Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe Review & Road Test

When it comes to luxury coupes in Australia, buyers are spoiled for choice. A proliferation of two-doored vehicles with esteemed badges means narrowing your preferences is not an easy task. Complicating that is the myriad of variants and engine types. It’s with this in mind that we found ourselves behind the wheel of the new Mercedes-Benz E-Class Coupe. After testing the E-Class Sedan with a V8, Mercedes-Benz made available the Coupe, but with a V6.

Coming soon after our drive of the E500 sedan, you notice immediately it’s a brilliant translation from sedan to coupe. The quad headlamps and tail-lights are instantly recognisable as an E-Class, yet differ enough to envoke coupe lines. “Sinewy build” is how Merc has labelled it, and it’s hard to argue. With its rounded rear end and low, solid chin, it achieves the remarkable drag co-efficient of 0.24CD – the slipperiest series-production car in the world.

Of course, that means little if it can’t get up to speed. Mercedes-Benz’s ubiquitous 3.5-litre V6 powers this car, and despite its slightly portly weight (1630kgs), the 200kW engine manages to shift the coupe to 100km/h in a very snappy 6.4 seconds. That, might I add, is half a second quicker than the new VW Golf GTI.
The deliciously smooth seven speed automatic keeps the V6 in its sweet spot a full throttle, meaning upshifts always land the revs in power friendly territory. The semi-parabolic power delivery of this engine also means that on light throttle it’s quiet and unfussed, but a quick prod of the right foot awakens the driveline and its ready for action. At idle, however, you’d be hard-pressed to tell that it’s running – it’s that smooth.

You’ll notice, too, that the gear selector has shifted from the steering column to the conventional centre console – a more familiar layout for some. Curiously, though, despite being a coupe (and the inferred sporting pretentions), there are no paddles for shifting gears on the steering wheel. To do that manually, you’ll have to knock the lever to the left and use the push-pull technique.

Where the Coupe has it all over the E-Class sedan though, is in driver involvement. You feel much more connnected to both the car and the road. This is partly due to the steering, which is shared with the C-Class, on whose platform, the E-Class Coupe is based.

Compared with the E500 we tested a few weeks ago, the turn in is sharper, the weight through the lock heavier, and more consistent, and the feedback trebled. Also helping the Coupe’s involvement is the Agility Control suspension.
With its better ability to catch the short, sharp impacts a lot quicker, it has a more pleasant ride, despite the fact that it’s firmer overall. In fact, on the test car’s 17-inch wheels, the balance between ride and handling is one of the best on the market we’ve experienced so far.

Sure, there’s no getting around the mass of the Coupe, but the way it manages weight transfer and absorbs mid-corner bumps is nothing short of astounding. But the chassis isn’t the only impressive thing about the car.

Inside, it’s all about quality, and carrying the E-Class through into coupe form. Although the parts many not be interchangeable, the dash is an excellent translation between body styles. It may be narrower, but the Coupe’s interior lines work a little better than the E-Class sedan’s squared off look. For example, the supremely elegant brushed and burnished aluminium strips that stretch across the lower part of the dash, flow beautifully onto the door trims and through the sides behind the front seats.

The choice of constrasting leather front and black backed buckets in the test car sit perfectly with the light headlining and dark carpets. The seats not only have plenty of back support (lumbar adjustment is four-ways) but excellent lateral hold. The Easy-Entry function lives up to its name and remembers where the front seats were positioned after the seat has slid and tilted forward. Head room in the back is, as you’d expect, a little tight for tall people, as is leg room, but for the young ‘uns it’ll be fine – adults would only want to be there for a short stretch. Boot space is adequate, at 450 litres, and at least you get a spare wheel.

The quietness of the cabin is quite staggering, although there is a little wind noise from the mirrors at speed. The sound-deadening must be very good, because despite the variety of surfaces we traversed in the week of driving the E350 Coupe, it made little difference to the road-noise coming in.

