2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class
The 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class is available in Sport (above) or Luxury trim.

Sometimes it’s a jungle out there on the road. So much to see, so much to react to; you wish you had a trusty lookout to warn of trouble ahead. Wish granted: The 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class is reporting for duty with a host of standard and optional safety systems--all dubbed some type of “Assist”--intended to keep drivers alert, on track, and out of other motorists’ business.

The restyled ninth-generation E-Class 4-door sedan is joined by a shorter, pillar-less hardtop coupe that, while related in appearance, shares no body panels with its sedan brother. (The 2-door E-Class essentially replaces the CLK-Class coupe, which will be dropped at the end of 2009.) The station wagon is temporarily out of the lineup.

Engines for the E350 (3.5-liter, 268-horsepower V6) and E550 (5.5-liter, 382-horsepower V8) are carried over from model-year 2009, as is the 7-speed automatic transmission. Coming in November 2009 is a high-performance E63 AMG sedan with an AMG-built 518-horsepower 6.2-liter V8. The following spring will see the addition of an E350 sedan with Mercedes’ BlueTEC turbodiesel V6. Only rear-wheel-drive models were available at the June 2009 public introduction of the ’10 E-Class, but all-wheel-drive 4MATIC sedans will be added in September.
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Sedans are available in a choice of Luxury or Sport versions, the latter with stiffer shocks and springs and a lowered ride height. Coupes come only one way, albeit with a few different trim details between V6 and V8 models. E550 sedans come with AIRMATIC air suspension standard (as will the E63). E350 sedans and coupes feature M-B‘s “Agility Control” suspension with adaptive shock absorbers, while the E550 coupe rolls on a “Dynamic Handling” suspension with electronically adjustable shocks and more aggressive throttle response.             

What’s Cool...

Attention Assist, Lane-Keeping Assist, Blind-Spot Assist, Adaptive-Highbeam Assist, Night-View Assist PLUS, and Brake-Assist PLUS
Unless you’ve been suspicious of “thinking” machines since you first saw 2001: A Space Odyssey, we believe you’ll be amazed at these systems that, depending on the task, use steering inputs, cameras, or radar to gather data and react to impending hazards. Attention Assist, standard in all 2010 E-Class models, alerts drivers that they may be getting drowsy at the wheel. Optional Brake-Assist PLUS warns a driver of an impending (but avoidable) collision, automatically applies partial braking at a second warning, and then--if still unheeded--applies full braking to soften the impact of a collision that has now become inevitable.

Coupe Styling
Even if it is just for old-times’ sake, we think a pillar-less 2-door hardtop looks great, and that’s what the 2010 E-Class coupe is. Furthering the coupe’s open-air feel is a standard panoramic roof with glass extending overhead practically from the windshield to the backlight.

Happy Handling
The best combination of handling with ride comfort is found in coupes and Sport-level sedans. Steering is a bit crisper than in Luxury sedans, but doesn’t require a stiff, harsh ride in trade.  

Price Cuts
There’s no debate about the benefit of getting the new thing for less than the price of the old one. The E350 sedan that started at $53,200 as a 2009 model begins at $48,600 as an all-new ’10. Similarly, the new E550 sedan begins at $5400 less than its immediate predecessor. E-Class coupe prices are a little lower than 2009 CLKs, too.   

...What’s Not

Watch Your Head
Rear-seat headroom is negligible in the coupe. Trunk space is less generous than in the sedan, too, and interior storage is a little more limited.

Sedate Sedans
Luxury-grade sedans lack a degree of steering feedback that other E-Class models seem to have. This makes them feel a bit less able when the road gets twisty.  

Added Weight
The new E-Class cars have gotten a little longer, wider, and heavier than the models they replace. They’re still hardly slow, especially those with V8s, but with no gains in power for the E350 and E550, performance has not improved.    

CG Says:

The E-Class (and its forebears) have been Mercedes-Benz’s meal ticket for about 70 years and there’s nothing that says this latest generation shouldn’t keep things that way. Coupe or sedan, ride is still superb, though some models seem to handle a little better than others. Convenience and safety technologies are impressive, but many are optional, so they’ll run up the price tag if you want them. A sense of solid, well-built luxury continues to come through. Nothing new there.

06.19.2009