A method of persuasion. Will the Mercedes C230 kill my dislike for Mercedes?

My negativity… No, that's not it again. My indifference to cars with a three-pointed star on the hood, to these silver arrows, is because they are cloyingly correct. Too correct, like a perfectly drawn blueprint from a straight-A student. After all, if you look into it, all Mercedes drive quite briskly, handle the steering wheel well, have the highest level of protection, and are nauseatingly comfortable. On one hand, it might seem that this is wonderful, and all car manufacturers should urgently start making such cars. But that's not the case at all. And I will nitpick you, dear Herr Mercedes-Benz C230, and you, in turn, try to convince me and dispel my stupid, as many might think, prejudices.

And so, just as I cross the threshold, I immediately get a crushing argument. It is beautiful and elegant. And that's despite the fact that I dislike silver even more than Mercedes cars and semolina porridge. I admit honestly, the C230 in this color looks superb. It suits it. After all, it is from the lineage of the "silver arrows," after all. Overall, among all models of the German giant, it's the C-class's appearance that appeals to me the most — a kind of reduced previous-generation S-class. Similar rear styling, kinship with the flagship is also visible in the body lines. To put it simply — the C-class is assembled tightly and athletically taut. Convincing. Undoubtedly. At least for me. And I humbly accept the German's weighty arguments in the form of its excellent exterior.

But as soon as you climb inside, all the charm of the exterior evaporates. Before your eyes is a rather unpretentious interior. No, no one argues that the quality of trim materials is top-notch, I even caught a whiff of luxury. But most likely, it was the black leather seats that smelled. And does anyone expect anything else before getting into any Mercedes car? I didn't either, so the interior didn't surprise me at all. Everything is as it should be.

What really pleased me was the thoughtful and meticulously refined ergonomics. All the levers and handles, buttons and switches are placed in the most accessible spots. And they turn, press, and rotate so pleasantly that you get the feeling the Stuttgart specialists spent years perfecting them. And the instrument panel readings are perfectly legible, although its design itself is already outdated.

The only thing that seriously upset me was the climate control operation. The too-small knobs of the climate system have to be fumbled for, especially in the dark, turning them almost with tweezers. The left steering column stalk, which in the fine tradition of Mercedes is overloaded with everything possible, also amused me in the worst sense of the word.

But ergonomics is a matter of habit. And over time, even what might have irritated you in the first days after purchase, you simply stop noticing. But how the car drives will remind the driver every single day. So I quickly turn the fragile-looking electronic key in the ignition and set off. Oh! What a wonderful sight I have before my eyes. Yes, this three-pointed star just needs a couple of machine guns on the roof to start shooting down competing clans with the fancy names BMW and Audi. But these are all fantasies, let's move on.

The first thing you start to feel after a few minutes is the urge to sleep. No, I didn't go to bed late, and I didn't get up that early today. The thing is, the comfortable and wide driver's seat, providing an almost perfect seating position with decent lateral support, lacks perhaps only a massager and a blanket. Not to mention the not-so-spacious rear bench, where only two can sit comfortably. The third passenger will simply prop up the other two with their shoulders, forcing them to swear.

Forget the passengers. We quietly continue driving. Exactly quietly, the C-class is so silent (the sound insulation is done brilliantly, making me feel isolated from society) and smooth that you feel like a small child in a stroller (what a stroller for 46,400 euros!), being rocked by parents to lull their child to sleep. Quietly, shh-shh-shh, sleep tight…

Hey, that's a sure way to get into an accident! Better not relax; better turn on the music, fortunately in the C-class it doesn't grate on the ears: eight speakers and excellent sound. Now that's better. Turning the comfortable but slightly oversized steering wheel and staring at the windshield (noting the excellent visibility, including to the rear, thanks to the folding rear headrests), I make my way out of what seem like eternal Moscow traffic jams. Glancing along the way into the wide side mirrors, as convenient as the windshield. Here it is — the highway weaving its ribbon, with no functioning wheeled vehicles within a radius of several kilometers of me, in a word — freedom! Well, Herr C230, do your best and convince me that you can be more than just a tomb on wheels.

