[VRJ]

Took delivery of the new E-class on Dec 11, 2024. Was quite busy with work and travel the past month to post an update. We were initially in a dilemma whether to get the old E220d or wait for the new E. My dad and I were a bit confused. I posted a poll here on the forum. Adding to our confusion, the votes were closely split between the two. We finally decided on splurging more now rather than regretting a couple of years down the road as I intend on holding the E for at least 7 years.

Special mention to Silver Star Mercedes and my SA Lakshmi Prasad. Very prompt and professional. I booked the old E220d back in February 2024, but then decided to wait for the new V214. They were constantly in touch with me over a period of 10 months. They kept offering me test drives of cars that I wasn’t even considering like the EQE. I was invited to launch events. I test drove lots of cars over the last decade and Mercedes was the only one that never asked me to take a U-turn to head back to the showroom. They were genuinely interested in selling their product which has become a rarity these days. I haven’t heard a NO from them irrespective of what I asked. I took 5 test drives of the E before writing the cheque. We considered the GLC and GLE as well, but the rear seat comfort of the E won us over.

Here are some pictures:







I drove around 1600 kms so far. Lot of positives and a couple of cons. A quick brief of what I liked and didn’t. Will probably start my ownership thread after I drive a few thousand kms.

Pros:

1. The V214 is a looker. Classy, regal and elegant like how a Mercedes should be.

2. Fantastic NVH levels. Inside and out. I was initially worried about the Nexen tires because I never heard of the brand and I was expecting Michelins from the factory. However, my SA told me there’s MO (Mercedes Original) badge on the tire and that means they match the quality and standards set by Mercedes. True to his words, these tyres are silent on highways when cruising around 100-120 kmph. No issue with grip on wet and dry conditions. Wind noise is well controlled and you cannot hear the engine while you’re cruising or overtaking. You have to cross 3000 rpm to hear the engine. Sometimes I wonder if I'm driving a petrol or a diesel.

3. The engine is silky smooth with good torque. Not the quickest, but plenty enough for Indian roads.

4. Burmester Audio is top notch. In MBUX, there’s this function where you can truly personalise the sound and I highly recommend it.

5. German diesels are very fuel efficient. I got 950 kms out of the first full tank with an average of 15.6 kms per litre (50% highway and 50% city roads).

6. Of course, the rear seats are a five star experience. The front two are great as well. I’m 6’2 and I found a comfortable driving position quickly. The back rest is a bit firm when compared to the 5 series, yet I had no discomfort during my 450km drive.

7. Ground clearance has been good with four on board. I did scrape it on two occasions, however, those two were on unscientific and ridiculously tall speed breakers.

8. The superscreen paired with the ambient lighting definitely has a wow factor. Friends and relatives love it when they see it for the first time. It’s not a giant screen on your face. Mercedes made sure the glass on top of the screen gives this subtle classy vibe.

9. Suspension is neither too soft nor too stiff. Absorbs bumps well. Felt confident to take long sweeping curves on the highways. The only downside is it feels a bit bouncy on flyover expansion joints.

Cons:

1. Even though the spare wheel is placed beneath the boot floor, the boot space is still not large enough to accommodate two large suitcases.

2. Everything is touch. From volume to air conditioning to steering controls.

3. Although the 9-speed gearbox has good reviews, I’m not a fan of it. It upshifts well and you barely notice it. However, it’s the downshifts that I’m not a fan of. I have two reasons. The first one is for example, you’re approaching a red signal or a toll and you let go off the accelerator and you’re coasting. The gearbox starts downshifting as the RPM reaches around 1200 (I don’t remember the exact number). It is here that the gearbox jerks and you can feel this jerk prominently. Second being the gearbox gets confused while you’re downshifting on the highways. It feels bogged down for a second and then it gets going. The ZF on the 520d is a tad quicker and picks the right gear.

