Mercedes-Benz Coupe E350 (A) Review

With Mercedes-Benz having a long illustrious history in motor racing and in making luxury cars since the pre-war era, you don’t need me to remind you that the brand has had a long long history in designing two-door body styles for the longest time.

The fondness I had for them started in the 80s with the SEC. With that elegantly shaped body, long overhang front and rear, images of tai-tai’s and wealthy businessmen knocking champagne glasses together to the tunes of the good ol’ days are instantly conjured up.

Then there was the 124 series of two-doors in the 90s that weren’t aesthetically exciting compared to the one it replaced, but still looked good on the road. In fact there’s a retired businessman in my neighbourhood who still owns one, stock.

The 208 series was the turning point for the brand, design-wise, with the introduction of the four-eyed circular headlight front that got people sitting on the fence, not too sure of whether it looked good or not. I, for one, didn’t think too highly of the design. The series also gave birth to the CLK, a two-door coupe or convertible (you pick) going head-on with the might of the BMW 3’s.

Although the first one was criticized heavily for its lack of quality, the second iteration was a huge hit and suddenly everyone had one.

Now though, after two good runs, the boys at Mercedes has thrown the CLK out of their plant and have got a whole new car to replace it, the E-Class Coupe we’re reviewing here as you might have predicted by now. But although they say replacement, the new car isn’t anything close to.

But on the coupe though, those design elements, like the perpetually frowning headlamps and aggressive AMG-styled bumper with LED inserts in the front, all tied in neatly together and sealed with the large three-pointed star medallion, seems to have worked brilliantly in giving this 4-seater, two-door sporty machine such an involving mug.

A considerable portion of the press have said that there’s just too many things going on in the front of the car. But I think it’s absolutely gorgeous.

And there’s no better way of appreciating the beauty than from the side. A calmly rising belt line runs parallel with the chrome lining at the bottom, ending off just before the wheel arches, of which are reminiscent of the ‘teardrop’ design period. Pair those silky-smooth flowing design with the 20-inch, dual six-spoke light-alloy rims and the results is the best looking two-door in this price segment.

Easily thumping the 3 Series in the design department.

A new level of luxury and drive

As with the CLK, the coupe sits on the same platform as the C-Class as its proportions might suggest, has been stretched and lowered, so it’s no surprise to find more than amble rear seating position. And rear headroom is no issue, if you were wondering. Talking about the seats, those padded buckets look like a work of art all by themselves.

The car Daimler kindly extended to us came with a two-colour scheme, giving the car a more sporty edge with the cream-coloured leather paired to the black everything else, their AVANTGARDE trim.

The steering feel is light but gets heavier the higher your speed bracket, but even at low speeds you’re instilled with great confidence in pushing the boundaries of the coupe’s chassis through a typical twisty.

The result? There’s no point faulting this. It is essentially set up for comfort, so in that respect it delivers. Once you hit the ‘Sport’ button, the suspension predictably firms and the steering tensions up in anticipation of some inspired driving.

The car sounds amazing at full throttle, almost like a subdued V8, as the 7-speed gearbox holds each gear longer in an effort to squeeze every ounce of power from the gears and gets this 1670kg machine to 100km/h in a very respectable 6.4 seconds. Not as fast as its main German rival but still quick.

Why I, in all my youthful honesty, would get this

It’s absolutely, mind-blowingly stunning, the seats can hold you in place comfortably for a very long period of time (something which is essential in a long-distance tourer such as this), can be sporty via the ‘Sport’ mode, panoramic glass roof which actually opens, Distronic Plus (it comes extra, but by automatically regulating your speed in consideration of the car in front of you, takes cruise control to a whole new level) and probably the very thing that makes this coupe another classic from the German brand, frameless door windows (you have to detract all 4 windows to understand what I mean).