Mercedes-Benz E63 S review

Take a quick glance inside. Attractive, isn’t it? Sophisticated looking steering wheel, lovely material blend, elegant, interesting design, lots of screen and carbon. Sets the tone for the car very well. Now try using it.

Mercedes is by no means alone in trying to insert maximum functionality into its cars, but it is one of the worst offenders when it comes to complexity. Mostly this is confined to the screen menus, and once you’ve got those set-up as you like you don’t have to worry too much. But the new steering wheel is even more of a fiddle to operate than before. The only proper physical buttons on the steering wheel are the paddles for the gearshift – the lovely tactile metal rotary volume controller has been replaced with a slider bar that’s more awkward to operate (but presumably saves money).

At least Mercedes appears to have spent on the controllers in the lower half. These configurable mini-screens operate the dynamic systems (suspension, exhaust, traction, gears etc) and used to be cheap, flimsy and creak when pressed. Now they’re more solid. Bravo. Thumb pads on the top bar control the left/right screens respectively. It’s a good idea in that you don’t need to use the touchpad on the centre console, or reach and prod at the screens themselves, but they’re still not a quick and easy way of getting around the increasingly deep and confusing menu system. And nor is the ‘Hey Mercedes’ voice control system.

Let’s look at some positives. The driving position is great; the seats, although almost hard, are very supportive, and there’s more than enough space all round for people and kit. The estate’s boot is huge, it’s a very practical device and although maybe not as logical to operate inside as its Audi and BMW rivals, fights back with a cabin that feels more appealing than a run-of-the-mill exec saloon’s.