3. We’ve had cars with beige seats before, but the one in the E seems to hate black jeans. After just 500 kms, the drivers seats base had black marks. I got it cleaned at a friends detailing shop. He told me Mercedes leather is more sensitive compared to BMW and Audi. He recommended putting a small white cloth on the base while driving for longer periods. But that would look soo out of place in a Mercedes.

4. I’ve noticed one panel alignment issue where the doors ambient lighting meets the dashboards ambient lighting. It’s very evident. Surprised that Mercedes engineers did not catch this before they dispatched it from their factory.

Major concern:

Squeaking noise from all doors even when driving on normal roads. I raised a complaint, and they visited my house to check. They acknowledged the problem and applied some spray all four doors. The sounds have reduced. It’s been two weeks and the sounds are gradually picking up. Very disappointed with Mercedes QA and QC. If the sounds reappear, they said they’ll change the door beading under warranty. I’ll visit their workshop when I get the time.

First long drive:

During Sankranthi, we drove to our beautiful village in East Godavari, Rajahmundry. Had a lovely time on the highways. Punchy diesel engine that’s very efficient. Overtaking is a breeze. I was initially very skeptical about the reflector headlights, but they did their job well. Not 10/10, but a strong 7/10. It’s the efficiency that surprised me. 19kms per litre over 450kms.




Cheers!!

[Dibyendu Bose]

Very impressed with your fuel efficiency. That is one aspect which i always check, much to the consternation of friends and family, who think that if you can buy a luxury car, fuel efficiency (read low FE) should not bother you. i vehemently disagree, as, as our duty to sustainability (while we cannot avoid driving), the least we can do is to driver a car with the highest fuel efficiency. in fact, i hope someone starts a thread on whether diesel cars are indeed worse than petrol, as far as impact on the air is concerned. With cleaner exhausts and this sort of lovely mileages, per kilometer effect of petrol vs diesel need to be re mapped.

I am surprised with the effect of black jeans on Mercedes leather. That should not happen. Not wearing that pair of jeans is probably a low risk antidote to your problem.

Happy driving..

[sawnilrules]

Driving the Mercedes Benz E450



Luxury is a state of mind

When we think of luxury, our minds often drift to fine craftsmanship, iconic brands, or exclusive experiences. Yet, true luxury transcends tangible elements—it is a state of mind, an emotion evoked by the smallest gestures and finest details.

Last Sunday, I randomly decided to check out the new Mercedes E450, considering Auto hangar Mercedes had the 450 for test drive. The E Class is offered in 3 variants in the country, E200, E220d & E450. All the three engines come with a 48v mild hybrid battery pack with an ISG that churn out additional 200 nm of torque as and when needed. The E200 generates a modest 204 HP/320 NM of torque, which is the lowest in the segment. The E220d, continues to generate 197 HP/440 NM of torque, again the only car in the segment to get a diesel powertrain option as of now, and then comes the E450, with inline 6-cylinder motor, that generates 381 HP/500 NM of torque sending all that power to all 4 wheels.

The test drive car was in high tech silver color, with all black interiors. I took the car for a good 2-hour spin to experience the car better.

For starters, on the exterior, the E450 comes with the AMG line body kit, which means it gets sportier bumper on the front and at the rear. It comes with digital lights with sharper DRL patterns, as opposed to boring reflector pattern in the regular E, and the 4 Matic badging on the rear apart from the 450 nomenclature.

On the interiors, the car is absolutely similar to the regular E200 or E220d, apart from two additional feature which is co-driver memory seats and gesture control for the hyper screen.

What’s Impressive

• Luxury-Luxury-Luxury, touch anywhere, feel anything, this car feels from 2 segments above
• The MBUX Superscreen with co-passenger display, looks impressive, whether it is the crispness of the screen, or the response/refresh rate of the screen is iPhone pro levels. BMW’s latest OS system feels cluttered and all over the place, in comparison to the one in E Class.
• 17 speakers Burmeister with Dolby Atmos & sound personalization option, It genuinely made my 17 speakers B&O Setup in Audi A6 outdated.
• Digital vent control looks sci-fi, and operates like one too, but just be careful of not having kids in the front row fiddling with the vents.
• Digital Lights, have better performance and throw as compared to even my matrix lights in Audi.
• Everything electric makes this car ooze luxury. (electric blinds, electric headrests, electric boss package, etc.)

