Road Test
According to the numerologist we often consult when writing cover blurbs, an engine that lives for nine years unchanged is equivalent to 90 human years. So after a nine-year career without any significant changes, Mercedes' old SOHC 3.2-liter V-6 was feeling about as competitive as a nonagenarian. It's not that the Mercedes 3.2-liter was offensive-it was just outdated and feeling a bit underpowered. In its later years, it had sand kicked in its face by numerous V-6s that surpassed it in output and refinement. Mercedes' strong and lively 24-valve, 3.5-liter V-6, introduced a year ago on the SLK350 roadster, has been gradually forcing the gray-bearded 18-valve, 3.2-liter V-6 into retirement.
After being impressed by the transformation of the SLK into a genuine sports car with the insertion of the 3.5-liter V-6 into its engine bay, not to mention its willingness to pull the 5000-pound yoke that is the R-class, we waited patiently for the new engine to appear in the C-class.
We were hoping the 268-hp engine and the six-speed manual transmission from the SLK350 would make the $38,325 C350 Sport into a cheaper alternative to the $56,225 C55 AMG. Could the new C350 be an AMG for the Kmart shopper in all of us? It is, after all, the most powerful manual-transmission C-class ever (C55s come only with automatics). So right now you're probably asking that roll of toilet paper, "Well, why didn't you include one in last month's comparo?" Hey, we tried to get one for our "$35,000 Sports Sedans" test in the October issue, but Mercedes didn't feel like inserting one into the cargo hold of a Lufthansa 747-400 bound for Los Angeles.
A month after we got back from the cookie-baking heat of the California desert, a Diamond Black (it's a metallic black with the slightest hint of blue) C350 six-speed manual appeared at our doorstep. Mercedes would likely blanch at our bringing up its failure to make the comparo, but we're not gonna head-butt them on that because we're still remembering a 190E 2.3 16V we returned in 1986 with what we thought was a slimming and flattering pleat through the rear door that it didn't have when we received it and a rear differential whose future was no longer operative.
It is unfortunate that the C350 didn't get to duke it out with the competition. Although it probably wouldn't have emerged victorious-an as-tested price of $45,055 would have certainly hurt its chances-it is dynamically good enough to challenge the top finishers. The C350 offers a blend of refinement and sport that was absent in the sedans that didn't get to stand on the podium.
Thanks to the new engine and gearbox, the C350 has acceleration that would have defeated all the comparo competition except for the new Lexus IS350. Although the C350 shares its six-speed with the SLK, a taller-numerically lower-final-drive ratio means that it takes one shift to reach 60 mph instead of the two shifts required by the SLK. This is likely why the C350's 5.5-second run to 60 mph is only 0.1 second slower than the SLK350, which is 255 pounds lighter.
Around town, the torque-laden engine never feels as if it's on its heels. All 258 pound-feet of torque are available by 2400 rpm, and they're all still there when you reach 5000 rpm. The river of torque gives one the ability to squirt around the holes left by the doddering dullards who seem to live for stopping at traffic lights.
There are aspects of the C350 that show Mercedes isn't as comfortable making a manual-transmission sports sedan as, say, BMW. Shift throws, while light, are vague and rubbery, the accelerator and brake pedals could be hung closer together, the accelerator pedal has a kickdown switch from the automatic car, and the parking brake is foot operated. These gripes still aren't enough to make us take the optional seven-speed automatic over the six-speed manual, but they do give the impression that the offering of the manual is an afterthought.
Okay, so it's not a perfect manual, but Mercedes has no such problem tuning a proper sports-sedan chassis. Compared with the automatic-only C350 Luxury, the Sport sits lower and has five-spoke, 17-inch wheels shod with wider summer tires instead of 16-inch wheels with narrower all-season tires. The ride is firm but never harsh. Even the worst bumps are dealt with quickly and quietly. The structure is similarly unflappable, very Mercedes-like. With the stability control "off" (it doesn't go fully off when you hit the button), understeer sets in a bit too early, and that is largely why the C350 could only muster 0.83 g on the skidpad. The understeer does make the Benz's handling safe and the available grip easy to exploit.
