Not too long ago, we were making an inventory of the tons of cars Mercedes-Benz is testing out there at the moment, noting that the Stuttgart company is responsible for a large chunk of the spy photographers' revenue.
There's this famous quote by Antoine-Laurent de Lavoisier applying to the whole world around us, which says that "nothing is lost, nothing is created, everything is transformed." Well, since the automotive industry is part of this world, then this axiom is true when it comes to spying camouflaged cars as well: the Mercedes-Benz GLC Coupe was officially launched today, but the number of models being put through their paces must remain the same. So the 2018 Mercedes-Benz E-Class Cabriolet has just made its unofficial debut.
It is the first time the roofless version of the recently launched sedan is spotted, and even though it's heavily covered in camouflage foil (and there's a pesky truck blocking the view from what would have been the best angle), there are still a few things worth noting.
For starters, the E-Class Cabrio seems to keep the same signature as the sedan for the daytime running lights, with the two LED strips wrapping around the main lamp. In fact, the whole front end looks unchanged from the E-Class Coupe, with the car's overall dimensions also appearing to be quite similar.
The soft top convertible gets identical rear treatment as the Coupe with added pieces that make it impossible to distinguish the real shape underneath. However, we'd be surprised if the design stretches too far from the C-Class or S-Class Cabriolet, so there's always that for reference.
By the looks of it, the Cabriolet will be a pretty straightforward job for Mercedes-Benz, especially since the very similar Coupe version is a few months ahead in testing already. The two will act like twins sharing pretty much everything, except for the ability to take the top off without the use of an angle grinder.
The E-Class Cabrio will most likely get both AMG versions too (the E43 and E63), but we're in for a long wait in those cases. There's no word on when the standard convertible E-Class is due, but we expect it to be strongly related to the Coupe's launch. Once the metal roof two-door E-Class breaks the ice, we can expect the Cabriolet to follow shortly. But if Mercedes decides to use the same policy as with the C-Class, that means we'll be lucky if we see the E-Class Cabriolet sooner than the end of 2017. Fingers crossed.
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