petee1997

My wife picked up her E400 tonight. After two years driving a 13 E350 4M coupe, it's easy to appreciate the difference. First on the list is the shorter front doors and the easy entry of the sedan. Secondly the drivers seat(drive- dynamic multicontour) and the overall better interior with the tutone black and grey leather gives the car a more luxurious feel.

Finally the "piece de resistance" is the new tt engine. It's super quiet and so smooth compared to the DFI engine. You reach full torque of 354 lbs at 2000 RPM and that is where you see the biggest difference in power compared to the DFI engine. There is absolutely no engine noise. At hwy speeds it feels like a V8 when accelerating because of all the extra torque.

If you are buying a loaded car, it 's worth the extra dollars for this engine. I mention loaded because this car comes with more standard equipment and when the options are factored in, this engine is not much more money. Something else I would recommend is the new intelligent drive package.

All in all this may be the best MB for the the money.

BenzV12

I am happy for you and your owning many MB vehicles so far it is great to see you are satisfied with your new car
Happy Driving

noka

I picked up my E350 on Sat and so far it's been great. The E400 was tempting but I'm not dissatisfied with the performance. Enjoy your car!

BeachBunny

Glad to hear it Petee1997!

I'm surprised to hear about the reduced engine noise. I went with the 350 figuring that the E400 engine was designed for a sport feel, thus would have been louder. None of the dealers here had any to play with when I was spec'ing out my car. I'm also curious how much of that is engine vs. coupe/sedan. IIRC the coupe is built on the C-class platform.

petee1997

Back in 2010 and 2011 I bought two W212 E350 4M and the engines were not as quiet as this new TT. I think the difference is that you get a lot of power without revving the engine. You get full torque at 2000 rpm. Don't get me wrong, the NA engine is a good performer but I prefer the 3.0L tt.

By the way the E350 is no longer available in Canada, it was replaced by the E400. As a matter of fact, the 302hp v6 is no longer available in any models in Canada and unlike the US, we still have the E550 Sed.

Germancar1

That is arguably what MBUSA should have done and kept the E400's price just a little bit more than the E350. I don't see the point of the E350 and E400, unless they made it the E450 with the 362hp version of this engine like the GL450 has.

M

KEY08

car looks great! oh, wait....

jmatero

There's an increase of 80 lb-ft of torque going from the E350-E400. That's significant. American's value "off the line" power, which is torque, not HP. $2500 comparably equipped is a bargain for the boost and nicer interior materials. Hell, BMW charges $2500 for a "looks-only" sport package... no performance difference.

Wig

Petee - congratulations on both your new cars.

Which is quieter: the E400 or the CLS400?

Germancar1

That is true and that is the only saving grace here. I still think a E450 with 362hp and 369lb-ft of torque would have been even better, since that is what the 2015 GL450 has. This is after all the replacement for the E550 and in that respect it isn't even close.

M

petee1997

There doesn't appear to be any difference. Actually they are both the same car in a different shell. The CLS has the more up to date tablet and graphics for the comand module but you can't open the power trunk with your foot like the E.

YYZ-E55

Agreed on the sound, however, I found the transmission in the CLS400 to be a bit more responsive than the E400. Perhaps just a matter of the trans learning my driving style (both new cars with zero mileage).

The 400 is great on the highway, it pulls hard and sounds better than the 350 did at WOT.

jmatero

Too bad the 2015 CLS dashboard updates didn't make it into the E this year.
New wheel, larger screen, updated dash control panel

hyperion667

pics or it didn't happen


congrats Peetee

pamiboy

Oh pleas don't. I don't even consider that as an upgrade. Most of it is same except the iPad /tablet thingy which many have a beef with.
I would rather like to see an integrated screen similar to current one.

petee1997

This is all subjective. I prefer the tablet style.

Also the LED headlights on the CLS are far more advanced than the E LED. By the way the US does not have the ROW lights that we have in Canada. The US version has 24 LEDs per side as opposed to 36 per side in ROW.

fintail

I was in a W205 for about 20 mins not long ago - the tablet style screen, while of debatable aesthetics, looks natural after no time. It's not a bad design in that way, just too trendy.

That CLS still seems to have the W204 style HVAC controls, which IMO don't look as nice as the ones in the W212.

I wonder if idiotic DOT standards are to blame for US lights - something which for a long time, Canuckistan also followed. Or if it is just saving a few bucks - some markets get the US "lighting package" standard.

Tjdehya

I agree completely. In pictures the screen looks out of place and like a total after thought.
However, after sitting in a W205 I thought that it was the best integration for the user experience. IMO this would have been better implemented if it the screen was storable in one way or another.

The HVAC controls for the pre-fl CLS was actually the same HVAC controls in the W204. It not only looks out of place but it also feels cheap/plastic-y/hollow, especially in a cabin where everything else feels premium.
The picture looks like an updated version of those controls so hopefully it isn't as out of place as it was before.

NHTSA is actually responsible for the lack of advanced headlights of US roads.

YYZ-E55

DOT.

BeachBunny

Eh.. other than the streamlined button appearance on the COMAND system (which I do like), I prefer the current W212 interior styling. The tablet look is a real turn-off to me. As is the thick, chunky leather dash. There's also no aluminum/chrome trim around the wood like there is in the W212. Last, but not least are the chintzy AC controls. I'm also not feeling the center AC vents being lower than the sides.

The whole design just feels unfinished to me...much like a Nissan/Infiniti design, where they put everything together and said, "Good 'nuf, let's ship 'em" without that final step of tuning & tweaking everything to visually work well.

hyperion667

I kind of agree, I don't like the screen in that spot, the way it interrupts the upper part of the dash bugs me....kind of ruins it all together...also the CD player area looks cheapish(in the picture above)and not very nice the rest looks fine IMO

pamiboy

I didn't intend to put down your choice (of tablet style) ... yes it is very subjective. Does US get the advanced lights of CLS? Can you tell a bit more about the ROW lights? Any pictures. Thanks.

jmatero

Many cars will have to move to this style in order for the screen to be high enough to meet new standards. You can't hood something that high on the dash. It's pretty common now. Low windshield, floating LCD.

BeachBunny

I'm also looking at this in terms of longevity. I've seen cars where the LCD is exposed to sun and have been damaged by it. Fortunately the damage was limited to severe discoloration, BUT still something to think about.

It also makes me wonder about some of the newer cars I've driven, especially like the Toyota Avalon with two resistive touchscreens at almost a 45 degree angle, directly in view of the sun from the windshield. I can just see the Florida sun/heat damaging these over time. Considering you can't operate the AC/radio without using the touchscreen on that car, if the touchpanels go out you're screwed and have to repair them.

K-A

That screen looks like a joke imo. Laziest implementation, I don't know how the designers or MB got away with it with a straight face. Clearly a cost cut implementation to ride the trend or requirements.

As for the glare, not sure about MB's but the 6 Series' I drove had terrible glare when the sun was coming through.