2000 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Review: Interior

The thick, leather-wrapped steering wheel is simply the best for feeling and maneuvering the car over the road. It can be made to fit perfectly, with power tilt and telescope functions. The leather padding on the dash is without sharp angles. The cruise-control lever is standard Mercedes, very easy to use because it's like a turn-signal stalk, which also makes it too easy to bump and set by accident. As with all Mercedes, operation of some of the switchgear is far from intuitive. Presumably, an owner will read his manual and figure it out. But that may not be a safe presumption. Like an expensive VCR that gets used as a clock (until the first time there's a power failure, after which it's used as a tiny blinking reminder that midnight rules), some owners may drive their $70,000 car for years without ever fully knowing how to operate, say, the climate control system.