Topic: First Drive: 2011 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet

[Autos_Editor]

Based on the recent E-Class Coupe, the new 2011 E-Class Cabriolet features a retractable wind deflector at the top of the windscreen that helps reduce wind turbulence in the cabin while driving with the top down, reports Editor-in-chief, Greg Wilson.

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[D70]

 The age of affordability has certainly risen for Mercedes. My first new car, 240D was purchased when I was 36! and it was a class above the C, the W123. Its interesting to see recirculating steering still being used. Its about the only thing apart from the cars name that had anything in common with mine.

 For the 13 years  came I owned mine it really came into its own at speeds well above the Canadian speed limits. The first 2 years on the Autobahns were bliss. Later trips from Vancouver to as far away as Mexico and several to Alberta with lots of back seat room for tallish teenagers made travel easy.

  The other great feature was reliability, no electric anything, even the sunroof, windows, mirrors and seats were manual as was the transmission

http://www.flickr.com/photos/d70w7/4706907452/

[lebowski]

The age of affordability has certainly risen for Mercedes. My first new car, 240D was purchased when I was 36! and it was a class above the C, the W123. Its interesting to see recirculating steering still being used. Its about the only thing apart from the cars name that had anything in common with mine.

 For the 13 years  came I owned mine it really came into its own at speeds well above the Canadian speed limits. The first 2 years on the Autobahns were bliss. Later trips from Vancouver to as far away as Mexico and several to Alberta with lots of back seat room for tallish teenagers made travel easy.

  The other great feature was reliability, no electric anything, even the sunroof, windows, mirrors and seats were manual as was the transmission

http://www.flickr.com/photos/d70w7/4706907452/

That must have been a great car. Those older MB's were/are terrific, and MB hasn't built them like that since the early '90's.

My stepfather, back in more affluent times, owned a then-new '87 300SE sedan. The thing was a tank, in the best sense of the word. It was rock-solid throughout its 14-years of service in our family. I still miss hearing the positive, granite-like *thunk* of the closing doors.

I saw a black 560SEL rolling down the highway yesterday - it looked so much better than any new Benz I've seen in recent memory - save, perhaps, the new CL550.

As for this new E-class coupe....meh. It doesn't help that he profile shot reminds me of a Chrysler Sebring convertible. And i hate how high belt lines on new cars are going.

[butterflyjack]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

[gut]

Finally!
I test drove the new E350 convertible Prime Edition the day it came to Vancouver, and I have to say - What a magnificent car!
Got it with 18 km's and returned with 34; not much for a descent test, but enough to get the rough idea, as I was already driving CLK 350 convertible for 3 years.
The engine and the gearbox are the same, so one can expect to make 14 lit/100 kms on daily commuting and occasional 5-600 km's freeway trip (that was my average from the last 36,000 km's).
The space is similar to the CLK,  the ragtop is exactly the same. Can be opened/closed while driving also (not driving fast though).
I haven't purchased the one I've tested as it had some stuff I don't need (like GPS) and had a white seats (Prime Edition) which I don't like as I wear jeans often.
But, with its excellent list of standard equipment, and black leather seats, I couldn't find a better 4-seat convertible than E klasse.
 
Maybe a CLK, but that's now out of production or BMW 6, but that's an old model soon to be replaced...

[Mozeby]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

The mid size luxury class has a few cars that share platforms with smaller or lower classes of cars in their family.  The Infinity G and M class share a platform too.

[JSCC]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

The CLS is based on the E-Class chassis and it's direct competitors are the BMW 6-series and upcoming Audi A7.

The E-Coupe and E-Cabriolet are based on the C-Class chassis with E-Class styling and interior fit and finish.
Direct competitors include BMW 3 series, Audi A4/S5. The Infiniti G-Coupe/Convertible and Lexus IS convertible are considered semi-direct compeitors.

A C-Class coupe is on its way with a shorten C-Class chassis and will compete with the BMW 1 series.

[Julie]

The CLS is based on the E-Class chassis and it's direct competitors are the BMW 6-series and upcoming Audi A7.

The E-Coupe and E-Cabriolet are based on the C-Class chassis with E-Class styling and interior fit and finish.
Direct competitors include BMW 3 series, Audi A4/S5. The Infiniti G-Coupe/Convertible and Lexus IS convertible are considered semi-direct compeitors.

A C-Class coupe is on its way with a shorten C-Class chassis and will compete with the BMW 1 series.

Nice.......  If I were shopping convertibles, this would make me cross-shop for sure.  But convertibles are not my style, despite their beauty, because of their impact on performance & practicality.  Maybe when I get older...

[Ex-airbalancer]

 practicality

What not practical about driving around on a sunny day with the top down
The only 2 door I would have is a cabriolet

[Julie]

practicality

What not practical about driving around on a sunny day with the top down
The only 2 door I would have is a cabriolet

Should have specified 'all year round practicality'.  Was thinking of the hard-tops taking up a lot of trunk space.  I'm a bit iffy about soft-tops in the winter...

