Mercedes E-Class 2023, first test of the sedan that, probably, more accidents could avoid

Yes, it's as comfortable as ever. Yes, its dynamic qualities continue to impress, but the new 2023 Mercedes E-Class opens up a new dimension where safety, efficiency, and above all, digitization and connectivity have become three main pillars in its development. Here are our first impressions after driving it for the first time.

I don't think it's a much more comfortable or refined car than before. Probably not more effective either, nor does it need to be. I think that of its own free will, Mercedes has decided to hit the ceiling in the dynamic evolution of its cars. The interest now is in the new demands of the client, in the digital universe especially where the car becomes one more connected element in our daily routines, one more extension of the new "dumb box" that we all already have in our hands. Although it is also fair to surrender to new milestones in which the latest E-Class -Series 214 in the case of the saloon- is a true superstar: safety and efficiency, there, Mercedes wants to remain intractable.

More than 17 million units sold since 1946 have preceded this new launch, perhaps the last as we have known the car in general and the E-Class in particular because there will probably not be a future generation of completely new combustion, but there will be updates on this one that has just been launched: Mercedes has declared that by 2026 it is very possible that it will sell more electric cars in Europe than ICE.

This true work of art comes out of hall 46 of the Sindelfingen plant, sharing the production line with the Mercedes GLC, the brand's new bestseller. The batteries for its plug-in hybrids are supplied by Mercedes itself from the Jawor production center in Poland. After the summer of this year, the sedan will be launched while the family will do so from autumn.

More elegant, Dynamic, Larger, Wider, and aerodynamic.The perfection of forms

When you have it in front of you, the beauty of its design may not let you see that it is now a little longer or wider – this is exactly the length, width, and height of the saloon: 4,949/1,880/1,468 mm – or that it has a 22 mm wheelbase. And it is that the lines of the E-Class are simply fascinating, loaded, not overloaded, with new aesthetic elements that link past and future, such as the black surface that connects the radiator grille with the headlights, hinting that there is also a lot of EQ technology in this new generation, and above all, special interest in cutting the air with the efficiency of a ham knife.

The radiator grille has a three-dimensional design with a progressive or classic style —the Avantgarde has the star on the grill itself— and can have an optional illuminated frame supporting daylight or staging sequences when opening or closing the car. The standard headlights have High Performance Led technology while the Digital Light with projection is optional. At the back, new headlamps in which a star-shaped light design is integrated are just some of the aesthetic novelties.

Finally, the Mercedes E-Class has achieved a CX of 0.23 by working on optimizing the design of the tire contour and wheel design, improving the sealing of the side joint of the hood and radiator grille, recessed handles —optional— or low ones with new materials, improved sealing lips and more efficient forms.

In terms of habitability, the trunk of the saloon now reaches 540 liters, as much as before, also repeating 370 liters in the case of plug-in hybrids, although now it is somewhat more usable due to its new forms. It has also gained 17mm of rear legroom and around 25mm of additional shoulder width. It is still characteristic of how low the seats are with respect to the floor, something very positive for those who like to drive like this, although not so much to access the car. And yes, onboard it, it is time to surrender to the new digital technology both for its form and presentation as well as for its function and even intuitive operation to be, probably, one of the most sophisticated cars of the moment.

Third-generation MBUXX, A new digital experience 

It is not what you see, it is what the new MBUX hides where are the differences with the first system launched in 2018 and improved in 2021, now developed on a new electronic architecture based more on software —key for a total update in the future — and less in hardware, and with learning now integrated into a single mainframe instead of using separate networks or domains as before. New concepts appear for the first time... as sound perceptible by other senses that are not exclusively the ear. To do this, the E-Class uses tactile transducers located on the seat backs that transform sound into vibrations or intertwine with the vehicle's ambient lighting system to visually stage the rhythm of the music depending on the frequencies, the lighting being It also activates key security through light warnings in risk situations thanks to a delicate strip of LEDs that cover the front doors, the A-pillar and the windshield frame.

