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With all-new hugely successful generations of the S-Class and C-Class launched and out of the way, it's time for Mercedes-Benz to focus on the middle child of their sedan range - the Mercedes-Benz E-Class. The W212 has been around since 2009, so a replacement should be due sometime in 2016.

This is a first sighting of the next generation E-Class prototype - we're calling it the W213 for now. We won't fault you if at first glance you think this is just some kind of disguised W205 because of how similiar the front end on this prototype looks like, but look carefully and you'll see that this car is wider than a C-Class, and has longer rear overhangs. It also looks more angular than a C-Class.

Multiple automotive publications have published rumours that this new E-Class will debut a new family of six cylinder engines that will go back to the old inline-6 format instead of the current V6. This is to enable better component compatibility with future inline-3 and inline-4 engines.

It will be built on Mercedes-Benz's new modular MRA rear-wheel drive platform which also underpins the C-Class. We've already seen what the MRA platform can do for the new C - a quick comparison on CarBase.my shows that the C250 beats all of its rivals in terms of weight, which in turn gives it best in class CO2 emissions and rated fuel economy among the cars compared (328i, A4 2.0T, Q50 2.0t, IS 250) using our comparison tool.