Mercedes-Benz Prices New E-Class Coupe, Sedan
After introducing the latest version of its midsize offering at this year's Geneva Motor Show, Mercedes-Benz has now affixed a set price to each model of its all-new 2010 E-Class. Available in either sedan or coupe layouts, the 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class coupe will have a starting MSRP of ,925 while the sedan will start at ,475. With these new prices, the biggest news is the fact that the base 2010 E350 sedan will cost ,600 less than a base 2009 E350. The new 2010 Mercedes-Benz E-Class will go on sale next month with four models being available and eventually more models will be added over the course of the next year.
Both the sedan and coupe will be offered as either the E350 or the E550 with the main differences being the size of the car's engine. The starting price for the E350 coupe will be $48,925, while the more powerful E550 coupe will start at $55,525. For the sedan models, the E350 will start at $49,475 and the E550 will start at $57,175. The reasoning behind the drastic price drop was to get the car's MSRP closer to the actual transaction prices that Mercedes dealerships are actually selling the car for. It is common knowledge that today's starting MSRPs for cars is not what the average consumer pays for the car unless it's a specialty or low-production vehicle.
Upon its introduction, the 2010 E-Class will launch with a rear-wheel drive layout, but by this fall the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedans will be available with the company's 4Matic all-wheel drive system at a cost of $2,500 for each model. Neither coupe model will offer all-wheel drive. All E-Class coupes and sedans will come standard with safety devices such as nine airbags and active head restraints in addition to convenience items such as Mercedes' COMAND system that includes navigation and a seven-inch display. The coupe will add standard equipment such as a panoramic sunroof, Bluetooth connectivity and a drowsiness monitoring system that detects the eye movement of the driver and alerts him or her if the car thinks their eyes are closing too much. Optional equipment (which has yet to be priced) includes lane departure warning system, blind spot monitoring system, adaptive high-beam headlamps and a distance control system that can automatically brake the car when it gets too close to the car in front of it.
Under the hood, the 2010 E350 will use a 3.5-liter V-6 that produces 268 horsepower and 258 lb-ft of torque, while the 2010 E550 uses a 5.5-liter V-8 that increases output to 382 horsepower and 391 lb-ft of torque. The only available transmission in the initial E-Class models will be the smooth-shifting seven speed automatic transmission. One of the unique aspects of the seven-speed automatic transmission is its ability to skip gears on downshifts in order to choose the perfect gear selection for quick acceleration. When the 2010 E63 AMG goes on sale, it will offer a more performance-based transmission that uses multi-clutch technology to act like a manual gearbox with the conveniences of an automatic. This transmission will still have seven speeds, but it will add four driving modes (controlled efficiency, sport, sport plus and manual) with the manual mode offer gearshifts in just 100 milliseconds.
Future E-Class models that have yet to get official pricing details include the E350 BlueTEC diesel sedan, E63 AMG sedan, E350 4Matic station wagon and an upcoming E-Class convertible. Unlike the current E320 BlueTEC model, the 2010 E350 BlueTEC will be 50-state legal when it goes on sale next March. The high-performance E63 AMG goes on sale this November with its powerful 6.3-liter AMG V-8 engine which will produce 518 horsepower and 465 lb-ft of torque. For added cargo capacity, Mercedes-Benz will add the E350 4Matic station wagon to the lineup next spring with a possible design debut taking place sometime this fall. Seeing as how the E-Class coupe replaces the existing CLK-Class, a convertible model of the car is also expected to join the lineup by next summer as a 2011 model.