Mercedes-Benz C 300e 2020 Review

When it comes to the cost of ownership, plug-in hybrids don’t usually make a lot of sense, as we’ve observed in the recent past, but somehow the Mercedes-Benz C 300e almost renders the cost factor irrelevant.

At something like $7000 more to purchase than the Mercedes C 300 sedan, the C 300e – which is listed at $81,687 plus on-road costs – does embody everything that makes Benz a highly desirable brand, with the added virtue of reducing one’s carbon footprint.

Perhaps, for Benz buyers, the premium for the C 300e is no more a consideration than the difference in price (also roughly $7000) separating the hybrid and plug-in hybrid versions for Hyundai Ioniq buyers.

Standard features for the C 300e include the usual gamut of power windows/seats/mirrors (plus boot entry), along with pre-entry climate control, Air Body Control suspension for active ride height and levelling, leather upholstery and KEYLESS GO with hands-free boot lid opening.

The car rides on 18-inch alloy wheels wrapped in Continental 245/40 R18 tyres.

Optional features fitted to the test vehicle comprised Iridium Silver metallic paint for $1500, the Vision Package ($6300) and Seat Comfort Package ($900). The Vision Package features a panoramic sunroof, multi-beam LED headlights, 360-degree camera system and a head-up display. It’s plenty of kit for the money.

The same can be said of the Seat Comfort Package, which consists of a three-position memory function for the driver’s seat, front seat heating (to three different temperatures) and added electric-powered adjustable settings for head restraint, seat cushion and steering wheel.

Warranty coverage for the C 300e is pegged at five years, but owners can travel unlimited kilometres during that term. The plug-in hybrid C-Class also comes with five years of roadside assistance, and scheduled servicing is due every 12 months or 25,000km, whichever occurs first.

The Mercedes-Benz C 300e naturally comes equipped with the latest and greatest driver-assist technology, much of which is aimed at preventing a crash.

A Driver Assistance Package is standard. This bundle of features includes Active Distance Assist DISTRONIC automated cruise control with predictive speed adjustment for bends, junctions and roundabouts, plus Active Brake Assist, Evasive Steering Assist, lane keep assist and blind spot monitoring.

Attention Assist (driver fatigue monitoring) and tyre pressure monitoring are also standard.

Devices to keep pedestrians and the vehicle occupants safe from death or serious injury after a crash has become inevitable include the Pre-Safe accident anticipation system, an active bonnet, nine airbags (including a knee bag for the driver), an interior crash sensor for automatic door unlocking and emergency lighting in the event of a crash.

What Benz describes as third-generation plug-in hybrid technology lies at the heart of the Mercedes-Benz C 300e powertrain.

Bosch partnered with Benz to develop the system, which resides within the bell housing of the modified nine-speed automatic transmission.

The transmission is 108mm longer than the conventional Benz automatic. Driving directly through the torque converter, the electric motor produces 90kW and 440Nm, which is more than adequate for normal urban motoring.

A clutch allows the petrol engine to remain dormant while the electric motor provides the motive power, but also locks the engine and motor in step for impressive straight-line performance or to recharge the battery.

The engine itself is rarely if ever needed for short journeys, but may crank up at a moment’s notice if the driver needs the Mercedes to scurry across a busy intersection.

Put to the test at night – with lights and occasionally wipers operating – the Mercedes returned a final fuel consumption figure of 4.9L/100km, the engine powering up when more performance was required or if the battery charge fell below 14 per cent.

The drive was approximately 20km longer than the car’s electric-only range, so it came as no surprise when the petrol engine fired up about 45km into the test. At that point the range was reading 0km, but the percentage of remaining battery capacity was still 14 per cent.

The Mercedes will run on electric power alone at 100km/h from the 13.5kWh lithium-ion battery. But the petrol engine will start at open-road speeds if the driver switches to the vehicle’s Dynamic mode.

Even with the engine running (at just 1400rpm), the Mercedes remains a very quiet car in the cabin at 100 klicks. Tyre noise dominates, particularly on coarse-chip bitumen, of course.

Run the engine and motor together (for performance or recharging the battery) in flowing traffic and the Mercedes will use energy at the rate of around 19kWh and 4.4L/100km. That will vary according to driving conditions, of course.

Operating at full throttle, the engine revs to about 5500rpm in dynamic mode before the transmission shifts up, but can be held in the same gear for higher revs using the shift paddles for manual selection.

