After 6 strange years (which is strangely short by the standard of Mercedes-Benz), the E-class is renewed. New generation W211 looks as if the evolution of W210. The trademark quad circular headlamps are still there, as is the big grille. The whole body profile gets smoother and sleeker, lowering drag coefficient from 0.27 to 0.26 (for narrow-tyre E240). Dimension is nearly unchanged from the old car, just the 22mm longer wheelbase (now 2854mm, versus BMW 5-series' 2830mm) worth mentioning. Interior room - a strength of the old car already - is boosted by an extra 20mm rear passenger headroom. Otherwise there is no much surprise. 

Cabin 

Owing to cost cutting, the previous E-class was notorious about build quality - wide assembly gap, cheap plastics and switch gears, poor finish paint etc. Mercedes has learned the lesson and now you can see the visual quality of new E-class has much improved. Shut the doors and you will feel the structure is far more solid. Panel gaps are narrower, dashboard material and assembly are better. However, you can still feel this is not the Mercedes of the "good old days". It still trails Audi and BMW in build quality, which is disappointing considering the new car has 6 or so years ahead to spend its life. 

The cabin is spacious, bigger than its main rivals, especially rear passenger room. Driver comfort is excellent too, thanks to superb driving position and full degree of adjustment. If you want gimmicks, it will provide you the world's first active seat calling "Dynamic Multicontour". What is it ? it has several air bags which inflate during hard cornering to enhance lateral support and otherwise deflate to make it more comfortable. Perhaps a little bit over the top... more welcome is a 4-zone climate control which should satisfy different requirements for each passengers. 

Dynamic 

Thanks to the use of more high-strength steel, the chassis is 18% stronger than before. Better still is adequate weight control. Mercedes has applied its weight reduction know-how learned from CL coupe to this mass production model, using aluminum hood, front wings, doors, trunk lid and some inner cross members to cut weight. Order a lean E240 and you will find it 20kg lighter than before despite of the advancement of refinement and quality. Get a better-equipped E320, it is just 25kg heavier than before. 

Engine remains to be the 3-valve-per-cylinder modular family of V6 and V8, plus the new 2.0-litre supercharged four-pot and some turbo diesels.  

To confuse you, E240 actually runs a 2597c.c. V6 producing 177hp. It can be coupled to 5-speed automatic or 6-speed clutchless manual. As before, the Mercedes in-house-built automatic shift seamlessly, but the clutchless manual is cumbersome.  

E320 keeps the long-serving 3199c.c. V6 (224hp) unchanged. It is still a smooth and quiet unit by today’s standard. Though not as powerful as BMW’s 3.0 straight-six, it has wide spread of torque and mates perfectly with the 5-speed automatic.  

The old E430 has been replaced by E500. As suggested by its name, it runs the 306hp 5-litre V8 from S500 and SL500 etc. Mercedes’ V8 is renowned for lightweight, so the bigger engine can just lift driving excitement to new level without any drawback in handling. Pushing just 1605kg kerb weight, the V8 can do 0-60mph in an astonishing 5.8 seconds! remember, Mercedes still has an E55 AMG on the pipeline, therefore E500 is actually sell as a fast saloon rather than sport saloon. 

Handling 

This time, Mercedes determines to beat BMW in the latter’s backyard - handling. Everybody knows this is not an easy task, but the W211 is 6 years younger than the 5-series and has a big development budget. Moreover, it has 3 secret weapons: 

1. All-new 4-link front suspensions, replacing the old double-wishbones. It has better control of camber, dive and squat, enhancing front-end grip and therefore minimizing understeer. The rear multi-link suspensions are now made of aluminum to cut unsprung weight, hence better ride comfort. 

2. Airmatic DC: previously used in S-class only, the Airmatic is an adaptive air springing which alter spring rate according to road conditions, speed and driving style, also lower ride height at high speed. Airmatic DC now adds a 4-setting adaptive damping as well to further improve ride comfort and body control. Airmatic DC is standard on E320 and E500, and optional to other models. 

3. A new speed-sensitive steering rack with quicker ratio (2.8 turns compare with 3.3 of the old car). 

In real world, the new E-class really surprises us. Its steering is light, communicative and accurate. Body control - even on conventional suspension models - is very good while ride quality is smoother than BMW. No matter around town or motorway, no matter at any speed, the Mercedes deals with minimum fuss, offering great comfort and quietness unfound in rivals. High speed stability and braking (by brake-by-wire SBC) are also excellent. 

