Quote:
Originally Posted by Nordkeyz73
Actually, the E43 AMG was just announced yesterday, and compared to the E550 it replaced it only makes a few less horsepower (396 vs 402) and claims a 4.5 0-60, better than the outgoing 4.7 V8 E550.
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Indeed. However, the old E550 specs lag behind the latest *550 models which have ~450hp just like the equivalent Audi and BMW V8s do. So, if Mercedes truly wanted to compete toe to toe with its German competitors on paper, it could easily do so. However, clearly they don't think it is necessary any longer. As noted above by Needsdecaf, the demand for the mid-model V8 in this class has greatly diminished. More and more, customers are either content with a turbocharged 6, or they want the full-on top-performing ~600hp M/AMG/RS model.
It will be interesting to see if the upcoming C238 E Class Coupe will also drop the V8 now. Recall that the existing C207 E Class Coupe is still sold with the V8 today (with just 402hp like the sedan previously was, as you pointed out). I'd say there's a very good chance the V8 will indeed be dropped here too. On the plus side, there will also be the E63/E63S coupes for the first time (previously there was a CLK63 AMG, but it was curiously only available in convertible form in the US).