Benz Faqs

South Africa has been ready for some time now and DaimlerChrysler is finally ready to give them what they want, a new range of C-Class sedans to replace the old cars that have been there since 2000. True those vehicles were great for their time, but almost 7 years has passed and they are ready for the next great vehicle.

The W204 range will replace the W203 with longer, wider and taller bodies, distinctive radiator grilles, more power, more standard features and enhanced safety, traction and stability functions. The cars will still be marketed as Classic, Elegance and Avantgarde (in ascending order of price and equipment) with a choice of five engines and base prices ranging from R292 000 for the four-cylinder C200 Kompressor to R415 000 for the C350 V6. The four-cylinder engines will come with either a six-speed manual or five-speed auto gearbox.

The four-cylinder engines will come with either a six-speed manual or five-speed auto gearbox; the V6 models will only be available with a 7G-Tronic seven-speed auto/manual sequential gearbox complete with change paddles on the steering wheel. Overall, Mercedes says, the new C-Class cars are eight kilograms lighter than their predecessors.

Around 70 percent of the shell is made of high-strength steel alloys, a percentage unprecedented in passenger car development, according to Mercedes, and having a tensile strength three or four times better than that of “ordinary” steel. Aluminium is also widely used in the cars for the front fenders, crash boxes, rear parcel shelf, cross-members and the doors.

Overall, Mercedes says, the new C-Class cars are eight kilograms lighter than their predecessors and their integrity was unquestioned with the cars’ exceptionally quiet ride on the often-questionable roads of the Lowveld. Mercedes says the shell is “practically undeformable” and will provide a survival cell even in a high-speed collision. The way all this is put together has also paid off in reducing the cars’ drag co-efficient to 0.27.

Starting at the front, the new C-Class has several different grille designs with varying numbers of bars and positioning of the Mercedes star. Three extended, horizontal bars and a big, central star characterise the Avantgarde model, the Elegance has a three-dimensional, louvered grille with a high-gloss paint finish and the Classic is more restrained.

Further improvements have also been made to the engine, turbocharger and common-rail diesel direct-injection of the four-cylinder, C220 CDI whose power has risen by 15kW to 125kW and torque by 18 percent to 400Nm while fuel consumption has dropped to a claimed 6.1 litres/100km. All four-cylinder units can take either a six-speed manual or five-speed auto transmission.

The V6 engines are unchanged with a choice of C280 or C350 developing 170kW and 200kW respectively. The six-cylinder of the new C320 CDI has an output of 165 kW and all six-cylinder models are available only with a 7G-Tronic, seven-speed automatic/manual sequential transmission.