Highlights:
MSRP: $76,600 base
Motor: 4.6 L DOHC V8
Horsepower: 402 hp
Torque: 443 lb-ft
Gearbox: 7-speed automatic
Layout: Front-Wheel-Drive
Fuel Economy: 12.9L/100Km city, 8L/100K highway
My association with Mercedes-Benz cars goes back a long way, as one of my first jobs out of college was selling them. In fact my first, new car sale was a light blue 300 series car with white interior, unusual colour combination but it looked good. At the time, they were sedans that handled like sports cars. After spending a while in my test E550 sedan, I still feel the same way.
The E-class is the mid-sized sedan car in the Benz line up, with the slightly smaller C-class below and the bigger S-class topping off the line. Besides the sedan, the E-class comes also as a coupe, wagon and cabriolet or convertible as I like to call it. Engines in this line range from a 4-cylinder inline diesel, double overhead cam V6 and V8 models. All regular cars in the line are all-wheel-drive models except for the sporty AMG models. My E550 is a 4.6 L V8 with double overhead cam twin turbos and a 7-speed automatic transferring the power to all the wheels.
Power and handling in the E-class go hand-in-hand with a car that feels light and nimble and yet when pressed will accelerate with ease. In fact the 402 hp gives the E550 a 0 to 100 kph time of 4.8 seconds and a top speed of about 220 kph. In my tests at ranges of 100 to 130 kph, the car felt very stable. During heavy snow, I was impressed with how well the car tracked, never slipping or sliding about in up to 12 to 15 cm of the white stuff.
Styling on the E-line is very contemporary with a soft shape and sloping hood and trunk giving the car an aerodynamic shape, yet still very pleasing to the eye. To my surprise, even with this contemporary styling, the inside room in the vehicle has not been compromised, as there is headroom and space in both front seats. After some intense shopping with my wife, I was pleasantly surprised at how much the trunk could swallow.
Once inside, the E is typical of all the latest models with comfortable seats that adjust in multiple angles for good comfort. The seats in this E were heat/cool models that in the heat mode were very nice, not overheating like some heated seats. One feature I did love was the heated steering wheel, which is something I feel every car in Canada should at least offer. All the controls were basically easy to find and use. One thing I didn’t like or become accustomed to was the gear selector, which is a little stock in the steering column that pushed or flicked up or down for forward or reverse.
An option that you will either embrace or hate is the driver’s seat that grabs you when hard cornering. Cushions on either side of the back of the seat will grip you when you the vehicle shifts to the right or left depending on the turn. It takes a little time to get used to, but it does work well when you don’t have a heavy coat on.
Surprisingly all this luxury is pretty fairly priced with the E-class beginning at $76,600 and my test car with a few options pushing it up to $81,000. I drive a lot of exciting cars and money aside; the E550 is something I would seriously consider if I were in this market.