What could be Tad Better

• The C300 comes with AMG Line steering wheel, which is a surprising omission in the E450, Mercedes should have given the E450, the AMG Line steering wheel as well
• Ionizer, perfume package & cooled seats, at a 92 lac ex-showroom price, should have been offered.
• The 5 spoke AMG design alloys are very common, there is nothing unique here
• The earlier generation E350d, came with a tablet at the rear, this generation of the E Class, misses that tablet to give extra convenience to the Sethji behind.

How is it to Drive

Depress the brake pedal, hit the start stop button and you expect the car to rumble a bit. That’s how traditionally cars have started. But not this Mercedes. Depress the brake pedal, hit the start stop button and only the odometer on the digital cluster moves. That is how literally you know, the car has started. There is pin drop silence everywhere inside the car, and one doesn’t even realize that the car has started moving, if you are sitting behind and not paying attention to what’s happening outside.

There is a peculiar difference in the way a 3-litre motor of a BMW responds vs the one in Mercedes. While there is excess of 350 HP on the tap, there is no sense of urgency, unlike in a BMW motor, which hounds you to move ahead faster. This Mercedes believes in wafting you in comfort and luxury, and the agility control suspension with selective damping system complementing the ride. The ride is extremely comfortable and there is minimum intrusion of thuds inside the cabin. I felt the handling to be neutral and the car in general had better grip owing to it being a 4-wheel drive.

The real triumph card of the car has to be the fact that the car will keep you mesmerised for long and will continue to feel modern even for another 5-7 years.

Overall, then how would I sum up this car? The evening that I drove the car, I had summed up my experience about the E450 via an Instagram post, and here is what I wrote-



“Once in a lifetime, a car comes along—one that flirts with perfection. A car that doesn’t just transport but captivates. One that engages all your senses, effortlessly gliding forward as if the world itself bends to its presence. A car that knows its power, that carries an unshakable confidence—leaving nothing but admiration in its wake.

That is the all-new Mercedes-Benz E450, ladies and gentlemen.

Its silky-smooth inline-six isn’t just powerful; it’s persuasive. It urges you forward, yet makes you wish the journey would never end. The rear seats recline in a way that would make a business-class lounge feel inadequate, while the ambient lighting wraps around you like a tailored suit—elegant, precise, and unmistakably luxurious. And for the Mrs.? Her personal screen ensures she’s as engrossed in the experience as you are.

When a car this close to perfection arrives, you don’t hesitate. You buy it.”

[nikhil.nayak]

Finally took delivery of the vehicle yesterday evening. Have to say that Silver Star Hyderabad did a great job with a very nice ceremony to hand over the vehicle. Very tastefully done befitting of the brand.

The car itself was very nice to drive finally and it did not disappoint. Smooth on the city roads as it soaks up most of the road. In traffic this is the magic carpet ride I was looking for. Music system sounds great and is very nicely setup straight out of the box. Went out with the family for a dinner to celebrate and everyone just loved it. Right from the restaurant valets to the other guests the E Class catches peoples attention. Went to the golf course this morning and it felt great cruising along the light early morning traffic.

Enclosing some pictures. Will share more later.

[androdev]

Congratulations! We deserve more photos - especially interiors during the night!! Wish you many years of fun and safe driving!!

[RickyC]

Many Congratulations to you and your entire family on owning the three-pointed star marqee..
Wishing you years of safe ownership.!
BTW, did you manage to get any discounts under any heads like 200000 cars celebrations etc. We too have booked one and are due to take delivery next month.
Cheers...!

[Aurum]

Congratulations! Hope you continue enjoying it for many years! There is one in my building, and the back lights look so pretty and distinctive when driving away from you.

