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What's the difference?
It might not be as tribal as Ford vs Holden, but there’s a rivalry between BMW and Mercedes-Benz that occasionally becomes more obvious - the launch of the new Mercedes E-Class only months after the BMW 5 Series being one of those times.
But Mercedes has done something different. Instead of multiple variants and electric cars under the E-Class banner, Australia gets just one, the E300.
Is it enough to tackle the big Bavarian sedan in the sales race? We attended the Australian launch just north of Melbourne to find out.
The SsangYong Musso XLV Ultimate is one of, if not the, most affordable part-time 4x4 ute on the market at the moment a recent facelift sees some improvements to its design, features and ride comfort.
I'm in the top-grade model with my family of three to see how those tweaks translate to real-world family life and how it competes against rivals like the GWM Ute Cannon and the LDV T60.
The E-Class is stacked with kit, looks great, and is an effective and comfortable way to get around in built-up areas or across the countryside.
While it’s not the most dynamically engaging - it’s pipped by its Bavarian rival there - it offers more comfort-oriented features than most, and the cabin is a pleasant place to spend a day driving.
If you're disposed towards stumping up the asking price, the extra outlay for the 'Plus Package' will probably be most relevant to you if you’re covering long distances due to the Airmatic suspension.
Otherwise, even a simple-spec E300 provides a step up from what you might expect from an executive sedan.
Note: CarsGuide attended this event as a guest of the manufacturer, with accommodation and meals provided.
The SsangYong Musso XLV Ultimate is an affordable workhorse that has good comfort, features and drives well. It suited my little family and our gear just fine this week with its space. If you need the practicality of a ute and are on a budget, you get a lot for your money here.
Evolution rather than revolution is obvious when it comes to the E-Class’ styling, but that’s in Mercedes’ best interests, because it’s still a good-looking thing, and being a bit subtle is warranted in the executive sedan game.
The biggest changes come in the headlights and tail-lights. Up-front there are now more than one million pixels in the LED headlights, which have adaptive high beam as standard and are more connected to the grille via black trim, as has been seen in EQ electric models.
Underneath, the bumper now features an AMG-style 'A-wing' apron as part of the 'AMG Line' exterior package as standard. A set of 20-inch AMG alloys are also included.
To the rear, and the digital tail-lights feature a Mercedes-Benz star motif, making its lighting signature now more recognisable from behind.
The German Rainbow is well-represented with mostly shades of grey, black, or white available, though 'Verde Silver Metallic' is a slightly retro green, and 'Nautic Blue Metallic' is a subtle and classy tone.
The daring ‘Manufaktur’ shade of 'Patagonia Red Metallic' is a $2500 option, as is 'Opalite White Bright' while 'Alpine Grey Solid' is $2900.
The Musso looks the part of a 4x4 dual cab ute. It’s big even without the XLV pack at 5095mm in length. And with it, that jumps up to 5395mm. Enough to well and truly fill out a car space.
To put it in perspective, it's longer than the Kia Carnival, so I'd check to see if it will fit in your garage!
The finish isn’t the best, with wide spaces between door jams and the tray (I can fit my hand in that one) and a painted foam-like joinery in the tailgate which is already showing a lot of wear and tear for a brand-new workhorse. Stuff like this could make it look worn quickly.
Once you move into the cabin, it becomes obvious where a lot of the facelift has been focused.
The black leather upholstery, headliner and accents all make it feel premium in the cabin.
The dashboard has been redesigned to be more horizontally-themed and to sit lower than the previous dash. It showcases the new upgraded tech screens, large integrated air vents and digital climate control panel.
The cabin looks way more expensive than the price tag might suggest and it's most welcome.
Inside, the E-Class should feel familiar to anyone who’s spent time in a recent Benz, though the Superscreen might be the main point of difference. It’s an immediately comfortable place, though, with a relatively visually busy cabin.
The seats and their adjustability mean most drivers and passengers, regardless of height and size, should feel supported (and ideally relaxed), while touch-points are mostly either leather upholstery or digital screens.
The steering wheel, also seen in plenty of other Mercedes models, is a bit of a let-down, however, with its haptic touch pads on a slightly busy two-tier layout. This millennial found it irritating, surely too will the usually older E-Class buyer.
There are a few other small annoyances, one being that the MBUX Assistant sometimes won’t hear a command, or that not everything seems to be able to be controlled by it. The climate control vent positions are electrically adjustable to certain pre-sets through the menu, but the MBUX Assistant isn’t able to do this for you.
And while the driver display and central multimedia screen are fairly user-friendly, it’s not always immediately apparent what the quickest way to find some information or a setting is.
