Used car safety, rank #2 of 181
Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD Safety Rating (2017-20)
Real IIHS driver death rates for the 2017-20 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD, a large luxury car, compared with its class and with the current model.
Safest PickIIHS 2023 edition Β· 2018β2021 crashes. Results apply only to the model years and drivetrain shown. This is the historical edition. See the July 2026 release for newer used cars.
The 2017-20 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD has an IIHS driver death rate of 0 per million registered vehicle years against a large luxury cars average of 18.5, which is a zero estimated rate, with uncertainty. That places it #2 of 181 used vehicles with a safety score of 97.3/100, earning our Safest Pick designation, and it typically sells used for $24,000 to $42,000.
What the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan death rate means
A driver death rate of 0 means IIHS found too few driver deaths in 2017-20 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WDs, relative to how many were registered, to separate the rate from zero. It does not mean nobody can die in one. The 95% confidence interval runs from 0 to 22, so the true rate could plausibly be as high as 22.
The other-driver death rate of 10 measures the opposite risk: how many drivers of other vehicles died in crashes with a Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan. It is higher than the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan's own driver death rate, the usual pattern for heavier vehicles. Remember that death rates describe vehicles and their drivers together: IIHS adjusts for driver age and gender, but not for where or how carefully people drive. Our score weights this model's own rate at 70% and its class at 30%; see how we rank used cars.
Compared with similar used luxury cars
The safest large luxury cars in the IIHS study, by our score, with the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD highlighted. It ranks 1 of the 4 shown.
| Vehicle | Years | Death rate | Score | Reliability | Used price |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD (this page) | 2017-20 | 0 (0 to 22) | 97.3 | 3.5/5 | $24,000 to $42,000 |
| Tesla Model S 4WD | 2017-20 | 17 (0 to 33) | 80.2 | n/a | n/a |
| Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 2WD | 2017-20 | 27 (5 to 48) | 68.5 | 3.5/5 | n/a |
| Genesis G80 | 2017-20 | 30 (0 to 69) | 65.0 | n/a | n/a |
Class average for large luxury cars: 18.5 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years.
Reliability and cost of ownership
Reliability: 3.5 out of 5
RepairPal rates the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 3.5/5, 12th out of 30 in its category. Owners spend about $788 a year on repairs and maintenance, visiting the shop 0.6 times a year for unscheduled work, and 12% of those repairs are severe.
RepairPal detailsUsed price: $24,000 to $42,000
Typical asking prices for 2017-20 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD listings. For a model with a death rate of 0, that buys more real-world protection per dollar than most alternatives in the large luxury cars class.
Safety recalls for the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD
We do not have a verified NHTSA recall lookup for this nameplate and model year. Check by VIN rather than treating that as a clean record.
Recall campaigns from the NHTSA recalls database, retrieved 2026-09-16. A campaign covers a range of build dates, not every car of the model year, and IIHS reports this nameplate across several years while these results are for one year. Confirm against the VIN. Recalls do not affect the death rate on this page.
Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD: Common Questions
Is the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD a safe car?
Yes. IIHS recorded a driver death rate of 0 per million registered vehicle years for the 2017-20 Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD, a zero estimated rate, with uncertainty (18.5 for large luxury cars). That earns a used-car safety score of 97.3 out of 100 and rank #2 of 181 used vehicles, with a Safest Pick designation.
What is the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD driver death rate?
0 driver deaths per million registered vehicle years, with a 95% confidence interval of 0 to 22. Drivers of other vehicles that collided with a Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan died at a rate of 10 per million. Source: IIHS driver death rates by make and model, covering 2017-20 models.
How does the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD compare with other large luxury cars?
The large luxury cars class averages 18.5 driver deaths per million; the Mercedes-Benz E-Class sedan 4WD sits at 0. Among the 4 large luxury cars compared above it ranks 1 by safety score.