Mercedes-Benz C220 CDI Long Term Review, Fleet Introduction

If you are a regular ZigWheels.com reader, we do not need to tell you why the Mercedes-Benz C-Class is a great car and the benchmark in its own segment. But we usually drive the car over a few days or a week so when it comes to actually using one everyday, there is no better way to test the positives and negatives of any car than by having it as a part of our long term test fleet. The C-Class is a welcome addition to the fleet obviously and has already gone through more Munbai-Poona weekend trips than anything else has in recent memory. So how is it to live with?

Well, for starters, the new C-Class turns heads everywhere it goes with its S-Class like looks and stance and in our case because of its superb shade of dark blue that it comes finished in. The new C-Class also has by far the best interior of any car in its price range with great quality and an equally good design. And then there is the diesel engine. All in all, the C-Class is pretty much all the car one can ever need. It isn’t too long to park or drive in traffic, it is quick enough to overtake whatever you desire and most importantly, makes you feel nice when you in one because of its interiors. So, does it have any niggles? Well, yes.

For starters, the C-Class seems to have a huge problem with the fuel filler inlet port. In our particular car, there are two clips that should disengage a gate on the fuel filler. Strangely, due to the varying sizes of nozzles around the country, half the time, it does not work. This means that you have to slowly feed in the fuel which flows around the sides of the gate and proves to be quite a colossal waste of time. We also had a niggling issue with the key battery which drained surprisingly quickly and needed a replacement unit. Gladly though, it was a quick fix and cost next to nothing.

Now to the positives and of course, being a diesel, we must talk about fuel efficiency. On a recent trip from  Bombay to Poona with my rather stern parents sitting comfortably in the back seat and ensuring sensible and safe speeds, the C220 returned just a shade above 17.5kmpl which is quite an impressive feat! On the whole then, the C-Class diesel with its powerful engine (that also returns great fuel economy) combined with the luxurious interiors and sporty handling is most certainly a welcome addition to the ZigWheels.com fleet.