Making settling into driving easy is the electronic arm which “hands you” the seatbelt upon closing the door, and automatically retracts moments later. All four windows retract fully, too, making the styling of the deleted B-pillar a highlight. All in all, the interior quality is impeccable.

The same goes for safety. Mercedes-Benz says this is the safest car in its class; with the myriad of active and passive aids, there’s little reason to doubt that claim. Apart from the expected crumple zones and nine airbags, there’s Attention Assist (which monitors driver activity), PRE-SAFE (a pre-emptive system that anticipates an accident), Intelligent Light System (five different lighting modes), Adaptive Highbeam Assist (automatically switches to low beam when detecting oncoming cars), and an optional radar-based cruise control which will brake for you if it detects an accident. Yet none of it detracts from the enjoyment of driving.

It’s a funny thing; normally I like reserves of power, and plenty of space. But the Coupe’s handling prowess, superior ride, driver involvement and (especially on the test car) colour choices made me forget all about what the E500 was like. “Less is more” never applied so aptly.
We may be spoiled for choice when it comes to luxury coupes, but if your choice is the E350 Coupe, you’ll certainly be spoiled.

Mercedes-Benz SLK Review

In Mercedes-Benz ‘speak’, SLK stands for ‘Sporty, Light & Short’ – from the German ‘Sportlich, Leight und Kurz’. The SLK has been a fixture on the world automotive stage for almost 17 years. The Mercedes-Benz SLK debuted as a concept at the Paris Motor Show in 1994, and the first model, the R170, was released in the retail world two years later in 1996. It was designed to go head-to-head with the Porsche Boxster and BMW Z3.
The Mercedes-Benz SLK was all those things it purported to be with its initials – correction: it was really only two out of the three seeing as it kicked off at about 1400kg and remains in that ballpark today. (It actually weighs about the same as a Mercedes-Benz SLK.) The original SLK also had a cool folding hardtop, following on the back of a trend set by cars such as the Mitsubishi 3000GT Spyder and yet to be followed by the likes of the Peugeot 206cc. In effect, you got all the benefits of a coupe (i.e. quietness, security, insulation) plus the wind in the hair of a convertible on tap – provided you didn’t mind losing significant boot space.
Unfortunately, however, from the outset the Mercedes SLK was also clubbed enthusiastically by the ‘effeminate’ styling stick. The balanced opinion of red-blooded men everywhere tended to the view that it was a kind of sportlich, (not-so) leight und kurz hairdresser’s car. That last bit can be something of a death sentence in sales terms, because although it might not be politically correct to point this out, the simple fact is that while many women will buy a deadset bloke’s car, only a few men will buy a girlie car.
The current model SLK is the R171, which kicked off in 2004. Frankly, it does a much better job of wearing the pants – but to some extent this particular closure of the demographic gate occurred about eight years after the effeminate horse had bolted. Plenty of people still consider this car to be overdosed on X chromosomes and deficient in Ys.
The R171 Mercedes-Benz SLK is a curious combination of engineering excellence and its polar opposite. (It’s 70 per cent excellent and 30 per cent disappointing, when you weigh up the entire range.) Among the positives: The powered roof mechanism is a 22-second engineering miracle from whoa to go. You can’t operate it without wondering how they did that. It’s brilliant either open or closed, and especially so while in transit between the two.
Anyone who thinks the SLK remains bespoke ladies’ transportation should perhaps drive the top-of-the-range SLK 55 AMG, which is simply one of the best-balanced (mind-blowing) AMG cars available – and that’s saying something. At first glance, you might doubt that a small car with a big atmo V8 shoved up its snout, and rear-drive, would do anything particularly well – apart from accelerate. (Think: Shelby Cobra.) A short squirt up an engaging, winding road will cure that view. It is simply brilliant, at everything from steering and (fade-proof) braking to cornering and (of course) accelerating.
Having spent the best part of a week doing exactly that in an SLK 55 in the mountainous hinterland between Kingscliff in northern NSW and the Queensland Gold Coast, I can tell you it’s one of the most satisfying AMG cars I’ve ever driven. Maybe not the fastest, but almost certainly the most fun.
