I found it quite a slick implementation, preferable to those which require the gated shifter to be first moved into the semi-auto mode. (It won’t perform a requested downshift if that would result in over-revving.) If you want a bit more involvement, flicking the console-mounted lever to the left downshifts, to the right, upshifts. You can leave it in Drive all the time and it will study your style and program itself accordingly for higher or lower shift points and also react to road gradients knowingly. It is a five-speed unit, with what M-B calls Touch Shift. To some, the most important add-on might be an automatic transmission, which the tester had. That a good load, and in the safety department, the C comes with antilock, four-wheel disc brakes with brake assist, electronic stability assist, antitheft alarm, dual-stage front air bags, side air bags for driver and co-pilot, and full-length side-curtain air bags. If you could find one so spare, it would nonetheless come with a V-6 engine 6-speed manual transmission climate control alloy wheel leather seating, steering wheel and shift knob cruise control electrically-adjustable front seats AM-FM-WB-cassette stereo auto headlamps with twilight sensor power windows auto dimming rearview mirrors integrated garage door opener trip computer, and, of no small significance, the famous three-pointed star stand-up hood ornament. The C-Class starts at $29,950, but I imagine you’d have a hard time finding one in the sub-$30K range – there are just too many inducements to spend, spend. That denomination would be especially a propos in the case of the one I drove, given the modest power available. The Mercedes-Benz C-Class is called a sports sedan by its maker, but might just as well be referred to as a low-end luxury sedan. For comparison, the country’s best-selling family sedan, the Honda Accord, has 101.7, and is rated a midsize – not that there will be much cross-shopping between these two. This is after all a compact, with an interior volume as calculated by the EPA of just 88.6 cubic feet. For the image-obsessed, there’s also a 2-door version, which makes hauling passengers even less likely than the sedan does. The coupe-like profile is meant to entice younger buyers, to whom the typical squared-off-but-practical sedan lines suggest dowdy. If you’re going to resemble anything, that sure makes a fine starting point. The 2001 model-year C-Class sedan is completely new, looking for all the world like the patriarch of the family, the S-Class, after it was left in the dryer too long. Let’s see what a billion-dollar (!) investment can do for an encore. market? That was a good, if not lust-inducing car, far superior to the “baby Benz” that preceded it. Can it be seven years since Mercedes-Benz introduced their C-Class, the baby of the family, to the U.S.
0 Comments
Leave a Reply. |
AuthorWrite something about yourself. No need to be fancy, just an overview. ArchivesCategories |