Yahoo Autos Disaster Strikes Our Long-Term 2018 Mercedes-Benz E-class Wagon
UPDATE 11/9/18: Our long-term Mercedes-Benz wagon has left us, unfortunately far ahead of schedule. What follows is an account of a parking-lot incident and the damage it caused, which led to the untimely end of this long-term test.
We should have known that our local Buffalo Wild Wings was the wrong place to park such a sumptuous buffet of automotive virtue. Two jokers in a moving van-they weren't even drunk yet!-luridly slid their vehicle’s grimy back corner along the still subtle curves of the E wagon, marking its side glass with a full-length scar, turning our beauty into a hideous and deformed freak.
So with a mere 7637 miles on it, we had to rush this wagon, which had performed so perfectly for its first few months, to the ER. The diagnosis was not good. The destroyed windows would have been easy enough to replace, but there was structural damage, too, to the car’s C-pillar. Mercedes-Benz, who had loaned us this vehicle in the first place, determined that the cost of the repair-estimated at $9200-was so steep that it instead opted to give us a new 2019 E450 wagon so that we could start a new long-term test with a clean slate. The long-term E-class wagon is dead, long live the long-term E-class wagon.
The Mercedes-Benz E-class wagon may just be the most well-rounded new car on the market. Quick, comfortable, luxurious, beautiful, and practical, it really does do it all-and with oodles of elegance and flair. The model has offered this rare combination of space and grace for decades, and the latest generation of the venerable E-class wagon, code-named S213 and introduced for 2017, fits into a long tradition of longroof excellence from the German automaker.
After awarding the entire range of V-6–powered E-class models a 10Best Cars honor for 2018, we unanimously decided to order the wagon variant for a long-term test. As nice as the coupe, convertible, and sedan versions are, there’s no denying the appeal of an accomplished luxury wagon for the sort of day-in, day-out hard use that our long-term vehicles experience over 40,000 miles.
Pricey and Posh
While the sedan comes standard with a turbocharged four-cylinder and wears an E300 badge, the wagon lineup starts off with an E400 4Matic model that combines a 329-hp twin-turbocharged 3.0-liter V-6 with all-wheel drive and a nine-speed automatic. Our example is configured as such-there’s also the 603-hp AMG-fettled E63 wagon-although we do admit that we feel some slight pangs of power envy now that Mercedes-Benz has announced that the 2019 E-class wagon becomes an E450 thanks to a boost for the V-6 that adds 33 horsepower. Even so, this E400’s 5.0-second run to 60 mph and 13.6-second quarter-mile time at 104 mph are more than adequate for a two-ton luxury vehicle with few overt sporting intentions.
We also think we’ll be okay living without those extra horses given the sumptuousness of the rest of the package. To avoid complaints about cost-previous E400 wagons we’ve tested have come close to $90,000-we tried to stay within reasonable proximity to the $64,045 base price and chose options conservatively. Well, sort of. Our car’s as-tested price of $77,635 still includes the following extras: $720 for Lunar Blue Metallic paint; $1620 for brown and black leather upholstery; $150 for Black Ash wood trim; $500 for an AMG sport appearance package; $1770 for heated and cooled massaging front seats; $1900 for an air-spring suspension; a combined $1880 for all manner of other heated things such as the rear seats, armrests, and steering wheel; $1100 for an Acoustic Comfort package with extra sound deadening and thicker glass; and the $3700 Premium 1 package with features including parking assist, proximity entry, satellite radio, a Burmester audio system, and blind-spot monitoring.
Fun for the Whole Family
And yes, if you were wondering, all E400 wagons come standard with a rear-facing third-row seat in the cargo area that increases passenger capacity to seven, but it’s a small-child-only zone back there. So far, just one staffer tried out the wayback seat on a quick trip to lunch and has vowed to never do so again.
With its huge fuel tank and good mileage-an earlier E400 wagon achieved 30 mpg in our 75-mpg real-world highway fuel-economy test, and our long-term car is averaging 22 mpg so far-we expect that this wagon will prove a popular choice for road-trippers. A few drivers have already gushed about its cushy ride and cosseting interior, and this Benz seems poised to accumulate miles quickly. So far, life is good, as it often is when a Mercedes-Benz wagon is involved.
Months in Fleet: 4 months Current Mileage: 7637 miles
Average Fuel Economy: 23 mpg
Fuel Tank Size: 21.1 gal Observed Fuel Range: 480 miles
Service: $0 Normal Wear: $0 Repair: $0
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