CLASS OF ITS OWN

Wijith DeChickera takes an all-too-brief spin in a classy, comfortable and challenging new Mercedes-Benz: the new C-Class.

The first thing that I thought I noticed as I slid cautiously into the dangerous-looking new C-Class of the Mercedes-Benz was that the driver rides high. Until it dawned on me that the seat can be adjusted in many ways. Of course, to someone who drives a Japanese saloon and largely likes it or lumps it as far as posture goes, this was a little luxury to be savoured for a comfortable hour or so. And Germans being a race that gets high on precise Teutonic ingenuity, the controls for adjusting seat height, forward thrust and angle of recline are intuitive – they are shaped to correspond with the section you want moved: head rest forward a bit; back support up a tad; lower the rump rest; no, a little higher – yes, well; get a move on, Hans – this isn't the time to make yourself comfortable; it's a test drive, for Kurt's sake!

So, get a move on I did – drawing, not insufferably, admiring glances from middle-aged men in Audis, BMWs and (wait for it) other Mercs. Yes, it's that kind of car. One that your average company chairman or staid, senior professional wishes his wife would let him drive. But talking of the fairer sex, not a single young, good-looking thing spared me so much as a second glance. Yes, I say it again, it's that kind of car. But soon enough, I had no time for paying attention to anyone or anything else, as the 135kW of power under that dashing bonnet kicked in, at a rated 5500rpm, to have me racing down Green Path; donner und blitzen, but this low-slung beauty can do 0-100 km/h in 8.8 seconds (say 10, in my case – I am not Michael Schumacher by any means, you know)– and that's not half bad for a car with (only) 1796cc in its powerhouse.

The new Mercedes-Benz C-Class C200 Kompressor is a car in a class of its own, in many other ways. For one, it combines the sporty good-look feel of any other class-comparable Merc down the ages, with the performance to match. And although it is pitched at a target market lower than that of the elegant E-Class, it has a strange appeal that surpasses its tax bracket. Of course, a cool 21 million smackers puts it well out of the range of a poor, hardworking journalist like myself – but even we can dream, nein?

I did a tad more than that one bright, sunny Saturday morning. Although there is really no place or space to put any car – leave alone a nifty number like this – through its paces in Colombo or suburbs, one does one's best. Cornering hard, I got the feel that this speed wagon could oversteer if you'd let it have its own way. But the wobble and wallow that make the older, bigger autos with the distinctive, dominant star somewhat cumbersome to drive was wonderfully missing in action here. And while the ride in "comfort" mode is a breeze, the nips and tucks that the new C-Class takes in its stride in "sports" mode almost helped me to win a race with an SLK500 that sneakily pipped me at the post in a 400-metre dash. Naturally, there's the now-standard tiptronic function for speed demons with little patience – and the knowledge that your chariot grinds out 250Nm of torque at anything between 2800 and 5000rpm makes fast drivers a little edgier than usual. But with EBD, its brakes are good – stop you on a dime, they can.

Not surprisingly for the version meant for an Asian market, this car has many optional features that would more than interest you – such as an Audio 20 radio with a 4.5-inch colour display, a CD player which can also play MP3 files and Bluetooth functionality – which means that if your mobile is Bluetooth-enabled, you can patch it into the dashboard console for a readymade car phone. But although the standard audio equipment may not have a Harman/Kardon LOGIC 7 surround system (an option, if you wish to spend a small fortune with which you could buy a second, small car of the type manufactured these days by emerging Sri Lankan automotive entrepreneurship), it sounds as authentic as having a 9-channel, 450W, 12 high-performance-loudspeaker sound system. Perhaps, I exaggerate a little (but some Merc options can cost as much as a minibus, it's true;).

But that's just the fallout from being exhilarated by the ride that this car offers: challenging (if you like a vehicle that feels like an extension of its driver), comfortable (a Thermatic two-zone automatic climate control is a standard fitting) and classy (the new C-Class 200 Kompressor comes in "Elegance" and "Avantgarde" styling). Some cars are meant to be chauffeur-driven. Well, if you can part with the keys to this classy, yet sporty plaything, you're a sterner man than I, my son! ("Security, get that man out of our car – gently, please, he's writing a review;")
