As for the CLK, it was pretty awful, you’re right, especially the interior, but the exterior, at least of the cabriolet still had something going for it.

I’m pretty sure that I’ve got a good handle on the marque’s present and past. And I, too, appreciate the look of the new E-Class. And the C-Class, for that matter.

The last CLK was, with exception of its powerplants, an awful car. This new E-Class coupe shows promise, except that its styling has been painted with the same contrived brush that endeavors to make most cars look sporty but renders them anonymously banal instead.

I’m saying that MB should consider adopting a less is more aesthetic.

The E-class coupé has just arrived north of the border and I am quite impressed. I was a passenger in the E550 the other day and I was impressed with the fit and finish, the ride and even the sound. But when I think about it, it’s a nice car. But it’s not really a Mercedes.

Mercedes has changed a lot over the past few years. Maybe it’s just you and I that are a bit behind. Despite the recession up here Mercedes sales are actually up 7% over last year when our local economy seemed unstoppable. More and more people, many who never would have considered Mercedes a decade ago are finding themselves behind the wheel of one.

The price is part of the reason. The E350 coupé will be starting around $58,000 CDN. I can’t even imagine a w124 E320 coupé cost so little and that was now about 15 years ago.

There is another reason. When I heard the driver of a vulgar Infiniti G coupe describe the new E as being hot, it once again showed how Mercedes are trying to appeal to younger drivers. Salesmen talk about those new fog lights and how it looks so aggressive in comparison to the previous CLK.

This new coupé truly lacks elegance and any sense of timeless design. The CLK, despite it’s quality issues will be just as elegant ten years from now. The new E will appear to be so 2009 with aggressive headlamps, high tech appearing fog lamps and bulging rear fenders. The design is way too in the moment and lacks the ability to last ten years as the W124 did.

on that subject…

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=KM5A2djJnAM

As these two German dudes show, previous w124 drivers wore ties, drank from small coffee cups and spoke politely amongst each other.