In my mind, there couldn’t be a better ambassador for Mercedes-Benz than the E-Class sedan. I’m not talking about their flagship—that term is reserved for the biggest and/or most luxurious and/or most expensive vehicle—but the car that perfectly represents the company’s image and philosophy.
Coming up with a new flagship isn’t an easy task, but it’s harder to redesign your ambassador; phasing out the SLR and introducing the SLS AMG as the new flagship is pretty easy, compared to making sure that the E-Class is better in every way than the outgoing generation, and that it will obviously sell better. You can take technological and styling risks with your flagship, but not with your ambassador.
The E-Class you see here is redesigned inside and out; everything’s new except for carryover engines. The 2010 model looks bigger than the 2009, but it isn’t really; the new car is roughly as long but rides on a wheelbase that’s stretched by 20 mm. Width has been increased, and the roofline is lower.
From the front, the eyes-wide-open stare is replaced by a more analytical one. The car’s flanks sport a harder style, with creases and character lines that sweep upwards as they travel from the front fender to the hindquarters.
The rear fenders also get a bulge that wrap around the taillights and lend a muscular stance, like if the car was ready to leap forward. Like the previous model, the rear overhang is a little long, but that obviously creates a spacious trunk.
Inside, the 2010 E-Class gets the new style. As in all recent Mercedes-Benz vehicles, the dash and centre console seem to have been designed with a ruler and a T-square; the result feels a little cold. The COMAND system’s knob works well but doesn’t feel as intuitive as BMW’s revised iDrive or Audi’s MMI. It could use a few more buttons around it.
The control layout is great, except for one thing. The turn-signal stalk is placed on the lower left side, while the cruise control stalk is higher, where my brain thinks the turn signals are. And I’m sure my brain is right; when holding the wheel in a 9-and-3 or 10-and-2 position, you reach out to activate the flashers, but you’re fiddling with the cruise control instead.
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| The E-Class you see here is redesigned inside and out; everything’s new except for carryover engines. |
Coming up with a new flagship isn’t an easy task, but it’s harder to redesign your ambassador; phasing out the SLR and introducing the SLS AMG as the new flagship is pretty easy, compared to making sure that the E-Class is better in every way than the outgoing generation, and that it will obviously sell better. You can take technological and styling risks with your flagship, but not with your ambassador.
The E-Class you see here is redesigned inside and out; everything’s new except for carryover engines. The 2010 model looks bigger than the 2009, but it isn’t really; the new car is roughly as long but rides on a wheelbase that’s stretched by 20 mm. Width has been increased, and the roofline is lower.
From the front, the eyes-wide-open stare is replaced by a more analytical one. The car’s flanks sport a harder style, with creases and character lines that sweep upwards as they travel from the front fender to the hindquarters.
The rear fenders also get a bulge that wrap around the taillights and lend a muscular stance, like if the car was ready to leap forward. Like the previous model, the rear overhang is a little long, but that obviously creates a spacious trunk.
Inside, the 2010 E-Class gets the new style. As in all recent Mercedes-Benz vehicles, the dash and centre console seem to have been designed with a ruler and a T-square; the result feels a little cold. The COMAND system’s knob works well but doesn’t feel as intuitive as BMW’s revised iDrive or Audi’s MMI. It could use a few more buttons around it.
The control layout is great, except for one thing. The turn-signal stalk is placed on the lower left side, while the cruise control stalk is higher, where my brain thinks the turn signals are. And I’m sure my brain is right; when holding the wheel in a 9-and-3 or 10-and-2 position, you reach out to activate the flashers, but you’re fiddling with the cruise control instead.
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| Inside, the 2010 E-Class gets the new style. |