ktr

For any other car company who already replaced their larger displacement engine with a smaller, turbocharged engine, the performance metrics of the model either remained the same or improved. This is not the case with the new E300. For example, BMW replaced their established inline-6 to an inline-4 turbo, which ended up being a better performing engine.

SDRider

Back in the early 90s the Ford F-150 came with an awesome straight 6 cylinder engine. It was a great engine in a great truck. There have been engines like these in trucks for as long as there have been trucks.

Personally, I'm not a fan with how large trucks these days have become. I'm also not a huge fan of the 4 cylinder turbocharged engines Mercedes is fitting to their cars lately. The E-Class deserves more power... not less.

teksurv

I have a GLC 300 as a loaner and I find the turbo 4 along with the 9 speed transmission pleasing around town - EXCEPT, it's thrashy, noisy, and just not what I expect in terms of NVH in a Mercedes-Benz. I haven't driven a F10 528i to compare yet. Acceleration, in Sport + is comparable to my 302hp V6. Highway acceleration may not be, will have to test.

SDRider

I've driven the GLC300 and the C300 a couple times and I felt that both engines suffer from a bit of turbo lag and both feel busy and noisy once you get them going.

I didn't care for either one but the GLC I had as a loaner felt better than the C300. They are both woefully slow compared to my E550 Coupe... but that has a twin turbo v8 putting out 400hp at the wheels.

Wolfman

I think Mercedes has done a really nice job calibrating the engine/transmission to the W213 chassis.
I drove 3 loaners more of less back to back. One 2016 E350 and two 2017 E300's. All under 1000 miles on the clock. SO it was definitely new vs. new.
The 2017 felt more lively and nimble and just as fast but is clearly a bit slower.

The new E is definitely the better car and feels more upscale even as a lightly equipped loaner.

That said, rolling out the E-Class with just a inline 4 and being able to option the car out close to $80k is plain insane. Even as a E400 I question the rationale of creating a $11k+ single option.
This makes the S-Class with the 449hp TTV8 and much better base equipment a downright bargain...

teksurv

Yep. The E300 will be the volume leader as was the E350, though the equation has changed. If there is no E400 sedan, and only the semi AMG 43, I suspect it will be close to S class base pricing.

Wolfman

E43 will likey be a good $20k below the S-Class base price...

Hockeyguy4u

I am not so sure about the reliability of our V6 engines, so the comparison of reliability/longevity of our V6 vs. the new 4-cylinder turbo is a bit if an unknown. Remember, the most recent V6 in our E350's is a direct injection engine. They may be prone to sludge build-up and other problems--including markedly decreased performance and fuel pump failures-- when high mileage is reached. How they will perform after, say, 100K miles is a big unknown.

PeterUbers

^^^ this

SEC1939

I am in the automotive OE supply. The amount simulation then of validation, endurance that takes place during engine development is unbelievable. They will run an engine in a lab at red-line for days-weeks. Run with contaminated oil you name it. With in car testing will run a crazy amount of time in Siberia and Death Valley, up hills down hills with all extremes. So I think you can feel pretty confident that with good maintenance and driving habits that are conducive to the vehicle and the engine size you will be fine. Of course there is always exceptions to the rule. Sometimes it's not the engine design that is flawed but a supplier of engine components has an issue. Materials, heat treat or something like this. At this moment I am working on and validating CY 2020 engines.

wins76

I can foresee in the near future someone going to post " Are owners of new E class OK with 2 cylinders engine?" Lol.


I firmly believe E class in North America needs at least a V6 cause of its weight and our highway speed. Most Asia & European countries can live with i4 or i3 cause their road are narrower and their highway speed is limit to 90 or 100 km which is either 55 or 60 mph. And their surface road is limit to 50 kmh. In here, specially Texas our highway speed limit is either 60, 65, 70, 75 and 80 mph plus 10% over before getting a ticket. V6 will keep the engine happy at 2000 till 2500 rpm range with a lot more power left.


Forgot to add: El Paso and Austin has Highway that have posted speed limit of 85 mph (137 kmh). If this is the case, you can only go over 5 mph before cops pull you over. Got caught once doing 90 mph. He gave me a break, I was actually going 98 mph.


Lastly, we are thicker and heavier than our eastern, western or southern counterpart. I'm 6' 2 & weight 245 lbs, my business counterpart from Hong Kong is 5' 10 & weights 155 lbs. On the other hand, a Japanese counterpart is 5' 7 that weights only 130 lbs. Extra 90 lbs. will make the I 4 scream for help especially if you add my wife & her luggages (fashion queen). Furthermore, if you add my two kids weights; the I 4 engine just must as well throw in the white flag and call it quit. I once flew my family to Orlando for Disney World and was on Camry I 4 rental car for 5 days, that car was constantly @ 2800 ~ 3000 rpm on Hwy. Back in our honeymoon days that we spend in Philippines, I had to disembark the local tricycle (taxi with 150cc motorcycle) to help push the tricycle over the hill cause it doesn't have enough power to carry me! Is either lost weight, find petite Asian wife, liposuction or V6. I choose V6; easiest and economical. Now if you ask me this question twenty years from now.....I might choose different****

ElisTwoCents

Not really unless it was biturbo charged but even the lag might be bothersome in stop and go and lower speeds.

