The C-Class is where most people begin their relationship with Mercedes-Benz. In India this is the most affordable and compact sedan on offer from the renowned company , making it the preferred car of most first-time seeker of the premium badge. It is difficult to express in words the emotions that One experiences sitting behind the three-pointed star. The company skilfully blends its 125 years of engineering expertise and some clever marketing to make the pleasure of owning and driving a Mercedes unique. So much so , that they have succeeded in making mundane jobs seem better and interesting.
As the Indian economy and spending power grows , more luxury car-makers are joining the bandwagon. Sighting the growing competition in the 'affordable' premium segment , Mercedes-Benz have given the C-Class a much-needed facelift along with a few essential engineering changes. According to the company's plan , the 2011 'C' has to keep the momentum going at least until 2013 , when an all-new C-Class will make its global appearance.
Thanks to our pals in Mercedes India we got a short spin in the new C-Class almost a month before its scheduled India launch and , in typical Car India fashion , we managed to squeeze out a complete road test. Although the German company has not officially released the technical specifications of the Indian version , here's what we observed during our short stint with the 'C'.
This is a mid-life cosmetic polish-up and not a complete make-over , so don't expect the car to grow in size , which is seen in most complete model changes. There's a new front bumper , which resembles the bigger E-Class around the snout and it also has a more prominent grille surround with the air intakes re-contoured. It loses the conventional fog-lamps , which are replaced with a set of snazzy new line of LED lights. The reshaped car is more blithe and the company claims a drag coefficient of just 0.26. The 2012 version gets a new treatment for the headlamps , which are longer and flared towards the ends , hinting at inspiration from the styling of the elder sibling , CLS. The lamps now come with Bi-xenon lights with LED turn indicators. The rear design gets a tweak as well and the tail-lights continue the LED bling.
The interior gets a thorough makeover and now has a hint of the E-Class. The dashboard looks more modern , sophisticated and a lot more appealing. The new texture feels great and the brush metal trims add to the sportiness. Sitting in the middle is a high-definition colour display similar to the 'E' and the music system switches are neatly stacked below it. The new steering loses a spoke , gets brush metal treatment and looks sportier. No pedal shifts on the steering , but you can nudge the gear stick to shift up or down. The front seats have electrically adjustable height , lumbar support and backrest and offer adequate bolstering. The rear seats , however , have a short squab , which limits under-thigh support , although the legroom and backrest angle are just about right. The infotainment system also doubles as a Sat-Nav system and can also connect to your phone using the Bluetooth. In spite of being right at the bottom of Mercedes-Benz's impressive line-up , the interior quality and overall finish is second to none.
The Mercedes C200 still sports the CGI or common-rail gasoline injection motor. It's turbo runs off the exhaust gas pressure from the engine and hence makes it more efficient than a mechanically driven supercharger. The motor still produces 188 PS of peak power and 285 Nm of torque , but is now mated with a smooth seven-speed G-TRONIC auto transmission , replacing the old five-speed unit. It constantly provides the optimum engine speed and virtually imperceptible gear changes. When changing down , the 7G-TRONIC delivers fast mid-range sprints by skipping individual gears. The CGI is a refined petrol mill , tuned to provide better fuel economy than just road ripping performance. The fuel economy has improved – driving on the highway it returned a decent 16 km per litre.
Adding pleasure to efficiency are a slew of BlueEFFICIENCY features that have been fine-tuned to minimise noise and vibration and to enhance your driving experience. Now that the C's kerb weight has gone up by 45 kg , it takes 9.42 seconds to get to 100 km/h , making it a fraction of a second slower than its predecessor and just about matches 0-120 km/h. In the standing kilometre sprint , however , the new car shaves off almost two seconds compared to the outgoing model.
Mercedes cars are always about refinement and the 'C' feels no less composed than before. There is always adequate performance at hand and a brisk unruffled drive is yours for sure. The steering holds its line competently with consistent feedback from the wheel , though it could have been more direct. The car we got was the top-of-the-line Avant Garde variant , equipped with 17-inch low-profile tyres (225/45 R17) , which did have an impact on ride comfort , although the soft suspension setting did manage to disguise most of it. Stability control is standard now in all Mercs and doesn’t grant you too much leeway , as compared to some of its competitors.
On the road what you get is a planted feel of the chassis , the quietness of the interior and a range of new equipment , creating a good first impression for buyers hunting for a sedan of this class. The new Mercedes C-Class continues to be a competent all-rounder and the sparkling star on the bonnet promises to deliver a feel-good factor for car enthusiasts in all age-groups. You are spoilt for choice , but you cannot go wrong with this car. UPDATED: The C200 CGI Avant Garde was launched on 7 September 2011 with price tag of Rs. 29 , 52 , 999 for 200 CGI Avantgarde and Rs. 26 , 53 , 000 for 220 CDI Avantgarde.