Our test car was fitted with the 'Plus Package', which means four-zone climate control available to the rear seats, which my 180cm-tall self found spacious with plenty of headroom, kneeroom, and even a fair bit of room under the driver’s seat.
Behind the rear seats, there’s a generous 540 litres of boot space, exactly the same capacity as the previous generation E-Class.
The cabin of the XLV Ultimate is big on space and all occupants enjoy fantastic head- and legroom.
Individual storage is good for a ute with the front enjoying two cupholders, a good-sized middle console and glove box plus a drink bottle holder in each door.
Rear occupants get map pockets, a fold-down armrest with two cupholders and storage bins in each door.
Amenities on the whole are good with the heated and ventilated front seats that feature lumbar support. But the upgrade to electric control for the fronts and heat function for the rear outboard positions clinch the luxury factor Both rows are well-cushioned and comfortable for long journeys.
Charging options are limited to the front with two USB-C ports, which is an upgrade from the old USB-A ports, and two 12-volt sockets.
But one of them is an old-school cigarette lighter which I haven’t seen in years! Now that was a teachable moment when I was a kid.
It's a shame there are no charging options in the rear as it could be inconvenient if you travel a lot and your kidlets have devices.
Fitting a child seat in the rear row is a little awkward due to the backrest folding down in one piece and it misses out on any clever hacks like some other utes have, like the zippered accessed points to the top-tether anchor points found on the HiLux and D-Max or the 60/40 split-fold on the Cannon.
Because of this, you'll want to fit your child seats at the same time and probably want it to be a 'set and forget' scenario.
On to the upgraded technology – the touchscreen of the multimedia system is responsive but the info is limited to the radio and a small settings menu.
Think of it as more of a mirror-screening device for the wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. It’s easy to connect to the CarPlay and the graphics are nice and bright.
The instrument cluster is semi-customisable but it’s here you can access/customise more information like the safety features, which I appreciate.
Our test vehicle has that XLV Pack fitted which adds 300mm to the tray length and boosts the overall capacity by 251L.
The max payload is 880kg, which should be sufficient for a lot of weekend pursuits.
You get a full-sized spare wheel and with our optioned tonneau accessory, you don’t have to worry about your gear getting wet, either.
The tailgate is large and feels very light to operate, thanks to the assist function but this ute lacks any sort of step to access the tray, which won’t be an issue for you giants out there but for me it was a bit of comedy to climb in to the back to retrieve stuff.
While cross-shopping the E-Class and a BMW 5 Series would normally be relatively easy, the Merc’s $131,500 starting price, before on-road costs, puts it plenty north of the base 520i, the only petrol one available, at $114,900. The electric i5 eDrive40 starts from $155,900, more than $20K over the Mercedes.
But the E-Class is stacked with features as standard, and while there are a couple of option packs, Mercedes Australia has tried to streamline the most popular features and specifications into the E300.
Its $131,500 price gets you a tech-heavy sedan with Merc’s latest 'MBUX' system housed in a visually impressive, if perhaps unnecessary, 'Superscreen' dash.
The dual-screen set-up incorporates a main 14.4-inch central multimedia touchscreen and a 12.3-inch display for the passenger, allowing the driver to keep, for example, a map visible while a passenger sorts out media or comfort settings.
The system is also designed to avoid taking users through sub-menus, though can be bypassed by wireless Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.
It also features a selfie camera mounted to the dash, which is disabled for the Australian market at present. Mercedes-Benz Australia hopes to change this soon.
Mercedes also plans to allow the MBUX system to learn what settings and functions will be most useful to the driver under certain conditions, but currently users are able to manually create so-called ‘Routines’ such as setting the climate control and seats to warm up if it’s below a certain temperature, and can even adjust the ambient lighting to a warmer colour.
More automation comes in the brand’s MBUX ‘Hey Mercedes’ system, which can now respond to commands without the driver needing to say “Hey Mercedes”.
Heated and vented front seats, leather upholstery, wireless phone charging, and a 17-speaker Burmester sound system with Dolby Atmos 4D sound are also standard - the latter being a clever feature that positions different elements of the audio, usually music, to give a 360-degree feeling, as well as turning bassier tones into a physical vibration via “tactile transducers” in each front seat’s backrest. Good for bassline junkies, then (apologies to Mr. Rascal).
With the $9400 'Plus Package', the E-Class also comes with 'Airmatic' suspension and rear-axle steering (which I’ll touch more on later), power-closing doors, 'Urban Guard' to monitor your vehicle while it’s parked, an illuminated grille up front, a more capable version of the MBUX 'Interior Assistant', four-zone climate control and Mercedes’ 'Digital Light' function, which uses the more-than one-million pixels in the headlights to project onto the road or surface in front of you when turning the car off or in driving situations to alert road users of potential danger.
