New-gen Mercedes E-Class unveiled at the Detroit motor show; gets sharper design and built on new MRA platform with revamped interiors
The all-new fifth-generation Mercedes E-Class has been revealed at the 2016 Detroit Motor Show with a completely redesigned package and resembles C-Class and S-Class in outer design with a slopping roof and has a very low drag coefficient of 0.23 Cd. The interior design cues are also inspired by both those models but Mercedes confirmed at the Indian launch of GLE 450 AMG Coupe that the new executive luxury sedan won’t be part of the 12 launch schedule for the domestic market in 2016.
The new generation model is 43mm long, 2mm wide, 6mm lower and has 65mm extended wheelbase compared to its predecessor. Built on a new rigid high-strength steel and aluminium Modular Rear Architecture (MRA) platform, about 100kg of weight has been shed with bonnet, front airdams and trunk lid are made of lightweight sheet or cast aluminimum materials.
It will have a choice of as many as eight engines with two small displacing four-cylinder units present at launch: a 2.0-litre turbo petrol unit developing 181bhp and 221lb ft of peak torque in the E200 and the 2.0-litre diesel, codenamed OM654, producing 192bhp power and 295lb ft torque in the E220d will be power other Mercedes models as well.
The E250’s re-tuned powerful version of the 2.0-litre turbo four-cylinder mill with 242bhp, a 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 with 328bhp in the E400 4Matic will be introduced by the end of the year for international markets. The AMG configured twin-turbocharged 4.0-litre V8 will pump out 580bhp in the top-of-the-range model.
The base diesel will comprise of a new 2.0-litre engine with 148bhp besides an all-new 3.0-litre inline six-pod unit deposing the existing 3.0-litre V6 and capable of producing 254bhp and 442lb ft in the E350d will be brought to light in the second half of the year.
A plug-in hybrid engine claimed to deliver an electric range of over 30km paired with a turbo 2.0-litre petrol engine generating 275bhp and 442lb ft is also in the pipeline. All models will get Mercedes’ proven nine-speed 9G-Tronic automatic transmission as standard. Some selected RWD models will be featured with a 4Matic four-wheel drive system as an optional extra.
The four driving modes in the E-Class are Comfort, Eco, Sport and Sport Plus and it comes with three suspension settings with adjustable ride height of 15mm. On the inside, the new E-Class gets a comprehensively redesigned and roomier high-quality cabin. It has dual 12.3-inch display screens with voice reconginistion system, laser-guided touchpads, Apple CarPlay and Google Android Auto connectivity and much more.
https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=CCBkTp6uwfY
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