The SLK 55 AMG is one of the few AMG cars you can buy that give you the added bonus of 3D ‘surround sound’ effect of the roof down coupled with glorious exhaust bellow and atmo V8 induction roar. It’s hard to imagine 265kW ever sounding better than that. When you add 510Nm to the miraculous and silky smooth paddle-shifted 7G-TRONIC seven-speed auto, you get immense grunt everywhere – especially exiting corners like you’re wearing the red-and-blue Spandex from Krypton. After a week spent doing that, it’s hard to go back to an ordinary mortal’s car – even a good one. Going back to your own car after a week in an AMG is just like walking forwards to business class (easy) and then, later, back to economy (heart-breaking).
The bottom line is that the SLK 55 AMG is one of the purest and most enjoyable driving experiences available. Few cars on the road can match its performance, few people will ever experience it, and few drivers can operate at a level that exploits all of the car’s massive performance potential.
Having said that, it’s debatable whether the SLK 55 AMG is especially good value. On paper, it appears that less is more – or, at least, less costs more. See, the Mercedes-Benz C 63 AMG is almost $30k cheaper, plus more prodigious on the performance front with 71 additional kilowatts and 90 more Newton-metres – that’s 27 per cent more power and 18 per cent more torque in a car weighing just 10 per cent more. Also, it’s more blokey to look at, and you get three extra seats plus luggage space…
Incongruously, an Mercedes-Benz ML 63 AMG SUV is slightly cheaper than the SLK 55 AMG’s hefty $180k-esque pricetag. And you could probably drive right over the top of an SLK 55 in it.
There are, of course, numerous ways to carve up the value equation: The Mercedes SLK 55 AMG is about $45k cheaper than the base-model Porsche 911 Carerra, a car that it dead-heats with from 0-100km/h, and which is (let’s be frank) much less pleasant to drive daily. The Benz is the fully loaded ‘works burger’ model, whereas the more expensive Porsche remains the ‘poverty pack’ in the range.
On the minus side, the Mercedes SLK’s ride quality right across the range isn’t that compliant, and the SLK 200 Kompressor entry-level model is anything but inspirational (or aspirational). The supercharged SLK 200 Kompressor is (and sounds) asthmatic – more like a rolling wheeze, compared with the SLK 55’s impressive bellow – and yet this entry-level model still manages to cost more than $90k. That’s about $50k for the car and $40k for the three-pointed stars. Or maybe the other way around. With 125kW inside a 1400kg body, you’re looking at the same kind of yawn-inducing power-to-weight ratio as a Toyota Camry (not an exaggeration). A six-speed manual is the standard transmission offering on SLK 200 K, with a five-speed auto optional – certainly the ‘hairdresser’ driveline in the range. Overall, the entry-level SLK is simply an example of getting the style without the substance.
Up against, say, the entry-level BMW Z4, the SLK 200 K trades off 25kW, is line-ball on peak torque, and costs $5k more. The base-model Z4 is a full second quicker to 100km/h. If you’re operating at this sort of pricepoint, it’s a pretty simple decision – provided your head (and not your heart) is doing the deciding.
Two V6 engines are available in the SLK range – a 3.0-litre with 170kW and 300Nm and a 3.5-litre with 224kW and 360Nm. Frankly, these are both showing their age – especially the 3.0. Its outputs are so close to Holden’s 3.0 V6 (190kW and 290Nm) that it’s just not funny. It’s more refined, obviously, but hardly a happy example of engineering excellence to be Benz … with GM nipping at the heels on your small V6 output from an equivalent displacement. The 7G-TRONIC auto is standard on the 3.0 V6 (no manual is available), while it’s optional on the 3.5 (on which a six-speed manual is standard).
The V6 SLK models are sportier than most owners will ever need – but the pricepoints overlap key competitors like the Z4 and Porsche Boxster/Cayman. If you’re in the market for a mid-range SLK, you’d best test drive equivalents from these other Euro sportscars for head-to-head comparison. And if you just want the super-cool folding roof … maybe you’d rather have the Volkswagen Eos, and a nice, long holiday in Europe?
Incongruously, the SLK 300 and 55 AMG ride on 18-inch alloys but the standard wheels for the other models are 17s. All the models except the AMG will run happily on 95RON fuel. All models feature warning buzzers for lights left on, park brake applied while driving and low fluid levels, plus a brake pad wear indicator.
