Mercedes-Benz C320 CDI (2008) long-term test review

Long-term test report - 7 October 2008.    

So my Mercedes C-class has gone – and I will miss it like few other long-term cars. The C320 CDI really got under my skin. Its presence, its power and its ability to elevate any journey to a special event sucker-punched me a week after its arrival and my captivation grew with every passing mile.

Let’s get the minor niggles out the way first. The C-class saloon is not an ideal family car – at least for parent with toddlers. The cabin isn't exactly spacious, especially in the back, and although the boot is decently large, it lacks the versatility of a hatch or estate. The paddle shifters feel a bit flimsy. The lightly sprung bootlid could give you a nasty crack on the head if it was caught by a breeze.

Other irritations? Despite a hefty number of optional extras, the centre console still had plenty of blanked-off buttons. But that’s about it. Elsewhere, the latest Mercedes C-class was brilliant.

In Sport trim, the new C-Class strikes a pretty good balance between aggression, athleticism and sleek understatement. Some of its detailing is a bit fussy – like that untidy collection of shutlines just aft of the front wheels – but its overall proportions are, in my opinion, spot on.

And beneath that sheetmetal sits a chassis that’s far friskier and alert than you’d expect. Light but precise steering, firm suspension with a tight reign on unwanted body control and muscular feelsome brakes made the C-class a hoot when pointed down a decent lick of tarmac.

Throw in one of the finest current turbodiesel powerplants and you have an unfeasibly brisk and refined package that can rack up 600 very fast miles between tanks. It’s the torque that makes the C320 CDI such a devastatingly quick point-to-pointer – there’s a mighty 376lb ft of turbo-enhanced torque that arrives at a low 1600rpm. In a nutshell: instant and effortless acceleration in pretty much any of the seven gears.

It’s as a fast cruiser that the C-class truly excels. Accelerating in top gear will see it rocket all too easily into three-figure speeds, but you’d never guess it from the all-but-silent cabin. And despite its insatiable appetite for reeling in much more exotic and powerful machinery, over 9500 miles the Mercedes’ economy rarely dropped below the official 38mpg – an impressive result.

Nothing fell off, broke or failed on the Merc in our six months with the car and we didn't have to spend a penny other than routine fuel stops. It's a shame we didn't spend long enough with the car to test the dealer service, but we'll aim to do more miles next time round...

I grew up with Mercedes as family cars and I learned to drive in one. I loved their robust and unflappable nature, their smooth performance and unfailing reliability. After the late Nineties/early Noughties off-colour period, which saw my unstinting loyalty to the brand sorely tested, the new C-class has reaffirmed my belief in Mercedes as maker of some of the finest cars in the world.

And in my book, that is a job very well done indeed.

Driving the C-class to Performance Car of the Year - 14 August 2008

This month, the arrival of an SLK55 AMG test car and the purchase of a second car  meant that I didn't drive my Mercedes for most of last week. And hell, I only realised just how much I appreciated and missed it when I got back into it for a long fast drive into deepest Wales. Normally a 700mile round trip is something to be endured, but I positively relished it in the Mercedes. The C-Class was refined, indecently quick and relaxing. It’s climate control, faultless satnav, digital radio and excellent seats kept me comfortable and entertained, and its 39mpg economy meant stopping just once on the trip to refuel. Driving through some atrocious weather  - this is summer, after all – the Mercedes never felt anything but secure and sure-footed in even the heaviest downpours. In short, it reminded me of the Mercedes we had when I was growing up. The Fintail 220 (W111 chassis) and 280SE (W108 chassis) my parents drove were rock solid and utterly reliable, quick and comfortable, qualities enhanced by an understated elegance and low-key luxury. My C-class may lack the older cars’ beautifully balanced proportions and design integrity, but it’s certainly inherited their unflappable competence.

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The Black list - 6 August 2008

After five months and just over 7000 miles, it’s time to tackle the (admittedly short and somewhat trivial) list of the Mercedes C-class's irritants and annoyances. Top of the list is the scrappy and untidy meeting of panels below the A-pillar. Where once a glance at a Mercedes would fill me with a warm reminder of possessing something sleek and athletic, now my eyes are drawn to this incongruous collection of panel gaps that seem far wider than those of its rivals. It detracts from the overall proportions of the car and just looks clumsy and heavy-handed.