MBUX, in its optional version with a third screen, offers a unique experience to the passenger as visualization of audiovisual content, limiting viewing to the driver through Dual Light Control technology —deactivate depending on the content— and additionally, also through camera control that watches the driver. For the first time, MBUX also opens a new layer for the installation of third-party programs and integrates a new selfie camera on the dashboard and a video camera in the instrument cluster through which you can take photos or participate in a video conference whenever the car is stopped.

"Just Talk" offers voice command operation when the driver is traveling alone, avoiding having to use the keyword when requesting a function; You can also create new routines that associate functions from different areas, although in the not-too-distant future artificial intelligence will do it for you after analyzing habits.

New functions are also debuting in the Energizing Comfort or Coach programs aimed at well-being, avoiding, for example, motion sickness or suggesting individual recommendations, a Thermotronic intelligent ventilation system with two or four-zone motorized ventilation and intelligent ventilation scenarios for each passenger, as well as a key digital integrated into the mobile or smartwatch with which up to 16 possible users can be programmed…

To the eye, however, everything still looks familiar. The clock panel offers Classic or Sports views sharing three possible layers of information, Navigation, Assistance, or Service, being able to configure the information displayed almost à la carte. Overwhelms, yes. But I admit that it is one of the most intuitive and easy-to-use systems, although it is very likely that throughout the life of the car, you will not get to know, much less use, the countless functions or configurations that MBUX may have. Premium qualities, almost absolute silence, first-class comfort.

If we talk about security, we must take off our hats because the E-Class adds new technologies to save more lives not only in the event of an impact but also by avoiding it. It would be endless to list the deployment of elements that does it and, by pure logic, verify the operation of many of them. One of the great advances comes in the quantity and quality of sensors, radars, and cameras that control the perimeter of the vehicle in short and long-range, eliminating almost any blind spot that may have existed around the car before.

As a novelty, extensible to Class C, S and other EQE, Class E also improves the automatic lane change system on the highway, now being able to carry out the maneuver without having to indicate the intention to the system by operating the indicator: it works between 80 and 140 km/h as long as certain conditions are met and seen what has been seen, it nails the scenarios perfectly and executes the maneuver as safely as it is smoothly. Basically, if you imagine any possible risk situation, the E-Class comes standard or can optionally come with a device that could prevent the accident, so congratulations. It's time to start rolling but... is it as impressive as the digital area, the design, the quality on board, or the new security measures?

Micho-Hybrids and plug-in Hybrids with more than 100mk of autonomy

Two 2.0-liter 4-cylinder blocks make up not only the initial supply of engines for the Mercedes E-Class but also the bulk of the range divided into two different technologies: 48-volt ISG or plug-in hybrid. E 200 and E 200d -the latter, also available as 4Matic- are in the first group, with 204 and 197 hp respectively, now with an electric unit that has gone from 15 to 17 kW of power and a torque that now increases to 270 Nm.

One-stage supercharging —improved friction rollers— and above all, the exhaust line —NOx catalyst closer to the engine, a new coating for the particulate filter, and double SCRC with optimized Adblue dosage— are the main novelties that have been introduced to the diesel engine, with consumptions of 4.8 to 5.5 l/100 km for the E 200d and about a tenth more in the case of the 4Matic. From 6.4 to 7.3 l/100 km is the declared consumption for the E 200 gasoline.

For their part, the fourth-generation plug-in hybrids also debut new 25.4 kWh capacity batteries developed by Mercedes and made up of 96 liquid-cooled Pouch-type cells that can be charged at 11 kW in alternating current and optionally up to 55 kW in direct current —30 minutes for a full charge in this case. All touching or exceeding 100 km of autonomy in electric, giving a truly electric dimension to the daily use of these versions. The electrification is carried out by an electric motor of 95 kW -129 CV- and 440 Nm of torque that give rise, for the moment, to two levels of performance: 313 CV and 550 Nm of torque for the E 300e and 300e 4Matic -WLTP consumption between 0.5 and 0.9 l/100 km and between 97 and 118 km of EV range- or 380 CV and 650 Nm of torque for the E 400e 4Matic —between 0.6-0.9 l/100 km and from 95 to 109 km of EV radius, depending on trim or equipment. Coming soon, an E 300de and 6-cylinder versions are mainly for AMGs, so for now, efficiency outweighs emotions behind the wheel of the new E-Class.

