The Mercedes E-Class was updated just last year, and it continues to be a great choice for upscale customers looking for an understated luxury sedan that’s safe and provides a very good driving experience in all circumstances.
For many years I would describe the E-Class as “the” go-to car for successful professionals just entering their peak earning years—think 42-year-old attorney who just made partner.
While that was true about 10-20 years ago, I don’t think it’s the case anymore as that demographic has almost completely turned their back on sedans and moved to SUVs and crossovers. Don’t believe me? When’s the last time you saw an attorney who just made partner buy a sedan? It’s been a long time for me, and probably for you too. These days I’d put my money on a Porsche, BMW, or Rivian SUV rather than a BMW 5-series or Mercedes E-class.
It’s a shame really. Mid-size luxury sedans like the Mercedes E-class are still excellent vehicles after all, as I re-discovered during my time with the latest E450.
There are two E-class sedans available for 2025, the entry level E350, which starts at around $63,000 and the more lux E450 which maxes out at just under $75,000.
Under the E350's hood is a turbocharged 2.0-liter, four-cylinder engine that pairs with a 23-hp electric motor for a combined 255HP. The E450 model gets a similar hybrid setup for its turbocharged 3.0-liter inline-six, which brings the total to 375HP. Car and Driver says that the hybrid systems reduce turbo lag and smooth the operation of the auto start/stop system, and I’d say that’s right.
Fuel economy is 24 MPG City and 33 MPG Highway for the E350 and 22/31 for the E450.
An adjustable air suspension is optional and replaces the steel-spring arrangement that comes standard, but both setups provide impeccable ride quality and good handling. I’d skip the more complicated air system and its added complexity, honestly.
Rear-wheel steering (RWS) is also available, and it noticeably improves maneuverability in tight spaces. I had to drive my test car through a tight parking garage and found RWS to be very helpful.
The E450 is an excellent daily driver, which has always been the case for E-class cars and is an important reason that they've historically been so popular. Running errands in town, ferrying friends to a restaurant for dinner, and zipping along the highway are no sweat for this car. And driving an E-class will always be better than wrestling with a similarly priced SUV. Plus, parking is significantly easier in a mid-size sedan than in an SUV or pickup truck.
The only downside of the E450 driving experience in my opinion is that it’s a 1990s car in a 2020s world, which means that you’ll usually be surrounded by SUVs and trucks, and that can be claustrophobic.
Despite its relatively diminutive size, the E450 sedan retains all of the safety bonafides for which Mercedes is famous. Obviously, I didn’t have the “opportunity” to try out any of Mercedes’ myriad safety features during my time in the E450, but I appreciate that automatic braking, latest-tech airbags, a time-tested safety cage, and much more are all present in every Mercedes E-class sedan.
So is plenty of luxury, particularly inside the cabin. China is Mercedes’ biggest market these days so their preferences matter more than ours, which is why there’s plenty of bling throughout the E450’s interior. Ditto for prominent mood lighting (in a variety of colors that you can configure yourself) and tech galore.
I wish there were more buttons and less touchscreens in cars these days but, sigh, Chinese (and younger American) luxury car buyers have spoken, and driving a modern car is becoming more and more like interacting with your phone.
Before we wrap this up, we should touch on the new E-class’ exterior design. Bling in the form of prominent badging and extroverted front and rear light housings are present (for the reason noted above), but so is, interestingly, an attempt to tie Mercedes’ most mainstream sedan visually to its controversial all-electric EQ sedans. The E-class now looks rounder than it did before, and its grille is smaller and less expressive. Presumably some of that is to optimize aerodynamics, but I think part of it is the stylists at Mercedes trying to say, “hey, how ugly can the EQ models be if they look a little like the new E-class?”
The new 2025 E-class sedans bring all the luxury, driving goodness, and safety you expect from Mercedes and adds lots of tech and efficiency. It’s a shame most buyers at this price point will choose more boring SUVs or crossovers instead of one of these excellent sedans.
Stephen Schutz has covered the automotive world for more than 30 years as a syndicated writer and podcast host. Read his column monthly in The Cricket.
