The time for Mercedes is very cheap. When the Stuttgart-based company sends the next generations of its E-Class (internally W 2016) to the dealer in spring 213, business customers will be tempted for more than a year with the most modern innovations currently available in automotive engineering. BMW will only come with the new five in 2017, and Audi will only be launching its A2018 in early 6. The E-Class celebrated its premiere at the Detroit Motor Show in January. The estate version (station wagon) is scheduled for May / June. A little later there will be a kind of "outdoor" version for the first time, set a little higher and with a more rustic look, similar to how Audi successfully practices with the Allroad Avant.
Mercedes is already looking at the cards when it comes to safety and driver assistance. The E-Class is supposed to set new standards here and even overtakes the S-Class. In the area of passive safety, customers can order an air cushion in the side of the seat that inflates at lightning speed exactly two tenths of a second before impact in the event of an impact and pushes the person sitting in front to the side. New camera, ultrasound and radar systems allow the E-Class to be partially autonomous and to brake more independently than ever before. For example, it detects an end of a traffic jam with three blocked lanes without any possibility of evasion and therefore initiates full braking much earlier than before.
The new E-Class can follow the vehicle in front up to a speed of 200 km / h. Up to 130 km / h you don't even need the white lines on the street, but the car is based on the rest of the traffic flow. Mercedes calls it "swarm behavior". In the future, the car can also be opened and closed using a smartphone, and can also be directed remotely into tight parking spaces or into the garage. Here, however, the Stuttgart company let BMW take the sausage off the bread. Bayern already offer this feature for 500 euros in the new seven. For this, Mercedes wants to shine with the so-called Car-to-X communication, for the first time ever installing it in a car. It should give early warning of dangers, for example, an accident site behind a bend.
As with the C-Class (W 205), the body consists of a mixed construction made of steel, aluminum and magnesium and is supposed to slim down about 100 kilograms compared to the current generation. There is talk of just under 10 centimeters in length. Visually, the E- will lean on the S-Class, a tribute to the good aerodynamics. Mercedes plans to be the top of the class in every segment in this discipline. In principle, the E-Class also takes over the huge TFT display in the dashboard from its bigger brother, but simplifies operation. The customer can also choose between a conventional rotary pushbutton or a large touchpad on the center console.
In the case of the drives, the familiar V6 engines will remain for the time being; the newly designed six-seater series will follow from 2017. Only the aged 2,2-liter diesel will be replaced by a two-liter four-cylinder, which of course will be lighter, smoother and more economical. For petrol engines, entry also begins with a two-liter turbo (M 274). For him, the target for CO2 emissions is "below 100 g / km". It would be a best in the segment. A plug-in hybrid drive (E 2016 e) will be in the E-Class in 350. The Coupé and Cabrio derivatives will follow in 2017. Both should be more different from the sedan in the front design than before. Both are also taken under the wing of AMG and, among other things, are planted with the more than 500 hp V8 heart from the GT.
Mercedes sold 257.571 E-Class vehicles (sedan and station wagon) worldwide last year, an increase of 6,2 percent compared to 2013. The Stuttgart-based company wants to defend its leadership in this segment with the W 213 series.
Author: Michael Specht / SP-X