Road Test
Follow-Up Test: 2005 Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG Wagon
The Muscle Car for Mom
Does anyone really need a 469-horsepower, $90,000 station wagon that runs the quarter mile in 13 seconds at 112 mph and beer bongs premium at the rate of a gallon every 13 miles?
If your answer is anything but absofreakinglutely immediately replace Inside Line on your bookmarks list with www.idontknowwhatpeoplereallyneed.com.
Fact is we all need such a car. And after a single tire-shredding rip around the block in a 2005 Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG Wagon, we promise you'll need one, too.
Why? Because it's cool and fast and your kids don't fit in a Lamborghini Gallardo. Plus, there's enough people driving hybrids these days to allow the rest of us to have a little fun.
Monster Motor
This car, as is the case with every Mercedes AMG, is really about its engine. And oh boy, what an engine. It's the same hand-built supercharged 5.5-liter V8 that AMG slips into the CL55 AMG, the CLS55 AMG, the E55 AMG sedan, the G55 AMG sport-utility, the S55 AMG and the SL55 AMG.
Each engine is assembled one at a time by one man at Mercedes-AMG in Affalterbach, Germany. That means a single technician, who is identified on the signature plate affixed to the engine upon its completion, is responsible for the entire assembly from start to finish, including the installation of the screw-type supercharger, which makes a maximum of 11.6 pounds of boost. According to Mercedes, each engine is then bench-tested to ensure maximum performance before it leaves that facility.
In the SL55 and the CL55, the engine makes 493 hp, but in this wagon, and in the others, it's rated at only 469 hp at 6,100 rpm. Only 469 hp?!
Disappointed? Don't be. AMG blames a smaller exhaust system for the power drop, but only John Force might miss those missing ponies. With 516 lb-ft of torque, which hits at a very low 2,650 rpm, this engine has enough yank to relocate Manhattan Island to Boston Harbor.
AMG routes that power to the wagon's rear wheels (4Matic all-wheel drive is not available) through a five-speed automatic transmission Benz calls Speedshift. It can be left alone to change gears at its choosing, which it does well, or you can manually change gears with the shifter or with large, well-placed steering wheel-mounted buttons.
Monster Performance
That combination makes this the fastest family mobile on planet Earth. Whack open the throttle when the light goes green and this wagon accelerates like an Italian supercar, hitting 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds. Keep your foot down and the quarter-mile is history in 13 seconds at 112 mph. That's quicker than the last Chevrolet Corvette we tested. And by a bunch.
AMG backs up this thrust with equally impressive braking performance. Dinner plate-sized vented brake rotors that are cross-drilled for additional cooling are gripped by six-piston calipers in the front and four-piston units in the rear. Brake pedal feel is perfect and you could convince Ted Kennedy that Bush is brilliant before these binders will fade. That's saying something when the car weighs over 4,400 pounds. At the test track the E55 wagon stopped from 60 mph in just 120 feet.
Feels Different Than E55 Sedan
As fast as this wagon is, and it is fast, it's not as explosively fast as its sedan brother. It doesn't have the same severe traction problem we've experienced in the E55 sedan either, which will smoke its rear 18-inch Continentals from L.A.'s Westside to New York's East Village. Try that same trick in the wagon and you'll be hooked up by Amarillo.
The wagon's extra 320 pounds is the culprit. It's hung out over the rear axle, so it shoves the car's rear tires into the road which gives it better traction when the hammer is dropped. Ever wonder why wagons were always popular with Super Stock drag racers? Now you know. Our test car's optional reverse-facing third-row seat probably contributes a few more pounds back there and it costs $995, but it's worth it just so your kids can make weird faces at the people driving behind you.
Benz also equips the wagon's Airmatic air suspension with a slightly reduced rear spring rate, and the ESP electronic traction and stability control is tuned a touch more aggressively in the wagon than it is in the sedan.
If we'd never driven an E55 sedan, the differences would have surely gone unnoticed, but after experiencing that model's slightly sharper edge, the E55 wagon feels a tad blunt.
Not a Sports Car
Run it hard on a twisting mountain road and the E55 wagon's only real shortcoming shows itself. This is not a sports car. It handles well, has respectable grip and is pleasantly responsive, but it's not exactly tossable.
Bend it into a tight corner and the front end slides first and early. Breathe off the throttle and the nose will hold the line, but you never really feel like the front tires are digging in. With a goose of the gas pedal you can switch the cornering attitude from understeer to oversteer, but it takes a good kick because of all that weight pushing down on the rear tires. Plus, ESP has to be off if the car is going to cooperate.
Despite running over 61 mph in our slalom test, it generally feels big and heavy in such demanding conditions, and its steering, which is wonderful around town, picks up a crude kickback. After a few corners it's obvious the car is just happier embarrassing Ferraris from stoplight to stoplight.
Trade In the Country Squire
Down off the mountain, however, this car is nearly faultless. From its silky ride comfort to its astonishing seat comfort to its awesome build quality and snarling exhaust note, this wagon is hard to complain about in the real world.
According to Mercedes and AMG, no automobile capable of the same flat-out performance of the E55 AMG Wagon, or any other AMG vehicle for that matter, can display such a docile nature under everyday driving.
