IT is hard to find fault in Mercedes’ current C-class generation.
From the base-level C180, each car in the range is imbued with a sense of luxury and refinement that makes it the benchmark of the segment.
It’s an unusually accomplished range, and this is reflected in the enthusiastic reception of Malaysian car buyers, who choose Mercedes’ little overachievers.
In August last year, Mercedes pulled the C300 and replaced it with the C350e plug-in hybrid.
Since its unveiling, the futuristic sedan has generated considerable excitement.
At the heart of the C350e is the familiar M274 petrol engine tuned to produce 211hp and 350Nm of torque, the exact same unit found in the C250. But squeezed in between this engine and the 7G-Tronic transmission is an electric motor, rated at 80hp and imbued with 340Nm of torque.
Combined, the C350e has access to 279hp and 600Nm of torque.
There is another crucial ingredient to this futuristic mix under the rear bonnet. Wedged under the floor of the boot is a 6.2kWh lithium-ion battery.
Charge time is 1 hour 45 minutes from a charge socket. From your home, the car can be charged in three hours.
Once fully powered, with the car engine idling at zero and being nothing more than dead weight, the car has an electric range of 31km.
But here’s the clincher: It also has a 0-100kph sprint time of 5.9 seconds and a 250kph top speed.
THE DRIVE
It may have sportscar-like acceleration, but the C-class underpinnings mean the car is less about feedback and driver involvement, and more about comfort and refinement.
In the C350e, which weighs in at a hefty1,705kg , the driving dynamics are further blunted by the additional weight of the 100kg water-cooled battery.
In total, the C350e is 270kg heavier than the C250, and you can feel it when you take the driver’s seat.
The air suspension keeps the passengers cosseted in a magical carpet ride, but this comes at a price.
The C350e floats and wallows as it goes about its business. The steering is not the sharpest in its class either. This is not a drivers’ car by far.
With the battery fully charged, slam the throttle though and the acceleration from standstill is simply startling.
With 600Nm of torque, the car surges forward on a mountain of torque that seems unceasing.
It is a fast car, but there is a caveat. Once the batteries dry up, you will need to recuperate it before charging down the expressway again.
And there is that little issue with the orientation of the battery in the car, which reduces the original boot space of 475 litres to 335 litres.
SAVING FUEL
We finally come to the final questions in our examination of the C350e - does it actually save much fuel?
The answer to this is more complicated than some would imagine.
On long drives, over distances that cause the C350e to deplete its battery, the car essentially operates like a any typical internal combustion engine car, and a superfluous one at that.
Lugging around nearly 300kg of extra components hardly helps fuel efficiency.
Yes the C350e is certified with a fuel consumption of just 2.1l/100km on the European NEDC cycle. But the car we were driving registered 10.1 l/100km on a 356km real-world drive, as indicated by its onboard computer.
The C350e will return incredible fuel mileage on short distances.
For example, during a drive to Port Dickson, a journalist managed to clock in a respectable 4.1l/100km over a distance of 91km. Forty-four kilometres out of the total distance was achieved with the engine off.
In theory, this may well go all the way down to 0l/100 km for distances less than 31km, provided you manage the delicate throttle feathering to keep the engine off.
But on longer distances, when the car has to juggle between charging the battery and driving it forward, the consumption figures will start to go up.
CONCLUSION
Can you have your proverbial cake and eat it, too?
In the C350e, you almost can. What makes the C350e such an intriguing proposition here is its pricing and packaging, a result incentives given by the government because it is a plug-in hybrid.
At RM298,888 after incentives amounting to some RM160,000, there is no denying that the C350e is ingeniously positioned.
With an extensive list of specifications, refinement and an attractive price, it is a good package from Mercedes and a testament to why the three-pointed marque is continuing to make inroads in Malaysia.