Mercedes E 220 d 4MATIC

FIRST DRIVE Four-wheel-drive E-class Estate gives exec buyers more choice

A DECADE ago, British buyers who demanded their executive estate feed power to all four wheels were mostly forced into Audi’s quattro camp. Nowadays, though, there are plenty of brands offering all-wheel-drive estates, not least Audi’s closest challengers BMW and Mercedes. Here we’re driving the latest effort from the latter: the 2017 E-class Estate in popular 220 d form with 4MATIC all-wheel drive.

Thanks to the ‘part-time’ AWD system, this E 220 d 4MATIC – which can send torque to any driven wheel that loses traction – claims 54.3mpg fuel economy and emits 137g/km of CO2.

While those figures are better than any similarly-sized diesel SUV, there is still a slight penalty over the standard E 220 d, which officially manages 61.4mpg and emits 129g/km. As such, the 4MATIC is unlikely to be a company car favourite, with a three per cent Benefit in Kind hike over the two-wheel-drive car.

More disappointing was the fact that we only just managed to break 40mpg in a week with the 4MATIC over a mix of largely gentle motorway and town driving.

The benefits on the road may just outweigh the fuel economy sacrifice for some drivers, however. Grip is very impressive; the heavy E-class fires off the line with only a hesitation from the nine-speed automatic gearbox to hinder its progress.

It feels planted in corners, too, with any instability or movement under power found in the standard car all but eradicated, although in normal driving you would be hard pushed to notice any difference. If you want to tackle rough tracks, this isn’t the right AWD E-class to buy; there’s a forthcoming All Terrain model for that.

The introduction of the 4MATIC running gear seems to have no effect on the fluid ride quality (on our air-sprung test car, at least). Performance is similar; indeed, this model is only a tenth slower from 0-62mph than the rear-wheel-drive car, taking 7.8 seconds. It’s far from fast by the standards of the modern executive class, but the refined E 220 d offers a reasonable turn of pace for most buyers’ needs.

NEED TO KNOW At £42,710, this model is £1,540 more expensive than the two-wheeldrive E 220 d

EQUIPMENT AMG Line models get sportier looks, with 19-inch alloys, plus redesigned skirts and bumpers, special flat-bottomed steering wheel, AMG floor mats and stainless steel pedals PRACTICALITY Rear seats are roomy, and boot is as generous as ever. The 350 d model tows up to 2,500kg, which is the same as the 220 d – but extra torque makes it a better choice

PRACTICALITY Back seats and boot are as roomy as rear-drive Estate’s. Towing capacity stands at 2.1 tonnes, and beats a BMW 520d xdrive and Audi A6 Avant 2.0 TDI quattro

EQUIPMENT Mercedes’ excellent twin-screen dashboard is an option worth going for, with high-resolution and modern-looking displays being a highlight of the interior design