Item: Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain
Rating: 4
Author: What Car? Team

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Introduction

Performance & drive

Interior

Passenger & boot space

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With a starting price&nbsp;north of £60,000, the E-Class All-Terrain is considerably more expensive than its rivals from <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/make/audi">Audi</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/make/volvo">Volvo</a>. It’s worth noting, though, that you&nbsp;get a lot of equipment for your money, including keyless entry and start, a tow bar, heated front seats and DAB&nbsp;radio.

Company car choosers may be disappointed that there is no four-cylinder diesel option with low CO2 emissions. The sole six-cylinder diesel emits 168g/km – more than most of the engines offered in the rival <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/a6-allroad/estate/used-review/n237">Audi A6 Allroad</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volvo/v90/estate/review/n17245">Volvo V90 Cross Country</a>.

For private buyers, the E-Class’s relatively slow depreciation will be a big draw, but be prepared to pay out more on servicing than you would for an <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/a6/saloon/review/n61">A6</a> or a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/bmw/5-series/saloon/review/n63">BMW 5 Series</a>.

Euro NCAP hasn’t tested the E-Class All-Terrain but the E-Class Saloon achieved five stars with good scores in all categories, including 95% in Adult Occupant protection. What’s more, lots of safety kit is available to prevent you from having a shunt or keep you safe if an accident proves unavoidable.

Automatic emergency braking is standard across the range, as are seven airbags and an active bonnet to help protect pedestrians. Meanwhile, an optional driving assistance package brings Mercedes’ Drive Pilot semi-autonomous system alongside blind spot and lane-keeping assistance.

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Like its rivals, the E-Class All-Terrain has been designed to be more cosseting and easygoing than <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17209">the conventional estate on which it’s based</a>, while also providing a smattering of off-road ability.

It’s certainly comfortable on smooth but undulating surfaces, wafting&nbsp;along in a relaxed manner. The same can’t be said for rough urban roads, though;&nbsp;it thumps over bumps and potholes much more than you might expect.

Still, despite its soft springing, body lean is kept well in check if you hustle the All-Terrain down a winding road. Even when driven briskly in&nbsp;Comfort mode, you’ll&nbsp;be hard pushed to notice a great deal of difference compared with the regular E-Class Estate.

Switching to Sport adds extra weight to the steering, sharpens the accelerator’s response and helps&nbsp;the car turn in to corners more keenly without being overly firm everywhere else. In truth, though, the steering&nbsp;feels reassuringly precise, no matter which mode you’re driving in.

Its party-piece is an extra mode&nbsp;– appropriately called All-Terrain – that raises the car up by 20mm at speeds below 20mph and allows it to take rock-strewn inclines in its stride. Okay, a <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/best-and-worst-luxury-suvs/n17036">full-on SUV</a> would cope even better, but there’s no doubt that the All-Terrain has enough mud-plugging ability for the vast majority of buyers.

However, it’s the All-Terrain’s E400 diesel engine that’s most impressive. Not only does it provide&nbsp;the kind of low-end grunt that equates to effortless pace&nbsp;whether you’re in town or on the motorway, but it stays remarkably smooth and quiet, even when you’re accelerating hard.

These days it feels like most car buyers want an <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/best-and-worst-luxury-suvs/n17036">SUV</a>, even though they don’t really need one. However, the Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain is aimed at a smaller, but still very real, demographic: people who need an SUV, but don’t want one.

You see, like the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/audi/a6-allroad/estate/used-review/n237">Audi A6 Allroad</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volvo/v90/estate/review/n17245">Volvo V90 Cross Country</a>, the All-Terrain is a traditional upmarket <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/news/best-estate-cars-2019-and-the-ones-to-avoid/n16998">estate car</a> that’s been given four-wheel drive,&nbsp;plastic body cladding to protect against scratches and scrapes&nbsp;and adjustable air suspension so you can&nbsp;increase its&nbsp;ground clearance.

Hugely spacious and luxurious,&nbsp;it has the potential to be&nbsp;ideal for country dwellers occasionally faced with adverse weather conditions and rough roads that would flummox a typical estate car.

The E-Class All-Terrain range couldn’t be simpler:&nbsp;there's&nbsp;just one well equipped trim and one engine available. That used to be Mercedes' well-proven but rather dated 3.0-litre V6 diesel, but its place has now been taken&nbsp;by a much newer unit (badged E400 d) that promises improved refinement and efficiency.

In this review, we’ll cover everything you need to know about the Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain, including <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17229/on-the-road">what it’s like to drive</a>, <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17229/space-practicality">how practical it is</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17229/buying-owning">how much it will cost you to buy and run</a>. And if you do decide it’s the car for you, we can even save you the trouble of haggling for a discount, thanks to <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/new-car-deals/">our New Car Buying service</a>.

