Modern Mercedes-Benz vehicles of late have all been beaten with an ugly stick with exaggerated lighting signatures, disproportioned lines, and overly generous use of the three-pointed star. With the all-new C-Class, things go a notch higher; this one’s been beaten black and blue.
Typically, the C-Class is regarded as one of the more classic looking premium small sedans. Compared, let’s say, to its rivals from Munich or Ingolstadt, they’re usually subdued, mixing in bits of sportiness and elegance in the right proportions. Now, all that’s gone out of the window with something that looks like something you buy off Temu.
The biggest crime would be down to the front and rear ends. The front already has you starting with, “yuck” given the illuminated upright chrome grille, the misuse of a large three-pointed star, and even more three-pointed stars in the headlights. The rear doesn’t fare any better with five three-pointed stars—four of them serving as the taillights and a central black bar that looks more in place in a Chevy Malibu rental than it does in a luxury sedan.
Mercedes-Benz’s decision to simply massacre the C-Class goes inside where the C-Class does away with the use of traditional luxury materials—leather, wood, and the like—for something so faux pax: a giant LED screen that spans almost the entire length of the dashboard. With more viewing space than your local Abensons’ (39.1 inches), it’s sure to blind the driver when he’s driving at night. And believing that you enjoy driving your living room, the system is powered by non-traditional infotainment chips—Unity Game Engine—for snappy graphics and excellent touchscreen distraction.
It’s a shame really as the new C-Class does take into account the passenger’s well-being. While their retinas aren’t being seared, the seats are certified Aktion Gesunder Rücken meaning they’re friendly to the spine for long, fatigue-free journeys. It also debuts a new climate control system for quicker heating/cooling, a multi-piece speaker system, and additional space all around—12 mm more leg room, 22 mm more front headroom and 11 mm more rear headroom. For added practicality, the C-Class now has a 101-liter front trunk and a 470-liter rear trunk.
Despite dropping the “EQ” branding, the C-Class moves on to a purely electric setup. The debut variant, the C400 4Matic, is a dual motor, all-wheel drive variant producing 489 horsepower and 800 Nm of torque. 0 to 100 km/h is done in just 4 seconds, while top speed is set at 210 km/h. Remarkably, the rear motor has a two-speed transmission, while the front uses a single-gear ratio.
Power is drawn not from the fire-prone Farasis battery but from Samsung. It offers up to 762 kilometers on a single charge (WLTP) thanks to its 94-kWh battery. Its 800-volt architecture and capability to charge up to 330 kW (DC fast charging) means topping up from 10 to 80 percent is done in just 22 minutes.
The switch over to a new all-electric platform also means the ability to spec it with Airmatic air suspension with height adjustment and rear wheel steering.
For safety and driving assistance systems, the C-Class packs up to 27 cameras and sensors, as well as a water-cooled, high-performance control unit “with sufficient power reserves for future functions.” Assistance systems packages include MB.Drive that assists with steering, lane keeping, distance control, braking and acceleration as well as parking and maneuvering, MB.Drive Assist that adds a lane-change assistant, and MB.Drive Assist Pro that brings a higher level of assisted driving.
New to the C-Class is the Pre-Safe Curve function. When navigation is activated, the system warns the driver by tightening the seat belt if the vehicle speed appears to be significantly too fast for the approaching curve.
Mercedes Benz current design language is terrible af.
ReplyDeletestill better than those cheap china cars though 💯 percent
DeleteThose grilles are so fake! Better remove them. They are reserved for ICE cars. Give the BEV the treatment they deserve. Give them the best or nothing design.
ReplyDeleteMitsubishi logo tail lights.
ReplyDeleteWhat type of weird people did Mercedes commission to design such a strange and hideous car worthy of being named as one of the ugliest cars ever. Its one thing that an artist design a bizarre car and reject it but in this case the whole Mercedes team approved and manufactured it and expect us to spend millions to buy this unsightly and repulsive monstrosity.
ReplyDeleteBetter than the current mazda designs
ReplyDelete