Mercedes-Benz C-Class 2009 News

A vote by 75 motoring journalists from 22 countries has awarded the compact prestige car the World Car of the Year award for 2015.It finished on top of a 24-car field and eventually beat the two other finalists, the Ford Mustang and Volkswagen Passat.The other big prizes for 2015, Green Car of the Year and Performance Car of the Year, went to the plug-in hybrid BMW i8 and the Mercedes-AMG GT coupe.The winners were announced at the New York Motor Show today at an event hosted by Bridgestone Corporation and Autoneum at the culmination of a six-month voting process.The C-Class delivers levels of refinement, luxury, safety, ride and handling that challenge best-in-class.The awards are in their 11th year and previous winners include the Audi A6, BMW 3 Series, Lexus LS460 and Volkswagen Golf, Polo and Up.To be eligible for the overall World Car award, candidate cars must have become available for sale on at least two continents between January 1, 2014 and May 31, 2015.The WCOTY wins by Mercedes-Benz follow its victories in the Green Car contest in 2007 with the E320 Bluetec and 2012 with the S 250 CDI BlueEFFICIENCY and its Luxury Car success with the S Class in 2014.“We are extremely delighted of winning the honour of World Car of the Year,” says the chairman of Daimler, Dr Dieter Zetsche.The WCOTY victory follows a similar success for the C-Class in the CarsGuide Car of the Year award.The WCOTY judging panel says: “Taking its design and technological cues from the S-Class, the C-Class employs an all-new aluminium/steel hybrid platform and updated rear-drive powertrains that delivers levels of refinement, luxury, safety, ride and handling that challenge best-in-class.” WORLD CAR OF THE YEAR AWARDS 2015Overall winner: Mercedes-Benz C-ClassGreen Car: BMW i8Performance Car: Mercedes-AMG GTLuxury Car: Mercedes-Benz S CoupeDesign: Citroen CactusPREVIOUS WORLD COTY WINNERS:2014: Audi A32013: Volkswagen Golf2012: Volkswagen Up2011: Nissan Leaf2010: Volkswagen Polo2009: Volkswagen Golf2008: Mazda22007: Lexus LS4602006: BMW 3 Series2005: Audi A6

New generation Mercedes-Benz C63-S to pack 375kW of power.

Just in case the letters AMG don’t quite satisfy your need for performance, Mercedes have released details of an even hotter version of the C63. Dubbed Edition 507 (for the horsepower rating), the range -- comprising a sedan, coupe and estate -- is powered by a beast of an engine with outputs of 373kW and 610Nm.That’s an increase of 37kW and 10Nm over the garden variety AMG version, and 0-100km/h acceleration figures are similarly impressive at 4.2 seconds for the sedan and coupe and 4.3 seconds for the estate.The extra oomph comes as a result of a technology transfer from the 6.3-litre eight-cylinder naturally aspirated powerplant adopted from the SLS AMG.The new C63 AMG range is electronically limited to 280 km/h but it’s not just all about the beastly power. There are also aesthetic improvements both inside and out.Brakes have been beefed up too with composite discs standard as well as red painted callipers. The instrument cluster gets some red applications too and if further differentiation is needed from the C63 AMG there’s a list of optional extras available.To prevent any confusion with the regular AMG version there’s a range of exclusive design features. Some of these include two openings for expelling engine heat on the aluminium bonnet, spoiler lip on the boot lid, a set of light-alloy 19-inch wheels or even lighter optional 5 spoke 18-inch alloys.Further details of the 507 will come at the world premiere at the Geneva Motor Show which starts on March 5. It’s scheduled to go on sale in Germany in June and Australia should get it in the second half of 2013. Further details on pricing, availability and specifications will be confirmed closer to the local launch. 

It's the limited-edition Black Series update of the thumping Mercedes-Benz C63 AMG, complete with a carbon-fibre weight-loss program and the most powerful engine yet fitted to a C-Class car.The newcomer - officially the C63 AMG Black Series - has 380 kiloWatts and 620 Newton-metres of torque, which translates into a 0-100km/h sprint time of 4.2 seconds and a top speed beyond 310km/h - provided the compulsory German speed limiter is disabled.A handful of Black Cs will come to Australia next year but there is no firm detail yet on delivery dates or prices.Based on previous Black Series cars, and the current C63 at $152,800, the bottom line is likely to be around $220,000.The Black C has a giant new front bumper with huge air inlets, vents in the alloy bonnet and a rear diffuser, guards widened by 42 millimetres on each side at the rear, and 19-inch alloy wheels. There is also an optional Track Package, although this is not confirmed for Australia.AMG says development of the Black C has its roots in the program for the SLS Gullwing, including its V8 engine and the customer racing program with the car that includes the Peter Hackett version currently competing in Australia."The new C 63 AMG Coupé Black Series is the best proof there is for the permanent transfer of technology from the race track to the road," says the head of Mercedes-AMG, Ola Kallenius.

The 6.2-litre V8 has picked up some tweaking from the Gullwing, including the crankshaft and pistons from the SLS engine, to lift its power by 22 kiloWatts.  The result is a pocket rocket with all of 358 kiloWatts, good enough to trim its 0-100km/h time to 4.4 seconds and cut a full 1.2 seconds from the time it takes to cover a standing 400-metre sprint.The new deal is called the Performance Package and there is a similar upgrade for the latest E63.  But Mercedes-Benz Australia is yet to commit to the extra go, as it has only just landed a limited-edition C63 with a bunch of cosmetic and equipment upgrades but nothing different in the engine."It's not on our plan at the moment. That's not to say it won't come at some time in the future, but not any time soon," says Benz spokesman, David McCarthy.

