After A Week With The Mercedes-AMG E53 Wagon, These Are The Features I Loved Most

The Mercedes-AMG E53 wagon shouldn’t work, but it does. A 5,000-pound hybrid station wagon should not make as good a driver’s car as this one does, yet here we are. There’s a lot to like about the E53’s package as a whole, including its neck-snapping acceleration, svelte looks, and wagon practicality. You can’t get to all of it in one review of the thing, but I’ve elaborated on the highlights here.

The Elephant In The Trunk


The E53’s wagon body is cavernous.
Chase Bierenkoven


In my opinion, the biggest draw behind the E53 AMG is without a doubt its body style. The wagon is the penultimate car dude layout because it lets you live out your car dude lifestyle without ruining the lives of people around you. You can still drive the dog, the partner, the kids, the groceries around without having to apologize for your dumb, low, loud car. With 64 cubic feet of cargo space, the E53 is just as practical as an equivalent SUV, but way more fun.

Do-It-All Cupholders Built For Americans



Chase Bierenkoven

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You may not know this, but the Germans love to joke about our need to have cups in our cars. They think it, like eating in the car, is a silly “American thing” we do that just isn’t necessary. Some automakers have design studios that have confided in me that they tailor cars to this. These cupholders are evidence of that, and they work great, fitting a litany of large and small mugs and bottles.

Speeeeeeeed


The E53 doesn’t feel like a brute, but it is fast.
Chase Bierenkoven


Obviously, the other big draw here is the speed. The AMG isn’t a ballistic homicide missile, though. Its driving characteristics are much more refined than that. The handling balance is very neutral, and I’d characterize this more as a grip monster than some screaming power-sliding hooligan of a car. That kind of blends well with the wagon body, I think. With up to 604 horsepower under launch control, the AMG is blindingly quick, hitting 60 in around 3.8 seconds. I managed 4.2 in a downpour, which is equally impressive.

I’m also really warming to these AMG dual-clutch gearboxes. This is much smoother than some of the ones I’ve used over the last six or seven years, and it’s very rare that the gearbox puts a foot wrong, especially if you’re the one pulling the paddles. It’s hard not to love the way this thing drives.

All-Electric Cruising Kind Of Rocks


That Affalterbach badge used to represent a very different kind of car.
Chase Bierenkoven


When not attempting to double the county speed limit, the AMG’s best trick is how quickly you can make all that AMG-ness go away. Thanks to an electric motor on the front axle making about 130 horsepower, you can cruise around for some 41 miles in total silence. If this were my only car and I had a commute, I think I’d like that. The charging experience is very easy, too, and it took about two and a half hours to charge on my garage trickle charger from 10% battery.

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