kotsumu

I recently put in my order for the new 2017 E-Class but I had a couple of questions which the dealer wasn't able to answer (I seem to be more knowledgeable than them at this point)

1. I live in U.S. and according to my order, it comes with
608: Intelligent Highbeam Control
640: LED Intelligent Headlamps
Is this the system that adjusts my highbeams so that when a vehicle is around me it turns off the light only at that point (Multibeam LED)? The dealer keeps telling me yes, but I'm suspicious.

2. MBUSA says that P3 comes with Active Multicontour Front Seats with Massage where as my sheet says
432: Active Multicontour FrontSeats
So does it have massage or not?

3. Is driving assistance package somehow more advanced than the 2016 GLE 450 AMG?

One of the main reasons I waited for the 2017 E-Class was the semi-autonomous features. They made such a big deal about semi-autonomous driving but I went back and look at the 2016 GLE 450 AMG builds that I had on-hand and noticed that it had the same thing! I would have just got that instead of the E-Class if I had known earlier. But, is the driving assistance package some how much more advanced in the E-Class than in the 2016 GLE 450 AMG? (which would make sense if the media is hyping about it and not with the 2016 GLE 450 AMG)

Also, I'd be pretty disappointed if U.S. market doesn't offer multibeams. It just sounds so great and safe for the driver and everyone else. I guess I might just have to find a way to buy OEM benz headlights and somehow enable the feature (also get rid of the amber reflector at the same time )

joshg1001

1) it has auto high beams but it will simply turn on or off and will not alter the beam to hide the high beam to the car in front. So no, multi beam is not available.

2) yes, it will have massage

3) The GLE does not have the same semi autonomous feature as the E class. The GLE has what debuted in 2014 with the S class and is "steering assist". It is less capable as it does not turn the wheel as much, and also requires you to have your hands on the wheel more often that the "drive pilot" system on the E. Plus the E will change lanes

kotsumu

Thanks for the information! Well that's disappointing. I hope some smart geniuses figure out how to get those lights on U.S. models. I have pretty much the complete package configured excluding the 3d sound system. What do you guys think? Is it worth upgrading it?

Peachy

The problem is getting congress to get rid of these stupid ancient car laws. They literally don't care at all so they won't vote on it any time soon.

joshg1001

At the current rate of Congress, we will not have intelligent headlights for another 10 years, if even. I realize that sucks, but we just have to accept it. I think the new self driving tech is enough of a "leap" forward where it is worth it on the E over the other models. Cant wait to order my own

kotsumu

By then, everyone around the world will have much more revolutionary technology and U.S. will still be lagging behind. Such is reality...

kotsumu

Interesting, just went on mbusa and saw that the multibeam for the cls is available.

ADD0514

The marketing blurb describes the technology highlights. However, not all of the mentioned features will be available in the U.S.
Take a look at the E Class LED light descriptions here - https://www.mercedes-benz.com/en/mer...uture-e-class/ - Some of the key innovations never arrives here.

ADD0514

The massage is not much to write home about, LOL.

I snapped up the the E300 in early July due to the reviews and MB's hyper saturated descriptions of the Drive Pilot capabilities. The E Class technologist who delivered the car to me warned me not to put so much faith in the new technology. Then came the Consumer Report's saga which forced MB to revise their online contents. I had a long talk with the Service Foreman at my dealer a few days ago and he definitely dialed back a lot of what MB touted not too long ago. It just gets better!
Get this, when I get near my 2017 Subaru Outback with the key in my pocket, the car external lights spring to life. The E300 stays dark until I grab the door handle. May be I haven't read the manual that thoroughly.

Mike__S

Re the LED headlight situation: The multi-beam function is firmware controlled. The question is if it is being fitted or if the standard "dumb" LED lamp unit is being fitted. If fitted with the full multi-beam unit, then when approved, it is a trip to the dealer to get multi-beam working. So, which unit is the critical question of the moment. It is supposed to go multi-beam ASAP, according to MB. It will eventually be available.

We are in a similar situation with Drive Pilot functionality. All automakers are extremely cautious because of the US legal system's consumer protection scheme featuring people determined to get rich by reading a lot of BS before they turned 25. Two of my class mates are very rich for being consumer protection lawyers.

"The first person to kill themselves in a TESLA is going to cause another 250,000 deaths" from slowing down the spread of active safety. I can only point out for all our human concern for safety and security, monkeys still fall out of trees. It is not simply a question of what kind of risk we are willing to accept, but what risks are worth taking.

