Hard though it might be for some automotive product planners to believe, not everyone wants an SUV, and that includes some people who need some of the ground clearance that an SUV offers. But it looks like Mercedes isn’t ready to abandon that small bunch of buyers who want a traditional car body style with a decent helping of off-road ability.
Our spy photographers have already snapped the upcoming E-Class in multiple configurations from vanilla sedans to hot AMG-tuned wagons, and now they’ve caught the midsize Merc kitted out in All-Terrain guise. Like the previous All-Terrain unveiled in 2016, the new model is essentially a regular E-Class wagon with some body cladding and air suspension allowing the driver to jack the ride height up to tackle off-highway roads.
As we can see from the spy shots the black plastic arch extensions and sill cover are fairly discrete, and even the increase in ride height over a regular E-Class when the All Terrain is in its standard driving mode is fairly subtle. We don’t know exactly how much ground clearance the new car will deliver when lifted as high as it will go, but the previous version offered up to 6.1 inches (156 mm) of fresh air between the floor and the floor pan. Naturally, 4Matic all-wheel drive will be standard and you can expect an ‘All-Terrain’ mode on the Dynamic Select driving mode menu that isn’t present on regular 4Matic E-Class wagons.
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As expected this All-Terrain prototype features the same flush door handles and LED lights we’ve seen on other less lofty E-Class test cars, but it also features a filler flap on each side, suggesting it’s packing plug-in hybrid power. That’s not a feature available on the current All-Terrain which comes with either a 362 hp (367 PS) 3.0-liter turbocharged inline-six in the U.S.-market E 450 or a 335 hp (340 PS) 3.0-liter diesel in the European E400d.
The prototype could be powered by a version of the 308 hp (312 PS) 2.0-liter PHEV drivetrain fitted to the C300e, though it would need to put on a bit more muscle to take the place of the older six-cylinder engines. Alternately, Mercedes might consider dropping in the hybrid-assisted six-cylinder engine from the S580e, whose 503 hp (510 PS) sounds much more exciting.
Do you still see a point to this kind of car-based crossover, or would you rather just go all in and have an SUV?