A $6200 'Energising Package' adds multicontour front seats with comfort headrests, upgraded climate controls with 'Air-Balance' and fragrances, upgraded seat heating with armrest heating for the front occupants and heated seats for the rear.
The facelift sees the Musso gain a mid-spec variant in the form of the Adventure which creates a line-up of three grades overall.
Our test vehicle is the flagship Ultimate, which is priced from $45,000, drive-away, making it one of the most affordable 4x4 dual-cab utes on the market at the moment.
In comparison, the GWM Ute Cannon Vanta is the closest competitor at $46,490, before on-road costs, with the LDV T60 Max Luxe coming in at $47,884, before on-roads.
The Ultimate grade gets some great premium features, like heated and ventilated front seats, a heated leather steering wheel, as well as, updated technology with the 12.3-inch touchscreen multimedia screen (up from the previous 8.0-inch system), and the new 12.3-inch instrument cluster, up from the previous 10.25-inch unit. The climate controls have been integrated into a new touchscreen panel, which is easy to use.
Other standard features include an assisted tailgate function, full-size spare wheel,18-inch alloy wheels, LED DRLs and fog lights, HID headlights, a 360-degree camera system and wired Apple CarPlay and Android Auto.
Off-roading enthusiasts will be pleased with the part-time 4x4 drivetrain that includes low- and high- range and the auto-locking rear differential feature.
For its price point, the Ultimate is well-specified but our test vehicle has a couple of option packs and a few accessories that boost the overall costs.
The test vehicle features the 'Luxury Pack' for $3000, which adds dual-zone air-conditioning, a sunroof, leather upholstery, electric front seats and heated rear outboard seats.
It’s also fitted with the 'XLV Pack' for $1500 which adds 300mm to the tray length and an extra 20Nm of torque.
But we’re not done. With the red metallic paintwork and accessories like a tow bar, rubber mat set, tonneau cover and electronic brake controller our test vehicle actually slides in at $53,598.
Which is still great given the market but not as jaw-dropping as the first price might suggest because most of those added extras would be needs rather than wants for some buyers. Especially the extra torque and tow bar if you plan on using the 3.5-tonne braked towing capacity.
This lone E-Class variant is powered by a turbocharged 2.0-litre engine pumping out 190kW and 400Nm, assisted by a 48-volt battery system. Under EQ boost, an extra 17kW and 205Nm is available for a short time.
It’s hooked up to a nine-speed auto that drives the rear wheels, and it’s all pretty traditional… for 2024, that is.
Mercedes says the E300 is able to hit 100km/h in a respectable 6.3 seconds.
The upgrade hasn’t seen any changes to the Musso's powertrain and it is still powered by a 2.2-litre, four-cylinder turbo-diesel engine with a maximum power output of 133kW and 420Nm of torque (400Nm without the XLV Pack).
It’s got plenty of grunt and despite having only a six-speed auto transmission, the gear changes are mostly smooth.
Adventure enthusiasts should be happy because the Musso is a proper part-time 4x4 with low- and high-range, which is easy as pie to change over to when the need arises.
Mercedes claims the E-Class drinks 7.2L/100km on the combined cycle, and though we weren’t able to test that properly at the pump on the launch program, the trip computer showed up to 9.4L/100km after some quite spirited driving, which gradually averaged out to about 8.6L/100km in the afternoon once some more calm, E-Class-appropriate distance had been covered.
With its 50L fuel tank, the E-Class should theoretically be able to cover 694km on a single tank if the 7.2L/100km is achieved, though realistically it would be much less, 550-600km depending on driving style.
Despite its size, the Musso's official combined cycle fuel economy figure is only 9.0L/100km.
My real-world average came in at 10.2L/100km after a good mix of open-road and urban driving. Not too surprising, but that's without any loads. Expect it to be thirstier if you plan on towing.
Based on the combined fuel figure and 75L fuel tank, you should be able to get a driving range in excess of 800km.
While the E-Class has taken fairly sizeable steps in terms of its tech, it remains a fairly traditional car from behind the wheel, save for a few small changes like its mild-hybrid system and rear-wheel steering.
It’s still a petrol-powered rear-drive sedan, and it feels built more for eating up highway kilometres than it does tackling twisty turns. But that’s okay, because it will still do the latter.
Comfort is the main focus, clearly, for the E300, and the big Merc does it well. We weren’t offered a car without Airmatic air suspension on the launch, but the E-Class doesn’t seem like it would be particularly rough without it.
With it, however, large bumps and minor road annoyances only make their way into the cabin in the sense that you’re aware of them, but not bothered by them.
That slight dulling of feedback does extend to the steering wheel however, where, despite the rear-wheel steering making the car more nimble, the feedback to the driver is less encouraging of eager driving.
