic, delivering buttery-smooth shifts until you toggle the Sport mode feature. Sport mode makes shifts happen quicker, but also reduces the comfort level by a few degrees.
Not that you’ll be choosing either of the E-Class Coupes to carve your favorite canyon road - the E Coupe lacks the sharp, precise handling of the BMW 3-Series, preferring a more laid-back, muscle-car approach to speed. One drawback to the E550 is the car’s electronically controlled shocks, which can make the car feel a bit ‘jittery’, leaving the base car our choice for pure feel.
Read the full review...
SKY
Silver Arrow Expert
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- 12,108
- Name
- Alberto
I´ve recently seen a few of them in the latest days and, with the excepcion of a black one with the AMG Pack, I do have to say that the car doesn´t look pretty good. The front bumper is a complete mess, the air intakes a probably the ugliest ones I´ve seen on a Mercedes, and the worst of this is that tose air intakes are also present on the E-Class, and the S-Class, and soon will also be present on the S-Coupe.
The interior is good overall, but again the fail thing is the design, the chrome/alu insertion on the dash is too thin, and someone miss something like the 3er, with a big alu insertion in the middle of the dash to make a contrast with the rest of the interior. The seats on the contrary are just pure sex.
So, anywat, as with the CL, the E-Coupe is a car that only looks good with the AMG pack.
The interior is good overall, but again the fail thing is the design, the chrome/alu insertion on the dash is too thin, and someone miss something like the 3er, with a big alu insertion in the middle of the dash to make a contrast with the rest of the interior. The seats on the contrary are just pure sex.
So, anywat, as with the CL, the E-Coupe is a car that only looks good with the AMG pack.
- Messages
- 41,225
- Name
- Marcus
Edmunds - 2010 Mercedes-Benz E550 Coupe Full Test and Video
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
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
Kraftwagen König
- Messages
- 11,001
Wow, that color looks stunning.
Shining Star
Chicane Challenger
- Messages
- 2,462
I really love that color, and the interior looks great.
- Messages
- 41,225
- Name
- Marcus
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
M
Shining Star
Chicane Challenger
- Messages
- 2,462
2010 Mercedes-Benz E350 Coupe First Test Drive: Motor Trend
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
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
NarutoRamen
Kraftwagen König
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Thanks for the HUGE ass pics man. A lot of detail in those pics and they are definitely welcomed.
Untertürkheim
Turbo Tüftler
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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.
I guess when the fuel is that cheap and the environment is considered irrelevant one does not need a reason.
NarutoRamen
Kraftwagen König
- Messages
- 11,001
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
Turbo Tüftler
- Messages
- 282
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.
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