I've only just recovered from the jet lag after visiting the Detroit motor show. There, I was lucky enough to attend an exclusive - well, as exclusive as 650 invited journalists can be - unveiling of the new E-Class before its official launch at the Geneva show in March. It seems I needn't have bothered though, as on the way through Hertfordshire this week I spotted a right-hand drive example with minimal disguising.

It seems that Mercedes's people are still hard at honing the E-Class for our roads. It's not the first time I've 'papped' one out and about either, the last time was when driving an Audi Q5 on a launch in Valencia. I also spotted a C-Class - prior to its launch - on the M1, though that time I didn't have my camera. Reading the press information on the E-Class it's hardly surprising I've seen it twice already - the testing programme for the new saloon apparently covers enough miles to circle the earth 850 times. And we thought we did a lot of miles in the Car Enthusiast office...

Kyle Fortune - 19 Jan 2009