2014 Mercedes-Benz E250 BlueTec Sedan – First Look and Review

By Jonathan Spira on 20 August 2013

For 2014, the Mercedes-Benz E-Class family is receiving a mid-life refresh but it’s the most extensive facelift we’ve seen and probably the most ambitious in the history of the marque. Indeed, the new E-Class looks more like a new model than some completely new introductions in recent years.

In the case of the E-Class, it isn’t just a simple nip and tuck: the sedan and wagon bodies have been significantly redesigned in keeping with the Sindelfingen-based automaker’s efforts at achieving a new look as evidenced by the new CLA and S-Class lines. Given that competitors in the mid-size luxury sedan market, such as the current-generation Audi A6 and BMW 5 Series are still quite new, the creation of a new look is quite understandable.

While we already liked the elegance of the E-Class, the new look makes it stand out from the crowd. It’s available with two distinct front-end designs, the Luxury variant with the traditional Benz grille and three-pointed star hood ornament, and the Sport version with a performance-oriented grille with integrated star. Most of the car’s prominent features, headlamps, taillights, front and rear bumpers, front fenders, the hood, and the rear doors, are all new.

What’s under the hood is new, too. The 2014 E250 BlueTec is the second Mercedes to use the all-new 2.1-liter four-cylinder diesel – the first four-cylinder diesel engine that the automaker has offered in the U.S. in almost 30 years. (The first to get the new engine was the 2013 GLK250 BlueTec 4Matic, which went on sale earlier this year.)

In the GLK250 BlueTec, the 2.1-liter turbodiesel, mated to a seven-speed automatic transmission, develops 200 horsepower and 369 pound-feet of torque with EPA fuel economy ratings of 24 mpg (9.8 l/100 km) in the city and 33 (7.1) on the highway, fuel consumption figures that place it at the top of the heap for luxury compact crossovers.

The transplant to the E250 BlueTec somehow resulted in the loss of 5 horsepower but the torque remains the same, peaking from 1,600 to 1,800 rpm. While the torque figure is still 96 pound-feet ahead of the gasoline fueled E350, it behooves us to stop and look at the figures from the E250 BlueTec’s predecessor, the E350 BlueTec, which had a six-cylinder diesel that developed 210 horsepower and 400 pound-feet of torque between 1,600 and 2,400 rpm.

The E350 BlueTec moved from zero to sixty in 6.6 seconds and delivered fuel economy of 22 mpg (10.7 l/100 km) city and 33 (7.1) highway.