I did not have a reason to start looking for a new car. My Skoda Octavia (dubbed ‘Klára’) was in great shape, was really capable of moving people and luggage around (considering how spacious the interiors were). It was no slouch either, there were times during my highway rides where I would find a stretch of a road which was either empty where I would push the car to its limits and it just plastered a smile on my face – crunching away at speeds which I don’t think we should even talk about here 😊.
Somewhere in mind, I had a mental block, like a lot of us do, about switching my car out at the end of 4 years of its life. Took me a couple of cycles to convince my wife (a story for another day lol:).
When I started to think about my next purchase, there were few non negotiables for me:
• A car, definitely not an SUV.
• More powerful than my current car (duh!).
• Had to be as comfortable or better than my current car.
• Had to be within budget and finally something that could be delivered without a huge wait time (every day after you book a car feels like a decade until you finally lay your hands on it).
• Bright interior color (no black!)
I was ok with everything else - brand, segment of the car, fuel type, etc.
And then the search began!
BMW 530d M Sport
I decided to immediately head out to the BMW showroom to look at the G30 530d M Sport. I was totally convinced that I should be picking a bimmer, went into the showroom with a mindset of booking the car on a priority and was blown away looking at the car – the car oozed class. It had a stance of a panther waiting for someone to unleash it. Ha! The test drive was arranged on a 520d as they did not have a 530d at that moment. After having driven the 520d, I could only imagine what the 530d would have felt like. I pushed for a test drive on the 530d and after a week or so, I was told that a dealer owned 530d is available for TD and they asked me to come over. The experience of driving the 530d was superlative – the car just pulled and pulled with no limits in sight. The engine was sounding great too. I was super impressed with the build and interior quality. Felt like it ticked all the boxes.
Negotiations began with BMW without me even bothering to look at other cars and brands. While my brain knew that I had to do the right thing and look at all the options in the market, my heart was just not allowing me to move on.
Right around that time, someone on the price check thread on Team-BHP was talking about their final deal with a dealer in Mumbai landing the car ~66 lakhs. It took me by surprise as my dealer wasn’t ready to negotiate more than a few lakhs (81 lakhs listed price vs 77-78 lakhs after discount). Honestly speaking, if the price landed in the range of 66-70 lakhs, I would have taken the plunge but I felt that I was being shortchanged with the final price that my dealer was quoting.
While speaking to my wife, she convinced me to have a look at other options in the market and with an open mind, I accepted and started to look at other options in the market.
Volvo S90 (D4 Inscription)
The car, the tech, the finesse, and the kit were amazing. Considering that it was a CBU, it had all the bells and whistles that are available else-where like adaptive cruise control, 360-degree camera, amazing Bowers and Wilkins audio system, massaging and ventilated seats et al!*
What I did not necessarily like was the sluggish feel from the engine (compared to the 530d or even the 520d). It felt like the car was taking a second or two between me pressing the accelerator pedal and then the car propelling forward. Tried putting the car into the sport mode which alleviated the problem a little but I could still feel it. I told myself that the recent memory of the 530d is what is causing this issue and I really wanted to give the car a benefit of doubt. 190 BHP with a 400nm torque are extremely decent numbers. Dealer also offered to do a polestar remap of the ecu which would have bumped the numbers up by ~10%.
Sat down with the dealer to talk about the pricing, got a decent discount. While everything was going smoothly, the sales advisor got me in touch with the AVP of sales for the final round of negotiation. This person really ticked me and my wife off. The way he was speaking felt as if he was doing a favor and we should be ashamed of ourselves for negotiating. Post-facto gave my feedback to Volvo about my experience at their dealership. Got to know a few weeks ago that the AVP was fired as he had a bunch of such complaints against him.*
Jaguar XF (portfolio)
While I was happy with the quality of the interiors, I was not too impressed with the infotainment system - it was sluggish and felt alien compared to the other infotainment systems I had looked at. I test drove the diesel variant of the car which honestly did not blow my mind. I was really expecting a Jag to feel a lot more powerful and this diesel variant was far from it. I convinced myself that if I were to pick up the jag, I would spend my money on the new Ingenium petrol engine which I couldn’t test drive as it was not available with the showroom.