We agree. Is the Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG Wagon the perfect car? No. But we need one anyway.
If your answer is anything but absofreakinglutely immediately replace Inside Line on your bookmarks list with www.idontknowwhatpeoplereallyneed.com.
Fact is we all need such a car. And after a single tire-shredding rip around the block in a 2005 Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG Wagon, we promise you'll need one, too.
Why? Because it's cool and fast and your kids don't fit in a Lamborghini Gallardo. Plus, there's enough people driving hybrids these days to allow the rest of us to have a little fun.
Monster Motor
This car, as is the case with every Mercedes AMG, is really about its engine. And oh boy, what an engine. It's the same hand-built supercharged 5.5-liter V8 that AMG slips into the CL55 AMG, the CLS55 AMG, the E55 AMG sedan, the G55 AMG sport-utility, the S55 AMG and the SL55 AMG.
Each engine is assembled one at a time by one man at Mercedes-AMG in Affalterbach, Germany. That means a single technician, who is identified on the signature plate affixed to the engine upon its completion, is responsible for the entire assembly from start to finish, including the installation of the screw-type supercharger, which makes a maximum of 11.6 pounds of boost. According to Mercedes, each engine is then bench-tested to ensure maximum performance before it leaves that facility.
In the SL55 and the CL55, the engine makes 493 hp, but in this wagon, and in the others, it's rated at only 469 hp at 6,100 rpm. Only 469 hp?!
Disappointed? Don't be. AMG blames a smaller exhaust system for the power drop, but only John Force might miss those missing ponies. With 516 lb-ft of torque, which hits at a very low 2,650 rpm, this engine has enough yank to relocate Manhattan Island to Boston Harbor.
AMG routes that power to the wagon's rear wheels (4Matic all-wheel drive is not available) through a five-speed automatic transmission Benz calls Speedshift. It can be left alone to change gears at its choosing, which it does well, or you can manually change gears with the shifter or with large, well-placed steering wheel-mounted buttons.
Monster Performance
That combination makes this the fastest family mobile on planet Earth. Whack open the throttle when the light goes green and this wagon accelerates like an Italian supercar, hitting 60 mph in just 4.9 seconds. Keep your foot down and the quarter-mile is history in 13 seconds at 112 mph. That's quicker than the last Chevrolet Corvette we tested. And by a bunch.
AMG backs up this thrust with equally impressive braking performance. Dinner plate-sized vented brake rotors that are cross-drilled for additional cooling are gripped by six-piston calipers in the front and four-piston units in the rear. Brake pedal feel is perfect and you could convince Ted Kennedy that Bush is brilliant before these binders will fade. That's saying something when the car weighs over 4,400 pounds. At the test track the E55 wagon stopped from 60 mph in just 120 feet.
Feels Different Than E55 Sedan
As fast as this wagon is, and it is fast, it's not as explosively fast as its sedan brother. It doesn't have the same severe traction problem we've experienced in the E55 sedan either, which will smoke its rear 18-inch Continentals from L.A.'s Westside to New York's East Village. Try that same trick in the wagon and you'll be hooked up by Amarillo.
The wagon's extra 320 pounds is the culprit. It's hung out over the rear axle, so it shoves the car's rear tires into the road which gives it better traction when the hammer is dropped. Ever wonder why wagons were always popular with Super Stock drag racers? Now you know. Our test car's optional reverse-facing third-row seat probably contributes a few more pounds back there and it costs $995, but it's worth it just so your kids can make weird faces at the people driving behind you.
Benz also equips the wagon's Airmatic air suspension with a slightly reduced rear spring rate, and the ESP electronic traction and stability control is tuned a touch more aggressively in the wagon than it is in the sedan.
If we'd never driven an E55 sedan, the differences would have surely gone unnoticed, but after experiencing that model's slightly sharper edge, the E55 wagon feels a tad blunt.
Not a Sports Car
Run it hard on a twisting mountain road and the E55 wagon's only real shortcoming shows itself. This is not a sports car. It handles well, has respectable grip and is pleasantly responsive, but it's not exactly tossable.
Bend it into a tight corner and the front end slides first and early. Breathe off the throttle and the nose will hold the line, but you never really feel like the front tires are digging in. With a goose of the gas pedal you can switch the cornering attitude from understeer to oversteer, but it takes a good kick because of all that weight pushing down on the rear tires. Plus, ESP has to be off if the car is going to cooperate.
Despite running over 61 mph in our slalom test, it generally feels big and heavy in such demanding conditions, and its steering, which is wonderful around town, picks up a crude kickback. After a few corners it's obvious the car is just happier embarrassing Ferraris from stoplight to stoplight.
Trade In the Country Squire
Down off the mountain, however, this car is nearly faultless. From its silky ride comfort to its astonishing seat comfort to its awesome build quality and snarling exhaust note, this wagon is hard to complain about in the real world.
According to Mercedes and AMG, no automobile capable of the same flat-out performance of the E55 AMG Wagon, or any other AMG vehicle for that matter, can display such a docile nature under everyday driving.
We agree. Is the Mercedes-Benz E55 AMG Wagon the perfect car? No. But we need one anyway.
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