DETROIT MOTOR SHOW: New Benz E-Class leaked

Mercedes-Benz's fifth-generation E-Class will make its world debut at the Detroit motor show next Monday (January 11), before its global launch in March and its Australian release later this year.

Almost a week before its official unveiling on show eve, however, German website Auto-presse.de has published 38 official pictures and what appear to be full official details of the ground-breaking new large luxury sedan.

Much has been written about the new W213 E-Class, which has been the subject of a sustained teaser campaign and various spy shots, and we'll know the full official story next week.

For now though, apart from these official shots that show the new E will bear a striking family resemblance to the latest C- and S-Class sedans that straddle it, here's what we know.

Featuring new autonomous driving aids and more technology than even the S-Class limousine, the new E-Class sedan grows 65mm in wheelbase to 2939mm, and 43mm in overall length to 4923mm. Width also increases to about 1940mm.

Once again there will be an Estate version – to be revealed in June – to cover the bases of its chief rival, this year's new BMW 5 Series. As well, there will be AMG, long-wheelbase sedan, two-door coupe and cabriolet and perhaps even crossover versions.

Adopting the modular rear-drive MRA platform seen under the current C- and S-Class, the big new four-door incorporates a larger proportion of high-strength steel and aluminium to make it up to 100kg lighter than before.

Wrapped in sleeker new sheet metal with distinct rear-drive proportions, it features shorter front and rear overhangs, a longer bonnet, two distinct front-end designs, a full-length side 'catwalk' character line and coupe-like, cab-rearward roofline, resulting in a class-leading drag coefficient of just 0.23Cd.

Benefitting from the longer wheelbase, the new E-Class cabin is larger and claimed to be two generations ahead of the interior it replaces, featuring – like the S-Class, two huge 12.3-inch displays with 1920x720-pixel resolution within a single configurable screen, luxurious new front seats, more space for rear-seat occupants, a 40:20:40-split rear seatback and premium materials throughout.

Automated driving technologies include Merc's new Drive Pilot system, which allows hands-free driving for extended periods on freeways at up to 210km/h by using satellite-navigation, radar cruise control and cameras that detect road markings and roadside infrastructure.

New touch-sensitive steering wheel-mounted scrollers and a central dial will allow drivers to control the system and the redesigned multi-media interface, while touchpad and Linguatronic voice control systems will be available.

Like BMW's new 7 Series, there will be the option of self-parking via a smartphone app, but the new E will also use phone technology to communicate with other cars on the road in order to avoid potential hazards, while Near Field Communication allows drivers to use their own smartphone as a car key.

Other new driver aids will include Speed Limit Pilot, multibeam LED headlights and improved Active Lane Keeping Assist, Active Blind Spot Assist and Pre Safe collision preparation systems.

However, many of these features and the twin-screen dash design will likely be optional on the base model, which will feature a traditional instrument cluster with speedo/tacho and a smaller central infotainment display.

Standard E-Class models will also ride on steel springs, although three optional adaptive damping systems and a reworked AirMatic air suspension system will be available.

Up to eight engine variants will eventually be offered – this time all matched with Benz's 9G-Tronic nine-speed in-house automatic transmission, including the next E 63 – but from its European launch, just two new four-cylinder engines will be available.

They are the E 200 – powered by 134kW and 180kW versions of the same 2.0-litre turbo-petrol four – and the 2.0-litre turbo-diesel E 220d, which delivers 134kW but sips as little as 3.9L/100km on the European fuel consumption cycle.

An entry-level 110kW version of the new OM654 diesel will be offered later in Europe, while six-cylinder versions of the new E-Class will muster 190kW/620Nm (diesel) and 245kW (petrol). All engines will be Euro 6 emissions-compliant and matched with fuel-saving idle-stop tech.

Also due for launch later this year is the E 350e plug-in hybrid, incorporating a 2.0-litre turbo-petrol/electric powertrain delivering up to 30km of electric-only driving range, plus total outputs of 205kW and 600Nm for a claimed 0-100km/h time of 6.2 seconds and fuel economy as low as 2.1L/100km.

The new Mercedes-AMG E 63 will crown the 2016 E-Class line-up late this year, powered by a revised version of AMG's twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 in two states of tune (standard and S).

Further afield, the E 200's new petrol four will form the basis of a new range of BMW-style 3.0-litre inline-six engines for future Mercedes-Benz models – including petrol (M256) and diesel (OM656).

Also including a new 1.5-litre three-cylinder petrol engine destined to power almost all front-drive Benz models, the new modular engine family shares the same 500cc individual cylinder volume and 90mm bore centre spacing.

The E 220d's downsized OM654 diesel four, meantime, will power everything from the A-Class to the S-Class, replacing the existing 2.1-litre OM 651.