I press the floor-mounted gas pedal, and acceleration begins. The seven-speed automatic, without a sound or noticeable effort, apparently pretending to be Stirlitz, shifts gears, and the C230 smoothly (precisely smoothly, not briskly) gains speed. It seems that when creating this car, the people at Mercedes deliberately made the automatic a bit "dull," again, in the name of comfort. Thank God they at least left a loophole for those who like to have fun. And I'll use it. I switch to sport mode. The first turn is ahead of me. I turn the wheel, and the car follows the trajectory I set (surprising if it weren't so at 50 kilometers per hour). We continue accelerating, speed 120, a long, sweeping turn also wasn't anything out of the ordinary for it. Everything is still smooth, quiet, and calm, without unnecessary words or arguments. No rolls whatsoever; it doesn't allow even a millimeter deviation from the set trajectory. Boring.

Of course, in winter everything could be different, even despite the fact that the rear-wheel-drive C230 has various systems like ABS and ESP that protect the driver from making stupid mistakes. But now it's summer, and therefore driving the car brings on melancholy. Rather even a pleasant, lulling melancholy. And still, if you show off a bit and push the car to its limits, you still won't discover anything new for yourself. Everything is very predictable and adequate. It's like an obedient little dog — whatever you command, it will do. And how do people manage to crash them? After all, the driving process doesn't cause any inconvenience whatsoever, and you won't need much intelligence to move fast in it. The C-class forgives driving errors one after another, correcting your wrong actions, and it brakes beyond all praise.

Even at speeds over 200 kilometers per hour (forgive me, traffic police officers), you feel completely safe; only fellow dacha-goers hurrying to their plots on Saturday morning approach my Mercedes C230 rather quickly in their jalopies, and, by the feel of it, they do so in reverse. Meanwhile, inside the cabin it's quite quiet, and you can talk to your passenger without straining your vocal cords.

And what's the result? Undoubtedly, the 2.5-liter 204-horsepower gasoline V6 is very, very good — it rolls briskly, its torque of 245 Nm allows acceleration to 100 km/h in 8.9 seconds and racing along empty highways at a top speed of 238 kilometers per hour. Handling is also at a high level, although it doesn't allow you to "play" much with the car and your nerves. At the same time, the car's compact dimensions give you the ability to move quickly in dense city traffic (and you're in a "Merc," and with "xenon" at that). But you don't experience fits of admiration from driving, although it doesn't particularly make you sick either. I repeat myself again — everything is as it should be, just as I thought.

The only thing, besides boredom, that I didn't like was the rather heavy steering wheel. Besides being slightly oversized, it turned out to be inadequately heavy, although with very precise reactions to rotation, sportily heavy. Speaking of sport. We got not just a C-class, but a car from the "special series" with the Sport Edition package, which includes a sport suspension, very beautiful 17-inch alloy wheels, and a light AMG body kit. The sporty sound from the chrome exhaust tip also reminds you of sport, but you can only hear this sound by lowering the window.

Returning to Moscow and stopping at a store for groceries, I once again appreciated the size of the trunk. It can easily fit travel bags or shopping bags, but you can forget about hauling sacks of potatoes from the dacha. No folding transformations of the cabin are provided — the only option the dealer offers is a ski hatch for an additional fee.

So what's the bottom line? I stick to my opinion. Such a Mercedes is not for me, and it's not about my age at all. The S230 did not convince me otherwise; rather, it proved something to the onlookers who watched me during the test. But what do I care about them? I'm an egoist and think primarily about myself.

I still don't want to own a completely predictable and rather boring car. This car would be an ideal choice for those who value comfort and a sense of complete safety at any speed and on any surface. Yes, it involuntarily makes you feel superior to fellow drivers; they yield to you, some even fear you. But in my view, one should prove superiority in other ways.

Otherwise, everything is very proper. Expensive and high-quality trim materials, decent dynamics, adequate but boring handling, excellent sound insulation, high comfort level — the C-class has all this. Did you expect anything else from a Mercedes? I didn't. I knew in advance that the C-class would be exactly like this. But it's also quite expensive. Our test car, as you remember, costs 46,400 euros, though the sum can be increased indefinitely, for example, by choosing the demonic C55 AMG for 75,000 euros, or significantly reduced by buying a "simple" C180 for 30,300 euros. In any case, you get a Mercedes, and exactly the one you imagine it to be.

Of course, if you're okay with the fact that, focusing on perfecting its already magnificent comfort, the C-class has lost all those feelings of beauty and wonder that its closest relative, the A-class, possesses. It turns out that the Mercedes C-class is undoubtedly a thoroughbred car, but extremely soulless.

