• Genuine space for four
• Boot is big, too
• Not exactly a family car, though

How much space is there?

It might be a sleek-looking coupe, but this flavour of Mercedes-Benz E-Class is roomy, especially in the front. There’s a price to be paid for that sleek roofline, which limits headroom for those over six-feet tall, especially in the rear.

However, saying that, if you’re after a coupe that seats four in comfort, look no further – especially compared with smaller rivals such as the Audi A5 and BMW 4 Series.

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Boot space and storage

With 425 litres of space, the boot in the E-Class Coupe is surprisingly practical, although if you’ve got four full-sized adults on board for a weekend away, you may still need to pack fairly light.

Still, an electric bootlid helps ease the pain of closing it yourself once you’ve lifted the items into the luggage area, and you can extend the load capacity by folding the rear seats.

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Is it easy to park?

There’s no escaping the coupe’s big dimensions – it’s not one for threading down tight lanes and nipping into compact parking spots in an underground car park.

However, with plenty of glass all-round and the availability of all-round cameras and sensors, it’s surprisingly easy to manoeuvre with a bit of help from impressive parking tech.

How big is it?

View full specs

Safety

• E-Class underpinnings means five-star NCAP rating
• There’s a wide range of standard safety equipment
• Further safety kit and driver assistance tech an option

The E-Class Saloon achieves a maximum five-star Euro NCAP rating, which the safety experts say is applicable to all E-Class variants.

Passive safety features deployed in the event of an accident include seven airbags (driver and passenger airbags and side airbags; driver’s knee bag; window bags), and an active bonnet which automatically raises when it detects a pedestrian impact, helping to separate the pedestrian from the solid engine and suspension components beneath.

If a crash is deemed likely, Pre-Safe tightens seatbelts, adjusts the seats (if electrically powered) to the optimum position, and quickly closes the sunroof and side windows.

Active safety features (ie those that prevent an accident in the first place) include Active Brake Assist, which warns the driver if a collision with another vehicle or pedestrian is deemed likely and can apply full braking force if the driver doesn’t react.

It can bleep rather a lot during spirited driving, but did not actually apply braking force during our test drive. Attention Assist, meanwhile, warns the driver should it detect driver fatigue.

Optional driver-assistance packages include:

• Lane Tracking Package: includes Blind Spot Assist (triggers a visual warning in the wing mirror should a car appear in the blindspot, and an audible warning if the driver indicates) and Active Lane-Keeping Assist, which warns a driver who is wandering out of the lane without indication, and helps to keep the vehicle between the white lines.
• Driving Assistant Package: adds to the Lane Tracking Package with Drive Pilot (essentially adaptive cruise control that can bring the car to a complete stop in traffic and move off again, and can steer for the driver for short periods), Evasive Steering Assist (helps the driver in making the correct steering inputs while bringing the vehicle under control after swerving to avoid an impact) and Pre-Safe Plus, which warns following traffic and locks the brakes immediately before a rear-end impact.