Mercedes-AMG E43

Twin-turbo V6 sedan surprisingly fun to drive.

- Dylan Campbell

SUPPOSE Mercedes-AMG's C-Class models are a little too juvenile for you. You've read about the C43's noisy, cracking and howling Performance exhaust and the grunty V8 C63's tyre-frying predilections. You want something a little more grown-up than that – and maybe a little larger – and aren't afraid to pay for it.

Enter the new Mercedes-AMG E43. Copping the same nine-speed torque converter auto and 3.0-litre twin-turbocharged V6 powerplant from the C43 – but with larger turbos for more grunt – the E43 belts out 295kW and 520Nm, shifting its brand new E-Class platform to 100km/h in an all-wheel drive-enhanced 4.6 seconds, 0.1sec quicker than the lighter C43. Not too foul indeed.

Slipping into the E43, you're of course treated to the all-new E-Class experience. It's like a baby S-Class, with beautiful, glossy twin screens under the soft-touch instrument binnacle and with delightful materials everywhere. It absolutely feels more premium than the C-Class, itself with hardly what you'd call a Spartan interior.

Of course there's a smattering of tech and you can see where a lot of your extra coin has gone, including the beautiful large 12.3-inch displays – like you've got an iMac in your dashboard – and new generation semi-autonomous cruise control.