2017 Mercedes E 350d survey, street test

For the last four generations, the E-class always looked distinct from the rest of the core Mercedes-Benz sedan range, usually by virtue of its headlamps and tail-lamps, which were different from the S-class and C-class. Not anymore. In line with the company’s latest ‘Sensual Purity’ design language, the three cars now follow a sort of ‘Russian Doll’ effect, much like many other luxury sedan families do. At first glance, unless you’re a serious Mercedes aficionado, it’s really hard to tell the E-class apart from its siblings. The massive length will at least tell you it’s not a C-class, but you could still mix it up with the S. Strictly speaking, that’s not a bad thing at all, as it is a very attractive car. Curvaceous and swoopy, there’s not a straight line in sight, and as with the outgoing E, you no longer get the traditional ‘radiator’ style grille in India, only the sportier one with the big Mercedes star in the centre. It looks visibly stretched too, and that 3,079mm wheelbase really makes itself known. The interesting detail is the rear doors; they don’t include the rear quarter glass, which is instead attached to the D-pillar like in the Maybach S-class.

The headlamps again look very similar to the ones on its siblings, ◊ ∆ but here there are two LED daytime running lamp elements instead of one in each lamp, a throwback to the quad-headlamp layout of the previous cars. The tail-lamps are virtually identical to the C’s, but Merc uses matte reflector elements meant to resemble crushed crystal, to make the E stand out. The shape overall is very stately, but the only letdown is the wheels. While rivals have all moved up to 18-inch wheels, Mercedes has stuck with 17s on higher profile tyres, which though potentially beneficial from a comfort standpoint, is not quite as effective aesthetically, and that becomes especially apparent because of the stretched wheelbase.

Under the skin is Merc’s aluminium-intensive MRA platform, highly elongated of course, from the C-class, and as ever, it uses a longitudinally mounted engine (at the front) that drives the rear wheels. The suspension, however, depends on which variant you choose. While the base E 200 petrol uses steel springs, the E 350d we’re testing here has adaptive, three-chamber air suspension at all four corners.