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Test Drive: Mercedes-Benz C-class gets bumper-to-bumper makeover

The new Mercedes-Benz C Class has many of the same styling cues as the top-of-the-line S Class.
The new Mercedes-Benz C Class has many of the same styling cues as the top-of-the-line S Class. The new Mercedes-Benz C Class has many of the same styling cues as the top-of-the-line S Class.

By Mark Kennedy 4 min read

The Mercedes-Benz C-Class has always been the sedan of choice for luxury-car owners who had to stretch their checkbooks to show off the iconic chrome star.

Consequently, it evolved inside a tight design envelope that was, shall we say, a bit shy of spacious.

But with the arrival last year of the new CLA-Class “baby Benz,” Mercedes was able to allow the C-Class to drift upward in size, styling and comfort — a formula that, for the 2015 model year, has yielded undeniably the best C-Class ever.

This week, we got to drive a 2015 C300 from Long of Chattanooga equipped with a potent, 241-horsepower four-cylinder turbocharged engine and the excellent 4Matic all-wheel-drive system. There’s also a twin-turbo V-6 available that makes 329 horsepower.

For now, all C-Class models on American shores have all-wheel-drive, but rear-wheel-drive C300 models will arrive later this year. For performance junkies, a more muscular AMG C-Class is in the pipeline, too.