2016 Mercedes C300

Mercedes Benz posed serious competition for the BMW 3 series & the Audi A4 when they launched their all new C300 last year. Gone are the days when the “C” in the C class stood for “Compromise”. Mercedes has peppered this car with technology & luxury of the highest standards. I’ll start off with the interior first as most buyers shopping for a Mercedes other than an AMG are the ones who prefer luxury over performance. The Merc’s interior simply smokes that of its German rivals. You truly get a feeling of being in a mini “S” class. The seat leather quality is that of the highest standards with beautiful colors to choose from. Cranberry Red happens to be my personal favorite. Whatever you touch is either leather, aluminum or rich wood. The leather wrapped flat bottom steering wheel feels great in the hands with a perfect grip. The navigation & infotainment system is well laid out & easy to use. The knob & write pad provide options to enter destinations or look up places of interest of with ease. The front seats are comfortable though I did miss the bolstering that BMW offers in their seats, but again the Merc's seats were never designed to be so aggressive.  The rear seats are equally comfortable with plenty of leg room for 2 average size adults & possibly a 3^rd one on the way. You can get the front seats heated as well as cooled, an option which most of Merc’s rivals don’t provide. Even the front head rests are electronically controlled. The Burmister audio system according to me is the best in class & definitely a notch above BMW’s Harman Kardon & Audis Bang & Olufsen. The ambient lighting gives us an option to choose from 3 colors & is a gorgeous sight at night. The ride quality is sublime & the C class will gobble potholes & bad road surfaces with ease. The sound deadening in the car is great keeping wind & tire noise levels to a minimum.  The trunk room is limited but still would be ample for most users.

As far as exterior is concerned, I’ll let you decide what you think of it. Personally, I’m not a fan. The front looks sporty but the rear to me looks droopy.  The 2 liter turbo charged engine makes a sprightly 240 Hp & 273 lbft of torque. The good thing is that it makes peak torque at just 1300 RPM which makes this car feel quick enough for daily driving. There is a fair bit of turbo lag but once the turbo spools up, this car goes. It returns decent fuel economy at 25 city/35 Highway. If power & handling is what you want, then Mercedes has just come out with a 362HP C 450 AMG which is a replacement for the C400. I have driven the C400 & was thoroughly impressed with the 320 HP motor. I’m eagerly waiting to sample the C450 AMG!

This car feels and smells expensive. One reason…. because it is. You’ll have to pay $42 grand to get into a base sport trim C class which can easily push 55 grand with options. Its mind boggling that a base C class these days costs that kind of money, but then again you get lot for your money too. You can get this with 4 Matic or Mercedes’s version of all wheel drive for inclement weather conditions. The main rivals include the BMW 328i, Audi A4 & Lexus IS 250. BMW doesn’t even come close to the Merc as far as luxury is concerned. The Audi is fairly luxurious but seems dated as compared to the Merc. One should wait for the updated A4 version which is coming up in the next few months. The Lexus IS 250 is the Japanese version of Mercedes, offering luxury & creature comforts which are second to none. If luxury is what you are looking for, do look at the Lexus & I’ll say that you can’t go wrong with either one of these.

Mercedes has finally come up with a C Class worthy of wearing that shiny three spoke wheel badge. Its luxurious, possesses refinement of the highest standard & despite the high cost, I’m sure they’ll sell these faster than they can make them.