I find the 6 perfect

The G Man

[QUOTE=wins76;6906070]
Lastly, we are thicker and heavier than our eastern, western or southern counterpart. I'm 6' 2 & weight 245 lbs, my business counterpart from Hong Kong is 5' 10 & weights 155 lbs. On the other hand, a Japanese counterpart is 5' 7 that weights only 130 lbs. Extra 90 lbs. will make the I 4 scream for help especially if you add my wife & her luggages (fashion queen). Furthermore, if you add my two kids weights; the I 4 engine just must as well throw in the white flag and call it quit. I once flew my family to Orlando for Disney World and was on Camry I 4 rental car for 5 days, that car was constantly @ 2800 ~ 3000 rpm on Hwy. QUOTE]



Heck, I bet your wife weights more than both the Chinese and the Japanese guy combined

BBB78

Truth.

Raymond Lee

You won't believe what 4 banger turbo can do. For all practical purpose, you won't know the difference. I have e250 that I get on free way all the time with. I never felt problem.

PeterUbers

i hear ya

i don't want to spend $70,000 for a car that can get me onto the freeway... I want this car to put a smile on my face when I floor it

and here's the best part... I'll never buy an e300.... Will Consider a different brand for a car in this price segment

Munich77

Totally agree - we will see what BMW does with its new 5 series and Audi with the new A6 when they come out in the next couple of years. I am guessing that there will be a 6 cylinder as part of the standard line.

DubVBenz

Amazing to me that the slowest E-Class MB Built in 2007 (my E320 Bluetec) is likely faster than the fastest E-Class Mercedes will sell in 2017. Mine is rated at 6.6 seconds to 60, the E300 is rated at 6.2-6.3 but is down almost a 130 ft/lbs and up in weight. Will be interesting to see what sort of numbers car magazines start putting up in real-world scenarios with this turd.

yalej

I'm sure the 4-cylinder is a fine engine, but I'm not buying an E class with a 4 cylinder no matter what.

All manufacturers are going to the smaller displacement/turbo model to meet CAFE or CO2 standards all over the world. Even Porsche is doing this in the new 911. It's quite sad.

I want a V8 for my next MB, which I think means either an E63 or a CLS of some kind (S is too big for my tastes).

cetialpha5

Does that mean you're not going to settle for the 2017 E43? It's going to be a 3.0 biturbo V6 engine. No more V8. Or get an older model.

yalej

Yeah, I think I'm not going to do the E43. But I want the new interior/electronics, so the pre-refresh models are out. I may just have to wait a bit before I get a new one, since I don't really want to buy new.

Diesel #2

I have owned all types of cars, from I4 to V12. And i have realized that for city and highway driving i rather have more torque than HP. Even though my turbo diesel I-4 has 195 hp, it gets from 0-30 mph quicker than the V-6 E 350, from 30-60 mph of course the V-6 will take the lead.

Also you have to accelerate in a different manner than a V-6 or V-8, if you just mash the pedal down all the way to take off, it sort of feels like you are choking the engine and the output decreases, however if you ease into the accerelator and as soon as you hit around 1600 rpm and your full torque kicks in, then you floor the pedal and the boost is actually very pleasing and never do i feel like i am driving an I-4, or second guess about overtaking a car on the highway.

egnurlaup

I had 3 E350s before this 2017 E300 delivered last month. I am not a race driver nor unduly motivated by powerful specs. I am very pleased with the vehicle and it can definitely move when you need it to! I have not really noticed any difference other than the super smooth new transmission - fabulous innovation.

PaulE550

Completely agree! Buying a MB or any other car in this price range isn't about settling for simply being "good enough" to get up to highway speed. It's about being able to enjoy the experience of smooth, effortless acceleration with power to spare, while at the same time doing so in a comfortable, luxury environment.

If all we cared about was "adequate" or "good enough", then we might as well all get a Toyota Camry for a whole lot less money. There are certain expectations that come with buying any luxury brand vehicle in this price range. Expecting potential customers to pay premium prices for, as one person already commented, a engine that sound like "a marble rattling around inside a coffee can" from the outside might be OK for some folks. To each his or her own personal preferences. However, it completely ignores the MB customer segment that actually cares about performance and enjoys driving. MB risks losing that segment of their customer base to potentially other brands down the road.

The G Man

Everybody is doing it, BMW, Audi, Jaguar... they are all replacing larger engines with smaller forced induction engines. If a turbo 4 can truly perform as well as a NA 6 and sound and feel just as refined, then I am all for it. As of today, the turbo 4 is not as refined. Maybe in another 5 years or so, I might consider a turbo 4. On the top end, the turbo 6 has out-perform the NA 8 of yester-year and they feel and sound just as refined.