A FEW weeks back at an Appraisal Day for the Irish Motor Writers’ Car of the Year awards, I drove a red version of the Mercedes C220 and it looked striking.
However, last Monday when I went to pick up the car for a proper week-long test, I was a bit disappointed to find a grey version.
But after my initial disappointment wore off, I came to appreciate the luxury that the C220 BlueTec saloon provides.
During the week I had a lot of young male admirers, who were clearly impressed by the look of the front grille. I know Mercedes is constantly aiming to lower the age profile of their customers, but these lads were still in school!
The front is set very low and you would need to be careful if parking facing a kerb, otherwise you could hear that horrible sound of metal scraping against concrete. It didn’t happen last week, but I have experienced it in the past.
I drove an automatic version and the lever to select the gears is located to the right of the steering wheel. It takes a bit of getting used to, but it’s really simple to use and you will always be assured that the car is in
‘parking’ mode by simply selecting
‘park’ with the lever.
To the left of the steering wheel you have two stalks: at the top is the indicator and tucked away under that is the cruise control, certainly the most user-friendly version around.
The car is attractive on the outside, but I found the interior very dark.
I drove a 2.1-litre diesel which needs an AdBlue top up approximately every 25,000km. The AdBlue cap is located next to the fuel gauge, so you will be reminded of it every time you fill up and you also get a warning notice on the instrument panel on the dash when it’s time to top up.
The AdBlue fuel ensures that the exhaust is always clean and gives a low C02 rating of 110g/m.
I thought the car was a bit heavy on diesel in city traffic, but then I read that the fuel tank can hold only 41 litres of diesel. There is a large boot, but no spare wheel as Mercedes now has run-flat tyres.
At the front there is no three-pointed star; instead the Mercedes logo is embedded in the bonnet. However, you can opt for the famous star if you really want one.
The version I drove had a host of extras as standard and will cost you
?¬51,615. Now that’s a lot of money for a young woman or man, so maybe the C Class is still a car for the MD.
The C220 is really luxurious to drive and a very safe car to travel in; you get a red light on the dash if you are too close to the car in front.
My test car was Tenorite Grey, but bearing in mind that there are supposedly
’50 shades of grey’, where the C Class is concerned, I would prefer red.