Mercedes E200 Petrol review, images, price and features

Okay, enough about the features and equipment. Can we talk about the engine and transmission?

The Mercedes Benz E200 is powered by a smooth and responsive 2.0 litre, four pot, direct injection, turbocharged engine that has a decent max power output of 181bhp and thanks to turbocharging, churns out a peak torque of 300Nm. All this is sent to the rear wheels via tried and tested Mercedes 7G-TRONIC seven speed automatic transmission that ensures smooth, seamless shifts.

The transmission offers two driving modes- ECO and SPORT. The ECO mode is apt for most driving situations and upshifts early to keep the revs low, thereby boosting fuel efficiency. The SPORT mode on the other hand comes in handy when you’re being your boy-racer self and lets you make the most of the decent torque spread by holding onto each gear all the way up to the redline, marked at 6500 rpm. Worth a mention here is that the E200 comes equipped with paddle-shifts, which make the entire experience of high-speed driving all the more appealing.

The E200 wins some more brownie points for coming equipped with paddle shifts

The engine is sufficiently powerful to endow the E200 with brisk acceleration and enable it to reach to speeds north of 200kmph. The low rev response, and torque spread is appreciable too for a petrol, and there is ample torque available even at sub 1500 rpm levels, making the E200 CGI a great low speed city machine as well. In gear acceleration isn’t as brisk as the diesel, due to the massive (200Nm) torque differential, but this still is a Merc and will be quite a handful all the lesser machines which you will overtake without breaking a sweat.

Top end performance, while good for all practical purposes and more, isn’t quite in the league of the E350CDI. After delivering a solid low and mid range performance, the E200 tends to gasp for air a bit  towards the upper end of the rev spectrum.

 

 

The positioning of the Drive Selector Stalk leaves you with an issue to complain. As we have mentioned in the past as well, this stalk, which finds itself located behind the steering wheel and not between the seats, isn’t really ergonomically placed. For those who aren’t used to selecting drive modes from behind the steering wheel, it may lead to the car ending up in neutral, as he mistakes it for the blinker stalk.

What about the handling and ride? Is it fun enough to go corner-carving in?

As we mentioned in our previous review, the new E-Class is a significant improvement over its previous version as regards handling. The E250 CDI surprised us with its substantially better poise over the predecessor, and the E200 CGI is no different. It holds its line very well, even while undertaking sweeping curves at high speeds. It’s solid as a rock in a straight line, and exhibits body roll only when pushed to the extreme around sharp bends.

While the handling has improved, making the E-Class a whole load more fun as a driving machine, the ride quality is the E200’s real forte! The E200 can tread on most of the broken patches of roads without breaking a sweat and the undulations are hardly ever transmitted to the occupants. Overall, the E200 CGI boasts of a really plush ride quality that will keep its owners, who will most likely be chauffeur driven, very comfortable and happy.

While very well balanced and head and shoulders above any of the regulation cars, the E-Class is inclined a bit more towards comfort and isn’t the ultimate corner carving tool. We would have liked the steering to weigh up a bit more at higher speeds. The wide, comfortable seats impress with their support and design in normal driving conditions.  While hurtling the car around the ultra sharp twisties of Lavasa, however, we felt that a bit more bolstering would have augmented lateral support.

So what’s your take on the Mercedes Benz E200 petrol? 

Overall, the E200 manages to impress us. Firstly, there are the refreshed looks, which seem to have infused a sense of freshness into the car. Further helping the E200 win brownie points is its ride quality. It’s improved a lot in the handling department, and with the steering mounted pedal shifters, is quite a tool to enjoy around windy roads.

For the extremists, though, the top of the rev range may disappoint a bit. We also missed a rear view camera on such an expensive car. However, you still get a lot of car for the money you spend and thanks to its fabulous looks, excellent ride quality and refined engine  the E200 makes a very strong case for itself.

What really works in the E200 CGI’s favor is the fact that it’s the most economical sedan in its class to own, with a price advantage of about 4 lakhs from the nearest competitor. At roughly about Rs 42 lakh,the E200 CGI, presents itself an incredibly good proposition for the value seekers.

Go to next page for Mercedes E200 CGI Image Gallery and Tech Specs>>>