All engines use the 9G-Tronic change, also with new features. The electric motor, the power electronics, and the radiator are integrated into the gearbox itself, the flow of the oil pump has been reduced by up to 30%, and it has more and better calculation power. Maximum smoothness, speed, imperceptible gear changes... as always.

The chassis of the new Mercedes E-class, in detail

A four-link axle ensures precise guidance of the front axle; another of five from the rear end, in both cases isolated from the bodywork by means of a subframe whose joints have new elasto kinematic characteristics. As standard, the suspension is a steel spring —in mild hybrids, they are 15 mm shorter than in the rest of the engines— with Agility Control shock absorbers and various hardness programs and that will surely continue to offer outstanding balance, although excellence comes from the hand of the Airmatic air suspension with ADS+ adaptive air springs and load-independent height level control, which is "packaged"—and indissoluble—with the rear axle steer. Absolutely independent control per wheel, variable height level depending on speed - lowers 15 mm from 120 km/h in the Sport driving program -, more rigid and dynamic setting for sport mode... although this degree of We have already experienced absolute comfort in other previous Class E because it has been, precisely, the greatest specialty of this manufacturer.

 

With the direction of the rear axle, the orientation of these wheels can reach up to 4.5 degrees out of phase at low speed - up to 60 km / h, from there, it does so in phase with an angle of up to 2.5 degrees - and reduce the turning radius from 12 to 11.1 m in the 4Matic or from 10.8 to 10.6 in the propulsion models, in this case, the reduction of the front steering being lower —2.2 turns between stops for the Class E rear-wheel drive and 2.4 for the 4Matic—. And last but not least, all-wheel drive has also increased torque delivery to the front axle and the system is somewhat lighter.

 

The first class E that decides not to put pressure on the Class S 

When the starting point is a Class E like that of the outgoing generation, it happens as in F1: both kidneys would have to be invested so that the evolution is evident, and boy is it, as I have told you, in previously analyzed areas. In chassis and engine, for better or for worse, I don't think the customer can expect more than what this car would already offer, close to what I particularly understand as excellence.

The agility that it can have for comfort and that it offers is still amazing, the result of those magical suspensions that have always made the E or S Class reference cars, although it is true that on rough terrain they have not left me all the good The taste in the mouth that I was expecting due to the appearance of a certain resonance in some points of the bodywork when overcoming this type of bumps in which the damping reacts with very short and very fast movements. Nothing really serious, really, because the impression continues to be that of a flying carpet, isolated, but not disconnected from the driver, always with a good reading of the grip and precision offered by the car through the steering or other controls, such as the brake, without that double bite that many hybrids or micro hybrids have in which the regenerative braking point and the hydraulic brake are clearly distinguished.

I have only driven plug-in hybrid engines, including the E 300de that will be added to the range soon, capable of achieving ridiculous consumption on the highway after having had the opportunity to drain a battery with which I have already been able to do 70 km without spending a drop of fuel out of the city; Inside it, I bet we could go a hundred miles. Like the 300e or 400e, the electric motor has enough power to nimbly kick-start the E-Class from a standstill, accelerate smoothly and smoothly, or easily maintain highway cruising—it can go up to 140 km/h in EV. —, although when it comes to covering long distances it would be preferable to let the hybrid mode manage the two possible sources of energy, adding their forces, their elastic but powerful punch offered by these three propellers that I have mentioned in which, yes, you will they occasionally remember that the main actor is a four-cylinder engine that is not very impressive or not at all impressive in terms of pure mechanical impression by touch and sound. Be that as it may, if you're lucky enough to buy it, you'll be driving or traveling in a truly impressive car that remains, through refinement, comfort or efficiency, a true long-distance specialist.