Performance Fast Cars

Performance Fast Cars

Mercedes currently offers American consumers a choice of thirteen different model lines. What a difference from the Mercedes Benz of 1987, when only four U.S.-legal models wore the three pointed star. Back then, the Mercedes brand was renowned for fastidious, brick-shit-house over-engineering. Today, Benzes are known for many things, but mechanical robustness and reliability ain鈥檛 two of them. If anything, Mercedes has earned itself a reputation for persistent electrical gremlins and multitudinous mechanical misfires. Fresh from its divorce from Chrysler, Mercedes would like us to believe that the new C-Class represents a return to form. Looking at the new C, especially when positioned next to the outgoing blob, you can almost hear the new sheriff鈥檚 spurs clank as he strolls into town. Whereas the last C was flabby and farcical, Mercedes鈥?refreshed entry level model possesses unmistakably muscularity. And purpose. From the swage line slicing across the C鈥檚 side panels towards its snout, to the minuscule front overhangs, to the slight bulge in the front wheel arches, this is a car that鈥檚 not shy about going forward. The new C300 (not to be confused with the 300C) comes in Luxury and Sport derivations.

In Sport trim, the C-Class sho鈥?鈥榥uff comes complete with hood strakes, an aggressive front air dam and an elephantine three pointed star, sitting dead center. The C-Class鈥?cabin continues the exterior鈥檚 overall theme of restrained modernism. The switchgear is now exactly where it belongs, doing exactly what it should be doing. The decapitated Pokemon steering wheel is a particular delight; the thick-rimmed tiller provides unfettered visual access to clear, elegant gages. Giant slabs of brushed aluminum- not Lexus-style silver plastic- grace the baby Merc鈥檚 doors and dash. The headlamp knob is made of wonderfully tactile material, a package that has no business in a car this cheap. Throw in build quality we haven鈥檛 seen in the C-Class, er, ever, and you have an interior whose beauty looks set to age as gracefully as a medium-priced bottle of Chateau Margaux. The previous generation C-Class had all the on-road prowess of a toaster.

I had such a rotten time driving it I had to stop and to see if the wheels had been replaced with those chocolate cupcakes with the squiggle icing on the top. The engineers responsible for the old model鈥檚 so-not-luxurious-it-literally-hurt suspension and endlessly endless turning circle have been permanently reassigned to the Chrysler section of Mercedes鈥?historical archives. The C300鈥檚 drive train is shocking. I remember this engine from the C280. Paired with a five-speed auto, it was wretchedly pedestrian. Sampling this new application is like finding a Franklin in a jacket pocket. Hooked-up to Benz鈥檚 seven-speed cog-swapper, the mill churns out a modest (by today鈥檚 standards) 230 horses. But the V6鈥?in-gear acceleration is such that it made me doubt the necessity of the 270 horsepower C350. With a zero-to-60mph sprint time in the low seven second range, the C300 reeks of expectation exceeding. There is a caveat. Acceding to the temper of the times, Mercedes has tuned C300鈥檚 seven-speed cog-swapper for maximum mpg.

It wants to hand you a higher gear as eagerly as a Jehovah鈥檚 Witness wants to give you a copy of the Watchtower. The go-pedal sinks some distance towards the carpet before summoning more power. In the process, it occasionally kicks down a cog too far. Both C-Class models suppress road nuisances like a dictator dealing with democracy. And yet, miracle of miracles, the C鈥檚 ride isn鈥檛 Cadillac mushy. In fact, the sedan鈥檚 ride is classic old-school Mercedes-Benz: firm yet compliant. Although the C300 is an ante-penultimate driving machine, it acquits itself in the corners with honest, admirable aplomb. Although there鈥檚 a not inconsiderable amount of initial body roll, the C300鈥檚 responses are so predictable- and discernible- you can push it far further than you would if you had any common sense. The new C-Class gives U.S. 3-Series or G35. Not because it鈥檚 the sportier choice (get real). The C300's appeal lies in the fact that it鈥檚 an old school cruiser, gliding through life in a once-upon-a- time-in-a-Mercedes kinda way. The new Mercedes C300 is the best non-AMG Mercedes since the 1991 to 1998 monster S-Class. With this new model, Mercedes is finally bringing the sexy back.

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