Being basically the same inside as high-end versions of the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17209">E-Class Estate</a> and <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/saloon/review/n17174">saloon</a>, it’s very easy to get comfortable behind the wheel of the E-Class All-Terrain. The driver’s seat and steering column are electrically operated and there's adjustment to satisfy both short and tall drivers.

There’s plenty of visual wow factor, too, thanks to chrome highlights, ambient lighting and standard dual-12.3in displays that appear as one long screen that contains&nbsp;the digital instruments and&nbsp;infotainment. Among the latter's All-Terrain specific features are multiple camera angles that help with reversing and towing – including a bespoke view to help you hitch up a trailer.

Most of the car’s functions are controlled via a rotary controller and touchpad between the seats, an arrangement that's less distracting than the touchscreen in <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volvo/v90/estate/review/n17245">Volvo’s V90 Cross Country</a>. However, BMW’s iDrive system still has the edge for both ease of use and graphical slickness.

Estate

Mercedes’ line-up is vast – ranging from the A-Class family hatchback through to staple saloons such as the C-Class and E-Class, and onwards towards multiple SUVs, luxury saloons and even sports cars. Coupés and convertibles are thrown into the mix as well.

As one of the ‘big three’ German brands, Mercedes most often finds itself competing with Audi and BMW but more recently has found itself fending off Jaguar and Volvo, too.

Mercedes models are known for comfort. One example of this is the E-Class, because while the Audi A6 has a plusher interior and the BMW 5 Series handles better, the E-Class is probably the most comfortable for a long motorway journey.

MERCEDES-BENZ

E-CLASS ALL-TERRAIN

The Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain is practical, surprisingly capable off road and has one of the best diesel engines around. It’s just a shame it’s so expensive.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class All-Terrain

The E-Class is one of the most spacious premium estates out there&nbsp;and the All-Terrain makeover changes nothing in that respect. Even the tallest individuals will be comfortable up front&nbsp;and, while the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/volvo/v90/estate/review/n17245">Volvo V90</a> has more rear leg room, you’d never say the All-Terrain was cramped.

Two points worth mentioning, though: the panoramic glass roof eats into rear head room slightly and, unlike the <a href="https://www.whatcar.com/mercedes-benz/e-class/estate/review/n17209">regular E-Class Estate</a>, there’s no option of an extra row of seats in the boot.

That point aside, the boot still impresses. The standard powered tailgate automatically retracts the load cover as it opens, revealing a floor area that’s roughly 1.1m square when the rear seats are in place. This is complimented by a separate, large storage well under the boot floor.

You can tilt the rear-seat backrests forwards to maximise boot space or, if that’s still not enough, simply press&nbsp;convenient buttons next to the tailgate opening to drop the 40/20/40 split-folding rear seats entirely. They lie completely flat to provide&nbsp;a vast extended load deck.

You get plenty of other storage options, too. Bigger items, such as a bottle of water, will fit in the large door bins, the glovebox will take a sizeable tin of travel sweets&nbsp;and there’s a big cubby in the dashboard and one under the centre armrest – both with USB ports for charging a phone. Other thoughtful touches include rubberised floor mats front and rear, although sadly there isn't&nbsp;one for the boot.

The Mercedes E-Class All-Terrain is practical, surprisingly capable off road and has one of the best diesel engines around. It’s just a shame it’s so expensive.

<h2>What we're looking for:</h2><ul><li>Huge boot and excellent practicality</li> <li>Plenty of interior space so you can carry passengers as well as luggage </li> <li>Strong engines to pull a heavily laden car</li> <li>Comfortable ride, especially on the motorway</li> <li>Low running costs for company car drivers</li></ul>

If you’re after bags of space but you don’t want to commit to the van-like dimensions and styling of an MPV, there are some great estate cars on offer that should do the job.

Tricks to look out for include an electric tailgate&nbsp;that opens automatically when you wave your foot under the rear bumper; this is&nbsp;particularly handy if you’re trying to load in a heavy or&nbsp;bulky item. You should also look for handles in the side of the boot itself that can drop down the rear seats; these are much more convenient than having to walk around the side of the car to do it.

There are some terrific estates at most price ranges. The humble Skoda Fabia Estate offers cavernous space for not much cash at all, for example.

Further up the price range, another of our perennial favourites is the Skoda Superb Estate;&nbsp;it’s great to drive and as practical as most people should ever need. Meanwhile, for serious mile-munching ability and a premium, well-finished interior, it’s hard to look beyond the BMW 5 Series Touring.

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