Watch out, BMW 5 Series! 2024 Mercedes-Benz E-Class debuts with three plug-in hybrid versions, but will Australia get them?

Stuttgart’s answer to the BMW 5 Series and Audi A6 - or rather the car that prompted those two as responses from BMW and Audi - is entering its sixth generation. Meet the 2024 E-Class.

The new Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan is built on the same second-gen Modular Rear Architecture (MRA) platform as the C-Class and S-Class and, while it shares similarities, there are one or two major points that differentiate the new executive sedan.

The 2024 E-Class will push forward with half of its variants that launch in Europe arriving as plug-in hybrids (PHEVs), likely killing the chance of much of the range making it to PHEV-averse Australia.

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It means only a 150kW/320Nm E220 variant is likely to arrive here as a petrol model, with the other two non-PHEV variants a rear- and all-wheel drive 4Matic version of the 145kW/440Nm diesel-powered E220d.

All the combustion engines confirmed for the E-Class so far are 2.0-litre turbocharged four-cylinder units, with even the non-PHEV versions utilising the brand’s 48V mild-hybrid system.

If Mercedes-Benz Australia does bring a PHEV model here, it could be the top-spec E400 4Matic, with 185kW and 440Nm, though the brand is yet to confirm timing or details of the E-Class’ Australian launch - we expect early 2024, less than a year from its reveal.

The other major addition to the E-Class over other Mercedes models is the debut of the brand’s new MBUX Superscreen, which extends from the large central multimedia screen section all the way to the passenger side of the dash, allowing the front passenger to use media apps like the game Angry Birds or the social media platform TikTok.

Mercedes is even aiming to have AI help control the E-Class’ functionality in the coming years.

It will also feature a camera for video calls, though use of these systems during driving is likely to be somewhat limited, especially in a risk-averse market like Australia.

The new Mercedes E-Class will also ditch its coupe and convertible variants, leaving just the sedan for its sixth generation. 

The two-door versions of the E-Class will now fall under a newly created CLE-Class which also absorbs the C-Class’s coupe and convertible variants as a range simplification move.