The SLK’s interior is – almost – an ergonomic triumph. It’s overwhelmingly comfortable for such a body-hugging experience. The controls are generally instinctive – and it’s nice to see the transmission shifter on the transmission hump, and not sprouting from the steering column where it competes with the indicator stalk on some other Benz models. The seats are magnificently supportive, especially on the SLK 55 AMG, and the wheel with flat bottom and paddles is also a delight. The ‘Airscarf’ feature, which is optional on some models, and standard heated seats mean you’ll be able to drive with the top down and the exhaust bellowing even in the coldest months in relative comfort.
However, the trip-meter would have seen me ripping my hair out (if I still had any above my neck). If zeroing it is an intelligence test, I failed. After picking the car up from valet parking in Brisbane I needed to zero the trip. Ten minutes later, I’m still trying (and failing) to manage this simple task. Okay, so at this point I admit defeat and attempt to find owner’s manual (also a ‘fail’). I call Mercedes-Benz – they don’t know either. Fifteen minutes later, it transpires that the owner’s manual isn’t in the glovebox, the boot or the door pockets. It’s in a mesh pocket against the transmission tunnel in the passenger’s footwell – where you can’t see it from the driver’s seat. Even if you lean over. In the ‘hidden’ owner’s manual you discover that the zeroing controls for the trip meter are on the outer left edge of the speedo binnacle – where you also can’t see them from the driver’s seat. This is the kind of event that will only do your head in once, obviously, but it’s a major confusion catalyst that first (and only) time. You’ve been warned.
The base model SLK 200 K gets a basic sound system with six-CD in-dash changer and a five-inch colour screen, plus iPod/USB/3.5mm audio inputs and Bluetooth (for phone only). Full leather is standard, plus central locking with crash-sensing opening function. There are four airbags: dual fronts and head/thorax hybrid side bags for driver and passenger. The external mirrors are heated, there are what Benz calls chrome tailpipe “embellishers” and an infrared remote for the roof.
If you step up to the SLK 300 you get AMG external garnish on the body and the 18-inch wheels, plus the COMMAND APS 6.5-inch screen with HDD navigation, voice control, 4Gb of onboard music storage and a single CD/DVD MP3/AAC disc player. And there’s a memory package for the seats that includes automatic retraction of the steering wheel for getting in and out of the car.
The SLK 350 gets the COMMAND APS system with six CD/DVD player in the dash, plus an SD card slot – as well as the Airscarf as standard.
SLK 55 AMG is the ‘works burger’ of 2005-esque specifications – with bespoke seats, suspension, brakes, body garnish, bi-xenon lighting and alarm with anti-tow-away provision – although if you can afford this model you could probably also probably hire a minder with an Uzi to watch over the car on those few occasions you’re required to leave it in an otherwise insecure location.
Then there are the options: the ‘sports package’ and ‘AMG sports package’ … but these are only applicable to the SLK 200 and SLK 350. Both the SLK 300 and SLK 55 AMG already come fully loaded in the ‘sex me up’ department. However, there are ways to spend even more money on all the models if you want. The Airscarf, for example, is optional on SLK 200 and 300, and the only model with standard auto-dimming mirrors is the SLK 55 – they’re optional in the other models. Same applies to the ‘luxury climate control’, and the beefier Harman/Kardon Logic7 surround sound system. If you want the 55 and feel like spending more money, you can buy the suit carrier. lumbar support for the driver’s seat, a bag moulded to the contours of the boot, and a bunch of other leather and wood accoutrements, which are generally optional on the ‘lesser’ SLK models as well.
The R171 SLK is, frankly, showing its age. It lacks, for example, Bluetooth audio streaming, wheels bigger than 18-inchers in the options catalogue, proximity keys, xenon lighting across the range – in other words a bunch of other features becoming increasingly commonplace on Japanese cars costing less than half the price of the base model. And it has already had its mid-life makeover, so these enhancements are unlikely to be forthcoming until SLK R172 breaks cover in Australia around mid-2011.
The R171 model Mercedes SLK is currently in its twilight years, and being sold into a very fashion-conscious segment of the market – against newer, sexier entrants from BMW and Porsche. Perhaps this is why sales have tanked – back in the halcyon days of 2005 the Mercedes SLK enjoyed 927 annual sales. Last year, sales totalled just 338 – a drop of 64 per cent. If you can find a dealer who’s been lumbered with a hard-to-shift example in the ‘nursing home’ corner of the showroom, you might enjoy something of a bargain on an unofficial runout example of what is essentially a fine, if ageing, car – albeit one still at a relatively high price point.

