Hey All - So I have a 25' GLE450e that I've had since last year when I returned my EQS450 off lease. I like it in general, and its super smooth, and quiet, and the EV range is sufficient. But as a car enthusiast I must say, its quite boring, and I'm not a fan of the 4 cylinder. It's a much better 4 than most, but its still a 4. I am contemplating switching out to a E53 AMG Sedan given it is still a plug in hybrid which I'd like, but has the turbo 6 and is much faster. The other option is a s580e but that is a lot more. I haven't test driven one, but before I give my dealer a call and go through the process of exploring the E53 I am curious of everyones experiences thus far as it relates to comfort, and driving dynamics. I have heard that it drives like crap over rough surfaces and tire noise is an issue. Wasn't sure if that is indeed the case. It would also be great if anyone has done the same and traded out of the GLE450e to the E53 and their thoughts. The only other gripe I have is that there are no ventilated seats on the ones I see available by me. Anyway would appreciate any feedback. Thanks!

Not a GLE, but I traded from a W214 E350 to the E53 Wagon. The Wagon doesn't ride like crap. It rides like a performance car. It's definitely stiffer than the E350 on the same roads even in Comfort mode, but it's also....supposed to, It's a performance car. A 5400 pound performance car at that, so it's definitely stiff. If you don't want the harder ride, the E450 might be more your speed. It's got the 6 cylinder that's much nicer than the 4 cyl in the E350, but you'll still have the softer ride of the non-AMG.

The E450 wouldn't work for them, it's not a PHEV.

Taking the beating on a 25 GLE is going to be rough. My daughter has a GLC 350e and I just drove it 500 miles this weekend and I must say it's a lovely car. Sure it's not a performance vehicle but it rides great and she absolutely loves it and I can see why. The PHEV system is incredibly good in it and the driver assistance package is definitely top notch. I'm sure the E53 is just as good, if not better and I can't wait to get ours. As for you, take the drive and take one on a test drive to see if it will fit your preferences in terms of road feel and performance, we can't make that decision for you :-).

Be sure to try one with the 20” wheels. The 21” wheels do drive like crap over rough surfaces…but the ride/handling balance is sublime over all other surfaces with the 21s, IMO. Tire noise is there, but only because of the absence of wind and engine noise in EV mode…I wouldn’t call it an issue.

absence of real engine noise in electric noise. Around town the fake engine noise is there (and super dumb)

We have a long love of Benz wagons. 1990 E300, 1995 E300 (still a fave for its solid Germanic road feel), 1998 E350 (bit of a dud with electrical issues), 2005 E55AMG (a true wolf in sheep’s clothing), 2014 E63AMG, 2020 E63AMG. We recently downsized and have a tight garage. Got a couple of Volvo V60 Polestar plug in hybrids. Very excellent cars in their own right. Traded one in on a 2026 E53e AMG plug in hybrid wagon. Probably our favourite of them all. A solid delight to drive. Lots of power. This is NOT the pantywaist E53 of 2020 (we tested one before getting the 2020 E63 and it was lame and handled like a lightweight Japanese vehicle). Best of all worlds. I suspect you’ll be pleased.

I disabled fake engine sounds from all drive modes. There is the obligatory electric car hum at low speeds for pedestrian safety, but other than that just tire noise in EV mode. Not much different with the engine on…it is barely audible.

how do I do this? I think (could be wrong) that at low speeds it still plays a dumb noise INSIDE the car. The pedestrian safety noise should be OUTSIDE.

I had a GLE350 loaner for two days while my E53 was in the shop getting the rear camber adjusted from -2º10' to -1º41'. The GLE350 is probably a bit more boring than your GLE450e. But, it is definitely a more comfortable ride over rough payment than the E53. The E53 is fun to drive, but I wish it road more like my old R230 SL550.

