Short Take Road Test
On the shelf of those who worship at the altar of Mercedes-Benz, the E-class fits tidily between the ambition-bound-but-entry-level C-class and the Steven Seagal–sized S-class flagship. This E550 4MATIC Sport model seems to hit the E sweet spot. Its 382 hp and 391 lb-ft of torque, meticulously packed into a 5.5-liter 32-valve all-aluminum V-8 package, will hurl the 4238-pound sedan forward with impressive authority (0 to 60 mph in 4.8 seconds and 0 to 100 in 12 flat) and the sticktuitiveness that comes with all-wheel drive. Having turned over all this firepower to ordinary investment bankers and movie accountants, Mercedes then goes in the other direction and bolts on a vast array of electronic safety bling to keep buyers from hurting themselves—drowsiness monitors, Pre-Safe systems, and so on.
Not Too Big, Not Too Small
The raked E550 4MATIC feels right-sized (some see the S-class as boatishly swarthy, and at a glance, the C can be mistaken for a European taxi). It has an interior aesthetic worthy of a spread in Architectural Digest and a sticker price that won’t give you an instant wedgy ($56,300 to start). In an era of commonplace six-figure luxury cars, our test car was $66,825, owing to a $4400 nav/audio/electronic-mumbo-jumbo interface package with voice control, heated and cooled seats, a rearview camera, a $950 parking-assistance system you don’t need but the elderly wealthy will appreciate, a $720 paint job, and some other stuff.
If your utterly comfortable seat somehow isn’t, it adjusts electronically in 12 directions. Let’s pass on the cloying interior superlatives—just eyeball a photo of the interior and shrivel with envy. The fit and finish is unsurpassed, and most of the materials are top-drawer. It’s a Mercedes-Benz.
Swift and Smooth, but Less Involving than the Competition
We took the E550 4MATIC on three blasts over the C/D 10Best driving loop, a kind of two-lane amusement park over 14 miles of woodsy Michigan. The big car launches with a thumping force but no tire screech. The fearsome yet muted engine note emerging from the powerplant’s great diaphragm sounds almost ominous, like something coming from deep inside, oh, the Hoover Dam. If no guys in trooper hats suddenly appear, a quarter-mile disappears in 13.4 seconds and you’re going 105 mph, perfectly stable even on this mostly lousy road. The steering is light and without feel but reacts without surprises and never wanders on the highway. The car has that immense sense of Mercedes solidity—it just feels unbreakable—and tracks like a locomotive. But Mercedes sedans have split personalities, and this one is no different. Although the performance cupboard is full, the transmission shift points of the seven-speed, for example, are almost lazy in response, comfort taking precedence over the ambitions that come with big power (switching to manumatic mode doesn’t help). Truth is, this driver couldn’t detect a difference between sport and comfort driving modes and had to come to a stop to be sure a feature was working that raises the chassis about an inch for even rougher terrain. It was.
The folks at Daimler are experts in controlling body motions during aggressive driving (and what rebound there is seems slight), but it's worth noting that the latest E is a step behind nearly all its competitors in driving involvement; a rear-drive E350 placed last in a five-car comparo. Ripping through corners will set off the traction control, and this car's reaction is to shove a tire iron into the fun and make the gas pedal go limp. If you’re up to it, the system can be turned off. While you’re pushing it, the car’s computer brain seems reluctant to kick down the gearbox all the way; you get the feeling it would like to send you a note saying, “Cut it out. Right now.” Another spot of bother during get-it-on driving is tire skip, owing mostly to the rough and patchy road and the car’s mega weight, but it might raise the hair on some necks. All in all, it’s another satisfying Mercedes ride, somehow comfortable even when the pace suggests it shouldn’t be, quiet, calming, and rich-feeling. The E550 4MATIC brakes from 70 mph in 169 feet, about average in this class. The EPA puts its fuel economy at 15 mpg in the city and 23 on the highway, and we managed 16 overall.
As usual, the eagle-eyed automotive writer cannot help searching for errors in the grand scheme of these German cars. It’s a thankless job, but this is the best we could do: Hey, Dieter, lose the fake brushed-aluminum paint on the dashboard’s four plastic vents and radio knob. It’s about as convincing as the paint jobs on Chinese bicycles. Other than that, it’s a fine Mercedes, the absolute berries if it’s luxury and power you’re looking for.