The boot uses a clever spring mechanism to pop open when its button on the key fob is thumbed or the internal release is activated. It's clever because there’s no need for a more expensive and heavier electric automated system. But the problem is a gust of wind can result in the lightly-sprung bootlid giving you a nasty crack on the head as you load your shopping into the hold.

Thirdly, and for some reason I cannot put my finger on exactly why, that row of blank buttons on the centre console really irritates me. This is the top model C-class diesel wearing a hefty £33,775 pricetag – to which £5500 of extras have been added – and it still has three of its four buttons blanked off. This small detail sometimes makes it feel like a basement-spec hire car! It’s a tiny thing that not one other person who has travelled in the car has noticed or mentioned, so maybe I’m just being pernickety. But it still winds me up….

By Ben Whitworth

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Light fantastic

The C320’s headlamps are some of the best I’ve ever used. Its optional Intelligent Light System uses active bi-xenons that are 50 percent more powerful than conventional headlamps. They also automatically adapt to driving conditions, according to a number of speed-related parameters.

As you’d expect, they pivot in sync with the steering wheel – by up to 15 degrees – on both dipped and main beam for significantly enhanced cornering vision. Useful on the narrow unlit West Sussex country roads.

Below 25mph the cornering light function is initiated - turn the wheel or activate the indicators and the lights illuminate the side area ahead of the Benz at an angle of up to 65 degrees with a range of around 30 metres. Ideal for dark junctions and poorly lit carparks.

Between 25 and 56mph on dipped beam the light on the driver’s-side throws a wider and brighter cast to illuminate the edge of the road, an ideal setting for country roads. Above 56mph the lights crank up their output to boost vision range by up to 60%. This happens in two stages. Below 68mph the Xenon’s output climbs from 35 to 38 watts – which sounds like an insignificant hike, but the results are amazing. Drive faster and the Xenon beam on the driver’s side is raised, extending the headlamp range to 120 metres. Which means peerless high-speed forward vision.

Which all sounds pretty complicated, but because it all works automatically, you’re only aware that you have a far clearer view of the road ahead where you are looking, rather than where the nose of the car is pointing. The lights are without doubt a key safety element.

And the rear lamps are pretty trick, too. As well as flashing during heavy braking to warn drivers behind, they also play a key aerodynamic role. Those vents that border the lights do the job of a rear spoiler. Air sucked in from beneath the car is conducted up and through the air vents in the lights, tidying up the flow of air along the car’s flanks. This abrupt redirection of airflow virtually eliminates tail-end turbulence which would otherwise adversely affect rear axle lift and yaw characteristics. Result? No need for a spoiler on the bootlid. 

By Ben Whitworth

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Green Machine

Lower consumption and emission figures may make for good headlines, but to really evaluate a vehicle’s environmental impact you need a far more holistic approach. One that starts when lumps of iron ore are taken out of the ground and finishes at the end of recycling. Boasting that your car returns 50mpg and less than 125g of CO2 per kilometre when it’s produced in a factory that has an appalling environmental record is false economy at best, hypocrisy at worst.

The TÜV’s certification is the automotive equivalent of a product like coffee or chocolate achieving Fairtrade standards – you know when you buy it that everything and everyone along the entire production process has been treated justly – and in the case of the C-class, that means the environment. 

By Ben Whitworth

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Linguatronic loveliness

Interesting how brow-furrowing technology at the leading edge quickly becomes assimilated. The Linguatronic system in the Benz is the perfect example. Why do I need to tell my car what to do? Dials, buttons and switches have worked perfectly adequately for more than a century, so why do I need some seemingly over-complex voice activated system instead? 

Because, after two days' use, I’ve realised that it’s bloody brilliant. I simply thumb the talk button on the steering wheel, say where I want to go, what station I want to listen to, or what song I want played – and with eerie efficiency, my wish is the Linguatronic’s command. Setting up the system takes a few minutes; a polite lady tells me to run through the alphabet, count to ten and repeat a few basic words. And that’s it. Whether you have a cold, the windows down or a mouthful of chocolate, the system’s incredibly sophisticated voice pattern system works out what you’ve just said.

It’s also unquestionably safer – not having to constantly fiddle with buttons while flicking your eyes between road and screen makes real sense when every other driver out there seems hell bent on taking me out.

By Ben Whitworth

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Speccing my new Mercedes C-class - 9 May 2008

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