Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: First Drive Review

  • Jun 17, 2016
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The Mercedes-Benz C 300 Cabriolet will be the luxury car maker’s most affordable convertible offering in India. We got to drive it in Italy before it reaches our shores.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible

Trieste is a small but very beautiful bay city in northeastern Italy, with the unbelievably blue Adriatic Sea on one side and picturesque Slovenia on the other. Today though, the sky outside the window of my luxurious Falisia Resort room is grey and gloomy. Quite a contrast, in every meaning of the word, to the car that I’m about to drive.

Staying true to Murphy’s Law, it has to rain… specially when there’s a fast convertible like the new Mercedes-Benz C 300 Cabriolet for me to drive. And it poured. So, I don’t think I will be able to enjoy the scenic drive with the fabric roof rolled down. And if past drives are any indicators, I won’t be surprised if it becomes nice and sunny the very moment I finished my day’s driving and step out of the car.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Interiors

Rain or sunshine, I have just one day to drive the India-bound petrol powered Mercedes-Benz C 300 Cabriolet on the less explored roads stretching from Trieste to the border towns of Slovenia.

As I walk closer to inspect the Cabriolet it appears to be subtly different from the Mercedes-Benz C-Class four-door sedan available in India. Not surprising, because the convertible is based on the two-door Coupe version.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Front Up Close

The front has the similar set of LED headlight but instead of the twin slats of the C-Class sedan, the Cabriolet gets just one chrome strip holding the large tri-star logo. The air intakes have also grown in size and hint at the convertible’s sportier character. And the sharp lip-spoiler dipped in chrome completes the athletic character.

Thanks to the humour of the Italian rain gods, I had the soft top covering the cabin for the most part for the day. Interestingly, with the fabric roof stretched over the C 300, its profile closely resembles the C-Class Coupe. There are no B-pillars, and only glass windows as seen on most modern convertibles. At the back the sleek taillights, overflowing to the boot-lid, are also inspired from the Coupe.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Top View
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Following a fellow auto journalist on the motorway to Slovenia, I got a good look at the rear section of the Mercedes-Benz C 300. It retains the S-Class-like distinct rear design, with the boot sliced at about 45-degrees giving it a dynamic, leaned-forward stance. The boot is also higher than the C-Class sedan, to accommodate the roof when folded down.

So when I look at the rear three-forth, the soft corners and high boot doesn’t look as appealing to me as the front half of the car.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible Rear

But it’s the luxurious interior design which compensates for everything else. The finest of materials, colour combination and top-class finish make the C 300 very special. Not surprisingly, the cabin design is identical to the regular C-Class but with the usual dose of sportiness expected in a convertible. Most of the glossy wood trims have been replaced with matt black accents, while brush metal continues to highlight the circular air-conditioning vents and climate control buttons.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Steering Wheel

The bucket-type seats are cosy and you sit low. My test car is also equipped with optional sun-reflecting leather upholstery to keep the cabin cooler even with the roof open. The dashboard, doors and rear side panels have a smooth flowing design which merges together seamlessly. Even the centre console has a nice waterfall design, flowing in between the driver and passenger seats.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Centre Console

Like the Coupe, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class Cabriolet gets just two doors, and you have to move the front seats ahead to get into the rear seats, which can be a task for some. Once on the rear seats, there’s decent of room for two adults, but the transmission tunnel remains intrusive. The rear seats could do with some more under thigh support and overall comfort. But I, quite obviously, preferred to be in the driver’s seat to enjoy the European roads to the fullest.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible Interior Door Trim

Just like the C-Class saloon, the Mercedes-Benz C 300 comes with a long list of features. However, Mercedes-Benz continues to have an aversion to touchscreens. The Cabriolet does carry forward the high resolution display coupled with a touchpad and rotary dial, which gets the job done.

My international-specced car has a fancy Burmester audio system, latest infotainment and navigation system, heads-up display, lane depart and auto braking technology, a bunch of driving modes and a terrific air-suspension to name a few.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible with top down

The new addition on this convertible is the optional AIRCAP which is integrated into the windscreen frame. This is a special electric windbreak system which can be activated by a push of a button. Basically, the AIRCAP functions like a front wind spoiler and, along with a couple of wind deflectors behind the rear seats, deflect air turbulence away from the cabin during open-top driving.

