Craving a rare AMG? Meet the E53 Edition 1, but it’ll cost you
If you’ve ever found yourself craving something a little more distinctive from the AMG stable, good news: Mercedes-AMG is bringing the E53 Edition 1 to our shores. It’s a move we’ve seen before with the C63 S E Performance Edition 1, which is a limited-run model that adds an extra layer of flair and desirability.
Now, it’s the E53’s turn to get the same special treatment, but there’s a catch. Only 12 units will be offered locally, and each will set you back R3,228,200. That’s a steep R714,024 more than what AMG asks for its regular E53, which might leave you wondering, what exactly am I getting for the extra money? Well, for starters, you’re getting a unique colour palette and a fully loaded spec sheet, but we’ll get into the details in a bit.
To begin with, the E53 Edition 1 comes painted in Manufaktur Alpine Grey solid shade, with larger 21-inch AMG forged wheels, the AMG Night Package, the AMG Exterior Carbon Package, and AMG Dynamic Plus Package. On top of that, Mercedes has thrown in a few more niceties, including the AMG Driver’s Package, high-performance compound brakes, and the adaptive AMG Ride Control suspension, all part of what makes this Edition 1 feel that much more special.
Then there’s the interior that comes with AMG Performance seats, an AMG Performance steering wheel in nappa leather, yellow stitching in various places of the interior, including yellow seatbelts, and an MBUX superscreen with passenger monitor.
Like the regular E53, the Edition 1 is a plug-in hybrid and comes fitted with an 11kW AC onboard charger and 60kW DC fast charger as standard. The latter can juice up the 28.6kWh battery pack from 10% to 80% in about 20 minutes. In full EV mode, the E53 can travel up to 100km between chargers, which is ideal for day-to-day trek duties.
Under the bonnet, the E53 Edition 1 still uses the same 3.0-litre inline 6-cylinder turbocharged engine working alongside a 120kW electric motor. The setup is good for 450kW and 750Nm sent to all four wheels via the 4Matic+ system and a 9-speed automatic gearbox, enough to accelerate the sedan from 0-100km/h in 3.8 seconds. That’s seriously quick for a family sedan.
Yes, at over R3.2 million, the E53 Edition 1 doesn’t come cheap, and that was one of our main gripes with the C63 S E Performance Edition 1 as well. But if you can look beyond the price tag, what you’re getting is a fully loaded, high-performance luxury sedan with real collectible value. That said, it does leave you wondering… if this is what the E53 costs, what’s the E63 going to cost?
