Mercedes-Benz C200 CGI : Roadtest

It is not often that one gets pleasantly surprised by a refurbished variant of a car labeled 'new' for practical marketing purposes, especially when in the confines of the cobweb of urban traffic in a city like Pune. Early the last month however this was exactly the case when I was greeted by the new Mercedes-Benz C200 CGI. The drive in chaotic door handle-to-door handle traffic was a revelation of how easy it is to drive this new C-class. Hold on, let me put it in a much better manner: this Merc was the proverbial hot knife slicing its way through a large chunk of butter, very smooth, no vibrations, no tantrums, no jerks, believe you me I had no guts to switch on the entertainment lest I disturb the serenity in the passenger's cabin of this car! If you have a baby in your family this is the place to put her down for a sound sleep. Add to that excellent ride quality which is absent in many brothers & sisters and some cousins of this car as well as in its price range.

I am sure you must have been intrigued at the way I have started out on this drive report but while the overall shape and form of the present generation C-class is evident, what has got us enthused is the all new direct-injection turbocharged petrol engine technology - CGI in Merc-speak - which makes its maiden appearance in the Mercedes-Benz range in India by powering this C200. Some issues back we had already outlined the details about the CGI and how it is clearly a step up in motor technology and it proves that in actual real world on-the-road operation.

Engine Talk:

The basic architecture of this CGI might not be different from the four-cylinder engine that it replaced in terms of cylinder dimensions (82.0 x 85.0mm) and swept volume (1796cc) from the motor which did duty in the supercharged C200 K, but moving to the new turbo set-up has given it major gains across the board. While power and torque have obviously been hiked, I think that the greatest gains have been in NVH and also the power delivery across the rev range. It just has to be the smoothest small engine ever from Mercedes-Benz in India and this was an area where the harsh delivery of the previous Mercedes fours really made one cringe, especially in the face of rival four-cylinder mills from Audi and BMW.

It is all change though with the CGI (short for Charged [Stratified] Gasoline Injection) motor which now pumps out 186bhp and 284.3 Nm of torque which is slightly more compared to the old Kompressor motor it replaces but the rewards in feel, response and delivery are light years ahead. This was more than amplified when Kunal 'Kakes' Khadse had me thunder up and down ghat sections for his camera stints and in the mountains the agility which this C-class displayed was akin to a leopard climbing trees replete with his most recent kill and that too without disturbing or touching any of the surrounding greenery.

Performance Unleashed:

Much of the reasons behind this have to do with the torque, no not just the absolute gut wrenching force which is delivered but the way it is spread across. The 5-speed automatic transmission is a great ally for almost all your motoring requirements and in the Indian context it is more than adequate. Let us be candid here and state that the new car has been intelligently priced (something which one can't always say so about many other cars sporting the three-pointed star!) and when you factor the price to performance offered - and more importantly delivered! - then this C-class is probably the best all round car in its league. No exaggeration here but just telling it as it should be. Of course one can't play Michael Schumacher in this car but it does everything else brilliantly.

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The punchy mid-range is what brings the smiles straight to the fore and one can easily do double ton speeds but when the essence is on fast motoring, the C200 CGI can torque its way all day round. Turbine like acceleration from standstill and through the 5-speed' box complements the solid handling of this compact saloon making it one desireable package. Overall given the Avantgarde trim (only this top line offering to begin with) the cabin is plush but not extravagant though you do get a full complement of air bags all around, a fine audio deck which impresses with decent sound quality and an overall general feeling of solidity in that typically Teutonic well thought but matter-of-fact manner.

Verdict:

So what does the 'new' C200 CGI really stand out for? Well how about it being a slingshot for everyone to hit their targets with and that too without a whimper of protest. Add to that its turbine-like thrust and the way all this can be made to go around corners. Must be a gas guzzler then is the likely question. Well if you need to see where some more improvements - over the C200 K - have crept it, then check out the fuel efficiency figures which are a marked improvement over its supercharged predecessor. Finally, it does seem that the three-pointed star has indeed hit the sweet spot with its smallest offering!