Mercedes Benz E-Class All-Terrain 4x4², a dream come true

In recent times it seems that something is changing at Mercedes-Benz. Its executives seem to be giving up the necktie (unthinkable until very recently), and its cars are beginning to offer more attractive and youthful designs, seeking to motivate new generations of drivers to buy cars from the brand with the star and thereby lower the average age of its followers. The traditional and classic German brand is changing vigorously, and a good example of this is this new E-Class All-Terrain 4×4², whose genesis would have been unthinkable just a few years ago.

And it seems that at Mercedes-Benz they are also unleashing the creativity of their engineers, which is why we are beginning to see its range populated with high-power models and a somewhat extravagant look for what used to be typical of the seriousness and tradition of the brand with the star. The latest example is this Mercedes Benz E-Class All-Terrain 4×4², an extreme and radicalised version of the E-Class All-Terrain 4×4, the fruit of the ingenuity of one of the brand’s engineers, Jurgen Eberle, in charge of developing the new E-Class.

Eberle took about six months to bring this unique vehicle to fruition, as it is an E-Class All-Terrain 4×4 to which the axles of the G-Class 4×4² have been fitted. Although his initial idea was simply to build an estate with greater ground clearance, Eberle let his imagination run wild and went much further than a simple change to the spring and damper configuration.

To make his idea a reality he presented his project to his teammates and requested funding from Mercedes to bring his idea to life… and obtained it to produce a single model. The result is what can be seen in the photos, an E-Class All-Terrain of impressive appearance, with its height raised by 24 cm over the standard model, which gives it a ground clearance of 40 cm. Naturally, it fits Mercedes’s 4Matic all-wheel drive, although it lacks a transfer case and any locking system for its differentials, elements that would undoubtedly allow it to make even better use of its increased height and would give it greater off-road capability.

In any case, nothing else seems to follow the logic of an E-Class All-Terrain in this car. On its widened tracks, Eberle has fitted 31-inch wheels and, to move them, has installed under the bonnet a 3.5-litre turbocharged V6 petrol engine producing 328 CV, a powertrain that—at least for the moment—is absent from the conventional E-Class All-Terrain 4×4 range.

The result, far from displeasing the brand’s executives, has captivated them, to the point that Mercedes could now be considering, as Eberle himself explained, limited production in very small series, given the positive reception the car is receiving in the markets where it has been shown.

Keep a unit aside for us, as we’d be delighted to test it.