An "informed" rendering of the 2017 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe.
We got our first look at the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this month, and while the German maker was planning to make us wait to see the 2-door version of the midsize line, our friends at Topspeed caught a glimpse of the E-Coupe and offered to share it with readers of TheDetroitBureau.com.
Despite the heavy camouflage, there are enough obvious details for the rendering that opens things up here. Under the mesh grille, the E-Coupe’s front end is expected to be a virtual clone of what we’ve already seen on the new E-Class sedan. That includes the distinctive, almost cat’s eye LED headlamps framing the new, oversized Mercedes grille.
The sedan features a more curvaceous roof than the classic Mercedes sedan, but the E-Class Coupe gets a truly curvaceous roofline, with unique character lines and a different quarter window. The bottom line is a look that is decidedly more sporty than the four-door model, as well as the outgoing E-Coupe.
Inside, there are likely to be a few more upscale accents, but the overall look will be nearly identical to the new E-Class sedan, no surprise, and something to be appreciated considering the emphasis Mercedes is placing on the cabin of the new, midsize line. It is both more elegant and more high-tech, with upscale versions getting a reconfigurable gauge cluster and an 8.4-inch touchscreen for infotainment duties.
A spy shot captures the 2017 Mercedes E-Coupe during road testing in Europe.
Both sedan and coupe will introduce the latest version of Mercedes’ COMAND system. As we first saw with the latest C-Class, it has the familiar rotary dial, a new touchscreen and a new laptop computer-style touchpad atop the center console. But there are now touch-sensitive buttons on the steering wheel that function much like the touch pad. Mercedes also claims a significant improvement to the Linguatronic voice control system.
Inside and out, LED lights are the order of the day, though the E-Class uses them to set a mood, as much as to save energy in the E-Class interior. Meanwhile, the E-Coupe will pick up the sedan’s optional, 23-speaker Burmeister audio system.
We’re expecting the coupe will get many of the same high-tech safety and convenience systems as the sedan, such as forward collision warning with auto-braking. And the E-Class line introduces Mercedes’ new Drive Pilot, a semi-autonomous system allowing limited, hands-free freeway driving at speeds up to 80 mph.
(Click Here for more on the new Mercedes Drive Pilot system.)
The new E-Coupe caught from the rear.
We’ll have to wait for final drivetrain information, but globally, expect much the same options as with the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan. For the U.S., look for a turbocharged 2.0-liter four in the E300, sending 241 horsepower and 273 pound-feet of torque through a 9-speed automatic to the back wheels. The six-cylinder E550 will follow shortly after the Coupe’s debut, we’ve been advised.
Less certain is whether Mercedes will offer a coupe variant of the E 350e, the first plug-in hybrid version of the midsize sedan. Its lithium-ion battery pack will deliver up to about 20 miles per charge and is expected to get about 60 miles per gallon – in the European test cycle, though that will likely be a bit less in the U.S. EPA rating.
“It has the performance of a sports car with the fuel efficiency of a compact car,” said Thomas Weber, R&D Chief of parent Daimler AG, during the 2017 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan’s Detroit debut.
(Mercedes set to launch new hydrogen fuel-cell vehicles. Click Here for more.)
Mercedes-Benz unveiled its new E-Class at the Detroit Auto Show earlier this month.
At the other extreme, look for the Mercedes-AMG E63 to boast a bi-turbo 4.0-liter V-8 likely to put out at least 550 horsepower through all four wheels. All-wheel-drive, 4Matic in Mercedes-speak, is likely to available across the board.
The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe will face off with such high-line competitors as the BMW 6-Series. And it’s likely to carry a similar price, starting somewhere in the $75,000 range.
(Cadillac takes aim at Mercedes E-Class with all-new CT6 sedan. Click Here for our review.)