Intelligent, Yes, To a Point

We’ll get to Mercedes’ claim that the all-new 10^th-generation E-Class sedan is the most intelligent car in the world, but for now let’s celebrate the fact that yet another high-end luxury car can move so effortlessly down the road with only four cylinders of motivation.

Audi, BMW, Cadillac and now Volvo (with the spacious 7-passenger XC90 CUV) have demonstrated how modern 4-cyl. turbocharged engines displacing a mere two liters can provide more than adequate power and torque and impressive fuel economy, while reinforcing premium-brand attributes with exemplary refinement.

Did we mention that Porsche offers a couple new high-output 4-cyl. engines in the all-new 718 Boxster now rolling into showrooms? Four definitely is the new Six.

So along comes the redesigned ’17 Mercedes-Benz E-Class, replacing a long line of cars relying on 6- or 8-cyl. engines, and the 2.0L turbo-4 in the first variant is shockingly capable, unexpectedly quiet and even a tad sporty, thanks to digital enhancement of the exhaust note within the cabin. An old-school 4-banger it’s not.

Most surprisingly, this engine isn’t even new, and it is directly related to the 2.0L turbo-4 that disappointed us in the entry-level CLA sedan two years ago. The engine in the E300 tested here shares the identical displacement (1,991 cc), bore, stroke, compression ratio (9.8:1), redline (6,500 rpm) and a whole lot of hardware.

But the E300 engine has new software and has been calibrated to produce 241 hp, up from an anemic 208 hp in the CLA250. Despite being 638 lbs. (289 kg) heavier than the CLA, the new E sounds and feels a whole lot more confident.

Maybe that’s subjective, but this measure is not: The E300 can sprint to 60 mph (97 km/h) in 6.2 seconds, while the lighter CLA needs 6.9 seconds.

Consider this a case of getting what you pay for.

The new E300 is even faster than the 302-hp 3.5L V-6 in the outgoing E350, which was 154 lbs. (70 kg) heavier and needed 6.5 seconds to reach 60 mph. Incidentally, the smaller C300 sedan, with the same 2.0L turbo-4, makes the sprint in the same 6.2 seconds – a tribute to engineering efforts to shed weight from the E-Class.

Another key difference is the transmission. The E300 gets the new 9G-Tronic 9-speed automatic transmission, while the CLA has used a 7-speed dual-clutch and the outgoing E-Class employed a 7-speed automatic.

The all-new gearbox, which wasn’t ready for the launch of the S-Class or C-Class sedans, gets the E-Class off the mark with very little shift busy-ness, whether in sport or comfort mode. Cycling through the gears manually with paddle shifters is quite rewarding.

The new transmission helps the E300 achieve a hybrid-like 33.1 mpg (7 L/100 km) during a morning drive from here to San Francisco International Airport, a 109-mile (175-km) jaunt that includes 20 minutes of creeping through traffic. The stop/start system functions smoothly and certainly boosts fuel efficiency.

On the first day of our drive, much of it through winding roads along the Pacific Coast, we log 255 miles (410 km) and 26.7 mpg (8.8 L/100 km) – still none too shabby in a roomy luxury sedan weighing in at 4,045 lbs. (1,835 kg) with 4-Matic all-wheel drive.

In comfort mode, the transmission is programmed to shift as quickly as possible to higher gears so the engine isn’t working as hard, while sport mode will hold gears longer, reducing fuel economy, as expected.

Whichever mode you choose, the engine revs freely at wide-open throttle, and the turbocharger is as quiet as a whisper. Most buyers will not even know the engine is using forced induction, or care.

How Intelligent Should It Be?

Someone has to toot the engine’s horn in this application because Mercedes certainly is not. Its 9-page press release detailing the features of the new E-Class devotes a mere 41 words to discussion of the engine (and 46 to the transmission).

Instead, the German automaker focuses on the electronic wizardry that allows the car to read speed-limit signs, charge a smartphone wirelessly, recognize hand-written commands, identify objects anywhere around the car, bathe the cabin in 64 different shades of ambient light, massage one’s back and butt eight different ways, firm up seat bolsters in preparation for a side impact and protect occupants’ ears (by generating white noise) in the event of a severe collision or airbag deployment.

In a bid toward autonomy, the E-Class also can do lots of things by itself: park parallel or perpendicular, change lanes and steer, brake and accelerate in traffic.

Yes, the E-Class is highly intelligent, but it also represents an extension of technologies that dazzled us all in the S-Class flagship when it was new two years ago.

Mercedes may be correct in claiming the new E-Class offers the most advanced technology and safety in the segment, and certainly the base price of $51,250 makes it a fine value.

But marketing this message too heavily could mislead customers to believing the era of self-driving cars has arrived.

That’s premature, as evidenced by some routine encounters with the E300. For instance, adaptive cruise control works great on the highway, and it’s even functional on winding roads because the radar system locks on to and keeps pace with the vehicle ahead.

But if that lead vehicle turns off, then the E-Class will bolt ahead at whatever speed has been pre-selected by the driver, no matter how tight the hairpin that lies ahead. Attentive human drivers will let off on the gas and apply brakes when necessary to navigate such switchbacks. No car is yet intelligent enough to do the same.

Another issue: the E-Class is great at creeping along in traffic by identifying and keeping a safe distance from the vehicle ahead. But when lanes converge, as they often do in construction zones, the E-Class continues recognizing only the vehicle ahead of it and not one merging from the left or right side.

That’s exactly what happened here during the test drive, and a watchful eye, as well as a foot on the brake pedal, was necessary to avoid a fender bender.

Now Arriving in U.S. Showrooms

The E-Class is very smart, and in two months it will be available with Car-to-X ability to communicate with other vehicles, traffic lights and infrastructure so it will know conditions of the road ahead so a navigation route can be adjusted accordingly.

At some point in the future, when drivers become optional, features such as these may determine which car to buy.

But until then, the new E-Class stands as a brilliantly executed car best experienced from behind the steering wheel, where two massive 12.3-in. (31-cm) display screens can be reconfigured umpteen ways, where the satin-finish natural-grain ash wood on the doors and instrument panel is warm to the touch, where the optional Multichamber Air Body Control suspension provides the perfect amount of compliance to fit any mood.

The E300 sedan now arriving in U.S. showrooms, and the E-Class rollout continues with the anticipated 396-hp AMG E43 sedan and 329-hp E400 wagon.

With 4-Matic, the E300 base price is $54,650 (plus $925 in destination charges), but options quickly add up: $3,950 for Selenite Grey Magno matte paint, $1,700 for 20-in. 5-spoke wheels, $1,090 for panoramic roof, $590 for a wood and leather steering wheel, $5,400 for Burmester High-End 3D surround-sound system and $115 for cabin atomizer fragrances.

Two premium packages can be combined for $11,250, including parking pilot, lane-change assist, satellite radio and blindspot assist.

The new E-Class has big shoes to fill, as the ninth-generation model has led sales in WardsAuto’s Middle Luxury car segment for the past seven years. However, the BMW 5-Series is ahead of the E-Class through May and might just break the streak.

Still, top-notch feature content, interior appointments and driving dynamics position the E300 to continue funneling cash home to Stuttgart, thus redefining the old reputation of the E-Class as feeling like a bank vault on wheels.

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'17 Mercedes E300 Sedan Specifications