From the March 1999 concern of Automotive and Driver.

German engineers mining for torque deposits close to Affalterbach should have hit a mom lode. A minimum of, that is what it appears like from behind the AMG-monogrammed steering wheel of this E55. Someplace between right here and the three­-pointed gun sight at the vanguard of the hood is housed 391 pound-feet of torque, obtainable from 3000 rpm onward.

That is the form of urge that prompts you to regulate your head­relaxation—and people of the passengers—as a result of a careless thrust on the throttle pedal will, in most circumstances, produce a lunge that snaps again heads quicker than a space-shuttle launch.

Press the ESP button positioned on the console, disabling the stability-control system (lighting a outstanding yellow tri­angle within the sprint), and you’ll anticipate wheelspin for those who mash the throttle from relaxation. That is with the five-speed computerized transmission that’s commonplace tools, people. Brake-torque the E55 for a second earlier than you go, and you may gentle up the 35-series rear tires in a severe style.

However for those who stability your launch in a mature method, you possibly can anticipate propul­sion of a decidedly fast nature: 0 to 60 mph in 4.9 seconds and a quarter-mile dash in 13.5 seconds at 105 mph. To get that form of thrust from a giant luxurious automobile like this, did AMG flip the E55 right into a scorching rod of the brutal, kidney-crushing selection?

Properly, sure and no. Quick it’s. Impolite it ain’t. In reality, so suave is that this E-class muscle automobile that its actual potential won’t be recog­nized by many passengers. You would choose up your boss on the airline terminal and transport them to their lodge at quarter-throttle, they usually’d swear it was a luxurious experience beneath them. That is as a result of the quiet 5.4-liter V-8 wuffles together with hydraulic smoothness and slurs gearshifts in a seamless sequence. Even at low revs, there’s sufficient torque to waft up hills with out shedding velocity or digging for an additional gear.

And provided that the roads are unhealthy will your VIP sense the ten­sioned suspension (35 % higher-rate springs, Bilstein shocks, beefier stabilizer bars) and high-pressure, low-profile doughnuts beneath them. As for the drivers round you, they’re going to simply acknowledge one other E-class Benz with the Sport package deal they’re accustomed to seeing on E430s. Except they shut up tight on the automobile’s tail, that’s, and skim the chrome letters that proclaim the automobile to be an E55 by AMG.

Sure, the most recent “Hammer” from Mercedes and its in-house velocity wizards is a Q-ship. In accordance with Mike Jackson, the lately appointed boss of Mercedes-­Benz of North America, the Germans are presently into inconspicuous consump­tion, they usually need their vehicles—particu­larly the tuner-prepped rocket ships—to be unobtrusive. However that is not what Jackson needed for his mid-size large killer in our market, and the E55 you see right here is the ensuing compromise. It makes use of an current AMG-derived Sport package deal, but it surely’s allowed a subdued boast from its tail-mounted insignia, together with delicate AMG badging on the steering wheel and gauge cluster.

It isn’t a automobile that wants superfluous ornament, that is for certain. At a advised worth of $71,717 (cheaper by 15 or so grand than its predecessor, the Porsche-­assembled E500), each one of many 2000 examples earmarked for the U.S. over the subsequent 4 years will likely be snapped up. Heck, many of the first cargo will seemingly be absorbed by supplier principals earlier than the general public even will get a shot.

Which is a pity, as a result of that is a unprecedented car, versatile past our wildest expectations, and as rewarding as the very best drivers’ vehicles round. To have achieved this at a cheaper price than that of the previous E500 is commendable, completed by maintaining as a lot of the unique E-class automobile intact. In contrast to the E500, the E55 is basically a totally assembled and trimmed car off Mercedes-Benz’s Sindelfingen line earlier than it’s despatched off to the AMG skunk­works in Affalterbach for its stroked and breathed-upon engine, its heavy-duty V-12-derived transmission, its uprated suspension and brakes, and its large wheels and tires. Due to that, the essence of the E-class automobile has been pre­served, however with dynamic parameters which were prolonged in each approach. The first variations are manifested as a extra jiggly experience with a lot tauter roll management, a throttle that will get into the ability with out the Benz-signature lengthy and professional­gressive pedal journey, and acceleration—anytime—that’s in one other league. Oh, yeah, and an engine word that modifications from a well mannered V-8 burble to a hard-edged snarl when the pedal’s down and the tach is reaching for six grand.

