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Enough now, let’s get on with the driving, shall we? Strap yourself in those fantastic seats (a belt feeder virtually hands over the belt to you, so you don’t have to twist your torso to reach out to it), turn the key, slot the stubby gear lever of the 7G-Tronic into D and go. The 3,498cc V6 petrol featuring a second-generation direct injection system develops 272 bhp at 6,000 revs and almost 36 kgm of turning force between 2,400 and 5,000 rpm. The combination of the engine and the gearbox plus the application in the coupe is really all you need, unless you are extremely power hungry. The engine is remarkable for its smoothness and offers wonderfully flexible power delivery. Whether you are crawling behind a belching truck or sizzling up the highway at 200 kph, the engine offers a linear delivery of power, perfectly measured in the right doses. When subjected to the test, 100 kph comes up in 7.6 seconds while the mid-range (80-120 kph/100-140 kph is under 5 seconds) is equally stunning. There is no drama in the cabin when it’s firing happily on all cylinders; the bass notes from the twin sports exhausts are left for those who are outside the car. As is the case with all these Mercs, you barely realise the speeds until you glance at the speedo. Stomping on the accelerator pedal makes the gearbox downshift quickly by skipping gears, but I preferred to manually downshift to make the drive more involving. The drivetrain and the interior refinement can make you pretty lazy, actually.
What I liked best was the steering feel. It offers you feedback without losing out on the classic Mercedes trait of comfort and effortlessness. The steering feedback makes the car more involving to drive as the handling borders on the safe. You can always switch the ESP off if you want to use the power going to the rear wheels for some cornering action. But it’s a Mercedes and it is intelligent, so it will use its brains to overrule the laws of physics. Riding on AMG wheels and wide rubber, the Coupe grips the road well and sudden directional changes hardly upset its equilibrium. The ride is as good as you’d expect from a Mercedes — it features the Direct Control suspension that essentially uses its brains to decide the damping required. It is still no match for some potholed sections of our roads, though.
The E 350 Coupe makes for a good weekend car for the S-Class owner and it’s priced close to that of the E-Class sedan. It’s reassuringly every inch a Mercedes and has the looks to draw everyone’s attention.
Psst... not everyone knows the Coupe borrows heavily from the C-Class underpinnings though it looks like, well, a two-door E.
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