Rear seats offer enormous comfort, legroom and ease of entry. The E-Class is one car that is truly about passengers.

The main differences between the models has to do with powertrains. Standard equipment on all E-Class models includes 10-way power front seats and head restraints, a power tilt and telescoping steering column, a multifunction steering wheel, memory seating including mirrors and steering wheel position, an integrated garage door opener, and eight-speaker Bose sound system with optional CD changer.

Much effort has gone into making the cabin climate comfortable. There are dual temperature and airflow controls, an electrostatic dust filter and activated charcoal filter with smog sensor, and rear-cabin air vents. In cold weather, the climate control can recirculate warm air through the interior for up to 30 minutes while the car is parked, drawing on very small amount of coolant. Bunches of interior lights provide illumination, from visor vanities to maplights to door handles. Pockets, compartments and cupholders abound.

The switchgear can be confusing, however. Studying the owner's manual is a good idea because not much is intuitive. The sound and command systems include about 30 buttons the size of a Chiclet or smaller, and the only immediately identifiable one is the PWR button. The abbreviations or icons on many of the buttons are so small you have to take your concentration off the road to read them.

No less than eight airbags are provided as passive safety measures. Besides two front airbags and a side-impact airbag for each door, curtain airbags drop out of the headliner on each side, measuring 72 inches long by 14 tall by 2 thick.

The Command System features a screen on the console, which when you fire the Benz up, displays: "Warning Do not become distracted from traffic by use of Command!" as if that would make any difference. The system uses a GPS to locate the car and navigate you with voice commands. The message center can display not only navigational instructions, but more information than you might ever feel a need for, including the number of miles to next maintenance service based on actual driving conditions and oil quality. The optional cellular telephone can also be operated from the Command panel.

The E-Class wagons provide a three-point seatbelt for each of the seven seating positions. With the standard third seat row folded, there's nearly 44 cubic feet of cargo space. With the middle and rear seat rows folded, the space expands to a cavernous 83 cubic feet, more than any other luxury wagon. Room is not sacrificed to carry the standard full-size spare tire, either.

The wagon's middle seat row features a 60/40 split, and the cushions fold forward or can be removed. Removing the right side cushion and folding the front passenger seat forward creates a flat load surface nearly 10 feet long, yet the E-Class wagon is just about a half-inch longer than the E-Class sedan.

Operating the wagon's tailgate is made easy with fully enclosed gas-pressure springs and a power-assisted closing feature. The rear load height is conveniently low at just 22 inches. The standard aluminum roof rails offer sturdy support for the optional roof rack system, which can accommodate a variety of objects, including bicycles, skis or a cargo carrier. For added convenience, the rear cargo area features an integrated retractable cargo net and luggage cover, twin retractable cupholders and a 12-volt power outlet.