- Doors and Seats
2 doors, 4 seats
- Engine
3.0TT, 6 cyl.
- Engine Power
245kW, 480Nm
- Fuel
Petrol (95) 7.5L/100KM
- Manufacturer
RWD
- Transmission
Auto
- Warranty
3 Yr, Unltd KMs
- Ancap Safety
NA
2015 Mercedes-Benz E400 coupe: owner review
In January of 2015 I decided to purchase a 2015 E400 coupe. I had just sold my two-year old 991 C2S, and prior to that I had owned a facelifted 2012 C63, both of which were great cars in their own right.
- Acceleration, Compact size, Economical to run
- Slow gearbox, Ride is a bit rough, a bit of wind noise
Over the years I have owned five Mercedes-Benz cars and have always bought and sold cars after 30 months, thus I bought this car thinking it would be a short term acquisition.
As the months turned into years I have never lost interest in the car. There are much faster cars, ones that corner better and ones that are certainly more comfortable on Sydney roads. The E400 does everything to an okay level and I like the shape of it.
The technology is reasonable given it was near the run out of the C207 model and it is definitely sufficient for my use; ie to and from work which is a round trip of 35km each day.
The back seat is fine for a very small person and I do mean small! My son has told me if I try to put him in there again he will report me to the Police for torture that breaches the rights of a child.
I have noticed several things that are noteworthy, the first of which are the tyres. I average between 15,000km and 18,000km per set (I am told this is normal), bear in mind I am a very slow and deliberate driver who is 70 years of age. The Michelin tyres are soft and cost more than many other makes, so owners need to factor in $1,200 for each tyre change.
The second thing is the profile on the tyres is too small for Sydney roads; it has 35 series on the front and 30 series on the back, all mounted on 19-inch wheels. This creates two issues on a fairly heavy car; the ride can be rough over some of our crook roads, and the rims get damaged easily with potholes (I recently spent circa $1,000 replacing a rim that had become oval due to potholes).
The other thing of note is that as the revs increase the acceleration takes a substantial dive. In the interest of licence incrimination I wont tell you how I found this out during a recent trip from Port Macquarie to Sydney.
Now my biggest issue with the car is the gearbox. It is just too slow to change gear, even in manual mode. This is a pain unless you use it totally as a manual and are already in a lower gear when you want to move quickly.
Overall I have been very happy with the car, and from a financial perspective I can certainly afford to go and purchase a new car. I have no real motivation to do that given the car only has 53,000km on the clock and I do not really like the new shape.
I will keep it for another year or so, but I am guessing that I will have to change the brakes ($1250) and the battery fairly soon.
The car has been exemplary.