With a five-star Euro NCAP rating, there isn’t much to worry about regarding Mercedes-Benz E-Class safety. As well as everything you would in expect in a saloon at this price, such as electronic stability control, there are some additional features that set it apart. Seven airbags are standard while up to nine can be selected when ordering. Four seatbelt pre-tensioners, Pre-Safe (which anticipates if a crash is likely and primes other safety features), Attention Assist (which monitors the driver’s behaviour for potential drowsiness at the wheel) and Active Bonnet (which pops up to reduce the risk of head injury for pedestrians) are all standard. There are also other safety features available such as Adaptive Highbeam Assist (standard on Avantgarde and Sport models), Night View Assist and a lane departure warning system.

On top of all that, the facelift in 2013 meant a host of new safety features. Collision Prevention Assist will brake for you if the car senses there’s a crash imminent, which mitigates or prevents accidents. There’s an all-new LED lighting system which features functionality which does away with fog lights, automatically corners and can move to react to what the car is doing as well as automatically dipping the high beams.

The E-Class estate provides far greater load volume than any estate car rival. With the rear seats in place it offers an incredible 695 litres of luggage space. The rear seats fold almost flat and extends potential luggage volume to 1,950 litres to roof height. There is also the option of rear-facing child seats in the luggage compartment. They fold flat and have no impact on luggage space.