New Mercedes E-Class Estate on sale: UK prices and specs
The family-sized Mercedes E-Class Estate still thinks bigger is better with class-leading boot space, while the plug-in hybrid version offers up to 69 miles of pure-electric range
The all-new Mercedes E-Class Estate is finally on sale in the UK, with prices for the BMW 5 Series Touring and Audi A6 Avant rival starting from £57,930 – £2,640 more than the recently launched E-Class saloon.
The executive estate is available with a choice of three engines: two four-cylinder mild-hybrids – the petrol E 200 and diesel E 200 d – plus the plug-in hybrid E 300 e, which starts from £70,270.
Buyers have a choice of five trim levels for the regular E-Class Estate, starting with the entry-level AMG Line. Included are 18-inch alloy wheels, LED headlights with adaptive highbeam assist, a 14.4-inch central touchscreen, 12.3-inch driver display, wireless phone charging, a reversing camera and heated front seats. Plus, safety kit like blind spot assist and traffic sign recognition.
AMG Line Advanced trim adds 19-inch wheels, upgraded headlights, a 360-degree parking camera system, augmented reality navigation directions for the central display, and the Memory Seat package.
AMG Line Premium-spec will appeal to the tech lovers, as it gets you the MBUX Superscreen setup that adds an additional display for the front-seat passenger, housed along with the central touchscreen under a single piece of glass. AMG Line Premium cars also come with a 21-speaker Burmester 4D sound system, active ambient lighting and enables you to start and lock the car with newer iPhones or Apple Watches.
AMG Line Premium Plus goes all out, adding 20-inch rims, a head-up display, panoramic sunroof, four-zone climate control, gesture control, a 3D instrument cluster, projection function for the headlights, and illuminated radiator grille. Alternatively you can go for the Exclusive Edition-spec, which costs the same as AMG Line Premium Plus, but comes with 21-inch alloy wheels, tweaked interior and exterior styling, with a bonnet-mounted Mercedes-Benz star.
It’s worth noting that the plug-in E 300 e can only be had in AMG Line Advanced, Premium and Premium Plus specifications.
Mercedes E-Class Estate: design
Since the first E-Class generation arrived in 1984, Mercedes’ executive car has always been offered with a practical estate alternative – and the recently revealed W214 variant is no different. With no estate version of the all-electric EQE, the E-Class Estate won’t be rivalled internally by an all-electric estate variant, something BMW and Audi will soon both offer. Regardless, the E-Class Estate is still expected to account for up to 20 per cent of total sales, leveraging its massive interior space which, as before, is class leading among its petrol-powered peers.
This comes despite the new Estate’s more rakish rear, with a heavily sloped rear-pillar that product manager Felix Korn told us gives it a shooting brake style, coming closer to filling the gap left by the long-dead CLS Shooting Brake. Mercedes-Benz has also revealed a new generation E-Class All-Terrain model, with its own unique styling elements and plastic wheel arch liners, but like Audi’s current Allroad, it won’t be available in the SUV-hungry UK market.
Mercedes E-Class Estate: interior technology
Where the new E-Class Estate should really impress is the interior. The dashboard features the same ‘Superscreen’ as the saloon, with the latest MBUX infotainment. The optional screen is essentially a smaller version of the Hyperscreen found in the EQS and S-Class.
It offers a new layout which Mercedes says is more intuitive for front occupants. There are several new technologies such as the interior video camera and a ‘routine’ which learns habits of the driver to personalise the car’s features. New with the Superscreen is the ‘Just Talk’ function, which essentially replaces the need to say “Hey Mercedes” to operate the voice control, although to use it the driver has to be alone in the car.
As we’ve seen across the Mercedes range, the driver’s screen will show two different styles (Classic and Sport) and three modes: Navigation, Assistance and Service. To the rear there’s an optional electronically controlled tow bar, which can fold out at the touch of a button on the bootlid. The towing capacity for the E-Class is up to 2100kg with an 84kg weight on top of the bar, so e-bikes can be carried.
Mercedes E-Class Estate: practicality
The main reason you’d buy the Estate over the saloon is for the extra boot space, which varies depending on what’s under the bonnet. The E-Class Estate now has electrified engines throughout the range: the mild-hybrid versions come with 615 litres of boot space with the rear seats up – although that should be plenty for most families, it’s 25 litres down on the outgoing model because of the location of the battery beneath the boot floor.
The plug-in hybrid model has 460 litres of boot space, which is 20 litres less than the old PHEV. To help ensure the Estate remains stable, fully loaded or while towing, there’s air suspension on the rear axle as standard. All-round air suspension is an option.
Mercedes E-Class Estate: powertrains
As said, there’s two mild-hybrids – a petrol and a diesel – plus a plug-in hybrid petrol available. All E-Class models get a nine-speed automatic transmission. The E 200 uses a 2.0-litre four-cylinder petrol engine that’s boosted by a 23bhp electric motor for a total of 201bhp. This allows the E 200 to sprint from 0-62mph in 7.8 seconds. The E 220d comes with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel unit with the same mild-hybrid system for 194bhp and a 7.9-second 0-62mph time.
The range-topper for now is the plug-in hybrid petrol E 300 e with a 2.0-litre four-cylinder engine mated to a 25.4kWh battery for 312bhp. The extra power means the PHEV is the quickest from launch, taking 6.5 seconds to complete a 0-62mph sprint and with a top speed of 141mph. Mercedes claims the PHEV can travel up to 69 miles on electric power alone – a whopping 36 miles more than the old model.
Felix Korn added that more plug-in hybrids are likely to be launched for the Estate – potentially a 300 d e diesel and a more powerful 400 e that has already been seen on the saloon.
The new mild-hybrid technology benefits in terms of efficiency with the petrol E 200 returning 42.1mpg on a combined cycle compared to 37.6mpg from the previous generation. The old E-Class Estate never came with the saloon’s petrol plug-in hybrid powertrain, although Mercedes’ scarcely believable 470.8mpg claim for the new E 300 e comfortably beats the old E 300 e saloon’s 176.6mpg figure.
Future AMG E-Class Estate
We expect the Mercedes-AMG division to reveal a warmed-through E 53 model in due course, however a full-fat E 63 model is not currently planned. This comes despite previous hot E-Class Estates achieving something close to cult status over previous generations. Mercedes is set to leave the high-performance estate game to Audi’s RS 6, Porsche's next generation Panamera Sport Turismo and the new BMW M5 Touring.
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