For those who dont know the GLE 450e is a 4 cylinder engine. The E53 does not compare to this car in anyway. The E53 is a fun daily sedan and yes it will ride a bit more rough than a non AMG car. Everyone is different and have their own reasons when getting a new car but I personally would not consider getting a GLE in 4 cylinders.

funny enough, I actually went from a GLE450e as my daily to an e53 wagon now as my daily (had a brief 3-4 months in between in a Macan 4S EV). GLE was a great car, super comfy, but it was not fun at all. it was luxurious but not really sporty in any way. E53 can be luxurious and a nice passenger cruiser in C mode, but dialed up in S+, it sounds good and handling / cornering is great.

i do not regret my decision at all. the e53 was much more expensive from a leasing perspective, but i enjoy every single drive

The hum below 20-25 MPH may be inside as well...but it is just that, a hum...there are no fake engine sounds in EV mode. Maybe to give you something to listen to until the tires get rolling and start making noise?

I'd respectfully suggest a 63 instead of 53

I have an E450, my cousin has a GLE 450. I personally prefer the interior of the GLE mainly because of real buttons and the overall look. I love those grab handles in the center console, reminds me of the 06 Cayenne that I used to have.

Make sure you test drive an E53 before you get to excited for two reasons:

1) I found the rear visibility to be really awful compared to our W212 sedan on the W214 53 sedan I tried. The wagon mostly cures this, but if the sedan had been the only body style available, we would not have been interested. It’s pretty bad. Typical for modern cars

2) the ride quality is very firm. Better damped and less harsh than the W212 AMG we had (probably mostly thanks to much, much taller tires) but still a real AMG in this regard. The GLE450 is a big squishy sofa by comparison, imo.

If you like a firm ride and can live with the rear visibility, obviously a great do it all car

agree with everyone else at least on the 20’s road noise is really only noticeable in EV mode, and not awful - just not zero. Wind noise is incredibly well controlled. It’s eerie - and probably contributes to the tire noise’s conspicuousness

E63 does not exist as a new model

We have about 6k miles on our E53, mostly road trips
Our previous MB was an E450. We opted for the acoustic glass and air suspension and it almost felt like a mini S class
the e53 ride is obviously 'tighter' even in C mode
it is def louder in the cabin even with the acoustic glass
It's taken me a while to get comfortable with the user interface but it makes sense now even though I'm still discovering additional capabilities
the huge plus for me is how fun it is to drive. The acceleration, particularly when needing to accelerate from 60 ish to say 90 is amazing. Super useful here in CA where folks just sit in the passing lanes
The Hey Mercedes function can do just about anything and is often a lot easier than using the screen
It has been back to the shop 3 times, twice for SW updates and once for replacing the door handles and fixing the seatbelt rattle
I really enjoy the car but for me I would probably go back to the e450 next time for the ride comfort and reduce the risk of speeding tickets

Wowwwww big news!!!!

I have an E53 wagon with 20” Michelin Pilot Sport All Season tires.

I find the adaptive sport suspension ideal for comfort and sportiness. The car is super quiet with no tire noise.

In the S+ suspension setting, every road bump transfers to the seat. I wouldn’t want to be riding around in S+, even if stiffness is muted compared with other AMG’s. In the comfort setting, I really like the suspension feel. The car doesn’t roll or dive and it is still very comfortable.

All the reviews that mentioned tire noise and a rough suspension had 21” Michelin Pilot Sport tires. Maybe the tire selection is a factor with noise and comfort, but I haven’t driven an E53 with the 21’s.

I recently took a trip where I was driven to the airport in a Volvo S90, had a Range Rover Velar and Chrysler Pacifica as rental cars and was driven back from the airport in a Lincoln Navigator.

The S90 is great for luxury, the Velar for styling, the Pacifica for utility in hauling suitcases and people, the Navigator for large American interior space.

Still, I do have to say that it felt great to get back home and drive the E53 wagon. It is a wonderful combination of luxury, with a great sound system, a smooth and quiet electric motor, more than sufficient performance and decent utility in wagon form.

The Navigator had an issue with the suspension and I was being bounced up and down over every bump in the road. I couldn’t wait for the Navigator ride to end. During that ride, I was thinking about the excellent E53 ride and handling. I consider the too soft suspension in the Navigator to be more brutal than the firmer suspension in the E53.