In fact, thanks to this system the cabin is quiet and free of deafening wind draught which is common on some convertibles. There’s also the optional AIRSCARF neck-level heating feature, which is great in the cool Italian weather but will be of little use in the sweltering heat of India.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Cooling fans embedded in Front seat headrests

Just as I feared, thanks to the untimely rain, I didn’t get enough opportunity to do much open-top motoring. On some occasions, when the rains subsided for a bit I quickly tumbled down the fabric top as it takes just 20 seconds to do so while driving under 50kmph. Once the roof was down I maintained 90kmph (which was the speed limit anyways) and there was hardly a drop of rain entering the cabin.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible

There’s a reason why I’m driving the more docile C 300 and not the more exciting Mercedes-AMG C 43 Cabriolet or the even more powerful Mercedes-AMG C 63 S Cabriolet equipped with a 510PS V8 petrol powerplant. The C-Class convertible is going to be Mercedes-Benz’s most affordable convertible in India and so they will be getting the cost effective C 300 first to our shores.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Engine Bay

It gets a peppy 1,991cc 4-cylinder petrol engine good for 245PS of peak power and a meaty 370Nm of torque. And what adds to the spirited nature of this motor is the new 9-speed automatic transmission (the C-Class sedan in India gets a 7-speed auto) which offers fast shifts and silky transitions. Hopefully, the C-Class sedan in India will also come with this engine and transmission option soon.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible Front

As in most cases, the convertible is heavier than the coupe here too as it uses more body strengthening materials to compensate for the missing roof and structural rigidity of a sedan. In spite of this, the Mercedes-Benz C300 Cabriolet neither feel as heavy nor as lethargic as it ought to appear and claims an impressive 0-100kmph in just 6.4 seconds with a top speed of 250kmph.

Although the C 300 is rear wheel driven there is an option of going for the 4MATIC permanent all-wheel drive. India being a price sensitive market I don’t think we’ll get the 4x4 option on this convertible. With power being delivered to the rear wheels the C 300 convertible is really exciting to push on the twisty hilly roads around Trieste. The steering feel and feedback only accentuates the whole driving experience.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Alloy Wheels

A lot of credit for this also goes to the simply brilliant - but optional – AIRMATIC air suspension which comes with adaptive damping system. It’s a marriage made in heaven, offering exceptional ride comfort in practically every possible road condition. Not that the pristine European roads had anything that could unsettle this car anyways, but it would be a different story altogether in India.

That said, even on the trickiest patches of Italian roads the suspension automatically adjusts to keep the cabin steady and levelled. And as I poked the engine further the ride height became lower for better handling and, in turn, also improved the fuel economy.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: AMG Tuned

The next day I also got to drive the mad mad Mercedes-AMG C 63 S pumping 510PS out of the 3,982cc V8 biturbo petrol motor. This ballistic machine on wheels uses the two turbos to shave off over two seconds from the C 300’s 0-100kmph time by achieving it in just 4.1 seconds! If not for the astronomical price, I would have loved to see this on Indian roads really quick.

Coming back to our closer to earth Mercedes-Benz C 300 Cabriolet, expect it to be launched by the end of this year or sometime early next year. It is for those looking for something unique and will serve well as their second, if not third, car.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible: Action

Also, unlike the C-Class sedan, which is assembled at Mercedes-Benz’s Chakan plant near Pune, the C 300 Cabriolet will be imported as completely built units, and hence will demand a sizeable premium over the sedan. Our estimate is between Rs 55-60 lakh, which is about Rs 15-20 lakh more than the assembled-in-India Mercedes-Benz C 200 four door sedan.

Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible

For that money, what you get is a fast and comfortable convertible that will turn heads wherever you go, all the while cocooning you in the level of sheer comfort that only luxury sedans can provide. It is as thrilling and goes almost as fast as some decently priced sportscars, but it will still impart that sense of safety and plushness that we’ve come to expect from saloons with that three-pointed star logo out front. Be it the cool winding roads of picturesque Italy or the balmy straights of India’s highways, the topless Mercedes-Benz C-Class Convertible is a driving experience like no other.

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