The calibrated competition for Mercedes-Benz mainly comes from our own country, but in addition to Audi and BMW, there are more manufacturers that are attacking the brand with the star. That is trying to hit back with the brand-new C-class, among other things. Can that car compete with the premium competitors in the D-segment?
We all know that cars in the Netherlands are on the expensive side. It is all the more striking that the premium brands are still doing very well. Mercedes, Audi and BMW also know how to sell a lot of cars in the smaller segments. We, the Dutch, may be known as sober, but the fact that you get much more car for your money with Opel, Ford or Renault than with the aforementioned Germans clearly does not matter to many people. The arrival of a new Mercedes C-Class is a good time to see how it compares to the competition. And expensive is a relative term. To let the Dutch sobriety come to the fore a bit, we went for the cheapest C: the C180. Note that it is only delivered as a sedan; the Estate starts with the C200. However, cheap is a relative term. The youngest Benz starts just under half a ton, but then you get 170 hp. Boarding sometimes went with less power. The fact that you then get a 1.5-four-cylinder engine sometimes causes horror, as we notice when we look at online reactions, while it doesn’t really matter that much: the actual power and quality of the engine count much more.
Focused on comfort
There is not much to complain about that ability. In the C180 you get 20 hp of electrical power on top of the 170 hp that the petrol engine delivers. That does not matter for the maximum power, because the electric motor does not peak at the same time as the petrol engine. At low revs, however, that little extra power does apply and that plays a noticeable role in the sprint. The Benz only needs 8.4 counts from 0 to 100. In addition, the Mercedes engine is very quiet and calm. In any case, the new C-class focuses more on comfort than its predecessor. Despite a comfortable base, it still had a slightly dynamic touch, but that is gone with the new version. Fortunately, Mercedes always shows that that does not have to mean that a car has to be week. Dynamic aspirations are not there at all in this version, but the road holding is also excellent at high speed. This makes the new C perfect for long distances. Even at a higher pace, he knows how to slow down well through silence and comfort, even if you are in a hurry. The seats are also excellent.
The quality of the cockpit shows why it still pays to pay more money for a premium model. The new dashboard is very stylish and visibly borrows a lot from the new S-class, with the sloping multimedia system as an eye-catcher. The touchscreen uses Mercedes’ latest MBUX system, which looks very modern and is pleasant to use. Despite the large screen and the digital screen in front of you, the Mercedes looks neatly classic thanks to the beautiful, warm materials. The C180 has a good head-up display, but Mercedes adds augmented reality, which (for example) projects navigation directions into live video images. That is an example of techniques in which Mercedes is definitely at the forefront.
slightly grown
There is nothing to complain about space. The trunk is fairly large and passengers in the back seat are not too short. Because it is a bit higher, they can easily find a good place. We are already happy that you can sit well anyway, because in the premium D segment it was quite tight in the back for a long time. If we look at the outside, we see that the wheelbase in the C-class has become somewhat larger, which explains where the reasonable rear seat space comes from. The car has also grown slightly all around compared to its predecessor.
The Mercedes may look a bit anonymous. The many Mercedes that you can buy at the moment are looking more and more alike anyway and the new C is very similar to the current A-class sedan. It is far from ugly and has a nice clean line in profile, but the nose looks a bit well-behaved and the rear looks a bit like an Alfa Romeo Giulia. In our opinion, the previous C had more character when it comes to design, but Mercedes, like BMW and Audi, is following the trend of making different models more and more similar.
The equipment of the Benz is rather modest. The Luxury-line of the C180 has the sunroof as the most expensive option, but otherwise only some optical matters, such as other light metal and trim in the interior. We miss, among other things, adaptive cruise control (let alone autopilot), steering wheel heating, fully electric seat control and seat cooling.