Technical specifications

Specifications	€46400
Number of cylinders/arrangement	V6
Engine displacement, cc	2496
Rated power, hp at rpm	204/6100
Torque, Nm at rpm	245/2900-5500
Compression ratio	11.2
Acceleration 0-100 km/h, s manual transmission / (automatic)	8.4 (8.9)
Maximum speed, km/h manual transmission / (automatic)	245 (238)
Tire size	205/55 R 16
Fuel consumption modes (l/100 km) manual transmission / (automatic):
urban	13.5 (13.2)
suburban	6.8 (7.1)
combined	9.3 (9.3)
CO2 emissions, g/km	222
Fuel tank capacity/including reserve, l	62/8
Turning diameter, m	10.76
Curb weight/gross weight, kg	1530/2010

Equipment of the tested car

• Interior
  • Box with lid and power outlet
  • Airbags for driver and front passenger, window airbags for driver,
  • front passenger and rear passengers
  • Front armrest with box and cupholder
  • Rear armrest with cupholder
  • Outside temperature indicator
  • Turn signal with comfort activation
  • Brake pad wear indicator
  • Ignition key with chrome trim
  • Glasses box in glove compartment
  • Power steering with impact-absorbing steering column DIRECT CONTROL
  • Tachometer
  • Door sills rear and front, front with "Mercedes-Benz" inscription
  • Electric windows, 4 pcs. with comfort control and anti-pinch protection
  • Seat belt tensioning system for driver and front passenger and rear seats near doors
  • Child safety lock for doors (mechanical) and windows (electric)
  • Child seat recognition system on front passenger seat, only for specially certified "Mercedes-Benz" child seats
  • Automatic climate control THERMATIC
  • Instrument panel with 4 analog dials
  • Head restraints on rear seats, 3 pcs., foldable at front, height-adjustable on rear seats near doors
  • Steering column, mechanically adjustable for height and reach
  • Headlight range adjustment
  • Multifunction steering wheel
  • Upholstery in "Bristol" fabric
  • On-board computer in multifunction display
  • Gear shift lever/automatic transmission control lever with trim and "Classic" inscription
  • Wiper with single-wipe function
  • Seat belts for front seats with height adjustment, seat belts for rear seats with automatic height adjustment, 3-point seat belt on central rear seat
  • Passenger presence recognition system on right front seat
  • Sun visor with built-in mirror
  • TEMPOMAT system with adjustable speed limiter SPEEDTRONIC
  • First aid kit
  • Front seats with electric adjustment of cushion height and backrest position
  • Audible warning for parking brake not released and lights on
  • Maintenance interval indicator "Assyst"
  • Decorative wood trim "Oliv-Esche" on center console and doors
• Exterior
  • Anti-lock braking system (ABS)
  • Side mirrors with heating and electric adjustment
  • Brake assist system (BAS)
  • Manual 6-speed gearbox DIRECT CONTROL
  • Suspension DIRECT CONTROL
  • Electronic stability program (ESP)
  • Automatic low beam activation
  • "Fanfare" horn
  • Device for locking and remote unlocking of trunk lock
  • Heated rear window
  • Turn signals in side mirrors with clear optics
  • Trunk compartment lighting
  • Front fog lights and rear fog lights with clear optics
  • Antenna integrated into rear window
  • Protective moldings in body color
  • Heated washer nozzles
  • Headlights with clear optics
  • Locking with automatic locking and emergency release
  • Reverse lights and brake lights with clear optics
  • "Classic" inscription on molding
  • Tire sealant Tirefit with electric pump
  • Green heat-absorbing glass, windshield with band filter, rear window made of single-layer safety glass (ESG)
  • Warning triangle
  • Electronic immobilizer with IR remote control for central door locking with IR remote "ELCODE"
  • Central door locking system with interior locking and collision sensor
• Avantgarde trim
  • ARTICO leather/fabric
  • Metallic paint
  • Parktronic parking assist system
  • Rain sensor wiper
  • Automatic 7-speed transmission 7G-TRONIC
  • Engine underbody protection
  • Suspension with increased ground clearance
  • Paint protection
  • Anti-theft alarm with tow-away protection
  • Interior intrusion alarm
  • Bi-xenon headlights with washers
  • Automatic climate control (Thermatic)
  • Alloy wheels
  • Radio Audio 20 CD
  • Heated front seats
  • Heated washer system
• Sound+ package
  • Harman Kardon sound system
  • CD changer (MP3-compatible)
• Sport Edition+ package
  • Sport Edition+ alloy wheels
  • AMG styling
  • Sports suspension

Test car provided by
ZAO "DaimlerChrysler Automobiles RUS".

Behind the scenes