Get a E500 with Avantgarde (stiffer and 15mm lower) suspensions and Airmatic DC, it can even overshadow 540i in any area. The adaptive suspensions firm up in corner, improving stability and grip. As a result, the car changes direction eagerly, corners in tight bends fluently. But best of all, it does all these so easily because of the supple ride, smooth engine / transmission combo, light controls and quiet cabin. E-class finally beats the mighty 5-series convincingly. 

Conclusion 

I would prefer the new E-class to have higher quality cabin and a prettier front-end styling, but its superb comfort and excellent dynamics are already enough to place it on the top of executive class. So, congratulation to Mercedes!  

Just watch out next year’s new 5-series. I would be surprised if BMW not to take a big step forward again. 
 

E-class vs BMW 5-series

Take a 530i against E320, you will find the tuning of BMW bias towards sporting. Its steering is considerably heavier and a touch quicker. The Mercedes’ lighter steering makes everyday driving far more relaxed and comfortable, but surprisingly, despite of more assistance, its feedback and accuracy matches the BMW. 

The same goes for suspension setting. BMW chose a firm setting to enhance body control, especially if the optional sports suspension package is selected. This result in a firm and even sometimes harsh ride quality on poorer surfaces. The E320, with its adaptive springing and damping, rides superbly comfortable on low-speed rough surfaces and continues to adapt itself to deal with varying speed and roads. In terms of ride comfort, it is simply in a different league. 

The Mercedes also shines in high-speed stability, probably thanks to the adaptive ride height and 4-link front suspensions. The latter also give it more grip hence better road-holding in corners. The 530i is beaten again in the braking department, not because it is not good enough, but because the Mercedes’ Sensotronic Brake Control is the brake of the future. 

What the 530i wins back is driving thrill to the extremists. It is more prone to power-oversteer. The E320 can also do that, but it requires even harder driving style to access, because of its better-mannered chassis tuning as well as its higher cornering limit. When you get there, you are unlikely to hold there for too long, as you cannot switch off its ESP stability control completely.  

Other aspects: 

• Engine: 330i’s straight-six feels stronger and sounds sportier. Both are refined.
• Automatic gearbox: Mercedes’ 5-speed auto shifts smoother and cleaner than BMW’s GM-sourced 5-speeder.
• Manual gearbox: BMW’s 5-speed manual is famous for precise and slick shifting. Mercedes’ 6-speed clutchless (for smaller engine models) feels vague and has a doughy clutch. 
• Cabin: Mercedes is bigger, especially for rear passengers, but BMW’s dashboard looks classical while materials and switch gears are made with higher quality.
• Quietness: no matter wind or road noise, the Mercedes is quieter.

Mercedes’ bigger 5.0 V8 edges out BMW’s older 4.4 V8 (which is to be replaced) in both quietness and power. The lightweight Mercedes V8 has little influence to handling. The BMW’s MacPherson front suspensions are more influenced by the V8 engine, making it feels nose heavier than the six-cylinder models. 

However, the biggest disappointment of 540i is its recirculating-ball steering (unlike the 6-cylinder models which employ rack-and-pinion steering rack). It offers little feedback. 
 

E-class Facelift 2006

As the usual practice of Mercedes-Benz, E-class gets a facelift 4 years after its birth. Outside, it gets revised bumpers, grille and headlamps, though the changes are so subtle that you need careful eyes to notice. Automotive journalists might demand more spectacular changes to attract readers, but German prestige car makers always prefer subtle evolution, as it is good to the consistency of brand image and good to the resale value of used cars.

Underneath the skin come some new or modified engines, most notably is the new 5.5 V8 for E500 and 6.2 V8 for E63 AMG. For sure, we shall report the exciting E63 in a separate report when road test impression is available. For now, the new E500 is the focus. Following the retirement of the long-serving 3-valve-per-cylinder 5.0-litre V8, Mercedes gives the (non-AMG) top E-class a 5.5-litre DOHC 32 valves engine, which was introduced first in the new S-class. Why it is called E500 is a mystery. However, in North America the car is called E550 instead (just like they called S550), which is certainly more adequate.

The 5.5-litre V8 produces 388 horsepower or 62hp more than the old engine. Its 391 lbft of maximum torque is also a sizable improvement. In addition to the new 7G-Tronic gearbox, acceleration from rest to 60 mph takes only 5.1 seconds, almost a sports sedan. At the same time, the powertrain operates smoothly and quietly.

