Test Drive: 2008 Mercedes C300 Sport Sedan

COMAND Panel: Our C300's seven-inch retractable color display, available with the multimedia packages, is vivid and easy to use.  Mercedes

Tech Quotient

For its class, the C300's tech quotient is high. One particular highlight is the C300’s vivid seven-inch retractable color dashboard display. It’s one of the sharpest and most readable displays I’ve seen. With Mercedes’s COMAND system [above], audio, navigation, system settings, and the like are controlled using a console-mounted dial that shouldn’t be too tricky for anyone comfortable with using a computer mouse. The navigation system, which includes a 30-gig hard drive, is easy to understand and never once led us astray.

The sound system is less impressive. With the multimedia package ($2,950), you get a 6-disc CD/DVD changer and a harman/kardon LOGIC7 discrete multi-channel surround system. Great on paper but, sad to say, it simply doesn’t sound as rich or full as what you’ll find in, competitors such as, say, the Cadillac CTS. Another gripe: The iPod integration kit (not found on our test vehicle) is a $375 individual option not included in the already pricey multimedia package. Why iPod integration isn’t a standard feature on every Mercedes—actually, on every new car other than maybe the Tata Nano—boggles my mind.

Summary

The Car: 2008 Mercedes-Benz C300 Sport Sedan

Price: $34,840 base; $44,565 as tested

The Good: The sharp, vivid 7-inch retractable color display. Sufficiently powerful, if not whiplash-inducing, 228 hp V6. Comfortable, well-appointed interior. Excellent traction control even in a ton of snow.

The Bad: The sound system as tested is unimpressive. Seven-speed automatic transmission is geared for cruising, not darting into freeway traffic from a blind stop. Some people are put off by the giant Benz star in the grille. Why isn’t iPod connectivity a default feature by now?

Verdict: The new C300, which Mercedes says they spent seven years perfecting, is both luxurious and—important for a car you’re thinking of spending almost 50 grand on—fun to drive. And when faced with minor snow berms, at least, unstoppable.

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