While 190kW on paper doesn’t seem like enough, the E-Class makes do with its meagre engine quite well - and even though it can seem like it’s working a bit too hard at times, the E-Class’ natural state isn’t responding to a planted foot, so it’s unlikely to be a daily bother.
Engine noise, as well as wind and road noise are suitably dulled by the E300’s NVH fitout, too.
The tuning of its drive modes, in particular Comfort and Sport, seemed well-judged on our drive loop, with the option to set the 'Individual' mode to a custom configuration, most elements in Comfort while the drivetrain is set to Sport is particularly helpful when on gentle, high-speed country roads.
If you do start to approach the limits of the big sedan’s capability, it’ll let you know fairly early on. The heavy E-Class isn’t prone to sudden lurching or poor handling, and isn’t much phased by mid-corner bumps.
It’s not as dynamically engaging as some rivals, particularly the 5 Series, but it does appear to be a better provider of cross-country comfort.
The Musso has won me over with how it drives. The update has seen the suspension retuned and it’s well-cushioned without feeling spongy.
The ride comfort is very good but you occasionally get some shudders through the frame when gear changes happen on a steep hill. The cabin sounds refined with how quiet it is, even at higher speeds and you’ll enjoy that on longer trips.
Hitting the open-road isn’t an issue with power being delivered smoothly when you accelerate. Despite being a tall car, the Musso handles cornering much better than I thought it would without heaps of roll.
You don’t feel any of the weight of the car when you steer, though, and that’s a bit too light for my liking. But it gives the Musso more of a car-like feel rather than a ute/truck feel which some people might enjoy.
Massive windows mean the Musso has crazy-good visibility for a ute and I feel confident about checking the blind-spot because of it. That's great for such a big vehicle.
Despite being almost 5.5m long, the Musso isn't too difficult to park because of the 360-degree view camera system, and front and rear parking sensors, a must have on large cars like this. The camera system is a smidge low quality for the image, though.
ANCAP hasn’t had a go at crash-testing the E-Class yet, and it might not given the relatively small number that will be sold here compared to volume models, but Mercedes’ track record with safety is pretty stellar, and it’s extremely rare for a Mercedes to not cop the maximum five stars.
In the new E300 there are 11 airbags - plenty for a sedan. Mercedes lists front airbags, knee bags and pelvic/thorax airbags for the driver and front passenger, side bags for the rear and a front centre airbag.
It also comes with a fairly extensive suite of safety tech, including the usual ABS, lane-keep assist, blind spot monitoring and surround-view parking cameras.
But on top of that, there’s also ‘Evasive Steering Assist’, semi-automated cruise control with sign recognition, distance assist for following leading vehicles and can even project light arrows onto the road if leaving your lane, when 'Digital Lights' are optioned.
The E-Class also has a function if an imminent collision is detected in which it can, depending on the type of collision, take occupant protection measures. In the case of a side-on collision, the E-Class can “move an affected front occupant towards the centre of the car” before impact.
On the top-grade model, you get most of the important safety features you expect to see on new cars but only at this level. The lower grades miss out on some big-ticket items and it annoys me when you have to pay extra for safety.
Standard features include biggies like rear cross-traffic alert, blind-spot monitoring, as well as AEB with forward collision warning and lane-change collision warning.
Other features include lane departure alert, safe exit assist, driver attention warning, tyre pressure monitoring, hill descent control, hill start assist, a 360-degree camera system, plus front and rear parking sensors.
It features six airbags, which is good for this class, but is currently unrated with ANCAP while its rivals all sport a maximum five-star rating.
There are ISOFIX child seat mounts on the outboard rear seats and three top-tethers but you can’t legally fit a child-seat in the middle seat as it only features a lap belt. Not having the sash does lower the safety aspect for any middle rowers and I’d think of the middle seat as an emergency spot for an adult only.
The E-Class comes with Mercedes’ fairly industry standard five-year, unlimited kilometre warranty, though Mercedes-Benz Australia was unable to confirm exact servicing pricing on the launch.
It does however list pricing for the E-Class on its website for a three-service pack at $3325, four at $4535, and five at $6800, the latter averaging out to $1360 each.
This could increase with the new generation car, and Mercedes doesn’t list estimated serving pricing for new E-Classes yet in its booking system (I checked with one of the test cars).
Servicing intervals are every 12 months or 25,000km, whichever comes first.
The on-going costs are great on the Musso, with it coming with a seven-year/unlimited km warranty, which is above average for this class.
It also comes with a seven year/105,000km servicing program where services average $375, which is competitive for the class.
Servicing intervals are average at every 12 months or 15,000km, whichever occurs first.