Mercedes-Benz E-Class Review & Road Test

It’s funny how the world goes in cycles. Long hair, short hair and back to long hair again. Light colours, dark colours and back again. And of course, straight lines, curves and back to straight again. Mercedes latest E-Class sports the latter, with angular styling and hard, chiseled lines. But it’s no worse off for it.

It’s the best looking E-Class yet, and given the LED running lights in the blacked out corners of the front bumper, it cuts an imposing figure in someone’s rear view mirror. Of course, the dual headlamp set up remains, but the inside lights are a lot smaller, and slope away from the grille. You also get dual Mercedes logos with a grille badge, and the three pointed star directly above it, on the bonnet.

The angular theme continues through the interior, with the old model’s swoopy dash replaced by a classic squared off look. Dash plastics which are soft to touch, glossy, lacquered wood, smooth leather – the quality cannot be faulted. The seats are also very, very comfortable with plenty of adjustment in all directions. Especially nice is the seat movement buttons located on the door, in easy reach.

When first confronted with the myriad of buttons that are dotted throughout the interior, it may seem overwhelming. Don’t worry; they’re laid out in a very logical fashion and fall to hand easily. The COMAND system will take a few goes to get the feel of how it works, and although it’s not as initially intuitive as other systems, you come to grasp its layout fairly easily.
The voice control makes things nice and easy, though, and in a few minutes you’ll be entering destinations on the sat-nav, and making phone calls on the Bluetooth.

Practicality is high on the list, with generous foot, leg and head room in all seats, and a 540 litre boot that’ll swallow plenty of luggage. The interior, then, gets a big tick of approval.

Under the bonnet, things are also salivation material. There’s 5.5 swept litres of classic German bent eight. The velvety-smooth engine glides through the rev range without a hint of coarseness. It just pulls harder and harder as you reach to upper notches of the tacho – noticeably so from 5500rpm – and slips into the next gear almost unnoticed. At low revs you wouldn’t even know what engine is powering the car, but as you press on the beautiful V8 growl comes alive, without ever being intrusive. Perhaps it’s a little too quiet for someone who enjoys mechanical symphonies.

The 0-100km/h sprint is dealt with in a snappy 5.2 seconds, but the massive cross-drilled brakes wash that off quickly and cleanly. Brake pedal feel is nothing short of perfect, with no over-assistance either.
There’s no question about the automatic’s brilliance, also. Seven speeds will see to it that you’re in the right gear at the right time, and that the transitions between ratios are smothered. You’ll notice them at full noise, no doubt, but they’re still unimpeachably smooth.

There are paddles if sir is so inclined, however the ‘box is smart enough in Drive to leave them alone. Also deterring their use is the slowish response times when selecting gears manually. The E500 doesn’t really need them, though. It’s more supremely comfortable cruisemobile than track weapon. The suspension set up also indicated this.

