Mercedes-Benz E-Class – on sale September

Mercedes-Benz wants to see a younger audience buying its new E-Class, on sale in September. As well as traditional buyers, including fleets and directors, junior executives will also be interested in this model, Mercedes says.

A more youthful buyer goes hand-in-hand with Mercedes’ aspirations to increase manual sales which currently only account for 5% of volume.

The Sport trim is also expected to appeal to this audience.
The German carmarker has downsized its model line-up from five trims to three – SE, Avantgarde and Sport. Previously, Avantgarde – the luxury option – made up 60% of sales.

Prices start at £28,863.30 for E220 CDI SE model. Avantgarde adds £2,495 to SE and Sport adds £1,500 to Avantgarde. The range-topping E350 CDI Sport costs £35,970. 

Average sales are around 11,000, with an annual high of 15,568 units, and Mercedes expects volume to be similar on the new model.

This average figure puts it in front of competitor Audi A6, but behind BMW 5 Series. Other players in this field include Lexus GS and Jaguar XF.

Nick Williams, UK group product manager for E-Class, said its advantages over competitors include its attention to detail, comfort and safety. It is better specced at the entry level SE than its counterparts and is price sensitive for the UK market.

Prices have been cut by 10-14% with savings of up to £3,000 on its predecessor. 

Bar E500, the new E-Class has been tagged Blue-
Efficiency as a result of its greener credentials. There is an average CO2 reduction of 11% and fuel consumption improvements of up to 20%, says Mercedes.

Upselling opportunities for dealers include packaging options. The Sport model also offers a particular upsell.

“Dealers already have an advantage because of the price position in the first place,” adds Williams.

Mercedes says it also has one of the best residual values for its class.

The car, which is indisputably effortless to drive, has some cool technology on it.

This includes adaptive high-beam assistant, which automatically adjusts high-beam lighting for oncoming traffic, and radar-assisted cruise control which controls distance to the vehicle in front as well as automatically braking if the distance to the car in front is insufficient or to reduce collision impact.

The consumer view

Sunday Times
Mercedes-Benz has returned to doing what it does best – building cars of unparalleled quality. And guess what? This new E-Class is a winner.

Car Magazine
The E220 CDI offers perfectly adequate performance but if you can stretch to the £1,500-ish pricier E250 CDI you’ll notice the extra punch and pay no penalty at the pumps.

Autocar.co.uk
The truly impressive thing about the new E-Class is the way it isolates its occupants from the outside world. It cruises in a serene and unruffled manner.