Geneva 2009: Mercedes-Benz E Class Coupe revealed

The Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe, which we previewed earlier, has officially been released ahead of the Geneva show.  Mercedes's competitor for the Audi A5 and BMW 6-series has an enticing lineup of powertrains and some curious styling features.  Let's take a closer look.

These higher-resolution photos allow us to get a better view of the E-class coupe, and it's... interesting.  First, the upsides: the greenhouse profile is beautiful, just one long sweeping arc from the end of the C-pillar up to where the A pillar and hood converge.  No goofy Nissan GT-R roofline here.  And check out those volumptuous rear fenders, seeming nabbed directly from either the Bentley Continental GT or an Aston Vanquish; the taper on a flat plane back to the integrated taillights, smooth as you like.  The surface detailing on the side is fantastic; it gives a sense of depth that is needed with a high door-to-greenhouse ratio like the E-Coupe has.

On the other hand, that rear quarter window is just bizarre.  Why is it there?  I'm still not convinced with the barn-door styling of the front end, either, but I suppose that's largely a matter of opinion - I mean, it's a handsome barn door.

Nothing too exciting from the back, but this is a Benz coupe - what were you expecting, some Maxima-looking tail lights?  Me neither.  Still, for the most part it's a very attractive vehicle with just a few "interesting" details.  So, thumbs up on that point.

The new E-Class Coupe shares it's basic underpinnings with the new (W207-generation) E-Class sedan, but has very few body panels in common.  Like every E-class ever, it's a traditional front-engine, rear-wheel drive design - but the "traditional" technology pretty much ends there.  The emphasis on this new E Class Coupe is efficient design, an idea that's refreshing for a big coupe in today's economy-minded market.

The E-coupe is available with 4 and 6 cylinder diesels and 4, 6, and 8 cylinder petrol engines.  The base model diesel engine, in the E250 CDI "BlueEFFICIENCY" Coupe, is a 2.1L turbodiesel.  While that doesn't sound like much for such a large car, thanks to twin-sequential turbocharging, ultra-precise piezoelectric injectors, and common-rail injection, the little 16v diesel makes a surprising 204bhp and 369 lb-ft of torque (500nM!)  That's nearly 100bhp/l from a four-cylinder diesel, which is frankly amazing.  The E250CDI comes paired with a 5-speed automatic, and Mercedes claims that despite making 36% more power, the engine is also 17% more efficient than the diesel it replaces.  Good stuff.

Next up is the base gas engine, the E250 CGI.  This new four-cylinder engine also benefits from direct injection, and develops an identical 204bhp (150kW), a bump from the previous port-injected model with 184bhp.  The V6 diesel in the E350 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY model has been updated to produce 231bhp (previous model made 224) and an undisclosed amount of torque - I would put my money on "a whole lot."

M-B has updated their 3.5L 24v petrol V6, in the E350 CGI, with direct spray-guided fuel injection, which makes a solid 292bhp - a 20bhp bump from the old port-injected model, as well as being 14% more fuel-efficient.

Atop the E-class line is the E500 coupe, powered by an advanced 5.5L 32v V8 which makes 388bhp and 530nM of torque (391lb-ft).  Expect an AMG model in the future, with the sonorous 6.2L 32v AMG-designed V8 making closer to 500bhp.  Still, it's worth stopping for a minute and considering just how much progress technology has brought us: the E500 coupe makes more power than the original AMG 300E "Hammer" of the late 80's, which had a highly modified 6.0L 32v V8 with 375 horsepower... and in today's dollars cost more than a quarter-million dollars.

Of course, being a new Mercedes-Benz, the E Coupe is crammed full of high-tech features.  Most interesting is a "driver drowsiness detection" system that monitors steering inputs as well as other parameters to see if the driver is falling asleep, then takes actions to wake them up.  While this feature would seem more necessary on say, a Camry, it's just a part of an extensive system designed to make the E-Coupe safer to drive.  It is also equipped with M-B's "Pre-Safe" system, which detects emergency braking or steering situations and takes measures to prepare the occupants for a crash - tightening the seatbelts, moving the seats, closing the windows and sunroof, etc.

The E-coupe also has fully adaptive lighting, which uses a light sensor mounted in the windshield to detect oncoming traffic and adjust the length of the low and high beams to avoid dazzling the driver automatically, giving the E-Coupe a much wider light range that adapts to road conditions.  Neat.

The list goes on and on; adaptive cruise control, adjustable dampers, etc. etc.  If the E-Coupe seems right up your alley, the car will be hitting dealers in May 2009.  Prices range from €44,684.50 for the E250 CDI coupe up to €66,045 for the E500 coupe.