Airmatic is Merc-speak for air suspension, and in Comfort mode, there’s a bit of roll and wallow to keep passengers, erm, comfortable. It still needs a little work, as minor imperfections still make it through, with the dampers not quite able to catch the initial shock of small bumps like a coil-sprung set up would. On smooth roads devoid of potholes, it’s a dream. Sport mode firms it up a fair bit and allows a bit more involvement as it ups your cornering limits.

Speaking of which, turning off the stability control still doesn’t completely de-activate the electronic nanny, with a mid-corner slide caught by the ever wary system, however its predictive ability which tightens the seatbelts in the event of sideways motion is brilliant. Who needs extra bolstering when you’ll never slide out of your seat?

Turn in is sharp on Sports mode, too, but the steering is quite light, and with the glossy wood segments on the Elegance model line, the steering wheel can get a little slippery at the top and bottom. The Avantgarde’s all leather tiller is a much better bet.

Again, it’s not a sports car – Mercedes-Benz has an AMG range if that’s your bent – so it’s a much more relaxing drive than some of its Germanic competitors. You’ll always feel refreshed upon emerging, yet it has the urge if you need it. That’s something that the demographic that it suits has worked out.

Normally driving a $180,000 car you’ll have a few women remarking that your choice of vehicle suits them (or words to that effect). But I’ve never had more comments from middle-aged men than while steering the E500. They stare, they point, they come and ask questions. I’m sure after seeing the car up close, some of them trundled off to their local Merc dealership.

Thing is, if they do, there aren’t too many options to tick. The list of standard kit is very impressive: Automatic dipping headlights, lane departure warning, blind spot warning, pre-tightening seatbelts, a driver attention monitor, motorized rear sun-blind, reversing camera, television tuner, heated and cooled seats, Harman/Kardon stereo, auto dimming mirrors, sun-roof, etcetera, etcetera.

Really, the Mercedes-Benz E500 has everything you’d ever need. This is a car that will do it all. From being an autobahn cruiser, to a twisty backroad chaser, to a family hauler, the E500 has the power and safety to handle what ever you throw at it.
Yes, this E-Class will tackle any task tactfully.

Mercedes-Benz C 350 Review

Model Tested:
2011 Mercedes-Benz C 350, 3.5-litre V6 petrol, seven-speed automatic transmission

What’s this? Another mid-life refresh for Merc’s biggest seller? Should we be bothered or should we just sigh and moan about yet another Teutonic yawn-fest? Well, Mercedes has seen fit to launch the ‘new’ C-Class back-to-back with the undeniably all new SLK in the surprisingly tropical Tenerife. I’ve already driven the SLK and have been impressed by the many advancements made with the two-seater, so will the C-Class feel like a damp squib in comparison?

Well there’s no point in comparing the two, obviously. But the C-Class is a veritable Mercedes staple and of high importance to the brand so any change to its DNA needs to be carefully considered. And on first acquaintance it would appear very little has changed. But Mercedes insists this new model has been updated with “more than 2000 new parts”. So let’s see if that’s enough.

Traditionally, the C-Class has been embraced by private and fleet purchasers in almost equal measure and that’s unlikely to change anytime soon. The problem, to my mind, despite the company’s statement that it has been the global market leader in its segment since 2008, is that it has always seemed to be the ‘old man’s choice’ with none of the visual dynamism nor the driver involvement that a BMW 3 Series gives in abundance.

No matter, we need to look at the new C-Class without prejudice. The outgoing model has been available since 2007 and in that time it has sold in the order of 1.25 million units – impressive by anyone’s standards. And more than 2000 new parts should result in a comprehensively new car, but from the outside at least there are very few clues to its progress. There’s a new grille, new lamps front and rear and a new bumper treatment. The grille on the standard and Elegance models is the more traditional, fussy variety with a bonnet-mounted star while the Avantgarde variants receive a much more sporting look with a big star in the centre of a sleeker grille, a la SLS, CLS and SLK. And that is it. Inside, however, advancements are more manifest.

