New engines, subtle styling tweaks, and mild hybridisation.
Announced ahead of next week’s New York Motor Show, Mercedes-Benz has shed light on their revised C-Class Coupe and Cabriolet following the unveil of their sedan progenitor. Like the facelifted four-door, the two-door and convertible hasn’t moved the needle much by way of visual differentiation, but focuses more on the many finer improvements to elevate the W205-based cars as a package.
There are some exterior tweaks, of course, but they are minor enough to go mostly unnoticed.
However, the forward illumination package has been given a significant upgrade, now being equipped with Benz’s LED High Performance lamps as standard to match the already included all-LED rear lamps. Optionally, customers will have the option to upgrade to the MULTIBEAM system with ULTRA RANGE high beam.
Most significant in this 2018 update would be the updates made to the car’s powertrain line-up, which now feature a 48 Volt electrical architecture on certain variants that can augment the otherwise conventional combustion engines, some of which are new, with an electric motor and small integrated battery.
Going forward, the C200 Coupe and Cabriolet will be powered by a smaller 1.5-litre turbocharged four-cylinder petrol, generating a respectable 135kW and 280Nm. The ‘EQ Boost’, as Benz calls it, is able to inject an additional 10kW for brief periods to remove any valleys in the power curve while the turbocharger builds up to full charge pressure, using the starter/alternator to recuperate kinetic energy and recharge the battery during deceleration.
Apart from having a reduced displacement - now just under 2,000cc, down from 2.1-litres - the C220d’s turbodiesel has been revised to improve efficiency and produce lower emissions in accordance with the latest Euro 6d-TEMP standard, using technologies such using lighter aluminium engine block with steel pistons to reduce excess weight.
Stepping up to their respective AMG guises reveal that the same 3.0-litre turbocharged V6 motor being retained, as was expected, but now power rises slightly by 17kW (now 287kW) while peak torque of 520Nm is a made available more uniformly across the rev range. From a standstill, 100km/h is dispatched in a claimed 4.7 seconds (coupe) thanks to the effective 4Matic system while top speed is a very Germanic 250km/h.
Inside, the C-Class Coupe and Cabriolet can now be equipped with Merdeces’ fully digital instrument cluster as an option. There’s also a larger media display that stretches 10.25-inches (standard is 7-inches) and ambient cabin lighting with 64 colours. The new DYNAMIC BODY CONTROL adaptive suspension now has more customisable parameters that will also effect the Sports Direct-Steer system and AIR BODY suspension.
There are some minor changes to the spread of interior trim elements and colour combinations, a new 9-speaker 225W Burmester audio system enters the optional spec list, and Keyless Entry and Start is now standard across the range along with remote Open/Close commands for the fabric soft top.
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