Mercedes-Benz
E Class
| Front and side impact rating |
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Pedestrian test rating |
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Test Scores: Front 10(63%) Side 15(83%) Overall 26(76%) Pedestrian 17(47%)
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Mercedes
decided to retest a modified car after the left front
wheel was forced back in an initial test, rupturing the
driver's footwell. The modified car was awarded three
stars but, with just a little improvement, it would have
earned a fourth. Mercedes tell us that cars ordered now
will be modified. Despite there being no hard impact areas
for the knees, the risk to the driver's legs and feet is
still high because of the extent of brake pedal movement.
Finally, the car meets side-impact legislation taking
effect from October.
The Mercedes E-class just missed gaining a four-star Euro
NCAP rating when the car was first tested in 1998. With
the inclusion of the pole test into the Euro NCAP
protocols, Mercedes commissioned a pole test to prove that
the head-protecting airbag that is fitted as standard to
the car from the 1999 model year has improved the
protection offered. The requirements of the pole test,
though demanding, were met without difficulty. The
improvement in protection now earns the E-class a
four-star Euro NCAP rating. The head-protecting device is
a drop-down airbag curtain and was introduced across the
range from VIN 210065 WDB JF65G9Y A 962233. |
Impact
Protection
|
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|
 |
 |
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| Driver
Front Impact |
Passenger
Front Impact |
Driver
Side Impact |
|
Frontal
Impact
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| After
the impact, the door aperture was little deformed and the
body structure was stable. The left front wheel crushed
the driver's footwell, causing a body seam to burst and
expose the wheel arch liner. The driver and passenger
airbags worked well and the load limiting belts reduced
chest injury risks from those seen in the first test. The
knee impact areas included hard contact points which could
injure the driver's knees, upper legs and pelvis. |
Side
Impact
|
|
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| The
E-class has door-mounted side-impact chest airbags fitted
as standard. The driver's airbag cushioned his arm, chest,
and abdomen, but did not improve protection as much as
those in some other cars in this group. |
Child
Restraint
|
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| An
European manufacturer's association (ACEA) pictogram was
fixed to the passenger's end of the facia and was a
single-language text label on the windscreen which could
be peeled off or lost if the screen had to be replaced.
The text did not explain the risk of serious injury or
death if a child seat was fitted in the front passenger
seat. Both dummies were in Mercedes forward-facing child
seats. Belt guides on the seats were colour coded in
accordance with regulation R44.03, but the stick-on dots
used to indicate the route could be removed too easily. |
Pedestrian
Protection
|
|
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| The
bonnet top gave reasonable protection for pedestrian head
impacts. The child protection zone had half the test
points meeting proposed legislation and three other sites
were not far away from passing. Tests for adult head
contact revealed two bad points although the rest came
close to compliance. However, the front end of the car was
found to be aggressive and each test point rated as
'poor'. |
Model
history and safety equipment
|
|
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| The
latest E-class was launched in Sept '95. Twin front and
side airbags, belt pre-tensioners and load limiters,
traction control, anti-lock brakes, Brake Assist and power
steering are fitted to all cars sold in the EU. |
| Make,
model and hand of drive |
Mercedes-Benz
E200 Classic LHD |
| Body
type |
4-door
saloon |
| Model
year |
1998 |
| Kerb
weight |
1440
kg |
| VIN
and date when rating applies |
210065
WDB JF65G9Y A 962233 |
|
