Extraordinary Rides: Mercedes Benz C-300 Turbo Sedan is ‘a very nice ride’

By C.A. Haire

With a starting price of $43,000, the C-300 sedan allows consumers to enter the world of Mercedes ownership without breaking the bank. Naturally, there are always options to bump the tab.

Our vehicle added illuminated door panels, SiriusXM radio, upgraded cabin lights, navigation, phone charger, upgraded stereo and wide-view camera unit. This brought the total to an even $49,000.

For this money, the factory has given a total redo of the cabin, and it looks fantastic. The quality of materials and workmanship are first class, with great smell of high-grade leather trim all around. A large info screen is easy to use, and that optional high-quality camera system offers a wide outside view. In fact, the overall design looks almost identical to the top Mercedes S-Class ($100,000) model.

Under the hood is a small, 2.0-liter, four-cylinder motor, with turbocharging and hybrid electric assist. The total output is 255 horsepower, and attached is a sharp nine-speed automatic transmission. A computer control inside the cabin allows for Eco, Sport, Comfort or Individual drive modes. Fuel economy is claimed to be 23/35 mpg.

We put about 400 miles on the clock. This sedan is quick, handles like a champ, has strong brakes and is a smooth ride. In other words, it’s what a proper German sedan should be. On highway trips we observed an easy 36 mpg.

The only gripe we had was with the controls. There are just too many, a bit of overkill, and it takes a lot of time and effort to learn them all. But by the fifth day, we had them all figured out. If you are leasing this for 36 months, you will have more than enough time to do so. You will also have a very nice ride.