Chris Akabusi
Active Member
My Mercedes CLC 180k Sport – 1000 mile review
Well I’ve had my new CLC for just under a month now and thought I’d give it 1000 miles before really making any initial judgments. I’ve now clocked up the said mileage and thought I’d do a brief summary of my thoughts.
I’m pleased to say that so far my first Mercedes experience has been an enjoyable one…..so far!
My previous car was a Lexus IS200, which I got when I was 18. I’m now 23, so I had the Lexus for a fair while and was looking to change.
The CLC fitted the bill for me, even though I know its not to everyone’s taste and coming from a fully spec'd IS200, I thought it may somewhat may be a slight step downwards. I’m pleased to say, this is not the case.
Onto the car itself……
The Good
For what looks to be a fairly smallish car and smaller than my old Lexus, the car is surprisingly spacious inside. I’m 6’3 and have no issues with head or legroom, nor has anyone complained about room in the back.
The seats are probably the most comfortable seats I’ve ever sat in, in a car. They support you in all the right places, without being too restrictive.
Despite reading many reviews about the car, most of which are quite negative, I find the handling pretty decent. Whilst it wont be for everybody, I wasn’t after a car with razor sharp handling, I find the CLC has a good balance.
For a 1.8, the engine in the car feels really nippy in and around the city and its very quick of the mark. I haven’t really given it the fully beans yet, so to speak, but I find it is more than powerful enough for my needs. My only gripe would be that it lacks the ‘top end’ grunt of the Lexus VVTi engine, but on a day to day basis the Mercedes engine is far superior and practical, as with the IS200, you really had to rev the bollo**s off it to get it moving.
For what is a fairly entry level model, I find that the kit that comes as standard to be quite generous. I thought I’d miss all the gizmos on the Lexus, but to date, I don’t and really welcome being able to connect my phone via the bluetooth stereo, as well as having the AUX input to connect my ipod. Also, with the poor rear visibility in the CLC, the parking sensors are very useful. In this weather, the one thing I am missing is the heated seats!, but I’ll cope without them, lol.
I would also like to compliment the Mercedes dealership I dealt with. The service has been top notch so far and I’d go as far to say, better than my Lexus dealer, who are often quoted as the best in the business.
The Bad
As briefly mentioned, the rear visibility is poor, but is made less of an issue with the parking sensors.
Being 6’3, I find the window switches in a really awkward place! They hide behind my leg and I find I need to take my eye off the road if I want to open the window.
Not a massive issue and somewhat balanced out with the addition of iPod input and bluetooth is that the sound quality from the stereo is nothing, in comparison to that in the Lexus. The standard stereo in the Lexus was very impressive and seems somewhat a bit of a class above the standard stereo in the CLC. As I’ll be only keeping the car for 2 years I couldn’t really justify the cost of upgrading the stereo to a better one.
My final gripe and my biggest by far (as the others aren’t a really a big issue for me) is the fuel economy is not what I was expecting. I’m currently returning very similar figures to that the older and heavier Lexus, struggling to achieve anything over 27mpg.
Whilst my daily commute is not motorway driving, I do have a pretty clear run and I was expecting better economy, maybe in the early to mid 30s. I recently did a 240mile round trip (mostly motorways) and still only managed to average about 35mpg and I don’t have a heavy right foot at all.
Whilst I am disappointed with the fuel economy, I’m hoping this may improve as the engine ‘beds’ in. Having said that, its not a huge issue for me as I don’t do lots of miles and with the price of fuel falling it makes it not as bad.
In conclusion, my Mercedes experience so far has been great and the pros far, far outweigh the minor cons. I really loved my old Lexus and after much consideration and reluctance, I bit the bullet, changed cars and so far I am very pleased with my decision.
I think the CLC is a great car and especially appealing to the younger drivers like myself. I think Merc have got it spot on, as it’s a good way to get people like myself into the Mercedes brand at a young age.
I appreciate not everybody will like the CLC, but I’m happy with my decision and so far so good…..