[nikhil.nayak]

Originally Posted by RickyC

Many Congratulations to you and your entire family on owning the three-pointed star marqee..
Wishing you years of safe ownership.!
BTW, did you manage to get any discounts under any heads like 200000 cars celebrations etc. We too have booked one and are due to take delivery next month.
Cheers...!

Thanks! Congratulations and all the best on your purchase!

I got a ~50K discount on the base price which was provided I closed the sale in the month of January. To my knowledge, MB has pretty much ended any kind of deep discounting that may have been prevalent before. I also got an upgrade on my insurance package to Star Protect Platinum. TBH Silver Star had to really struggle to get the vehicle in the Silver color and black interior that I wanted. For some reason the beige interiors with white or blue exteriors were more easily available.

[itwasntme]

Sounds explosive!

Mercedes-Benz E 450 first drive review: Only 0.1 sec slower than an M340i
https://www.evoindia.com/top-news/me...-than-an-m340i

[sunikkat]

E450 looks like a good buy for someone who wants luxury and performance. But the big question is how many customers are really there who buy E class for performance and most will go with standard E and save money, as anyway most of it will be chauffeur driven. And this is the risk as Mercedes might quietly remove this from their line, if the sales are really low.

If I have to ever buy an E (I would never), this would be the one. Hope BMW get a 540i too.

[Turbanator]

Originally Posted by sunikkat

But the big question is how many customers are really there who buy E class for performance and most will go with standard E and save money, as anyway most of it will be chauffeur driven.

Not just about money, people who buy sportier cars know what they are getting into. An M2 retails higher than this fully loaded one and this publication is comparing how small is 0-100 difference between a 911 and E Class

Zero- 100 is just one part, that 911 or M2 will be infinitely better than this yacht!

I think, Mercedes might have done for a purpose- price a product so high in eco system and then a similar one at relatively lower. No one will complain and instead say how well is the base model and VFM and all that

[nikhil.nayak]

Enclosing a couple of pictures of the dashboard just after getting back home last night. Looks amazing at night. I've found that I prefer the white color ambient lighting which contrasts nicely with the black interiors.

Initial driving impressions is that this car likes to just coast along. Step on the gas a little and it can move but you feel the size of the car with it's sheer inertia. So far I have kept the car in its default Eco driving mode so will report after trying out how it feels in Sport mode etc. The center console screen is the main interface for the car and it does feel nice and crisp. I am still getting used to all the options and settings though. Have been watching a lot of Nick O'Leary's Youtube channel to catch up on all the tips and tricks of the MBUX system.

[nikhil.nayak]

Just got my car registration done yesterday and will get my licence plates in a week or so. Perhaps I can check with Mercedes, but honest question to others, where does one place the Fastag sticker on these cars given that the center is taken by the mirror and camera. Asking because toll gate cameras are most likely to be pointed at the center of the windscreen.



I have to mention that I wish there was a little more ground clearance. To my bad luck I have a basement parking and the car bottomed out at the entrance to the ramp. Have managed to get that addressed by getting the ramp fixed but this is going to be a factor that has to be considered. The car is high enough for most other areas but due to the long wheel base it does have this issue when front and back wheels "straddle" over a high point. Makes a good case for air suspension where one could raise the car a little.

The other thing is that our parking spaces are designed for smaller cars in general. While exiting my above said parking I have a tight left turn that would have been made a lot easier with some rear wheel steering. But even when driving in places that have large enough parking spaces the long nose does need attention. This is probably going to let me hand over driving responsibilities to my driver to figure out the angles on the tricky turns in our area.

I finally got to sit in the back seat while driving to the RTA to get the registration done. Tons of space and legroom back there. So much so that I was struggling to reach the temperature controls! I mean it's hard not to sit back and just sink into those plush seats. Until you realize you want to adjust the temperature. Which is where a nice touch pad or screen would help get the job done.

