2017 Mercedes-AMG E43
Mercedes-AMG is spreading the use of
their new twin-turbo’d V6 mill on the new E-Class sedan with the creation of
the E43 AMG performance model that will have its world premiere at the New York
Auto Show later this month.
The new 2017 E43 AMG is the more
affordable, smaller-engined and less powerful baby brother of the upcoming,
high-performance E63 AMG, with the two models to share similar chassis
improvements.
Whereas the next E63 AMG will get a
4.0-liter twin-turbo pushing around 600 horses, the new E43 AMG adopts the
sport division’s 3.0-liter bi-turbocharged V6 found in a number of models,
ranging from the new C43 AMG to the AMG GLE 450 Coupe (soon to be renamed AMG
GLE 43 Coupe).
On the AMG E43, Mercedes-AMG engineers
squeezed another 34 hp from the V6 through the use of larger turbochargers and
an updated ECU, lifting output to 396 hp, while maintaining the same 384
lb-ft of peak torque as in the other ‘43’ models.
A rear-biased AMG Performance 4MATIC
four-wheel drive system with a front-to-rear ratio of 31:69 percent works
together with a standard 9-speed 9G-TRONIC automatic transmission with shorter
shift times to help the E43 reach 0-100 km/h in 4.6 sec and on to an electronically limited top speed of 250 km/h.
Accompanying the E43 sedan’s under hood
changes is an improved chassis with a standard AMG AIRMATIC Adaptive Sport
Suspension, a more direct, speed-sensitive steering ratio and a larger braking
system with internally ventilated compound brake discs.
On the outside, AMG took a ‘Q-car’ like
approach with a handful of discreet aero and styling improvements such as the
bespoke 19-inch alloy wheels, a diamond grille with chrome pins, a re-profiled
front bumper with larger air-inlets, and a barely visible rear diffuser
incorporating stealthy blacked out quad tail pipes.
The same approach was followed in the
interior that gains a flat-bottom multifunction sports steering wheel, red
stitching throughout, and an AMG instrument cluster.
While we’re going to see the new E43 AMG
for the first time in a couple of weeks in New York, the car won’t go on sale
in the USA before the beginning of 2017.