As before, the E500 is equipped with Airmatic DC adaptive air suspensions to provide supple ride most of the time and good body control when need. It is still the most remarkable system on the market, so Mercedes found no need to alter. So what changes did it make to the chassis? First, the steering ratio is quickened by 10 percent to deliver sharper response. Second, the 4-link front suspensions get a strengthened link bearing to resist cornering force, thus reducing understeer. These fine tuning do enhance the driver appeal of the E-class, although it still trails the class-leading BMW 5-series.

In the facelifted E-class, Mercedes has its troublesome Sensonic Brake Control (SBC) replaced with a conventional hydraulic braking system. The SBC has been unreliable and caused expensive recalls during the past couple of years. It seriously damaged the bullet-proof image of Mercedes-Benz, so both M-B and Bosch finally admitted defeat. To us, the new braking is actually better, because it provides natural and consistent pedal feel.

Finally, the facelift also gets the S-class’ Pre-Safe system. When the electronic brain “senses” an accident to occur, it tightens the seat belts, raises the seat backs, close the windows and sunroof to protect the occupants.

E55 AMG

Technical-wise, E55 AMG shares much of the technology shown in the regular E-class, from its stiff chassis, aluminum intensive panels and suspensions, Airmatic DC air springs and adaptive damping, variable ratio and speed-sensitive steering to brake-by-wire technology. Therefore its basis is already a generation forward from the M5. What AMG need to enhance is pretty predictable, ranging from 18-inch AMG wheels, wider tyres, huge brakes (with 380mm discs and 8-piston calipers up front, 330mm and 4-pot at the rear), stiffer tuning of suspensions to the 35% quicker-shifting 5-speed automatic gearbox as used in SL55 AMG. By the way, the automatic also provides button shift at steering wheel. 

However advanced the chassis is, jewel of the crown is still the supercharged 5.5-litre V8, again, comes from SL55 AMG. An aluminum case and rotor Lysholm supercharger boosts up to 0.8 bar, pumping maximum power from the previous (normally-aspirated E55 AMG’s) 354 horsepower to an astonishing 476 horsepower. In fact, I believe it actually has a full 500 horsepower like SL55, CL55 and S55 which are all powered by the same engine. Marketing strategy means the E55 - cheapest among them - has to claim a lower rating. Anyway, the E55 super saloon already out-powers Audi RS6 by 26hp and BMW M5 by 76hp. Moreover, its tremendous torque of 516 lbft from 2650 to 4500rpm is a full 100lbft more than the closest rival RS6. Even more unbelievable, from 2000 to 6000rpm, it produces no less torque than RS6 achieve at its peak.  

With such a world-beating engine, no wonder E55 AMG takes just 4.6 seconds for launching from rest to 60mph and then just 10.4 seconds to 100mph. The latter proves that it is not only the fastest saloon in the world (don’t talk about tuners like Brabus), it is nearly qualified as a supercar. In the foreseeable future, I can see no other 4-door saloon can out-accelerate this super AMG. 

E55 is not just all about performance. As the tradition of AMG, it achieves a sensible balance between handling and comfort, just like the wonderful SL55. In the past, good handling and ride comfort were hardly compatible. Now with the adaptive air springing and damping, E55 shows its rivals the way of future sports sedans. On the one hand, it handles as brilliantly as the M5, remains flat and composed bends after bends. On the other hand, its suspensions smooth out the bumps that trouble M5 and punish RS6. Not even the civilized Jaguar S-Type R can match its ride comfort. Not that it were magic carpet, but it is firm yet well damped. 

This car works well in every department - its steering is fast (2.75 turns) and nicely weighted - not as heavy as M5’s, but heavy enough to provide confidence during hard driving. It also communicates with the road as good as the M5. There is abundance of grip from the wider tyres and strong stopping power from the huge brakes. Switch off the ESP stability control, you can even induce a bit powerslide by applying throttle and steering. 

Hardcore enthusiasts may still prefer the M5 for several reasons - firstly, it plays powerslide as basic instinct. Secondly, its normally-aspirated V8 has very sharp throttle response, especially at Sport mode. Thirdly, its 10mm-wider rear tyres generate more grip than the AMG. Lastly but not least, hardcore insists a 6-speed manual gearbox is a must.  

So what? I am convinced that E55 AMG is a better car overall than the M5. If you insist a hard-edge 4-seater, you are likely to choose the faster and more nimble M3 instead of the bigger M5. Those who buy these big sports sedans are likely to concern more about everyday comfort and ease of use. That’s why Mercedes-AMG, Audi and Jaguar offer only automatic transmission in this segment. After all, does the joy of shifting manual gearbox compensates the loss of 1.5 second in 0-100mph? I think not.