The Mercedes-AMG E43 Estate Is A 400bhp Modern-Day Sleeper

Modern super saloons and estates are so festooned in lumps, bulges, vents and wings that many claim the concept of a sleeper car is dead. However, I’m not so sure, and one of the cars that makes me think otherwise is the new Mercedes-AMG E43 estate.

On the outside, there’s not a whole lot to tell it apart from the boggo E-Class estate - a car also revealed this week - and yet it’s packing the same 395bhp, 383lb ft 3.0-litre twin-turbo V6 as the equally subtle E43 saloon. 0-62mph takes just 4.7 seconds, while the top speed is the usual 155mph electronically limited deal.

So, it doesn’t look particularly fast, yet will match the supercharged, full fat E55 AMG from a couple generations ago to 62mph. What was that about sleepers being dead?

Power is sent to all four wheels by a nine-speed automatic gearbox, and if the saloon version is anything to go by, the estate will have a 31:69 torque split favouring the rear wheels. The E43 also gets beefier AMG suspension.

If you want more power and a couple of extra cylinders a 4.0-litre twin-turbo V8 E63 will follow eventually, with an expected power output in excess of 600bhp. But if it’s the E43 you’re after, it goes on sale with the rest of the E-class estate range this October.