Mercedes C-Class Grand Edition Review
Car Tested: 2014 Mercedes C-Class Grand Edition (C220 CDI)
Price OTR Mumbai: Rs. 50,78,640/-
The Grand Edition is a more appealing special variant of the third gen Mercedes C-Class.
The C-Class has been Mercedes’ most important model in several markets as it brings the German automaker the most volumes. Since its introduction, the company has sold more than 10 million units of the Mercedes C-Class throughout the globe. Launched in 1993, the current generation model (W204) is seven years old and is due for replacement in India later this year. The Grand Edition is the last model of the third generation C-Class and a farewell of sorts too. It is the celebration of Mercedes rolling out 50,000 cars from its Chakan facility. We get behind the wheel of the Mercedes C-Class Grand Edition to say our goodbyes as we await the very promising new C-Class to arrive on our shores.
Motor Quest: Mercedes first introduced the C-Class in 1993 which became the entry-level car of the company till the arrival of the A-Class in 1997. The current generation model was launched in 2007.
Exteriors – The C-Class has aged gracefully and although it won’t make heads turn, it certainly has a personality which draws people to this car. The Grand Edition gets a slew of exterior changes to highlight the special edition model. The vehicle wears an AMG body kit (with front, rear aprons and side body skirts) which gives it a sporty flair while the 17-inch, 10-spoke alloy wheels get AMG hub caps. You also get a chrome tail pipe and Grand Edition badges above the front fender. These all add up to make the Grand Edition different in appearance from the regular C-Class.
As expected from a Merc, interior quality is excellent with safety galore. Rear seat lacks space and feels cramped
Interiors – On the inside, Mercedes-Benz has given the C-Class Grand Edition some additional features like the infotainment system now gets navigation (which also displays on the instrument cluster). The GPS has over 79 lakh key points of interest stored in it, like fuel station, restaurants, etc. The car also gets a bigger 11.4 cm multi-function colour display in the console, Mercedes-Benz lettering on the front and rear door sill panels, sun visors with illuminated mirrors and interior mirror with auto dimming function. Quality inside is top notch and there is decent space for average heighted people but tall passengers will find the interior lacking room, more so at the rear.
Performance – Mercedes-Benz is offering the Grand Edition with both petrol and diesel engines. The petrol C-Class is powered by a 1.8-litre motor which churns out 186 HP of power and 285 Nm of torque. Our test car was the diesel. The oil burner is a 2.2-litre mill which belts out 170 HP of power and 400 Nm of torque, returning 10 km/l in real world driving conditions. Both petrol and diesel engines are coupled to a 7G-TRONIC PLUS automatic transmission. 0-100 km/hr takes 8.80 seconds as per our VBOX tests which makes the C-Class a quick car.
2.2-litre diesel engine is butter smooth with excellent NVH levels, 7-speed auto a bit slow with shifts
Outright figures aside, the C-Class has good amount of pep even though the number of horses on tap doesn’t seem much for a car which does have some heft. Power delivery as you would expect is butter smooth and performance is linear with good poke throughout the RPM range. It seldom gets out of breath and keeps pulling to illegal speeds without giving any hint of the motor working, the NVH levels are just fantastic. The 7-speed gearbox is a bit slow in shifting gears but operates with smoothness and the lack of paddle shifts on the steering is thoroughly disappointing. You can shift gears via the tiptronic function on the gear lever though.
Driving Dynamics – The C-Class has a good balance or ride and handling, as was very evident on Mumbai roads where it had to deal with pothole riddled roads and clean, fast corners. It performed exceptionally well in both places. While it’s only the really bad roads that unsettle the car, ride quality for the most part is extremely good. However it’s the handling which can make you grin, pleasantly. The power is channelled to the rear wheels and the steering has decent feedback allowing you to head into corners at speed with the rear wanting to leave apart, the electronics intervene quickly and put the vehicle back on track. Straight-line stability is excellent and the C-Class remains glued to the tarmac at all speeds. Braking performance is good too with the car stopping confidently from high speeds.
Verdict – The C-Class is a very good car but has its flaws (like poor rear seat legroom) which Mercedes has addressed in the all new model. The all new C-Class (W205) is just a giant leap over the current generation car and is definitely worth the wait. The current model is well proven and if you must have a C-Class, the Grand Edition is worth considering but is priced quite optimistically for what it offers.
The C-Class Grand Edition doesn’t offer much over the regular C-Class but is definitely more appealing than the standard model.
What’s Cool
* Ride and handling balance
* Engine performance
* Brand desirability
What’s Not So Cool
* Price
* Grand Edition doesn’t offer much
Alternatives: BMW 3-Series, Audi A4, Volvo S60