Mercedes E 220 d Coupé

FIRST UK DRIVE Classy two-door four-seater impresses with great build quality and comfort.

- Sam Naylor

THE Mercedes E-Class is one of our favourite large saloon cars, blending a classy interior with a composed driving experience and a strong range of engines. That doesn’t automatically mean we’ll love this new Coupé model, but with such a good base, what could go wrong?

We first drove the car in Spain last month, and came away impressed with the Coupé’s refined, calm and cosseting character. Happily, that holds true back in the UK, even on our notoriously rutted roads. Our test car was fitted with standard springs rather than the pricey adaptive air-suspension (a £1,495 option), but even on bumpy tarmac, we found the big E-Class to be extremely comfortable indeed.

The ride is a little firm at low speed, but push on and it irons out everything well – even larger potholes. It feels very big here in Britain, though, as our smaller, tighter roads start to make the Mercedes’ sheer size a bit of an issue. Despite its strikingly similar looks, its not as svelte as the smaller C-Class Coupé.