Launched back in 2010, the latest Mercedes E-Class Estate continues the German brand’s tradition of offering a really big and practical car for various family-related tasks.

While not quite as striking as its coupe or saloon counterparts, the E-Class Estate is still one of the more eye-catching family cars in the market right now. Main rivals include the BMW 5 Series Touring and the Audi A6 Avant.

While the standard of the competition is high, the E-Class Estate does have at least one advantage which can be identified right away. It offers more space for both passengers and luggage inside than its most direct rivals. With the famous silver arrows adorning this car, customers will inevitably expect luxury quality to go with these practical elements.

Performance

Engines currently on offer with the E-Class Estate include two diesels - an E220 CDI and E250 CDI diesel – producing 168bhp and 201bhp respectively. There’s also a E300 BlueTEC petrol-electric hybrid powertrain that delivers 201bhp.

With any of these powertrains the performance isn't too bad, although the acceleration isn’t going to rip your eyebrows off.

It will surge out reasonably quickly from a rolling start when overtaking, particularly in Sport mode.

Mercedes-Benz says it's the programmable gearshift that helps. It allows you to choose between a high revving Sport mode, a Manual mode that allows you to employ paddles under the steering wheel to sort the cogs out, and an Economy mode that generally gives a more leisurely response and changes up gear sooner, unless you stamp hard on the go pedal when it'll rev its big heart out to surge you off down the road.

If you’re after much more oomph then the E-Class estate does also offers an E350 petrol option with 248bhp. Then there’s the high-performance V8 petrol unit that delivers 549bhp for the E63 AMG specification, or 582bhp for the AMG S.

Ride and Handling

Benefitting the ride is self-levelling air suspension for the rear, a standard feature for the E-Class Estate.

Despite its sheer size, the E-Class estate is surprisingly manoeuvrable. The car is over 16 feet long, nearly seven feet wide and it weighs more than 1.8 tonnes, but narrow country lanes, tight city car parks and switchback corners are no trouble if taken with care. Benefitting the ride is self-levelling air suspension for the rear, a standard feature for the E-Class Estate. It can turn a complete circle in a space about a couple of paces wider than twice its own length, and while weaving with such a huge amount of metal requires some forethought, very little seems beyond it.

Interior and Equipment

The Mercedes E-Class range (including the Estate version) received a major facelift towards the end of 2012. This update gave the premium family car a much more aggressive and sportier look then before.

Inside the E-Class Estate is simply cavernous. It's an absolute wardrobe of a cargo-hold. Of course, indoors the car is extremely comfortable wherever you're sitting. The driver's seat is part electrically adjustable with manual slide and lumbar support controls. It also has a three-level heating element in it – great if you have a bit of backache or the frost is dusting the three-point star on the bonnet. That seat can be an intimidating place, though. The driver is faced with an impressive selection of buttons, levers and knobs, to the point of it being bewildering. There are cars with more technology that are comparatively easier to find your way round. But there are a few trick elements worthy of note, like the cool blipper-operated self-opening tailgate, the mood lighting in and around the passenger bay and the very effective adaptive headlamp system to see you safely round corners in the dark.

Cost

The E-Class Estate has reasonable running costs, although some optional kit can add a lot more to the price.

The E-Class Estate’s current starting price of £36,060 is more than the BMW 5 Series Touring (£32,590) and the Audi A6 Avant (£32,985). Overall though, the E-Class Estate has reasonable running costs, although some optional kit can add a lot more to the price. There are some impressively efficient engines for a car of this size. The E220 CDI four-cylinder diesel emits just 135g/km, while the BlueTec hybrid emits just 119g/km.

Our Verdict

If you need a massive load carrier, there's never been a better estate car than the E-class. It's huge inside and it’s also comfortable and elegant to drive. There are some frustrations as well though, such as the complicated button layout and the noisy diesel engines. If you are willing to sacrifice some boot space, however, then the E-Class Estate’s main rivals from Audi and BMW are well worth considering since they are cheaper and more refined.