Great write up Amanda. Vicky Parrot would be proud of her sister. Now that the tears of laughter have almost cleared from my eyes after reading your MB brolly tale, I can submit my response.
Pretty much everything you wrote also applies to my petrol version (C350 CGI Sport saloon) - except of course I don't quite achieve the same frugal economy. But long runs are still fairly good; 38mpg on mixed roads but mainly motorway. However, press the right pedal down to use the power available and the sucking noise from the petrol tank could almost drown out the 18" low profile tyre noise. But fortunately the throaty roar from the twin exhausts supersedes everything else so an emptying wallet is, for a change, accompanied by a big smile.
Dynamic handling certainly does make a difference in all respects: tightening the suspension and sharpening gearchanges and throttle response. I agree that the flappy paddles are of little use without first pressing the Sport button – a button that I wish was placed next to the gear lever instead of way over on the dash almost in front of the passenger seat! But even in Sport mode it’s not easy to know which gear you’re in when you use the paddles. Not a problem exclusive to MB though; I had the same trouble in a Ferrari 360 whilst tearing around Silverstone recently, and getting it wrong there made a big difference! The stiffer suspension with Dynamic Handling on in the C-Class whilst mighty effective is still perfectly comfortable in my opinion, so well worth the extra cost. I don’t know how this compares to the AMG Handling pack now available on the very latest versions.
I wasn’t aware of your slight issue with the foot operated parking brake until you pointed it out. But yes, there is a slight movement after applying it and releasing the footbrake. Not as serious a problem though as a friend of mine who took delivery of his new manual C180 a few weeks before me. He’d had the demonstration many months before and was in a hurry when he collected it from the dealer so shot off without any further instruction. When he arrived at work he couldn’t find the handbrake but saw the “P” on the instrument display along with “HOLD” so assumed it was a fully electronic system and the parking brake had been applied. It was only a little later when a colleague laughingly told him that his car had driven itself out of his parking space and into a hedge that he discovered the truth. Fortunately no harm done, but he did then take the time to read some of the manual. On the subject of the HOLD feature, I do like it when stopped at lights and similar places, and I’m sure the people behind like it even more not having brake lights glaring at them all the time.
The panoramic roof was an expensive option but a good choice. It’s not so much the ability to enjoy the occasional bit of nearly open-top motoring (it’s too noisy at speed in such an otherwise quiet car) but the way that all that glass brings so much light into the car. But I do get the feeling that the HK sound system is more about the labels on the speakers than it is about vastly superior performance. Nice but not so sure it’s necessary. And I could say the same thing about the Luxury Climate Control; nice for the rare times we have passengers in the back who are able to control there own zone, but the “diffused”, “medium” and “focused” air-flow styles are barely discernable. I first thought the same about the ventilated seats, but on the rare occasions that it’s been hot outside this “summer” they have been marvellous, particularly after the car has been sat in the sun for a while. An option that I didn’t go for was Blind Spot Assist, thinking that I don’t need to be told someone’s next to me when at my very advanced years I’m still capable of turning my head to look. But the B pillars on the saloon are quite wide and for this 6 footer restrict a worrying amount of view. I’m still getting used to taking even more care now, so far having only done a couple of “Oops, sorry”s when entering roads from slipways!
Amanda repeated the downside to having a black car of keeping it looking clean, but I’m sure I spend longer cleaning my wheels than the rest of it. Admittedly I’m a bit A nul in that if I can see it then I have to clean it, but those AMG 5-twin-spoke alloys still gather brake dust even quicker than the front grill gather flies (just!).
Whilst on the subject of black cars and options, I hope it’s not too long before MB introduce an even bigger hair-trigger umbrella than Amanda’s that pops up through the roof to keep the whole car clean. Or better still, air vents on all the panels to blow air out and around the whole car to keep rain and dirt away. Perhaps I should send this suggestion to Stuttgart as a way of making a great car even better.
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