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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.
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
Key Features Unique to C300
Key Features Unique to A6
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
And Lastly-
Just a random shot
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