SUV vs Estate Twin Test | 2021 GLE 350 d SUV vs E 300 de Estate head to head in 4K

[@santillbrezon2161]

I think this E class vehicle would be very economical. The E class is one of my favorite vehicles.

[@allanbirch807]

I took the E-classe 300de - fantastic car and I love every km in it

[@grolfe3210]

Thanks for video. I have driven C and E class estates for years and so good to review things before my next change. I think I am not convinced to switch to an SUV. Additional factors I also consider- Fuel - The GLE will drink about 25% more fuel. Probably not a consideration if you are blowing £60k on it but I am rather more in the 5 year old price range and so this is a big consideration, plus the enviro and range sides. Image - Everyone in a SUV just looks a tosser. Everyone in an E class is a content, nothing to prove type. Pick a side! Ride - While I accept the GLE sticks to the road, look at you in it and you are jiggling about. Being higher there must be more movement whereas the E is much nearer the road and so smoother. Hopefully the trend for SUV will continue and prices of E Classes will drop a bit!!

[@LandLAutomotive]

Those are some great points! For this test it was impossible to do a like-for-like fuel consumption comparison with one being a hybrid and the other not, but from experience the GLE 400 d will get around 35 mpg on a motorway run whilst an E 400 d will comfortably get 40+. The fuel tank on the GLE is larger at 85 litres as opposed to 66 in the diesel E-Class models so overall range isn't too dissimilar. The ride is an interesting one too! It's something I noticed only when editing - not while driving, strangely. With the GLE it's like you move with the car rather than moving within it. I think it's down to the air springs in their comfort setting allowing for quite a bit of movement in all directions to soak up the bumps. Personally, I think we'll see a resurgence in estates as manufacturers electrify their model ranges - just like with the SUV boom, nobody will want to be left behind.

[@grolfe3210]

@@LandLAutomotive Thanks for reply. With the ride, I think the driver is OK in the GLE as they are involved in driving and holding the wheel. However there is a lot of feedback on the internet about passengers and especially kids in the back being more car sick in higher cars. I hate being a passenger in them. As for the future, i think it will keep going to the SUV. I have never and will never buy a new car but buyers seem to revert to being 12 years old when choosing a car and opt for a 130mph Tonka toy. I just wish the E class estate was less popular so that I could afford the 2017 model, they seem to be £20k + for a 5 year old car.

[@LandLAutomotive]

Interesting. I'm a worse passenger than a lit flare so it's always the driver's seat for me! Counter-intuitively, the ride for passengers may be better with the air suspension set to Sport - more surface feedback but less movement whilst heading down the road. Audi recently revealed an A6 Avant e-tron concept and I'd put £1 on both Mercedes-Benz and BMW not wanting to allow our friends from Ingolstadt to have a 100% share of the premium electric estate market. There should be a steady stream of E-Classes returning to the used market once their first PCPs are up - over the last few years in the industry I've seen quite a few E-Class Estates and CLS Shooting Brakes being traded in for GLC/GLEs and this trend should continue. Well-specced examples don't tend to stick around on the forecourts for very long though!

[@MarkWhitworthioi]

Love the E-Class!

[@MB.S560]

Great video Ken! Nice Boeing reference! 👍

[@LandLAutomotive]

Thank you! Air Ken opens for business very soon.

[@LukePC]

Just for reference, how tall are you please so I can guage rear interior space?

[@c6mbo]

E class all the way, good video mate

[@LandLAutomotive]

Thank you! Glad you enjoyed it. We've got a few more twin tests planned too.

[@Red_Dusk]

e class

[@egwuogusmarth.c4949]

E class estate dont really appeal to young dudes , i rather go for bmw 5 series estate