The guidence functions of the Drive Pilot are dampened down in firmware on US cars. One problem we have here compared to Europe, is GPS metadata tags are almost complete there for major roadways and towns, whereas in the USA this is not the case, the Tesla/Mobileye efforts not withstanding. There is just not a critical mass of data in the US yet. And, it is a bit time consuming as the generated metadata must be reviewed by hand. The Autobahn and major roads in Germany are coded and Drive Pilot has much better guidance functionality as a result. It is not perfect there either, however.

The part of the Drive Pilot that makes use of metadata, such as the Active Lane Keeping is pretty useless without it for tight radius corners and such, plus (northern) European roadways are generally better marked than the US. (Hey, $7/gal. gas buys a lot of fresh paint). That said, there is work to be done on the technology as well as the infrastructure before everyday autonomous-driving is going to happen at standard road speeds.

Now for the good news. The non-guidence related features are second to none. There is no reason not to get the Drive Pilot option for side/rear assist and the excellent active brake assist, by far the best current implementation. The C300, some Volvos and all Subaru models are the only other active brake systems that currently come even close. The E300 is much more responsive at speed, for which Volvo is a close second presently. The E300 active safety features are the among the very best currently available.

Distronic Plus works great as well. The two features that are problematic are Active Lane Assist on all but well marked 4-lane freeway and a lane assistance that is not fool proof. This is a state of the art situation. Keep lane assist off on all but the open freeway and you must still look before you leap when changing lanes in moderate to heavy traffic. Is that so bad?

Mercedes is being very non-committal regarding future firmware upgrades to the W213 Drive Pilot. Of course, firmware upgrades are very much doable, that is not the question. When and if they would retroactively upgrade the firmware in USA cars a strategic policy decision on their part. This depends on a number of unresolved issues and even some, as yet, undefined criteria, both technical and political.

So, two take home points.

First, the parts that work are very, very good. It is just the lane keeping and lane change that are problematic. They can be said to only work reliably under ideal conditions of light traffic on well marked multi-lane roads. These two features unreliable behavior are not unique to Mercedes. One has to develop a cautious relationship with these two features in any vehicle today.

Second, with regard to the apparent success of the TESLA Model S system, it runs full, interactive metadata maps in its heavy market areas and has been 'turned up' to take advantage their constant cloud data communications. Mercedes is not yet ready to commit to this level of autonomy, nor do they have yet, within the USA, the cloud/data infrastructure in place to do so. However, this capability will appear sooner than later.

ADD0514

Nice write up, spot on assessments!
While the Subaru's Lane Keeping Assist makes me look like a drunk on the freeway (seriously!), it equals or bested the E300 in the following.

• Adaptive Cruise Control - It starts, stops, and maintains distance in a gradual manner that mimics human reaction. The E300 reacts to traffic changes in an inconsistent manner.
• Blind Spot Warning - Equal.
• Rear Camera - Lower resolution, but the same. The E350 has better graphic overlays that give me a better sense on where the car is heading.
• Hand Free Driving - Despite the above, E300 wins hand down.
• Bonus Safety & Convenient Features - The Subaru's proximity lights spring to life as you approach the car. There's an "Anti-Submarine" airbag located in the front seats' cushion to prevent occupant from sliding forward in an accident. You can register individual settings for the driver seat with each remote key fob. Of course, the E300 has advanced features that the Subaru lacks. But auto proximity lights and seating position should be the inclusive or available in a luxury sedan such as the E300.

Just my 2 cents.

Rovel

I just got an answer to my question from this thread. I was about to post a video to Youtube and ask why multi-beam didn't work on 2017 E class, and why it couldn't turn off some LEDs to avoid dazzling the oncoming traffic while keeping the right LEDs on in high-beam mode.

I thought the car was defective or something.

It is too sad that so much advertised multi-beam on new E class doesn't work in the US. This means that the previous E class (w212) had the same lighting technology. But the W212 also had active corner illumination. I don't think the W213 turning the headlights in corners.

Do you know if Audi's or BMW's similar technologies also don't work in the US at their "full capacity"?

kotsumu

As far as I know, no. I heard there might be someway to enable the feature on U.S. cars, but have not looked too deep into it yet since I haven't received my car yet. I plan to modify my headlights big time. I hate the amber reflectors on U.S. models. U.S. just really hates nice things.

Rovel

What? You posted the message in July and still haven't received your car? Why is that?

kotsumu

I originally had an E300 ordered then I asked my dealer about the e43 amg and he told me that I should be able to get the e43 by december. I figured that since i had to wait till december regardless of the e300 or the e43, might as well go for the e43. However, now that december has gone and past, he told me that there were delays to the P3 on the e43s. Whether if he's been bs'ing, I have no idea.now my build date is somewhere in mid Feb.