New and Future Mercedes Benz Cars

Just like you, we always want to know what's coming next from Detroit, Tokyo, Stuttgart, Munich, Los Angeles, and all the other places where automotive engineers and designers dream and scheme on our behalf. Car companies, of course, are loath to share information on new products lest their competitors try to copy them--or you decide not to buy the cars they already have on dealer lots. Car companies, though, are simply groups of people, and some of them have a hard time keeping secrets. So, we poke, we prod, we cajole, and we uncover information that becomes the basis for our annual Sneak Preview issue. As always, some of our information is educated guesswork based on hints, insinuations, hunches. Make no mistake, though, these cars are on their way, even though details may change. Ladies and gentlemen: our list of 136 cars coming over the next few years.

The new E-class coupe is an E in name and design theme, but like the CLK coupe it replaces, it's still based on the C-class. It shares its engines with the all-new E-class sedan - a 268-hp V-6 (E350) and a 382-hp V-8 (E550). The coupe rolls into showrooms in June; the sedan follows by a month. The sedan is sharper and sportier to drive than past E-class models, and it also features a host of new driver aids, including variable-beam adaptive headlamps, night vision, pre-collision automatic braking, and a drowsy-driver warning system. All-wheel-drive 4Matic models will be here before the snow flies this fall. Next year brings the softtop convertible, the E350 Bluetec diesel sedan, and a new E-class wagon, offered as an E350 only.

A new E63 AMG sedan is being readied to do battle with the BMW M5 and the Cadillac CTS-V. The new AMG sedan again features a 6.2-liter V-8, revised to produce 518 hp (up from 507) while torque remains at 465 lb-ft. A factory-estimated 0-to-60-mph time of 4.4 seconds is about the same as today's model; the top speed once again will be electronically capped at 155 mph, with a higher limit available as an option. The E63 borrows the SL63 AMG's seven-speed automatic, with a race start function and four different programming modes. The mellowest mode is called Controlled Efficiency, and its early upshifts help the E63 eke out slightly better gas mileage. The E63 chassis is updated with revised steering and a new front suspension design (similar to the C63 AMG) that incorporates a wider track and a revised rear setup. Airmatic, with three firmness settings, returns; the stability program features three modes: on, sport, and off. A button labeled AMG can store and recall the driver's favorite settings for the various systems, a setup similar to the BMW M5's M button. Eighteen-inch wheels are standard, with nineteens optional, and the car wears more aggressive styling touches inside and out, including unique front fenders, four square-tipped exhaust outlets, and a deck-lid spoiler (available in carbon fiber).

FAST MAMAS, ACT NOW: The mightiest E-class will be built as a sedan and a wagon, but this time the latter is unlikely to come to America, so fans of fast wagons might want to grab an '09 model before it's too late.

source : car