It's been teased, and now the Merc-AMG E53 is finally here

It's been teased, and now the Merc-AMG E53 is finally here

The latest iteration of the E-Class, which serves as the middle ground for Mercedes sedans, was an impressive addition to the Mercedes-Benz lineup when it arrived last year. It added to the C-Class formula with a smoother on-road experience, a more commanding presence, and an impressively digitalised yet executive-looking interior. However, as with all standard Mercedes models, it was inevitable that the AMG badge would eventually adorn the rear, revealing some impressive engineering underneath.

The E53 is only a touch away from the mean and high-performance E63 that is known for its ruthless performance experience. Although this new AMG E-Class comes with a 53 badge, it is no slouch. The outgoing E53 was a car I not only enjoyed, but it was also a rare example of less being more. It made a beautiful V6 sound with good cornering ability, but most importantly, it retained a sense of luxury and comfort without compromising its performance with a wafty ride quality and overly-executive interior with massaging seats over the stiff bucket seats in the 63. All these prior signs point to a similar character in the new model; only this time, it's faster and electrified.

Up front sits a similar 3.0-litre 6-cylinder turbocharged engine that we saw in the outgoing model. It produces a healthy 330kW, but once you pair it with a 120kW electric motor, it has a potential power output of 430kW in sports mode, with the addition of 20kW in Race Start mode. This allows for a 0-100km/h time of 3.8 seconds. I would like to remind you that this is the more tame E-Class AMG, with the 63 still to come.

But there are two sides to a performance hybrid, the first naturally being improved performance and throttle response thanks to electric torque, but the other side is economy. Its 28.6kWh traction battery, which produces 400 volts, offers over 100km of EV range and a combined consumption of 1.0l100km. Once your battery is depleted, your consumption bumps up to 9.2l/100km, but if more recent PHEV AMG models are anything to go by, Mercedes' sophisticated and rapid F1-inspired energy regeneration should rarely deplete the battery. But if you do have a heavy right foot and a fear of leaning on the brake pedal, you will deplete the battery from time to time, so an 11kW DC charger can restore the battery from 10 to 80% in 20 minutes.

But for the most part, it retains its executive E-Class seriousness in its looks, only now you have some proper shunt on tap. To ensure this power increase is met with equally impressive handling abilities, the body shell has been reinforced and stiffened. To achieve this, a strut brace has been added between the front suspension, a thrust field has been added underneath the engine to improve steering accuracy by reducing front-end torsion, and a rear strut has been added to sharpen up the rear wheels, along with a refined and stiffer adaptable suspension setup.

The exterior look and interior trimmings are, for the most part, standard E-Class, but a number of additions have been added for performance enhancements and dynamic styling. Bigger 6-piston red brake callipers and larger discs have been added, a rear LSD and magnetised engine mounting for improved smoothness is thrown into the mix, along with the race start launch control function that allows you to use all 450kW off the line. On the outside its look is more aggressive and almost masks its size.

The AMG E53 HYBRID 4MATIC starts at R2,499,596 and traditionally competes with the Audi S7. The S7 comes in at R1,773,400 and is a few years older in terms of tech and performance, but with a difference of over R700k, the new E53 is a pricey car. Plus, with mostly performance additions, it is R1m more expensive than the top-level E220d AMG line.

The latest E-Class from Mercedes is one of the few new Mercs that impressed me, and if this E53 can retain all the executive touches in its seats, infotainment, and comfort while offering composed yet wild performance, it should be a brilliant and well-balanced car. It's just too expensive in my opinion.

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