Fuel economy is about 4-6 km/l in the city and 9 to 11 on highways and long trips.
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Likes
1. 3 in 1 car – convertible, sedan and sports car like behaviours.
2. Practical 4 seater convertible.
3. Seeing this as a car which will hopefully appreciate in value – 2 door convertible Mercedes should never go out of style. The other comparable cars Mercedes have in current portfolio in India are the E53 AMG cabriolet which is over 1.6 Cr on road and the very recently launched CLE300 cabriolet. The CLE is more or less a direct replacement to the A205 C300 Cabrio which was sold from 2016 to 2020/21.
4. Outstanding 3 litre V6 biturbo engine (gets used in a wide range of mid-range performance Mercedes cars – GLE400 & 450, all the 43 AMGs, SL400, etc.)
5. Nice build quality, supple and comfortable ride
6. Understated looks, beautiful proportions
7. People love looking at this car on the road and it invites some nice appreciation which is enjoyable to experience. Kids love the car!
8. Rare car – I anticipate that MB imported less than 100-150 of these in the country. Anyone with a more credible number please chime in!
9. Complete paradigm shift – this is truly an all-weather car not just a fair weather machine.
10. Fully usable boot as the spare wheel is full sized and under the boot floor.
Dislikes
1. Relatively poor ground clearance. With 4 people, you have to be extremely careful on speed brakers, and still might scrape the belly.
2. Used convertible cars are commanding very high premiums – especially these annoying dealers who are not ashamed of asking even 25% premiums / finder’s fees. I had to pay considerably more than a 2015 W212 sedan. Worldwide, this delta is less – convertibles are 20% more expensive than their sedan counterparts. But in India, this ratio is more like double. As the cars get older, the 4 door convertible Mercs tend to settle into one price range.
3. Suspension is not robust for Indian roads. Ride quality goes down quickly if the suspension is not in good shape. If you are buying a cabrio pre owned, definitely budget for a suspension refresh in early years of your ownership.
4. Perceived lack of practicality
5. The seat belts don’t retract properly and I hate Mercedes for this.
Realities
1. This is a daily ride for me as it was probably for the previous owner.
2. My office is less than 2 km from the house and I have flexi work. So my weekly work commute is not beyond 20 km even if I go to office daily. The car is very much ok for this level of driving and I have covered parking in both places.
3. This is a leisure and happiness car for me. I have used it for late night / early morning drives, family overnighter trips, coffee meets etc.
4. Most of the opinions about convertibles in this country are wrong – they are wonderful all weather cars. I got the car in peak summer and experienced it in the summer of 2023. I have seen 2 summers and 2 rains. The car is most enjoyable obviously in winter. However it is truly weather agnostic.
5. Convertibles (at least these 4 seater ones) are more practical that people think they are.
6. The fabric roof is a lot less hassle than I thought it would be, it needs a different kind of care compared to the metallic surfaces that we are used to. It attracts dust and in my case, weekly cleaning is sufficient.
7. Fuel economy is about 4-6 kmpl in city and 9 to 11 on highway and long trips. The first 4 gears are not really meant to enjoy the car.
Introducing the car to you all
Continue reading BHPian nitrogary’s E400 ownership for more insights and information.