When driving the Velar and Pacifica there were multiple times when I was thinking the price premium for the E53 was worth it. The driving experience in the E53 is more refined.

I noticed that the driver instrument cluster was not obscured by the steering wheel in the Velar or the Pacifica. It was pleasant to be able to see the turn signal indicators, tachometer, etc. In the 2026 E Class, the steering wheel blocks my vision of the upper right and left portions of the driver display. It is an irritant every time I drive the E53.

Road harshness and tire noise in the E53 are not even a slight issue for me.

Test drive an E450 and an E53. You will likely have a preference for the ride in one versus the other. They both have strong performance and the same luxury interior. If you want the PHEV electric driving, then the E53 is the way to go.

You are probably already aware, but I’ll point it for forum readers that in S+ AMG Dynamic mode the car “emphasizes vehicles own understeer and oversteer characteristics.”

S+ mode is more serious than sport mode in other cars.

The BMW X5 has one of the quietest cabins on the road. It also gets great reviews for its suspension. I took the E53 and the X5 for a 20 minute drive on local roads going between 25 and 45 miles per hour. We are getting snow melt runoff on the roads, it was foggy and there was a light misty rain. It wasn't the best time to test cabin noise with water on the road.

My Apple Watch measured the E53 at 52 to 59 dB on smooth roads and 64 dB on a louder road. The E53 has 20 inch Michelin All Season tires.

On the smooth roads, the X5 was so quiet that it didn't register a measurement on the watch. Subjectively, the X5 seemed to be very quiet. I did see a measurement of 60 dB briefly on the louder road. The X5 is wearing 20 inch Michelin CrossClimate 2 tires for the winter. These tires have more road noise than the Continental summer tires which have foam noise reduction technology. The X5 was tested at its loudest.

To me, the suspension feels similar in both vehicles over road imperfections.

I expect the E53 seats (I don't have massage or ventilated seats in the E53) will absorb suspension bumps better than the X5. The X5 does have massage and ventilated seats. The seat bottom in the X5 feels harder than the seat bottom in the E53.

Objectively the X5 is quieter than the E53 as we would expect. Subjectively, I can hear more road noise in the E53, but I don't find it bothersome. The E53 is quiet but not super quiet. If you are looking at the E53 as a sports car, the cabin noise is not likely to bother you. If you are looking at the E53 as a fast luxury car, then you should test drive the E53 to see if it is quiet enough or if you want to get something with more isolation.

I came to the E53 from a plug-in hybrid X5. The X5 is definitely smoother on rough roads, but the hybrid X5 did have an air suspension. It was also quieter.

I was in a similar spot last year, considering ditching my GLE350 for an E53 sedan, and what ultimately kept me in the GLE was the space and the more practicality of the SUV body style. The E53 is an absolute beast, but it's a hard pill to swallow for a family of four like mine. You might want to think about what's more important to you: performance or practicality.

The X5/X7 air suspension is smoother than the already excellent X5 adaptive suspension which I have. When shopping for the E53, I test drove an X7 with air suspension. I'm pretty sure that some of the road imperfections that I feel in the X5 and E53 wouldn't be felt in an X7. During the X7 test drive, I was wondering if we are approaching the limits of how good we can make a suspension. Do the X5/X7 air suspension engineers spend 5 years to try to get a 1% improvement?

Humans are an innovative bunch, so surprisingly, we will be able to improve on an air suspension. Porche Ride Control is in production. See: Here's Why The Internet Is Raving About Porsche's New Suspension System and Porsche Active Ride - Porsche Newsroom. It is a Bose-style fully active system. These systems need large batteries and powerful computers, but we are driving around in cars with large batteries and powerful computers. Maybe 10 years from now, will see something like the Bose suspension in a $100,000 car. We are getting close. You can option the $7,790 Porsche Ride Control on a $138,000 Panamera 4 E-Hybrid. These systems which have an air suspension, can also move each wheel's suspension up and down independently keeping the car flat as it drives over bumps.