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Mercedes-Benz may have a winner with its new 320 Eclass sedan. When my neighbors and friends guessed at its sticker price, their estimates were well into the $50,000 to $60,000 range. But this inline-six-equipped beauty carries a base price of $43,500. (Though Mercedes ads promote a $39,900 base, that's only for the diesel model.)
The first point of interest is an electronic traction system (ETS) that comes as a standard feature. It activates when one drive wheel slips, limiting wheelspin when starting from rest, accelerating, or while driving through curves. ETS brakes that wheel until both drive wheels spin at about the same speed. The weather cooperated when I had the E320 and I was able to check out ETS in rain, ice, snow, and on dirt roads.
Initially, it is a little weird to feel ETS kick in. (A dash light actuates when it's on.) I mistook the now-you-slip/nowyou-don't sensation for a transmission malfunction. (I should explain, though, that this happened while I was testing the car by pulling mini hole shots on snowcovered roads. Less extreme driving makes the feeling less pronounced.) Overall, ETS gives the rear-wheel-drive E Series more stability when it counts. That being said, no traction system yet invented counteracts the laws of physics if you drive like a moron.
In situations where ETS and ABS (also standard) fail to keep you out of trouble, the E Series carries...