How Do I Really Feel?Plastic wheel covers over steel wheels; cloth seats (non-heated, non-power); no sunroof; 134-horsepower, 2.0-litre, four-cylinder
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| Plastic wheel covers over steel wheels on a Mercedes-Benz? How far the mighty have fallen. (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
engine with 136 lb-ft of torque; 5-speed manual transmission; front-wheel drive; 0 to 100 km/h in 10.3 seconds; an AM/FM radio with a single in-dash CD player; no tilt or telescopic steering column; manual tint rearview mirror; non-lit vanity mirrors; any guess which car I'm talking about? A Honda, Hyundai, Kia, Mazda or Toyota compact? No, while such features, or lack thereof, would seem to fit if it were a base-trim compact model sold by any of these brands, all of the above would deliver more power and be much quicker off the line. Each entry-level brand compact model would also cost about half as much as
Mercedes B200, which starts at a staggering $30,950.
Of
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| Since when does a Mercedes make less horsepower than a compact Kia? (Photo: Trevor Hofmann, Canadian Auto Press) |
course, none of these cars feature that revered three-pointed star front and rear, easily worth $5 Gs alone, and none come standard with eight air bags (although the Kia has six and Honda features seven), electronic cruise control, a tire puncture warning system, automatically heated dual power mirrors, halogen fog lamps, cloth covered A-pillars and Mercedes' SmartKey system. Some other items that come standard on the B-Class, which may or may not be offered on similarly sized compact cars from Korean or Japanese entry-level brands, include power windows with one-touch express-up and down, air conditioning, neutral-tinted glass, 16-inch wheels with 205/55R16 front and rear tires, a folding rear centre armrest with enclosed storage and dual cupholders, and a front centre armrest with dual enclosed and illuminated storage compartments.