Until the appearance of the W204 generation last year, it was more or less accepted wisdom that if you fancied yourself behind the wheel then Stuggart's C car couldn't trouble Munich's 3 car in the gratification stakes. It could well be that the latter would still outshine the former on the skidpan or in the moose test. In the real world the C-Class has forged ahead. If a large chunk of the difference is attributable to the singular unsuitability of BMW's rigid run-flat tyres to the wretched roads of the so-called Premier State, the dynamic poise and competence of the Merc cannot be underestimated. And if the lesser C-Classes equal or shade the comparable 3 Series in most respects — not least in sheer daily liveability — the C320 CDI beats 'em hollow. The economy and general eco-niceness of the best turbo diesels ought not come as hot news. What might raise eyebrows — what indeed had mine vainly searching for a hairline — is that this turbo diesel is a fine sporting sedan, one that does what it does in a manner that's more or less peerless. Into a C-Class that's already a dynamic leap over the previous generation has been placed a V6 turbo diesel found elsewhere in a two-tonne SUV, imbuing this 1700kg sedan with torque not far short of a Holden V8. The zero to 100km/h run-time is listed at 7.7 seconds — half a second slower than the V6 petrol C280 — but this barely hints at the impact of the diesel's mid-range punch. A sublime freeway cruiser (of course), on regional roads the Merc is majestic. Such is the extent of the C320's ability to carry speed into and through corners; that a glance at the speedometer can be disconcerting. Like the brilliantly sorted device it is, it seldom feels to be travelling at the rate indicated. The very same mid-corner bumps that have undone European cars of a sporting bent see the Mercedes roll on as though it were a native son. Direct and sniper-accurate steering is to some extent belied by the lightness of feel, but there's neither the sometimes tiresome heaviness of the 3 Series at low speed or the vagueness of an Audi. That characteristic hesitancy of diesels when getting off the line is less pronounced in the Merc than in any of the dozens of oilers we've sampled. Stomping the accelerator on a loose surface prompts the deftest electronic intervention; the ESP is as confidence enhancing, in its way as the brakes. When the ABS threshold is breached in a simulated emergency at 110km/h, the Merc stops with exceptional adroitness. Mercedes's 7G-Tronic automatic transmission marries blissfully to this powertrain. Seldom will you feel the need to engage the gearshift's manual mode. Low-rev diesel rattle aside, the running is as silent as you've every right to expect from this marque. Indeed, when the diesel is audible its note is, if anything, preferable to the uninspiring monotone of its petrol V6 sibling. That's just one respect in which the diesel is superior; economy is, naturally, the foremost. And this need not be sacrificed at the altar of enjoyment; even with a prolonged period of pushing on, the official figure for combined cycle consumption was exceeded by the narrowest of margins over the entire journey. In the struggle to find substantive criticism, we're pretty much confined to repeating those made previously; that the cabin doesn't seem near $100,000 worth; that $100,000 is the least you'll pay once you touch the options list; $100,000 is just too expensive. And, for a sedan — albeit one of compact dimensions — rear seat accommodation is not generous. The exterior look is either the more traditional Elegance (the fabled tristar sits atop the bonnet lip) or Avantgarde (it's plastered over the grille a la the SLK). The latter is meant to be the “sportier” and in this iteration of C-Class, it does not flatter to deceive. A caveat comes from a colleague who would be hard put to justify the massive premium over the lesser C220 CDI ($60,300). Another is adamant that the ultimate C-Class oiler is not the equal of BMW's 335d twin-turbo diesel. But the latter isn't available here, and surely wouldn't be bought at the C 320's price, and — on the basis of its otherwise excellent petrol sibling — just couldn't deal with the same stretches of pitted and pockmarked bitumen that the Merc consumes with an inspired combination of compliance and aggression. Hence the list of ostensible rivals presented page right is fairly flattering to them. The Audi, whose fine drivetrain and class-leading interior makes it the most convincing of the current A4 range, is due for imminent replacement and in any case cannot approach the dynamics of the rear-wheel-drive Mercedes. It's difficult to see how the new versions, due from April, will drastically change that. The Chrysler runs a version of the Merc's engine, but its visual statement and one-dimensional drive character belong to boulevard cruising. And despite its own beaut engine, this holds true for the outgoing S-Type.   The bottom line If the C320 isn't perfect, it is peerless.   Snapshot Mercedes-Benz C320 CDI price: $93,800 engine: 3L/V6 turbo diesel; 165kW/510Nm economy: 7.7L/100km transmission: 7-speed auto; RWD   The rivals Audi A4 3.0 TDI QUATTRO price: $86,700 engine: 3L/V6 turbo diesel; 171kW/450Nm economy: 8.4L/100km transmission: 6-speed auto; AWD   Chrysler 300C CRD price: $57,990 engine: 3L/V6 turbo diesel; 160kW/510Nm economy: 8.2L/100km transmission: 5-speed auto; RWD   Jaguar S-TYPE 2.7 DIESEL price: $103,990 engine: 2.7L/V6 turbo diesel; 152kW/435Nm economy: 8.1L/100km transmission: 6-speed auto; RWD