The interior really has benefited from a hike in quality, not only in the materials used in its construction but also in its design. It’s been comprehensively upgraded and one of the biggest improvements is the replacement of its former pop up infotainment screen with one that’s integrated into the dashboard. The real improvements, however, are under its sombre skin.

The engines for the C-Class were upgraded more than a year ago and they’ve been carried over to the new one, but the big news is the new, direct-injection V6 petrol unit. Compared with the outgoing, it’s more powerful by 25kW (up to 225kW) and more fuel efficient to the tune of 31 percent (how does 6.8 litres per 100km sound for a 3.5-litre V6?). Twist is up by 20Nm to 370Nm, too. And, despite the fact that this model won’t be on sale until much later this year, it’s the one I get the keys to first.

The roads of Tenerife are incredibly challenging. There’s plenty in the way of fast motorway but once you venture off piste the mountains dominate and the routes over them can expose the flaws in any car. Bravely this is the terrain Mercedes has chosen for us hacks to explore the talents, or otherwise, of the C-Class. And the news is good.

Stealthily, the C-Class has managed to trump the BMW 3 Series in many respects, not least as a car that rewards the enthusiastic driver – it’s just that not many people have realised this. What the C-Class does is provide the comfort and refinement of an S-Class on the motorway but it comes into its own on the twisty bits, so its pilot can enjoy an enthusiastic drive thanks to its more diminutive proportions and the tightness afforded by its chassis.

The Mercedes-Benz C350 is a brisk performer but it also provides a sense of calm, poise and, key to the brand, sophistication. Grip is plentiful and the sharp hairpins and steep inclines encountered on these roads pose no problem whatsoever for the Merc. The brakes feel excellent and the new seven-speed automatic transmission seems perfectly suited to its powertrain, making short work of some incredibly difficult roads that would have many other cars floundering.

But it’s not the driving experience that Mercedes is keen to concentrate on. Rather, we’re told repeatedly that the new C-Class has been blessed (some would say cursed) with no fewer than 10 new ‘assistance systems for more safety’. In other words, just like Audi, Mercedes doesn’t trust its customers to drive in a safe manner. Attention Assist and Active Bonnet are standard fitment throughout the range and Sport models will come with Intelligent Light System and Adaptive Highbeam Assist. See, they don’t trust us at all. Optionally available are Distronic Plus, Pre-Safe Brake, Active Lane Assist, Blind Spot Assist and Speed Limit Assist. Wipe Your Arse Assist is next, you can bet your life on it.

Before I get off my high horse, really, do we need any of this stuff? If you answer yes to all of it, perhaps you ought to consider whether you should be allowed on the road unaccompanied in the first place. But that’s the C-Class for you – it’s bringing the technology of the S-Class and the CLS to us plebs with less to spend. Having said that, once you start going nuts speccing one up from the options list it’s scary how much you can end up spending.

Oh, and lest we forget, the new C-Class can connect to the internet via a new generation Telematics system. As well as Googling for unspeakable material, occupants can, for the first time in a C-Class, save driven routes – handy when you’re impressed by the scenery and want to retrace your steps at some time in the future.

So, is the new C-Class little more than a mid-life refresh? On paper, no. But in practice that’s exactly what it looks and feels like. That’s not to take away anything from its considerable talents but it really isn’t a car to excite the senses, even with an admittedly impressive V6 under the bonnet. When the AMG comes along (sooner than you might think), the C-Class will take the fight to BMW’s brilliant M3 and there’ll be an extremely handsome two-door coupe that will, at the very least, give the exterior looks a shot in the arm.

If the previous C-Class was a tempting proposition for you then you’ll still find plenty to like here, but only time will tell if Mercedes can cling onto its recent sales record once its nemesis, the new 3 Series, comes along in a few months’ time. The tide could shift once again but the C Class will still remain a seriously impressive, if ultimately unexciting, mode of transport.
The 2011 Mercedes-Benz C-Class sedan and estate will arrive in Australia in June, followed by the coupe in July, and all three AMG variants in September