The end of the calendar year kicks off the beginning of awards season in the auto industry, the latest being Motor Trend’s annual “Car of the Year” award, which for 2021 is going to the Mercedes-Benz E-Class.
Mercedes was quick to announce its capture of the latest edition of the “Golden Calipers,” which in this case covers all of the E-Class variants: coupe, sedan, wagon and convertible. It beat out 18 new or redesigned vehicles with 30 iterations.
“The E-Class carries the stout imprimatur of old-school luxury, from the graining of the wood to the suppleness of the leather seats, to the consistency of design all around the exterior and interior,” said Mark Rechtin, MotorTrend editor-in-chief, in a statement.
(Mercedes keeps sedan fait as 2021 E-Class starts at $54K.)
“Yet it also carries the latest in automotive technology, be it in the realm of safety, assisted driving, or infotainment. There is something simply reassuring about sitting inside a whisper-quiet-yet-thunderous Mercedes-Benz.”
The German automaker has been rolling out the updated versions of the new model since late spring, when it debuted the coupe and cabriolet. Unsurprisingly, the sedan came out in late fall, but the wagon, which arrived in late August, is an outlier in the industry, which favors crossovers and SUVs.
However, the E-Class wagon has a long history and an equally devoted following among the small group of devotees who want room and cargo space, but don’t feel like they need to dominate the drivers around them as they motor down the road.
(Mercedes-Benz E-Class wagon gets update for 2021.)
“It is a true honor for the MotorTrend team to recognize the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class family with this prestigious and highly coveted award,” said Adam Chamberlain, vice president of Sales, Mercedes-Benz USA.
“As the heart of our brand, the E-Class offers a highly compelling combination of distinctive design, luxurious interior appointments, advanced technology and sophisticated safety systems. This seamless interplay of emotion and intelligence appeals to both the hearts and minds of our customers.”
Motor Trend’s editors noted that the E-Class offered a significant advantage over the competition in a variety of categories, such as safety, efficiency, value, design, engineering and performance. They described the coupe as “rigid and gutsy,” while noting the luxury feels that the convertible offers with the air cap and air scarf technology. In short, the devil was in the details, and Mercedes does detail with the best.
(Mercedes pulls the wraps off 2021 E-Class coupe and cabriolet.)
Motor Trend’s other finalists for the award included: the BMW 8-Series Gran Coupe, Hyundai Sonata, Mercedes-Benz CLA-Class, Nissan Sentra, and Porsche Taycan.