Finally, here a few pics……
Well I’ve had my new CLC for just under a month now and thought I’d give it 1000 miles before really making any initial judgments. I’ve now clocked up the said mileage and thought I’d do a brief summary of my thoughts.
I’m pleased to say that so far my first Mercedes experience has been an enjoyable one…..so far!
My previous car was a Lexus IS200, which I got when I was 18. I’m now 23, so I had the Lexus for a fair while and was looking to change.
The CLC fitted the bill for me, even though I know its not to everyone’s taste and coming from a fully spec'd IS200, I thought it may somewhat may be a slight step downwards. I’m pleased to say, this is not the case.
Onto the car itself……
The Good
For what looks to be a fairly smallish car and smaller than my old Lexus, the car is surprisingly spacious inside. I’m 6’3 and have no issues with head or legroom, nor has anyone complained about room in the back.
The seats are probably the most comfortable seats I’ve ever sat in, in a car. They support you in all the right places, without being too restrictive.
Despite reading many reviews about the car, most of which are quite negative, I find the handling pretty decent. Whilst it wont be for everybody, I wasn’t after a car with razor sharp handling, I find the CLC has a good balance.
For a 1.8, the engine in the car feels really nippy in and around the city and its very quick of the mark. I haven’t really given it the fully beans yet, so to speak, but I find it is more than powerful enough for my needs. My only gripe would be that it lacks the ‘top end’ grunt of the Lexus VVTi engine, but on a day to day basis the Mercedes engine is far superior and practical, as with the IS200, you really had to rev the bollo**s off it to get it moving.
For what is a fairly entry level model, I find that the kit that comes as standard to be quite generous. I thought I’d miss all the gizmos on the Lexus, but to date, I don’t and really welcome being able to connect my phone via the bluetooth stereo, as well as having the AUX input to connect my ipod. Also, with the poor rear visibility in the CLC, the parking sensors are very useful. In this weather, the one thing I am missing is the heated seats!, but I’ll cope without them, lol.
I would also like to compliment the Mercedes dealership I dealt with. The service has been top notch so far and I’d go as far to say, better than my Lexus dealer, who are often quoted as the best in the business.
The Bad
As briefly mentioned, the rear visibility is poor, but is made less of an issue with the parking sensors.
Being 6’3, I find the window switches in a really awkward place! They hide behind my leg and I find I need to take my eye off the road if I want to open the window.
Not a massive issue and somewhat balanced out with the addition of iPod input and bluetooth is that the sound quality from the stereo is nothing, in comparison to that in the Lexus. The standard stereo in the Lexus was very impressive and seems somewhat a bit of a class above the standard stereo in the CLC. As I’ll be only keeping the car for 2 years I couldn’t really justify the cost of upgrading the stereo to a better one.
My final gripe and my biggest by far (as the others aren’t a really a big issue for me) is the fuel economy is not what I was expecting. I’m currently returning very similar figures to that the older and heavier Lexus, struggling to achieve anything over 27mpg.
Whilst my daily commute is not motorway driving, I do have a pretty clear run and I was expecting better economy, maybe in the early to mid 30s. I recently did a 240mile round trip (mostly motorways) and still only managed to average about 35mpg and I don’t have a heavy right foot at all.
Whilst I am disappointed with the fuel economy, I’m hoping this may improve as the engine ‘beds’ in. Having said that, its not a huge issue for me as I don’t do lots of miles and with the price of fuel falling it makes it not as bad.
In conclusion, my Mercedes experience so far has been great and the pros far, far outweigh the minor cons. I really loved my old Lexus and after much consideration and reluctance, I bit the bullet, changed cars and so far I am very pleased with my decision.
I think the CLC is a great car and especially appealing to the younger drivers like myself. I think Merc have got it spot on, as it’s a good way to get people like myself into the Mercedes brand at a young age.
I appreciate not everybody will like the CLC, but I’m happy with my decision and so far so good…..
Finally, here a few pics……
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