Surprisingly, the steering-assist mech­anism is equivalent to that of the E430, and it stays gentle at most speeds. So gentle that the mechanism in a BMW 328i feels leaden as compared. However it directs the E55 with such accuracy and fluency that extra weight on the rim does not appear nec­essary. In reality, while you add the automobile’s tenacious grip (0.88 g on the skidpad) and tightly tied-down physique motions to the razor-sharp helm, the E55 can tackle virtually something within the corners. However be warned, the driving force will seemingly want some recalibration; the automobile’s abundantly stiff construction and good isolation lead one to underestimate nook entry speeds. On the introductory ride-and-drive in Napa, California, a few drivers from different publications went off the highway, and we suspect that these incidents have been partly as a result of decep­tive ease with which this automobile gathers velocity.

What should not go unno­ticed within the E55 (and that is notably seductive) is the push within the again you get while you pin the throttle. The torque is so prodigious (41 pound­-feet greater than a Corvette’s), and the torque curve so flat, that the E55 pulls exhausting throughout every gear, professional­ducing a concerted thrust like that of a 757 on a takeoff run. It simply retains on coming.

Aerodynamic drag past triple-digit speeds does little to blunt its cost, and our E55 was nonetheless accelerating when it hit an digital limiter at 158 mph. Onerous sufficient to counsel an actual prime velocity someplace round 180 mph. Nonetheless, 158 should be sufficient for most individuals, and at that velocity the E55 tracks as straight as a die.

At extra affordable charges of journey, the E55 assumes its extra civilized persona, offering a easy, quiet experience that may take its occupants on interstate journey with little discomfort. That is maybe the automobile’s most noteworthy side. When not being flogged exhausting, it behaves extra like a limo than a supercar. In reality, the transmission’s pc reads driver inputs and adjusts its actions accordingly.

The compromises you settle for for this broad working bandwidth are few. A sus­pension designed for top speeds and mas­sive cornering potential cannot be anticipated to traverse damaged surfaces with out trans­mitting some impression shock and motion into the automobile. On the opposite finish of the size, the factory-issue seats (obtainable in all­-black leather-based or in two-tone mixtures of black and blue and black and silver) are agency and supportive sufficient for a cross­-continent tour, however they lack the wrap­round help of devoted sport seats. We additionally discovered the leather-wrapped wheel (additionally obtainable in strong or two-tone hues) to have a somewhat obstructive association of spokes and thumb pads, leaving too little rim obtainable for these of us with massive palms. Perceive, please, that that is deliberate selecting of the smallest nits.

For most individuals’s wants, the combination of sporting and luxurious attributes is true on the cash. As the 2 corporations concerned within the E55’s genesis have drawn nearer (AMG is being acquired by Daimler-­Chrysler), so the degrees of sophistication have elevated. Thus, the E55 retains all the frilly technical elements of the V-8-powered E-class vehicles: the stability- and traction-control methods; the twin-plug cylinder heads; the variable-volume consumption tract; the oil-quality monitor-in brief, all of the belongings of a factory-backed product.

Certainly, this shut integration of a modern producer and its spe­cialist engineering consulting service is admittedly what defines the brand new E55 and its practically excellent mix of pedigree and energy. Keep in mind, 1998 noticed Mercedes and AMG convey dwelling two world-champi­onship motorsports trophies in addition to launch the E55. It seems like a successful streak to us.

Counterpoints

5 minutes behind the wheel, and sud­denly I’ve a brand new favourite Mercedes. Flooring the accelerator on most computerized Mercedes fashions, and the transmission responds, “You certain you need me to downshift? Constructive? Proper now? Okay.” Flooring the E55, and it says, “Sooner? Yesss!” The muted V-8 burble, the taut suspension that also provides a superb experience, the ultra-low-profile Michelins, the supple leather-based bucket seats which can be as cozy as something in your lounge—the E55 might be the ulti­mate in understated govt transport. A minimum of till the brand new BMW M5 migrates to America. —Steven Cole Smith

Is not it fascinating that Mercedes has at all times subscribed to the American big-engine strategy when creating its sports activities sedans? To create the legendary 300SEL 6.3 again in 1968, Mercedes employed the 6.3-liter V-8 from the 600 limousine. With the brand new E55, Mercedes has adopted the identical path by shoehorning its largest V-8 into the mid-size E-class sedan. With about 70 % extra displacement than the bottom E-class 3.2-liter V-6 has, the E55 is a rocket, flattening you in your seat all the way in which to its 158-mph governor. And it produces this thrust with easy refinement, proving as soon as once more that there’s certainly no substitute for cubic inches. —Csaba Csere