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26/06/2010, 20:03
By MURRAY HUBBARD
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When Mercedes earlier this year announced the demise in Australia of the popular A-Class they also promoted a new B-Class entry level car – the B180 petrol – which was $910 under the equivalent outgoing A-180. Pricing was noted at $36,990 – before on roads and statutory government charges, which take the pricing through to roughly $40,000.
Unfortunately, the story for B-Class gets messy. By re-organising the B-Class and adding value – rather than reducing pricing as a result of changed tariffs – Mercedes believes it has provided what its customers want. We have no doubt that luxury car buyers will up-spec their cars rather than run with the `poverty' pack, so to speak.
So the entry-level B 180 becomes an interesting car as firstly the cheapest Mercedes-Benz and secondly the fact it is offered with a manual transmission. That's unless you opt to up-spec the car with a Metro pack that includes a CTV auto transmission and active parking assist.
To be fair to Mercedes the entry-level B 180 manual is probably there for those who crave the German tristar for the first time. People who can stretch the budget and who aspire to the badge, no matter what size bonnet it sits on. And it may well be those people will be content with a manual shifter.
Our test car just happened to be the B 180, but equipped with the above-mentioned Metro pack that adds $4500 to the bottom line and takes the drive-away price to around $45,000.00 depending on what state and dealer you purchase from. To get an exact quote go to your nearest Mercedes dealer. While we like the idea of the CVT auto transmission in the B 180, we are a little bemused by the inclusion of active park assist. As Stuttgart's smallest car currently in Australia if you cannot park the B Class on the side of the street, it might be time to re-assess your driving future. And $4500 is a lot to pay for an auto.
Mercedes refer to the B Class range as `sports tourers', which is interesting as the B 180 is neither sporty, nor has it enough luggage space to qualify as a touring car. Be that as it may we decided to take the B 180 on a picnic to the Gold Coast Hinterland, the mountain resort of Springbrook to be exact. For the outward trip we elected to travel along the Numinbah Valley and then up the steep back road to the top of the mountain. The 1.699 litre engine hooked up to the CVT took to the hills with ease belying the 85 kW of power and 155 kW of torque. As there were four adults aboard I had expected the car to struggle a bit, but not so. Performance is quite adequate.
As mentioned the boot is not all that large and we had packed a large Esky and had room for some soft luggage and winter coats. While the luggage area was a little cramped, we four found plenty of room. Our only complaint was the B Class seats sit high within the cabin and it's easy to knock your head getting in or out of the front seats in particular. There's height adjust on the drivers' seat, but no such adjustment on the passenger's pew and my tall friend had to be particularly careful. Once seated headroom was not an issue.
To return to the Gold Coast we came down the mountain via Mudgeeraba which involves a steep, winding descent along a narrow strip of bitumen with some one-way bridges. The B Class feels a little top heavy and on sharp corners exhibits a bit of understeer – normal for a front wheel drive. We also used the manual option on the CVT when going down the mountain to assist in engine braking. This involves flicking the gear lever to the left and it worked well. You need to step on the brakes fairly hard to get urgent braking.
As mentioned above the car can feel a little top heavy when cornering and the car does sit high. You slide into the car more than step down into it, as normally do in a sporty car. The seats are fairly upright too. Adding to driver comfort is the reach and rake steering wheel adjustment. As Merc's smallest car in Australia, it's fairly large compared to the old A Class three door hatch in particular. But, it's still fairly narrow inside. As a package the B Class is more of a city dweller than a country bumpkin. If you want a smaller Merc, you have to make the leap to a Smart.
MODEL RANGE
B180 1.7 litre petrol $36,990*
B180 CDI diesel $47,990
B200 2.0 litre petrol $45,990
B200 2.0 litre turbo petrol $52,990
(*These are Manufacturers List Prices and do not include government or dealer charges)
FEATURES
ABS Brakes: Standard
Air Conditioning: Standard
Automatic Transmission: CVT $4500 option.
CD Player: Standard
Central Locking: Standard
Cruise Control: Standard
Dual Front Airbags: Standard
Front Side Airbags: Standard
Stability Control: Standard
Traction Control: Standard
SPECIFICATIONS
ENGINE:
Capacity: 1.699 litres
Configuration: in line four
Head Design: SOHC
Compression Ratio: 11:1
Bore/Stroke: 83.0 mm x 78.5 mm
Maximum Power: 85 kW @ rpm 5500
Maximum Torque: 155 Nm @ rpm 3500 - 4000
DRIVELINE:
Driven Wheels: front
Manual Transmission: Five speed
Automatic Transmission: 7 spd CVT
DIMENSIONS, WEIGHT AND CAPACITIES:
Length: 4270 mm
Wheelbase: 2778 mm
Width: 1777 mm
Height: 1604 mm
Turning Circle: 11.9 metres
Kerb Mass: 1360 kg
Fuel Tank Capacity: 54 litres
Towing Ability: 1300 kg (kg with braked trailer)
SUSPENSION AND BRAKES:
Front Suspension: MacPherson strut, wishbones, gas dampers, anti-roll bar
Rear Suspension: Beam axle, coil springs
Front Brakes: Ventilated Discs
Rear Brakes: Discs
PERFORMANCE:
0-100 km/h Acceleration: 12.0 seconds
FUEL CONSUMPTION:
Type: Premium unleaded
Combined Cycle (ADR 81/01): 7.6 L/100km(manual 6.3)
GREEN VEHICLE GUIDE RATINGS:
Greenhouse Rating: 6.5 /10
Air Pollution Rating: 6.5 /10
STANDARD WARRANTY:
3 years/ unlimited km
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