E-Class (W212/C207/A207) New E-Class Coupe sits on older, cheaper C-Class platform

[ZicZachZo]

I read the headline and thought the exact same thing. You're not alone Naruto...

I honestly don't care that the car rides on the C-class platform. If MB had jacked the price above the E-class maybe there would be reason to be upset. This is arguably the best looking CLK - or whatever you want to call it - EVER. All of that at the same price as the boring and bland previous car? Sign me up!

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

I read the headline and thought the exact same thing. You're not alone Naruto...

I honestly don't care that the car rides on the C-class platform. If MB had jacked the price above the E-class maybe there would be reason to be upset. This is arguably the best looking CLK - or whatever you want to call it - EVER. All of that at the same price as the boring and bland previous car? Sign me up!

Yes exactly. IF MB increased the price, I'd have a problem. But they haven't. In fact you seem to be getting so much more car for your money given that there seems to be an increase in size, quality, as well as borrowing more from the E-class parts bin then previously.

They'll always be those who look for something to bitch about.

 

[Cashmere]

so is the E class coupe more of a E92 (3er coupe) rival or a 6 series rival?

 

[Centurion]

so is the E class coupe more of a E92 (3er coupe) rival or a 6 series rival?

Yes, it is still priced like the CLK. The CLS rivals the 6-Series.

 

[coolraoul]

Still against the 3-Series/A5, like the CLK was. Only bit pricier, which now is justified by the closer relationship to the E-Class.

Odd product placement. But the CLK was even more odd, a C-Coupe with E-accents and priced in the middle...

Now it shares more with the E, which according to every review is easy to feel when you drive it, which justifies the premium over 3-Series/A5.

But the CLS has established itself as the true Coupe in the E-Class line-up.

All that will make more sense once the CLC will be replaced by a proper C-Class Coupe in few years.

Both C and E Coupe will be smaller and less expensive (I think so, for the next C-Coupe) than the sedans, whereas the CLS and S-Coupe will be longer and more expensive than the sedans.

 

[cawimmer430]

Did he really have to say "cheaper C-Class platform"? It's like he's trying to make this car appear to be a "cheap POS".

That really wasn't needed. All he had to say was that the car is based on the C-Class platform - end of story.

And who cares, really? A platform can be effectively and cost-efficienctly modified to suit the needs of a new product. Most people seem to think that a platform or chassis "cannot be modified".

 

[cawimmer430]

Might be because the sales were low. Personally I never perceived the CLK55/63 to be off good value. Price was just under 100k which is absolutely insane for a car that was predominantly E-class based. Performance was not well spoken of and the car handled poorly compared with the near 40% cheaper M3 which is a better buy from any aspect. Most individuals who wanted a classy Benz Coupe chose the CLS55/63 which was just a few coins more expensive but had more exciting looks. There is like 10 CLS55s for every CLK55 on the road. MB got the pricing and positioning completely twisted and consumers didn't bite. And I can't imagine anyone wanting to pay 100k for the new E Coupe either.

The CLK55 / CLK63 AMG never really was intended to rival the M3 from a driving perspective. What the AMG CLK offered its buyers was brutally fast speed and acceleration with a laid-back manor. You could drive the car sporty and competitively and it would cope nicely. But if you wanted to challenge a Porsche or BMW M on the track or even on some twisty roads - forget it.

 

[bmer]

Now let's get this straight. I don't think this journalist was trying to talk disrespectably about the E Coupe, it's just that in the journalist circles there has been a lot of uncertainty about whether it's based on the W212 or the W204. MB hasn't really helped with seemingly contradicting statements by different MB presentatives and ambiguous references to the issue in the official press releases. For example:

When GM of product management Bernhard Glaser was asked if the E Coupe rode on the same platform as the sedan or used the same architecture, he responded twice, "I wouldn't say that." Asked to make some sort of comparison between the two cars, he informed us, "I would say it's a member of the E Class family."

The journalists have been wondering how it's possible that MB can sell a coupe model for less than its sedan-sister. Now that a major executive from the company (MB USA chief Ernst Lieb) has confirmed (to Automotive News, probably one of the most renowned papers in the industry) that its (at least partly) based on the W204, they finally have an answer and can put the whole thing to rest.

 

[cawimmer430]

Now that a major executive from the company (MB USA chief Ernst Lieb) has confirmed (to Automotive News, probably one of the most renowned papers in the industry) that its (at least partly) based on the W204, they finally have an answer and can put the whole thing to rest.

Actually, it looks like the fun is just about to begin.



AUTOEXPRESS Breaking News: New E-Class Coupe based on cheaper C-Class chassis!

Motor Trend Breaking News: New E-Class Coupe is a fail. Based on C-Class platform!

Car and Driver Breaking News: Mercedes admits new E-Class Coupe based on poor handling C-Class platform! We recommend the BMW...




^Ring me up when these articles start appearing!^

 

[Sayyaaf]

Leftlanenews.com on the new E class coupe ...


C before E: New E-Class Coupe still based on C-Class architecture
05/19/2009, 12:03 PM
By Drew Johnson

Mercedes-Benz’ now-defunct CLK-Class was historically positioned as a coupe version of its E-Class Sedan, but in reality had more in common with the lesser C-Class. Mercedes attempted to remedy that discrepancy by supplanting the CLK with the all-new E-Class Coupe, but a new report reveals the new E-Class Coupe isn’t that far removed from its predecessor.