When the weather's good though, a nice cabriolet is awesome.

[John]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

The mid size luxury class has a few cars that share platforms with smaller or lower classes of cars in their family.  The Infinity G and M class share a platform too.

But in the rental grade class, such as a Malibu, it is a different story....

G-Platform
The Malibu shared GM's redesignated rear-wheel drive G platform with cars like the Pontiac Grand Prix, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme and Buick Regal.

N-Platform
A new front-wheel drive Malibu was introduced in 1997 , it shared with the Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Achieva, Oldsmobile Alero and Pontiac Grand Am.

Epsilon-Platform
The Malibu name was moved to the Epsilon platform based on the 2002 Opel Vectra C for 2004. The Epsilon-based Malibu came in two bodystyles, a standard 4-door sedan and a 5-door Malibu Maxx station wagon.

long-wheelbase Epsilon platform
The seventh generation Malibu is built on a revised version of the long-wheelbase Epsilon platform shared with the Saturn Aura, the Opel Signum,  Pontiac G6., and it's close cousin the Buick Lacrosse.

 

[Ex-airbalancer]

practicality

What not practical about driving around on a sunny day with the top down
The only 2 door I would have is a cabriolet

Should have specified 'all year round practicality'.  Was thinking of the hard-tops taking up a lot of trunk space.  I'm a bit iffy about soft-tops in the winter...

When the weather's good though, a nice cabriolet is awesome.

You are bit of a scared cat about everything.
You still see a lot E36 ragtops running and they are over 10 years old

[Erik]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

The mid size luxury class has a few cars that share platforms with smaller or lower classes of cars in their family.  The Infinity G and M class share a platform too.

But in the rental grade class, such as a Malibu, it is a different story....

G-Platform
The Malibu shared GM's redesignated rear-wheel drive G platform with cars like the Pontiac Grand Prix, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme and Buick Regal.

N-Platform
A new front-wheel drive Malibu was introduced in 1997 , it shared with the Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Achieva, Oldsmobile Alero and Pontiac Grand Am.

Epsilon-Platform
The Malibu name was moved to the Epsilon platform based on the 2002 Opel Vectra C for 2004. The Epsilon-based Malibu came in two bodystyles, a standard 4-door sedan and a 5-door Malibu Maxx station wagon.

long-wheelbase Epsilon platform
The seventh generation Malibu is built on a revised version of the long-wheelbase Epsilon platform shared with the Saturn Aura, the Opel Signum,  Pontiac G6., and it's close cousin the Buick Lacrosse.

 

God... You are a Loser.  Honestly, go to a dating website and leave this one alone.

Just keep hitting that "report to moderator" button ever time you see his crap. Sooner or later, the mods will make him go away.

[John]

So.. Is this a real E class or a revamped C class?..You mention that it's basic structure is C class..As might be evidenced by it's very small back seat and tiny trunk... It looks good, but , after your mention of it's C class roots, I see C class lines from the side...I love C class, but when you're paying big E bucks, one might expect E class size...which this little convertible apparently isn't..
  I know this is a car for those with fat wallets...but it gets pretty poor mileage on premium fuel...Nice looking load, though...
  The mention of the tank-like older diesel Benzes with their huge interiors, brings back memories of a now deceased neighbor's tank..Great car...Lovely firm, yet resilient ride..I had a chance to buy it as his wife couldn't drive it...Probably should have...But..que sera sera...dragonfly

The mid size luxury class has a few cars that share platforms with smaller or lower classes of cars in their family.  The Infinity G and M class share a platform too.

But in the rental grade class, such as a Malibu, it is a different story....

G-Platform
The Malibu shared GM's redesignated rear-wheel drive G platform with cars like the Pontiac Grand Prix, Oldsmobile Cutlass Supreme and Buick Regal.

N-Platform
A new front-wheel drive Malibu was introduced in 1997 , it shared with the Buick Skylark, Oldsmobile Achieva, Oldsmobile Alero and Pontiac Grand Am.

Epsilon-Platform
The Malibu name was moved to the Epsilon platform based on the 2002 Opel Vectra C for 2004. The Epsilon-based Malibu came in two bodystyles, a standard 4-door sedan and a 5-door Malibu Maxx station wagon.

long-wheelbase Epsilon platform
The seventh generation Malibu is built on a revised version of the long-wheelbase Epsilon platform shared with the Saturn Aura, the Opel Signum,  Pontiac G6., and it's close cousin the Buick Lacrosse.

 

God... You are a Loser.  Honestly, go to a dating website and leave this one alone.

Sorry, but you bought the 4 cyl Malibu LTZ, pulled any dates with your ride?....Who's the loser now.   Little Erik, go away boy, you are bothering the adults.

[mmret]

Never liked the look of 4 seat ragtops but this one isn't half bad.

Pricey stuff though.