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What has made Mercedes is its line of mid-size sedans. Today that line is the E-Class, but its heritage goes back to cars with no letters in their names at all.
With the E-Class entrenched in Africa as a luxury machine, it can be a little disconcerting to see that it is used as a taxicab in much of the rest of the world (senge dziya dzatakuti Daddy used to have money kudhara . . . ha ha ha).
Mercedes’ reputation wasn’t built on plush fittings and heavily chromed decoration, it was earned by cars that could survive for decades pounding over dirt roads or broken pavements, or forming a line drawn by rival militias lobbing grenades at each other.
Mercedes cars are tough, and that’s what made them worth extra money even when they didn’t offer overt power or luxury.
While the E-Class ancestry stretches back to the 19th century and the beginning of Mercedes, the lineage becomes more distinct after World War II when the pre-war 170 sedan re-entered production.
The stout 170 had been Mercedes’ most popular model before the war, but the design dated all the way back to 1936; and in 1946 its upright stance, separate fenders and running boards and chassis were archaic.
Fortunately for Mercedes, in the immediate post-war years, the few buyers there were in Europe weren’t in any position to be picky.
It’s the 1970s replacement, the first “modern” Mercedes, which started the company on the path toward today’s E-Class.
From 1953 the Mercedes 180 was the company’s first car to be built and compete in the world’s contemporary automotive market. Year after year new innovations were introduced.
In 1974, the four-cylinder engine was upgraded to 2,3 litres and 95 horsepower. This was undeniably a Mercedes of the 1970s.
With a flattened grille, horizontally oriented headlamps and sculptured sides, it looked, more or less, like a scaled-down version of the era’s 450SEL.
Under the new skin there were some significant advances in safety (moving the fuel tank over the rear axle where it was better protected in a collision, for instance).
But the biggest change came in the engine bay of the six-cylinder model where fuel injection appeared for the first time on the smaller Mercedes. Accordingly, the letter “E” for “einspritz” (German for “injection”) appeared as part of this model’s name, 280E. It was the fuel injection atop the 280E’s 2,8-litre, DOHC straight six that radically improved the drivability of the new W123.
The 1978 model year brought forth new 280CE and 300CD coupes, and in ‘79, a new 300TD station wagon arrived.
Innovations that would become regular equipment on future Mercedes models appeared during the W123’s life.
The 1980 model year brought a four-speed fully automatic gearbox, and antilock brakes were available for the first time. In 1981, a driver-side front airbag made its first appearance. Much bigger news came with the 1992 models and the introduction of V8 power to the midsize Mercedes.
The new, mainstream 400E sedan had the 268-horsepower, 4,2-litre, DOHC V8 from the larger S-Class sedan under its hood.
Dual front airbags were standard across Mercedes’ 1993 line and new engines were installed in the W124.
The 300E 2,6 became the 300E 2,8 as the engine grew to 2,8 litres and now wore a DOHC head with four valves per cylinder.
Finally for 1994, the E-Class officially came to be, as Mercedes re-engineered its naming system by putting the “E” before the number and rationalising the numbers in line with displacement.
So the returning line-up consisted of E320 sedan, wagon and coupe, E420 sedan and E500 sedan. With a new E-Class due for 1996, the only substantial change to the 1995 line was the elimination of the limited-production E500.
After 2,212,025 W124s, Mercedes was ready for a new E-Class.
The Four-Eyed E (chemaziso) has made history. In Zimbabwe right now vaye vane (those with) old money have stuck to this model.
With four elliptical headlamps, the 1996 E-Class (W210) set the styling trend for Mercedes models into the 21st century.
In the middle of the 1996 model year, the E420 sedan reappeared with the 4,2-litre V8 (making 275 horsepower) hooked up to a five-speed automatic transmission.
The 1997 model year saw the introduction of a new driver-adaptive five-speed automatic for the E320 and E300D.
Additionally, Mercedes added a sport package to the options list for the E420 – included within it were 17-inch wheels and Z-rated tyres, fog lights and various cosmetic touches. All models got a smart sensor that could detect the presence of a front passenger and decide whether or not to deploy the airbag in a crash.
Major changes to the W210 for 1998 began with a new 3,2-litre, SOHC, three-valve V6 replacing the former straight six in the E320, the station wagon body returning as an E320 and the E300D gaining a turbocharger and intercooler.
The boosted diesel was impressive with a 30-percent increase in horsepower and a massive 57-percent increase in torque. Beyond all that, the 4Matic all-wheel-drive system was back as an option.
A new side curtain airbag system came with the 1999 E-Class, but the more enticing development was the new AMG-engineered E55 sport sedan.
Using a hand-assembled 5,4-litre version of the SOHC, three-valve V8, the E55 was engorged with 349 horsepower.
It was fast and gorgeous hunkered over its 18-inch AMG wheels, and it was the most expensive E-Class ever. Also this year, the E420 became the E430, as its V8 was a new 4,3-litre mill, though output was unchanged.
With a new “E” on the way, 2001 and 2002 were relatively quiet years for the car. But you could get a new sport package for the E320 that included lower body cladding and larger wheels and tires.
In 2003 it went through great changes and to date we have a new look 2011 model sitting in our local Zimoco Mercedes showroom with changes that will blow you away.
Till next week, be safe.
- Fact D. Jeke is a motoring enthusiast who has attended auto shows, rallies and has written for various publications in the region for the last decade. She can be contacted via email on [email protected]
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