C Class Mercedes Coupe and Sedan

All Mercedes C Class cars come pretty much loaded. Power steering, cruise control, air conditioning with dual-zone automatic climate controls, interior air filter, heated power mirrors, power windows, power door locks, remote keyless entry, AM/FM stereo, tachometer, outside-temperature, heated intermittent wipers, and a universal garage-door opener are standard.

An option that is certainly unique is the panoramic roof, which covers, or should I say uncovers, nearly the entire roof.

With either car, the first thing I would change would be the tires. They are a nice compromise between highway ride and handling, but when you want to make either the coupe or the sedan perform the tires quickly limit your adventures. I especially felt that the coupe's tires were not the best match since they tended to follow ruts in the roads, were noisy, and didn't like my approach to cornering and let me know about it. Of course, they could be right since I have never been mistaken for an FI driver leaning heavily to the drifting type of cornering.

Young working woman's view: The coupe was the better half, although I found both C Class vehicles easy to love. In the past we have tested the C Class station wagon, which is very useful and nicely styled, and the AMG C32 version that nearly destroyed The Car Family as arguments ranged well into the night about who was going to drive this remarkable vehicle the next day. Which reminds me, the C32 AMG is twice as expensive as our test cars and worth every penny so don't test drive one unless you want to become spoiled.

Anyway, C Class owners get the Mercedes 4year, 50000-mile warranty and they are currently offering a free maintenance program that covers everything except the brake and tires.