Although the turbocharged four-cylinder is mostly there for the sake of recharging the battery pack, it’s also a strong performer in itself.

In fact, once the roads are even moderately damp the torque available from the engine and motor combined will readily overpower the rear tyres’ grip.

Drivers of the Mercedes-Benz C 300e are not doing it hard. They’re fully connected to the outside world courtesy of Apple CarPlay and Android Auto. Digital radio is standard, plus the USB-A port in the console under the centre stack will also stream music from a memory stick.

The Mercedes is very quiet in EV mode, of course, but remains free of powertrain noise even when the petrol engine is running.

It’s an easy car to drive, with lightly weighted steering in Eco or Comfort modes, but loads up nicely once the Sport mode is selected.

The ride quality is measured and forgiving, and the C 300e also delivers tenacious front-end grip, but the rear end can get a bit waggly after a light shower. Roadholding – particularly in the wet – is not at the standard we’ve come to expect from even more prosaic C-Class models.

The tyres provided strong and dependable braking, but were prone to skip over bumps at times.

Inside, the seat comfort is fine, with plenty of adjustment available from the optional Seat Comfort package, which is recommended. However, the relationship to the pedals isn’t ideal, with the accelerator pedal still too close when the steering column is at the limit of its telescopic adjustment.

The instrumentation and controls follow conventional ergonomic practice from Benz, but just to reiterate what we’ve noted in the past, the high-resolution graphics look great and even some of the more arcane functions are easy enough to nut out with a bit of time spent behind the wheel.

It would be good to have the starter button located somewhere in plain sight, rather than the driver groping around on the dash behind the steering wheel to track it down, but owners will become accustomed to that within the first week.

Headroom in the rear is at a premium for adults and older teenagers, due to the optional panoramic sunroof, which is a component of the Vision Package (see above). Maybe a sunroof doesn’t thrill you, but the unit in the Mercedes is pretty clever in the way it works.

Still, if you have kids growing like weeds, it might be an option you could safely forego.

There are flip-out levers in the boot to lower the rear seats for through-loading longer objects, but the large 13.5kW battery reduces that facility’s functionality by a considerable margin.

Since the battery runs the full width of the boot (leaving some deeper space in the boot near the loading lip) and is also quite high, bulkier items just won’t fit. There’s less than 30cm of vertical space between the top of the battery and the lip of the parcel shelf.

Users will be able to squeeze a couple of hundred sheets of butcher’s paper through the aperture, but chances of loading a larger pram or port-a-cot are remote.

Unlike in a plug-in hybrid SUV such as the Mitsubishi Outlander PHEV, the battery in the Mercedes-Benz C 300e sedan is not tucked away for better packaging.

That’s undeniably a problem if you prefer your passenger car to offer more boot space, but the Mercedes will still stow enough groceries to feed a family of four for a week.

On the plus side, the C 300e could get within striking distance of its WLTP range in the real world.

Much of the driving over the course of the week was a combination of freeways and free-flowing arterial roads. There’s little doubt that the Mercedes could complete a 50km freeway journey on battery power alone – with some charge remaining at the end of the trip.

Pricing is an issue with plug-ins, but the price gap between the plug-in C-Class and its conventional C 300 sibling is unlikely to deter buyers.

A plug-in hybrid is not an elegant solution, but it’s hard not to be impressed by the relative simplicity of the Mercedes powertrain – in contrast with Toyota’s theoretically brilliant but complicated hybrid system (not a plug-in type).

In the real world, the Mercedes does offer an effective compromise for those who are attracted to electric vehicles but still harbour range anxiety.

And finally, the C 300e is a Mercedes-Benz, appealing to buyers with its presentation, its comfort and its safety.

It’s cause for a Damascene conversion – provided the road is straight and dual-lane...

How much does the 2020 Mercedes-Benz C 300e cost?
Price: $81,687 (plus on-road costs)
Available: Now
Engine: 2.0-litre four-cylinder turbo-petrol
Motor: Synchronous electric
Output (petrol): 155kW/350Nm
Output (electric): 90kW/440Nm
Transmission: Nine-speed automatic
Fuel: 2.1L/100km (ADR Combined)
CO2: 46g/km (ADR Combined)
Safety rating: Five-star (ANCAP 2014)