Mercedes-Benz E-Class
From Wikipedia, the free encyclopedia
Categories: Executive cars | Mercedes-Benz vehicles | Mid-size cars | All wheel drive vehicles | Rear wheel drive vehicles | Sedans | Coupes | Station wagons | 1990s automobiles | 2000s automobiles | Hybrid electric vehicles
The Mercedes-Benz E-Class is a mid-size luxury car / executive car sold by the Mercedes-Benz. The model line is available with various four, six and eight-cylinder petroleum gasoline and diesel engines. The E stood for Einspritzung, which is German for fuel injection, which was a very new feature at the time the "E" first appeared in the 1950s. The E-Class is the bestselling Mercedes-Benz model worldwide. It is famous both as luxury or executive transport, and as taxis in countries such as Germany, the United Kingdom, France, Greece, Norway, Sweden, Finland, Portugal, Paraguay and Singapore.
General informationThe 400E and 500E went into production on August 6, 1991 as 1992 models. The 1994 E500 production ended on June 24, 1994. Production of the 1995 E-Class W124 ended on May 23, 1995. Production of the 1996 E-Class began on July 17, 1995. Production of the 2002 E-Class ended on February 20, 2002. Production of the 2003 E-Class began on May 13, 2002. The 300/E-Classes were built in:
HistoryW120 "Ponton"
The first modern midsize Mercedes was the W120 "Ponton" 180 of 1953. Sharing its engineering with the R121 190SL of 1955, the Ponton was a stylish sedan with four-cylinder power. A larger-engined W121 190 appeared in 1958. W110 "Fintail"
Mercedes added tailfins to both the big S-Class and the new W110 "Fintail" 190 of 1962. Straight-6 power appeared for the first time in the 1965 230 model, and the fours grew in displacement that year as well. W114/W115 "Stroke-8"
The midsize Mercedes was redesigned in 1968 as the W114/W115 "Stroke-8". This time, the 6-cylinder models (The W114s) were most prevalent, with the W115 line making up the bottom of the company's offerings with four- and five-cylinder power. Diesel engines joined the lineup, as did a coupe body. W123
The popular W123 quickly became a best-seller on its launch in 1977. Especially in Diesel 240D (and later 300D) guises, the cars enhanced the company's reputation as a purveyor of rugged and reliable cars. Over 2.3 million examples were produced through 1985. W124
The "E-Class" name first appeared in the USA with the face-lifted W124 in 1994. The earlier gasoline models of the W123 bore the "E" designator, it stood for Einspritzer (injection, petrol), and Mercedes-Benz continued with this nomenclature with the launch of the W124 in 1985 (1986 USA); in 1994 (USA) a cosmetic face-lift was given to the W124 series along with a new nomenclature of "E-Class" for the entire W124 line. The 300D continued to be the high-mileage option, but V8 engines (available after 1992) brought new-found power to the line. The V8 powered sedans were named 400E/500E from 1992-1993, and E420/E500 after 1993. Likewise, the 3-liter cars (e.g., "300E") where also re-badged to "E320" with the new 3.2 litre engines and naming rationalization of 1994. Mercedes also included a limited production sport version of the W124, created in close cooperation with Porsche. This was called the 500E. The W124 is argued by many to have been the last 'proper' Mercedes-Benz. Daimler Benz bought Chrysler in the 1998 "Merger of Equals". Many have said that the quality was lacking for several years following the merger, but quality is now much improved and at a high standard. W210
The W210 E-Class, launched in 1996, brought the mid-size Mercedes firmly into the upper end of the luxury market. Though six-cylinder models were still offered for a time, the four-light front end and high prices moved the car upmarket. In September 1999 the W210 E-class was facelifted. This included visual, mechanical and quality improvements over the earlier versions, which had been plagued with quality issues such as spontaneous panel rust appearing on nearly new vehicles. W211
Launched in 2002, the W211 E-Class was a huge improvement over the previous model and was rated as a substantially better vehicle than its long time rival BMW 5 series (which had previously been rated as better in all areas). The W211-based W219 CLS-Class 4-door coupe was introduced in 2005 to attract younger customers. In many Northern-European countries the E-Class is used as a taxi and so the image is not viewed as being exclusive enough along with its traditionally 'old-man's car' image. The W211 E-Class was facelifted in 2006 to freshen up its appearance and primarily to improve quality and technical aspects of the car. The largest engine in the E-class range is the E500 (badged E550 in the U.S.) which had its engine size increased from 5 litres to 5.5 litres in 2006 along with the facelift. There is also an AMG model badged E63 AMG. Mercedes-Benz introduced their BlueTec Diesel system to the E-Class at the 2006 North American International Auto Show as the E320 CDI BlueTec. BlueTec is a two-phase system for cleaning diesel emissions. The first phase makes the E320 CDI legal in 45 of the 50 United States (plus the District of Columbia). The second phase uses urea for further reductions to meet the more stringent standards of California, Maine, Massachusetts, New York, and Vermont. Sales of E320 CDI BlueTec began in autumn 2006 as a 2007 model, but 50-state legal models with urea injection will only be introduced in 2009 model year. The W211 model of the E-Class became somewhat infamous for its poor reliability. Consumer Reports classified the W211 model's reliability as "poor," its lowest rating, and declared it one of the "least reliable luxury cars" [1], but the newer 2007 models have rebound on quality, with JD Power giving the E class, the best in the mid size luxury segment award. W212
The W212 will replace the W211 in 2009. AwardsThe Mercedes-Benz E-Class was Motor Trend's Import Car of the Year for 1996. The Brabus E V12German automotive tuner Brabus makes a modified E-Class sedan with a modified version of the S600's V12 engine powering it. Sold as the Brabus E V12, it is the fastest four-door sedan in the world according to the Guinness Book of World Records, ahead of the E60 BMW M5, which is the world's fastest four-door production sedan, having a top speed in excess of 205 mph. The 640 hp (480 kW) E V12 has a top speed of 211 mph (340 km/h) and a 0-60 mph acceleration time of 4.1 seconds. ReferencesExternal links
de:Mercedes-Benz E-Klasse es:Mercedes-Benz Clase E fr:Mercedes-Benz Classe E it:Mercedes-Benz Classe E nl:Mercedes-Benz W210 ja:メルセデス・ベンツ Eクラス no:Mercedes-Benz E-klasse pl:Mercedes-Benz klasy E pt:Mercedes-Benz Classe E sv:Mercedes-Benz E-klass | ||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||||
