Mercedes launches new C-Class
Newswheel staff :: 23 January 2007 :: Filed under Saloon, Mercedes Benz, Europe & UK, US
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More airbags than you can possibly imagine
It’s bigger, safer, faster, stiffer, pointier and, well, all the usual jazz. Mercedes has taken the wraps of the latest C-Class saloon and predictably it’s heaving with new technology and features including adaptive damping as standard on every car…
Sharper-suited new C-Class is a chip off the S-Class block
Overall, the new ‘C’ is 55mm longer at 4,581mm, 42mm wider (now 1,770mm) and boasts a wheelbase boosted by 45mm to 2,760mm. All of which is claimed to deliver more passenger space and improved ride quality. However, MB has so far declined to quote kerb weights, so we’ll assume the news involving that metric is not so good.
Design wise, the new C-Class largely picks up where the latest S-Class left off, with many themes carried over from the flagship saloon launched last year. That said, the exaggerated wheel arch vibe of the bigger barge has been notably toned down. Still, it’s a sharper, more geometric and substantial shape than the slightly gloopy and organic outgoing model, if a little fussy thanks to the rising swage line and some busy detailing around the sills and bumpers, particularly in Sport trim.
Speaking of the Sport model, it has been fairly aggressively differentiated from the SE and Elegance trim levels courtesy of an SL-style nose treatment complete with a largely de-chromed grille and the deletion of the famous bonnet-mounted Star emblem in favour of a larger item integrated into the grille.
The chassis, meanwhile, receives the aforementioned adaptive damping system, known as Agility Control. It’s a hydromechanical system, which Merc reckons is a more robust solution than the usual electrical systems. Anywho, Mercedes says it provides cornering that is 10 per cent flatter while also improving ride quality. A slightly quicker steering rack will no doubt also add to the sharper responses of the latest ‘C’. Later this year, MB will offer an upgraded Advanced Agility Package which adds a switchable sport mode.
On the engine front, upgrades are limited to power and fuel consumption improvements for the full four-pot range. Both six-cylinder petrol and diesel engines are carried over unchanged from ye olde C-Class.
Specifically, therefore, the entry level C180 Kompressor supercharger mill climbs to 141bhp, while the C200 Kompressor now cranks out 181bhp. The latter translates into 0.5 seconds shaved off the sprint to 100kph. Both engines also boast marginally improved duel consumption.
COMAND control system is standard on all new ‘C’s as
well as Bluetooth connectivity for mobile phones, four gigs of memory
for music storage and a new revision of Merc’s Linguatronic voice
control doobery
As for the diesel four-bangers, it’s pretty much the same story of improved power matched by reduced consumption. Four-pot oil burning fun kicks off with the C 200 CDI, now capable of 134bhp, and is capped by the impressive 168bhp C220 CDI.
Finally, Mercedes is bigging up the C-Class’s safety credentials with talk of 100 crash tests during development and seven airbags as standard, including a driver kneebag, as well as an improved version of Merc’s PRE-SAFE stability control and brake assist system.
The new ‘C’ will be cruising the highways and byways of Britain in June. Prices are TBA. Over and out.
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