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Mercedes Benz C300: A 2022 A6 owner's driving impressions & verdict

3rd September 2024, 11:23 by Ananth Iyer

I am still happy, that I chose to pick up the A6 over the C300, while there is an itch here and there to simply check the new car in the town, but nothing really has enticed me to say, let's cut the cheque.

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The Mercedes Benz C300

When Mercedes Benz launched the C300D sometime 2 year’s ago, it was by far the best looking drool machine ever. The AMG Line kit made the regular and boring C look smashing and gorgeous.

That point in time the 300 came with a D monicker and this time around in 2024, Mercedes Benz has dropped the D monicker in favor of the P monicker.

So apart from having a heart transplant, what really has changed in the 2024 C300P.

I took it out for a short spin to explore the changes. Below are some of the key changes in the model year.

The headlamp cluster and the tail light graphics are slightly different to the outgoing car, only keen eyes can notice the subtle differences
All 4 doors get request sensors, that means keyless entry is possible in all 4 corners.
C300 now comes with electric boot release for the tail gate, good feature to have, but be cautious at the malls
255 PS of power and 400 NM of torque, owing to better power to weight ratio, press the throttle and the power is served from the word go, can catch an untrained driver of guard.
360 camera, has brilliant graphics and is intuitive
Inclusion of level II ADAS with couple of on demand features that means something like ACC comes prefit, needs to be activated via the Mercedes Me App
Increased GC by 4 mm, even with 4 people on board, the car didn’t scrape anywhere, that’s a good news
Cooled and Heated seats, to cool or warm your bum depending on city or state you are living.

While these features are added as a part of MY25 package, the car retains cool features that it already came with.

How does it drive now?

Well truth be told, you may not miss the brutal acceleration that the diesel came with, floor the pedal and it will put the car in illegal territory in no time. Ride quality is slightly on the stiffer side, may be coming from A6, I may be feeling it stiffer. However, stiff suspensions mean, great line and handling capabilities. While it is something that you realise instantly while in the pushing the car. Ride comfort does take a back seat owing to a stiffer suspension. One thing that stayed with me even after getting out from the car was the feeling of luxury. Hands down no other brand does that, the way the Star does it.

With an ex-showroom of INR 69.00 lacs, it threads very close to the BMW M340i, which comes with proper 3 litre, 6 cylinder motor, churning excess of 300 HP. Heck, even the segment above cars like the Audi A6 and the New BMW 5 LWB, have an identical ex showroom price, to this C300, but no prizes for guessing, both don’t match up to the Mercedes when it comes to features list and suave feeling.

On a personal note, I must applaud the management of Mercedes-Benz India for having the confidence to go all out when it comes to speccing their cars and not short changing the customers like their key rivals. For example, I want to ask the team at BMW, where are the rear blinds and rear sit recline in the 5 LWB? Where is the rear entertainment package, that the car boasts for in the global market? I want to ask the team at Audi, why not give digital matrix lights and adaptive suspensions to the India spec car? Where is the wireless Apple CarPlay integration? Why miss such a basic feature, common even in entry level cars today.

Yes the cars sold by Mercedes Benz are expensive, but at the same time, Indian's are lapping up their cars, as for the price, they are offering substantial and exhaustive feature lists as well to justify the price. A manufacturer cannot be blamed for shoddy Government Taxation Policies and made to look the villain in the picture.

To sum it up then, pretty good job done Mercedes, at least on packaging the C300 right. While we will always have a size vs price debate, which can never conclude, but till that time, let's enjoy the car while it lasts.

Enjoy some pictures, I had asked the sales team to send it to me, and they obliged.

Here's a close look to the car-

The Star Studded Grille, Looks Awesome, notice the front camera

Notice the subtle changes to the taillights

Looks Aggressive, Even When Standstill

I personally loved this angle

Thankfully, nothing has been deleted here, but there are few additions

The space, does come at a premium, if you are 6 ft tall, expect the rear passengers to feel as if they are in a smaller hatch

How does the C300 stack up against my A6

When you test drive a car, it is obvious, that you get a hitch for upgrade, but just to keep that hitch in check, I took out the A6 for a spin late in the night, so that I could compare the A6 to Mercedes, once again.

To begin with the A6, has an obvious advantage of space over the C Class, and that is a no brainer, however below I have listed down features that are common to A6 and C Class, in the context exclusively to the C300.

Key Common Features

Intelligent Headlights in the form of Digital Lights or Matrix Lights, both have great throw, depth and intensity.
Ultra-Premium Sound by Burmeister or Bang & Olufsen, if you love great music in your car, you can’t go wrong with any of them, one is a 15 speaker 740 watts system and other one is 17 speakers 790 watts.
Modern Operating Systems, MBUX or MIB, both the cars’ have modern UI/UX with super sharp displays all around, which can be upgraded remotely. However, IMHO, MBUX surpasses MIB in terms of graphics and overall look and feel
Potent Engines, 255 PS of vs 245 PS of petrol refinement, one has brutal acceleration, while the other one has linear acceleration.
Side & electric rear blinds keep the in-car temperature in check, especially during the summers in the country.
Keyless entry on all 4 doors added with easy entry & exit functionality where the steering wheel slides up and the driver seat goes behind.

Key Features Unique to C300

Electric thigh extenders and electric headrests, in a car that sits segment below, give a wow feeling from the word go.
Level II ADAS, as I mentioned earlier with blind spot assists, front collision alert, rear collision warning and much more.
Staggered tire setup for more grip while cornering, aided by a rear-wheel-drive package.
Double pane electric sunroof, to give that airy feeling in the car.

Key Features Unique to A6

Four Zone climate control, to cool the car faster.
While I know, it’s not a feature, but passing it as a feature here, NVH levels of Audi are much superior to the Mercedes.
360 camera, ionizer, and a perfume package (while not available in my car, but is a part of MY24 Audi A6)
I may be biased here, but the road presence of A6, is much superior to the C300D, even though it comes with the AMG Line.

I am still happy, that I chose to pick up the A6 over the C300, while there is an itch here and there to simply check the new car in the town, but nothing really has enticed me to say, let's cut the cheque.

Signing off, with the picture of my cars, A6, leisurely parked during the night drive last night. I took the car out, almost after 2 weeks, as owning to increasing traffic in Mumbai, I have gone back to making the Taigun the daily driver. And my Taigun parked next to A6

Both my Tsi's together