A Van, A Taxi, Or Just The Ideal Family Mover? The Mercedes-AMG V-Class On Test

What’s it like driving an eight-seat Mercedes on a long-haul trip across Europe as a family of five? Jeremy Taylor discusses the enormous V-Class with adventure journalist Fergus Scholes.

Test Drive: Mercedes AMG Line V300D

JT: So, explain this to me. You voluntarily took three children under five on a 12-hour drive to the Alps in a van with windows. Why?

FS: When you frame it like that, I do wonder why we didn’t take the two-hour flight to Zurich and the seamless connecting train… But we wouldn’t have been able to haul five bikes, plus enough family gear to sink a small boat. And since we spent a month out there, having an eight-seater changed everything.

I’d say – you could also run a taxi business on the side. Why the Alps?

We’ve done this drive before – my wife is half Swiss – and I genuinely love a road trip. Your music, your snacks, your pace. And yes, it’s technically a van with windows, but the Mercedes AMG Line V300D is less like a tradesman’s bus and more like a very large, slightly smug limo. It’s great-looking, the gold standard of people carriers and hugely comfortable to drive.

And this wasn’t just a long drive: i was London to Klosters without stopping. What possessed you?

I always hanker after the idea of stopping at the halfway mark near Reims – a nice B&B, fresh pastries, the whole French-charm thing. My wife disagrees. Her strategy is simple: press on, only stopping for fuel, toilets and essential coffee for the driver.

Well, I’m a big fan of a baguette myself but that’s a long drive.

So, we left home at around 8am, took a lunchtime Eurotunnel, and aimed to roll into Klosters nine or 10 hours later. Around 800 miles after leaving London, all three children were more or less intact, and my wife and I were only slightly broken. Even the best car in the world can’t change that – but the V300D certainly helped.

What was happening behind you while you were doing the mileage up front?

My wife was a hero. I don’t think she had more than 30 uninterrupted seconds to stare out of a window and remember who she was. Before setting off we decided, bravely or foolishly, to go cold turkey on screens. No Peppa Pig. Instead we played games and leaned heavily on Yoto stories through Apple CarPlay. 

Mercedes calls that rear cabin ‘executive’. Did it feel executive, or more like a soft-play centre on wheels?

Glancing back in the rear-view mirror, it was often utter chaos, so soft-play isn’t unfair. But compared to even a generous SUV like the Volvo XC90, it was on another level. If I had to do this journey again, I’d choose the V300 every time.

It is huge – there’s lots of room to stretch out.

The space was incredible. Two banks of three seats facing each other – a rolling living room. Plenty of headroom. And at night the newborn fell in love with the ambient lighting cycling through its 64 colours, which is more than enough for a baby rave. The kids adored the button-operated sliding doors too. The leather seats were comfortable and, crucially, wipe-clean.

And you didn’t pack light, did you?

The car was loaded to the point of comedy. The huge Thule roof box held two kids’ bikes, a large pram and various bags. The boot carried even more – there was no chance of seeing out of the rear window – and under the seats we stuffed camping gear.

What else did the Scholes take with them?

On the back rack were two of my bikes, a road bike and a heavy e-mountain bike. Inside, we’d cleared the snack aisle at Waitrose and were armed with enough snack-bribes to manage most behavioural emergencies. If you can’t cure travel fatigue, you can at least distract it with rice cakes.

Thirsty on the fuel?

Staggeringly, even loaded with bikes, a roof box and what felt like half our house, it still returned 31 mpg from door to door. Not bad for something this size.

What did you appreciate most from a family point of view?

The powered sliding doors were a gift when wrangling kids, bags and the odd teddy hostage situation. The separate climate controls front and back meant my wife and the kids could set their own temperature, which removed an entire category of complaints. The high driving position made everything feel manageable, and the 360° camera was essential when parking something this long – basically a small barge.

And what did the kids think of it?

They loved having a van as a ‘car’ for the summer. They still talk about it, usually asking when we’re getting our next campervan.

Finally, would you actually buy one?

As a daily runaround? Probably not. As a family-trip machine? Absolutely. Nothing else we’ve tried makes long-distance travel with young children feel not only doable, but oddly enjoyable. For that alone, it earned its keep – and I’d choose it time and time again.

Find out more about the Mercedes AMG Line V300D mercedes-benz.co.uk

Fergus Scholes (@adventureferg) is an ultra-runner and cyclist who contributes to the Financial Times, The Week and TechRadar.