ROAD TEST 5734

Is this diesel estate throwback now a heart-over-head proposition?

With the rise and rise of the SUV, and the concurrent reputational slide of diesel, the oil-fired family wagon has been an endangered species for some time. In the next few years it may disappear for good, and this is particularly true for versions with torque-rich six-cylinder engines.

In fact we’re already in a last-carstanding scenario, because BMW has, at least in the UK, shunned diesel entirely for the latest raft of 3 and 5 Series models, including the big-booted Touring variants. Aside from the quirky S6 Avant (get it while it’s still here), Audi is also down to only four-piston offerings for TDI derivatives of the A4 and A6

Avant – erstwhile stalwarts of the big-capacity diesel scene.

All of which makes the subject of this road test an interesting, unusual and, for readers who want maximum autonomy and effortless pace and opulence, alluring one. Is the Mercedes E450d Estate the only car you’ll ever need? Let’s find out.

DESIGN &ENGINEERING

★ ★ ★ ★ ★

PROS Chassis isn’t short of the latest tech; powerful diesel motor

CONS Undeniably heavy, though still reasonable compared with SUVs

The E-Class needs no introduction, with roots traceable back to 1947 in the Mercedes family tree. The model has a history of diesel power too: the W115 – an antecedent of the modern E-Class – first acquired a ‘D’ on its bootlid in 1968 and, not long after, an inline five joined the fray. The five-pot 250D, latterly the 300D, was the diesel range-topper throughout the 1970s and ’80s. It was during this time that Mercedes also began to offer an estate body.

For a time, anybody who had to have the most potent diesel E-Class was given V6 power, but in 2017 Mercedes reverted to its old preferred arrangement and the OM656 straight-six turbo diesel was born. The E450d tested here has an evolution of that motor, with mild-hybrid assistance in the form of a 48V integrated starter-generator and an electrically spooled turbo (similar tech to that of the Porsche 911 GTS T-Hybrid road tested in the 5 March issue). Totals of 367bhp and 553lb ft, the latter arriving at barely above tickover, give the E450d undeniable Q-car appeal – even more so if you opt for the unassuming estate, rather than the smart saloon. That torque figure, by the way, matches what you will get from the 4.4-litre V8 in the latest BMW M5 – and the Touring version. It’s also worth noting that the E450d is now the only E-Class with more than four cylinders, at least in terms of the mainline models. You can have an E200 (four-pot petrol) or the E300e (its PHEV sibling), and the E220d and E300de play a similar double act for the diesel, but there is no six-cylinder petrol. Not, that is, until you get to the realm of AMG’s E53 Hybrid 4Matic, with its 603bhp total output and six-figure asking price. You can also have the E53 in estate form, but the result isn’t exactly subtle, and is thus unlikely, in our opinion, to be of interest as a petrol alternative for the would-be E450d shopper. Point being, if you today want a old-world six-cylinder E-Class, the E450d is it.