So yep ... what I am saying is that for a car of this size - air suspension, rear wheel steering and rear seat tablet controls are probably not "luxuries" that could have / should have been removed when bringing to market. These features are more like necessities given our conditions. I could probably trade the super screens and the sunroof(s) for those features at the moment. Given our hot sunny weather I don't really see myself using the sun roof anytime soon.

Will share more impressions as I continue using the car.

[androdev]

Originally Posted by nikhil.nayak

So yep ... what I am saying is that for a car of this size - air suspension, rear wheel steering and rear seat tablet controls are probably not "luxuries" that could have / should have been removed when bringing to market. These features are more like necessities given our conditions. I could probably trade the super screens and the sunroof(s) for those features at the moment. Given our hot sunny weather I don't really see myself using the sun roof anytime soon.

1. I suppose fastag has to placed below rear view mirror even if it means it's much lower than the usual location on other cars. I don't paste the fastag directly. I first paste it on a transparent film and then stick it using tape. Makes it easier to take off the tag for any reason (to reposition or to buy different tag, etc.). I also cut-off the excess portions of the tag and retain only the active material to keep it slim. Overkill but I enjoy such silly things.

2. I guess air suspension won't be given to avoid overlap with the S Class. Generally, scraping over speed humps is harmless. Next time you visit the service, you can look at the underbody of some old Mercedes sedans and you will see that not much damage can be caused by speed humps. Projections on the road (like a stone, or deep crater) and flooded streets can be dangerous and one should be extra careful on such bad roads. Buy engine+gearbox protection insurance add-on as long as it's offered. Speed breakers are totally harmless as long as speeds are low - there is simply nothing between the wheels that can't take a bit of abuse.

3. I agree rear wheel steering would be great but there are few techniques you can learn from youtube, etc. to manage LWB sedans. To park in malls, etc. you need to turn into the next slot, reverse and then drive into your slot. To take a U-turn, do what buses and temp travellers do - be in the left lanes to take the U-turn. You will be blocking the traffic but being in the right most lane for the U-turn will cause more traffic blockage.

The reward for all this headache comes on the highways - so hopefully you will have decent amount of highway use for this car.

[itwasntme]

Originally Posted by nikhil.nayak

Perhaps I can check with Mercedes, but honest question to others, where does one place the Fastag sticker on these cars given that the center is taken by the mirror and camera. Asking because toll gate cameras are most likely to be pointed at the center of the windscreen.

I have to mention that I wish there was a little more ground clearance.

The other thing is that our parking spaces are designed for smaller cars in general. While exiting my above said parking I have a tight left turn that would have been made a lot easier with some rear wheel steering.

Congrats on the lovely car, and hope it gives you years and miles of happy ownership! Not a E owner but a 3 instead - my responses are to the Germans:

FASTag:
Don't worry about the FASTag so much. I'd suggest placing it on the top left or right of the windscreen where you may already have the mandatory RTO sticker or other residence/office stickers. Top right is best as the toll booth operators are always seated on the right.

The FASTag system does not use a camera, but instead energizes the passive RFID circuit in your tag to read it. Placing it anywhere on the windscreen should do, but definitely away from the sensors and blacked-out bits near the IRVM. Again, the tag readers are much improved now, and it is rare to get stuck nowadays.

Androdev's suggestion is a great one too. I have an ancient tag from June 2020, and I have sliced away the backing paper, and it looks very innocuous now.

Ground clearance:
You will need to 'crab across' the speed-breaker or ramp entry/exit whenever possible and safe to do so. Don't rush it even if impatient people are honking behind you. Again ensure tyre pressures are raised and lowered depending upon your usage.

Tight parking turns:
If you own the parking you use regularly, consider picking up rubberized corners/edges as required. Pool noodles (cut in half) also make excellent bumper stoppers against scratchy walls. These can make the difference with escaping with a mild dent compared to a bad scrape.

Originally Posted by androdev

1. I suppose fastag has to placed below rear view mirror even if it means it's much lower than the usual location on other cars.

Looks ugly unless we slice and dice like you.