Australia to miss out on high-riding Mercedes-Benz E-Class All-Terrain wagon

Meet the Subaru Outback of Mercedes-Benz luxury wagons. The E-Class All-Terrain brings taller suspension and black body cladding, but it will not be sold in Australia.

The 2024 Mercedes-Benz E-Class All-Terrain has been unveiled at the Munich motor show in Germany, ahead of a planned start to European sales in early 2024.

However as with the regular E-Class wagon, the All-Terrain will not be sold locally as Mercedes-Benz Australia has elected to pull away from wagons and focus on its top-selling SUVs.

The previous model was sold to the public from 2016 to 2020 in the first half of the outgoing E-Class range’s life, in E220d four-cylinder diesel form.

It was formally dropped from the line-up with the facelift in 2020, however a small batch of six-cylinder E400d All-Terrains intended to become highway-patrol cars were sold to the public in 2021 after the Victoria Police order was cancelled.

MORE: 2024 Mercedes-Benz E-Class wagon, All-Terrain not returning to Australia

The new E-Class is due in Australian showrooms early next year in sedan form only.

The All-Terrain builds on the latest E-Class wagon with more rugged exterior styling, taller suspension, unique interior elements and a range of petrol, diesel and plug-in hybrid drivetrains.

Among the styling changes differentiating the E-Class All Terrain from the E-Class wagon is a new-look twin-louvre grille similar in design to that adorning Mercedes-Benz’s SUV models.

The new model also receives uniquely-styled bumpers with improved approach and departure angles, black plastic cladding around the wheel arches, a chrome-look trim element along the side sills, and a stainless steel load plate within the bumper at the rear.

MORE: Brand-new Mercedes-Benz highway patrol cars for sale to the public

Inside, the new model receives AMG-style stainless-steel pedal caps and floor mats with All-Terrain logos.

At 4950mm in length, 1904mm in width and 1497mm in height, the new Mercedes-Benz model is 17mm longer, 33mm wider and the same height as its predecessor, which was produced between 2017 and 2023.

As with the E-Class wagon, the wheelbase has been increased by 22mm to 2961mm, creating greater legroom and kneeroom for rear-seat occupants.

Luggage capacity underneath the cargo blind at the rear is put at the same 615 litres as the latest E-Class wagon, extending to 1830 litres when the 40:20:40 configured rear seat is folded down.

Load space is reduced by 155 litres to between 460 and 1675 litres in plug-in hybrid E-Class All-Terrain models, owing to the packaging of the battery under the boot floor.

Mercedes-Benz’s new high-riding wagon will be sold with the choice of diesel, petrol and plug-in hybrid drivetrains – all featuring a nine-speed automatic gearbox and all-wheel drive as standard.

Included is a turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine developing 145kW and 440Nm in the E220d 4Matic, and a turbocharged 3.0-litre six-cylinder petrol engine with 280kW and 500Nm in the E450 4Matic.

Both receive 48-volt mild-hybrid assistance with an added 17kW and up to 205Nm for short periods, contributed by an integrated starter generator mounted in the gearbox.

Joining them is the E300de 4Matic plug-in hybrid, which combines the E220d 4Matic’s turbocharged 2.0-litre four-cylinder diesel engine with a gearbox-mounted electric motor for a combined system output of 230kW and 700Nm.

With a 19.5kWh battery, it also provides a claimed electric driving range of between 85km and 102km on Europe’s WLTP test cycle.

Mercedes-Benz quotes a braked towing capacity of 2100kg for all models. The unbraked towing capacity is put at 750kg. A tongue weight of up to 84kg also allows the transport of e-bikes, says Mercedes-Benz.

The 2024 E-Class All-Terrain rides on air suspension with adaptive damping – which varies the compression and rebound properties on each individual wheel – as standard.

It receives an added 46mm of ride height compared to the standard E-Class wagon, providing increased ground clearance for mild off-road driving.

The air suspension provides constant self-levelling, and automatically lowers the ride height by 15mm at speeds above 120km/h to reduce aerodynamic drag in typical motorway driving.

While right-hand-drive production of the E-Class All Terrain is planned, the German car maker says there are no immediate plans to introduce the new model to the Australian market.

“We will start with left-hand drive European markets and when right-hand drive arrives, the new E-Class All Terrain will also be introduced to the Japanese market. At the moment there are no plans for Australian sales,” said Steffen Schlierholz, spokesperson for Mercedes-Benz.

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