Fri. Mar 29th, 2024
Mercedes C-Class

The New Mercedes C-Class

The new Mercedes C-Class has prioritized comfort over sports handling. This model is what seems to be Mercedes’s answer to Audi A4 and BMW 3 Series.

With a spacious and high-quality interior, a good standard specification and the option of some cutting-edge safety equipment, Mercedes has left nothing to chance.

Space in the C-Class

The C-Class isa bit on the smaller side [considering other Mercedes models] but it still got plenty of room to offer.

Particularly impressive is how wide the car feels inside, with plenty of elbow room for those in the front. There are also lots of cubby holes to store keys, phones, and wallets.

Those in the rear seats aren’t quite as well catered for, with the sloping roofline making it slightly awkward to get in. Once on board, there’s a decent amount of room, although anybody sitting in the middle will have to tolerate a hard and upright backrest, plus straddle their legs around a big lump in the floor (the same criticism can be levelled at most cars).

Not being a hatchback the boot is not very tall. But, it redeems itself by being deep and thus, offering ample space.

Comfort in the C-Class

The Sports specification C-Class confusingly comes with comfort suspension. To have the sports suspension, you can get the AMG lie specification.

All models of this Mercedes come with pretty solid bump reduction. It makes Mercedes’s promise for comfort more applicable.

Even on 18-inch wheels, there’s enough cushioning to give a reasonably smooth ride. Go for 17-inch wheels and it’s better again, but for the best ride quality, you’ll need the optional Airmatic air suspension upgrade.

The diesel engines can be a bit noisy on starting them. Thanks to a very efficient stop/start system this happens more often than you might expect. Once up to motorway cruising speeds, however, the engine clatter fades into the background, although as with most cars of this size, there is some tyre roar on coarse road surfaces.

Dashboard Styling in the C-Class

The Central tablet-like screen, a signature of Mercedes makes it appearance in the C-Class too. You control the central tablet-style screen using a rotary control, a touch pad and a series of buttons, which are all located by the gearstick, much like BMW’s iDrive system. And like iDrive, the Mercedes setup takes a bit of time to learn. Thankfully Mercedes has also retained some shortcut buttons so that you can easily switch between the main functions.

The remainder of the dash is clearly laid out, and you can even specify a head-up display that projects your speed and any satnav instructions on to the windscreen to save you from looking away from the road.

Ease in Driving

Mercedes models are not marveled at for their ease in driving. Their considerable size always present problems for the driver.

The Mercedes C-class’s considerable dimensions mean it isn’t especially easy to slip into narrow parking spaces, a point that’s exacerbated by the sloping boot. It’s impossible to see where the where the rear of the car is when reversing (something Mercedes clearly realises, because it fits parking sensors as standard).

The C-class feels agile to drive, with excellent steering and little lean in corners, particularly if you go for sport or Airmatic suspension.

The high performance C63 AMG and C63 S versions of the C-class deliver the power of a supercar in a practical saloon body, and are a riot to drive – even more so, in fact, than the BMW M3 and Audi RS4.

The C220 diesel is the best seller, and with good reason. It’s got enough power to make the C-class feel brisk, but is also economical.

At present, the only petrol-powered C-class is the C200. While quick enough, it lacks the diesel’s strong surge of acceleration and sounds whiny when you rev it.

Reliability

The latest Mercedes C-class is too new to be included in reliability studies, but the previous model finished 12th out of 116 cars in the 2013 JD Power customer satisfaction survey, where Mercedes also performed well as a brand.

Mercedes also matches BMW in providing a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty, whereas Audi stops its cover after three years or 60,000 miles – whichever comes first.

At present, the C300 diesel hybrid is the most efficient C-class, returning 83.1mpg in the EU fuel economy test. However, in my experience, real-world consumption isn’t quite as impressive. This means that if fuel economy is top of your priorities you’ll be better off waiting for the plug-in hybrid model. You can go for the 1.6-litre C200 Bluetec, which is significantly cheaper to buy and still returned 80.7mpg in the EU fuel economy test.

Also worth noting is that the C220 diesel is hardly what you’d call thirsty, considering the performance it offers.

Safety Factors

Mercedes has always excelled at providing security to their customers. Their are many kinds of tests that are performed on every Mercedes model.

The C-class scored the maximum five-star rating when crash tested by independent assessors at Euro NCAP. It achieved almost identical scores for adult and child protection as rivals.

A warning system to tell you to take a break during a long drive comes as standard. Also does a stability control system that helps you control the car if it skids.

Other safety options available include a Collision Prevention Assist Plus system that will brake the car automatically if it senses it is about to hit the vehicle in front, an alert to tell you if another car is in your blind spot, plus cameras that help you stay to in lane on the motorway.

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