Mike Sinclair•15 Jul 2014
NEWS
C450 could spearhead 4MATIC in Oz
High-performance Mercedes-Benz C-Class six could also pack all-wheel driveThe first six-cylinder variant of the new generation W205 Series C-Class to make it Down Under could be both AMG fettled and all-wheel drive.
Local pricing and specification for the all-new C-Class line-up was announced at Mercedes-Benz Australia's (MBAu) Mulgrave (Vic) headquarters yesterday. And there was not a six or eight-cylinder variant in the range.
The latter will come in the shape of an all-new twin-turbo 4.0-litre V8 C 63 AMG. That car will make its debut at the Paris motor show in October and say insiders will stay, for the moment, resolutely rear-wheel drive.
But the first six-cylinder W205 C-Class variant to make it Down Under could be a very different car to the last generation C280/300 it effectively replaces. You see, for the first time, in this brand-new W205 generation the C-Class is able to package both 4MATIC all-wheel drive and a steering wheel on the right side.
The long-term benefit of the re-engineering is the eventual launch of a right-hand drive version of the next generation GLK-Class midsized SUV. The medium term bonus is the potential local launch of a high-performance, AMG-tweaked all-wheel drive C-Class sedan featuring Mercedes’ latest twin-turbo 3.0-litre petrol V6.
Enter the C 450 Sport. Expected to pack around 275kW and 500Nm, the 450 Sport is now on the cards as a late-2015, early-2016 entrant into the local marketplace.
That, not coincidentally, is the timeline for the start of right-hand-drive 4MATIC production.
No official word was proffered on the 4MATIC/450 pairing, however, nor is MBAu denying the plans exist.
"The latest four-cylinder C-Class models have performance close or equal to the outgoing sixes. 4MATIC and an AMG-modified engine would give such a car – if it existed – a significant point of difference," one senior Benz exec told motoring.com.au.
"We might have to wait a little longer [for the Sport variant] but it also makes sense as a stepping stone between standard C-Class and the new C 63," the insider stated.
AMG has already launched rear-biased all-wheel drive versions of E and S-Class models in Europe and the USA. Over 90 per cent of all E 63s sold in North America are 4MATIC all-wheel drive equipped.
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Mercedes-Benz
C-Class
Car News
Prestige Cars
Written byMike Sinclair
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