The new E-Class Coupe was believed to be based on the E-Class sedan – as the name change would seem to imply – but Mercedes-Benz USA CEO Ernst Lieb recently revealed to Automotive News that the new car is still based on the C-Class’ architecture. Lieb says Mercedes used the C-Class platform to underpin the E-Class Coupe to give the car a stiffer chassis, netting better overall performance.

“You can expect a stiffer car with a bit more performance,” Lieb told Automotive News. “Customers want that.”

The E-Class Coupe’s C-Class platform also explains the two-door’s pricing. Coupes and convertibles generally carry a premium over their sedan counterparts, but the new E-Class Coupe will list from $48,925 — $550 less than the 2010 E-Class Sedan.

 

[bmer]

Autoblog also picked it:


2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe a C-Class underneath?

by Chris Shunk on May 19th, 2009 at 1:58PM

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe is all-new for 2010, with sleeker, sportier proportions and improved efficiency and performance. The E-Class also weighs 400 pounds less than its sedan stable-mate, but not because of light weight materials. It's because the E-Class coupe is underpinned by the C-Class platform, produced in the same Bremen factory as the C-class, while the E-Class sedan is built in Sindelfingen.

Full article: 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe a C-Class underneath?

 

[Merc1]

Boy this is whole lot over nothing. Mass confusion........again this car is the same as the CLK was....C-Class based with E-Class parts here and there. End of story. Just as before. Mercedes cause this hoopla by trying to pass this car off as a true E-Class coupe and then an executive turns around and basically says it isn't. Way to go.


M

 

[HighestOfHigh]

But the CLS has established itself as the true Coupe in the E-Class line-up.

Exactly! So Benz is covered either way!

 

[sfbayfan]

I am sorry but I am dissapointed in this, they should have just left the deception behind and called it a CLK, which is what it is.

 

[Mr. Mercedes]

LOL.

Some of you guys need to get a grip. Just think of what the VW group does with its platforms.

 

[ZicZachZo]

There should be nothing to be upset about. I don't think that this is marketing deception. It's obvious that the exterior and interior both borrow heavily from the E class. Much more so than the previous CLK did in my opinion. Though it rides on the current C class platform there is no mistaking that this new coupe shares a lot design wise with the E class... Much more so than the C, with regards to what you see of course.

 

[JLBM]

The C-Class platform is still new and excellent

So what is the problem??

 

[modena_360stradale]

"This car can't legitimately be called an E-class coupe."

What right does the E-class coupe have to be called an E-class when it sits on a C-class chassis? But then again, what right does the C-class have to be called a C-class when it doesn't sit on the original C-class chassis?

In fact, what right does any Mercedes have to be called a Mercedes, a BMW a BMW, or a Bugatti a Bugatti? Does the car have to be the first Mercedes? Built by Daimler or Benz? Built under their direction? Built while they were alive?

Automotive nomenclature derives its justification from two things and two things alone: designation and purpose.

The only reason a C-class is a C-class is because it's named so. The only reason an E-coupe is an E-coupe is because it's named so. -- Its purpose is as an executive two door luxury car, and it falls in line with its name.

Does the chassis determine the car? If it did, then no car could have a legitimate successor.

Does the car determine the chassis? If it did, then as soon as the C-class chassis is used for an E-class body it becomes an irrelevant, hermaphroditic piece of metal.


This is just another sensational story attempting to stir up false controversy.

 

[coolraoul]

Just a quick summary of some reviews that you mostly will find in the E-Class Coupe Test Drives Thread :

Automobile Magazine, Review E-Coupe:

"Mercedes insist that sixty percent of the coupe's structure and parts comes from E-class, but of course that means that the other forty come from somewhere else. In this case, it's the C-class."

Wheels.ca

"Mercedes says about 60 per cent of the new E Coupé's structure and parts comes from the new 2010 E Sedan. "

Popular Mechanics

" Mercedes says the new E-Class Coupe shares 60 percent of its components with the E-Class Sedan we recently reviewed as well as 40 percent of its components with "other Mercedes-Benz products."

Car and Driver First Drive E-Coupe:

"But whereas the CLK was more C-class than E-class, the new E coupe has more suspension and powertrain bits in common with the E than the C, according to Mercedes-Benz USA product manager Bernhard Glaser."

Automotorundsport (free traduction):

"It lies a lot of C-Class in it, but also a good portion of E-Class, because the technics of both have moved toward each other since the introduction of the current generation. The front axle with 4 arms constructions, that you find in the E-Class, was first there in the C-Class."


It appears, from what I could read here and there, that the underbody is merely C-Class (wheelbase, width) whereas the suspension/steering/powertrain/equipments components are coming from the E-Class.

On the whole, I read multiple times that 60% of the E-Coupe is E-Class, only 40% C-Class. Whatever it means.

 

[ALI]

Effin haters, my goodness, so many speak as if mercedes is using toyota parts in their cars, what ever the case is, it doesnt really matter as long as its still true MB parts that put this thing together, that is all that truly matters, mercedes has no shame in any of their current or previous models to begin with, and they are all great cars to be spoken of, I dont see why this car cannot share a smaller C-class platform, after all unlike the Eclass sedan this car is a coupe, and that is exactly where they differ obviously, GET IT?? its like saying "DUH!!"...

Anywho, correct me if im wrong, the C class was used for DTM racing, im guessing it has a stiff chassis, so again, I dont see how they can go wrong by using its platform ..

Ali