Driving
If you drive in a sedate manner with the 7G-Tronic automatic in Sport mode, the system will default to the Luxury mode when your driving becomes more sedate, such as in traffic or in construction zones. When you get back on the gas it goes back to the stiffer Sport mode.
Not surprisingly, driving the E350 and E550 turned up two distinct personalities. The E350 was relaxed and mellow. With Sport mode on, the suspension tightened up, the steering got a bit heavier and the long throttle tip-in that Mercedes normally uses shortened up. Cornering was well controlled without being harsh. On a series of switchbacks, I could feel the car tightening up as I pushed harder through each series of bends. Brisk acceleration did require putting your foot down a long ways and if you floored that 3.5-litre V6, 0 to 100 km/h would take 6.9 seconds.
The flipside was of this was the E550. That 5.5-litre V8 started with a burble and growl that let you know it was ready. Driving in traffic was like a shark carving through a school of bait fish. Gaps in traffic opened and you moved into them surely and relentlessly. Coming off that last traffic light before the highway meant that you could get up to 100 km/h in about 5.9 seconds. Once clear of the traffic and on the road, a sedateness took over as the exhaust mellowed out and the Sport setting went back to Luxury.
On both versions, large disc brakes meant that I almost always had to speed up to go around the corner. In fact when someone started to follow too close and a corner was coming, I intentionally braked late to see if they would get the message. It also came in very handy on one winding road when a car came around the corner taking his half of the road out of the middle. The E-Class is also narrower than I thought since I made it between that rock wall and the other car.
Pricing starts at $67,900 for the 268-hp E350 and rises to $77,500 for the 382-hp E550. In that price range, the only other cabriolet offered is the $68,300, soft-top Audi S5.
The E-Class Cabriolet is the first convertible that I’ve driven that can be a bit of everything. It has the styling and the features to be a boulevard cruiser. It can be optioned out as a performance car and it handles like a sports sedan. Add in the traditional Mercedes safety and design features, and you wind up with a car that can put a grin on my face year-round.
If you drive in a sedate manner with the 7G-Tronic automatic in Sport mode, the system will default to the Luxury mode when your driving becomes more sedate, such as in traffic or in construction zones. When you get back on the gas it goes back to the stiffer Sport mode.
Not surprisingly, driving the E350 and E550 turned up two distinct personalities. The E350 was relaxed and mellow. With Sport mode on, the suspension tightened up, the steering got a bit heavier and the long throttle tip-in that Mercedes normally uses shortened up. Cornering was well controlled without being harsh. On a series of switchbacks, I could feel the car tightening up as I pushed harder through each series of bends. Brisk acceleration did require putting your foot down a long ways and if you floored that 3.5-litre V6, 0 to 100 km/h would take 6.9 seconds.
The flipside was of this was the E550. That 5.5-litre V8 started with a burble and growl that let you know it was ready. Driving in traffic was like a shark carving through a school of bait fish. Gaps in traffic opened and you moved into them surely and relentlessly. Coming off that last traffic light before the highway meant that you could get up to 100 km/h in about 5.9 seconds. Once clear of the traffic and on the road, a sedateness took over as the exhaust mellowed out and the Sport setting went back to Luxury.
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| Brisk acceleration did require putting your foot down a long ways and if you floored that 3.5-litre V6, 0 to 100 km/h would take 6.9 seconds. (Photo: Charles Renny/Auto123.com) |
On both versions, large disc brakes meant that I almost always had to speed up to go around the corner. In fact when someone started to follow too close and a corner was coming, I intentionally braked late to see if they would get the message. It also came in very handy on one winding road when a car came around the corner taking his half of the road out of the middle. The E-Class is also narrower than I thought since I made it between that rock wall and the other car.
Pricing starts at $67,900 for the 268-hp E350 and rises to $77,500 for the 382-hp E550. In that price range, the only other cabriolet offered is the $68,300, soft-top Audi S5.
The E-Class Cabriolet is the first convertible that I’ve driven that can be a bit of everything. It has the styling and the features to be a boulevard cruiser. It can be optioned out as a performance car and it handles like a sports sedan. Add in the traditional Mercedes safety and design features, and you wind up with a car that can put a grin on my face year-round.
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