Mercedes E-class 250 BlueEfficiency CDI 15 | 08 | 2010Scotcars rating

On the road

The test car, I was disappointed to find, had a manual gearbox, not because of laziness on my part, but because the Merc automatics are among the best available, silky smooth and very receptive. That apart, the car is nicely put together and while the dials, displays and controls are all straight out of the Merc catalogue, they do the job very well and if it ain’t broke, there’s certainly no point in trying to fix it. The manual change was in fact very good and the ratios and torque of the diesel power unit meant that around town there was little need for numerous runs up and down the box. On the open road, fifth and sixth were needed only for the long sections where the car got the chance to stretch its legs.

Comfort & Safety

Yes, it is comfortable and like every other Merc, safety is a priority. The test car, which was in the Avantgarde finish, came with a very fine set of black leather seats and loads of toys to play with, most of which was standard for the almost £33,000 price tag. That included a Bluetooth set up which I found to be one of the easiest I’ve found to link to my mobile phone. I like the fact that the E-Class is one of the remaining models in the Merc range which still has the three-pointed star on the bonnet. If I owned a Merc I’d demand that I could be reminded of the fact all the time.

Should I buy one?

If you want a “proper” Merc, with a star on the bonnet and a good level of comfort, and you’ve got the cash, you should go for it.

Alan Douglas