My wife felt a little claustrophobic in the TD car – the design language used inside the car where the dashboard connects like a cockpit to both the front doors made her feel that the car was smaller than what it really was. The orange/tan interior made her cringe. Mind you, Jag was her favorite brand and she expected a lot more from the car.*
Audi A6/A4
While the dealer outright offered a great deal on the A6, I just wasn’t convinced. Audi was about to launch the new A6 facelift in India and the dealer was trying to get rid of the last pieces that they had in the yard. I couldn’t convince myself to even test drive the car as it felt very old compared to every other car I drove/saw.
Audi A4, on the other hand, felt like my Octavia. Better materials allaround and virtual cockpit (which is great!) but couldn’t convince myself to picking up the A4. Got a great deal on it as well.
Mercedes Benz C 300d:
Right around the time when I was seriously considering the 530d M sport, I heard about the launch of the refreshed W205 C Class. Considering I had driven the pre-facelift c class, I wasn’t too keen. The ‘luxuriousness’ of the C Class including the build quality always impressed me but I wasn’t too keen on picking up a sluggish 170 odd BHP car. I felt it was too underpowered. But what I saw during my research online blew me away. The car was getting a brand-new engine (BS VI compliant OM654), new body shape variant - an AMG body kit at that and a completely new infotainment system. I hated the previous gen NTG Comand system. Though the NTG 5.5 wasn’t as advanced as the MBUX which was showcased on the upcoming A-Class, I was impressed with its capabilities. I decided to go check out the car.*
Considering I had a Skoda which I had bought from Mahavir motors, I instinctively got in touch with Mahavir Mercedes. The sales rep who spoke to me wasn’t even aware of the C 300d variant. Every time I asked for it, he mentioned it’s a cabriolet (which is a C300 in Mercedes speak – minus the ‘d’ at the end). I had to talk to him about the car and give him more details. He called me back a few hours later telling me that the new 220d is available for a test drive and the 300d wasn’t even in the radar of his superiors.*
I then picked up the phone and called Silver Star Mercedes Benz. They, on the other hand, were very much aware of the variant and were able to talk to me about the car and the OTR pricing.
I decided to visit them and I was very pleasantly received by the sales manager there. He provided all the details of the car – a brochure I could take back home, a price list and a quote for the car. I got to see, touch and feel the c220d, which was on display. There was no sight of the 300d and I was told that they are not expecting a car any time soon and told me that the production hadn’t begun. I test drove the C220d the very next day along with my wife. Both of us were very impressed with the 192 bhp facelift and I was lost in thoughts about how a 245 bhp monster would feel if like.*
I must have watched the YouTube reviews from Autocar and overdrive at least 15-20 times and read up all the information there was about the car online and made my decision. I was plonking money on a car, that I had not seen or test driven. But my heart knew the decision I was taking was correct. Went the very next day and paid the booking amount at Silverstar. The process was fairly easy and made my decision to get a Cavansite Blue with a Tan interior. If there was a single restriction in mind, it was about the interior color. I did not want a black interior period. Tan felt like a great option.*
The wait began. Calling up my sales rep every few days and trying to find out if they got any information on when my car would be built but one reason after another the car delivery dates started to move out. From late November to early December to mid-December and finally to late December. Every second you spend after booking a car, especially for us petrol heads, will feel like a decade and the wait was killing me. The reasons were pretty logical but I was pushing them to get the car as soon as possible. Incidentally, around the end of the first week of December, I sold my Octavia. I was having to rely on a spare car at home and the new car wait period was getting to my nerves.*
Early December, I was told that my car will get into production and I was so looking forward to it. I got a call a few days later with a piece of bad news – the Cavansite blue was not on the production line. I was told there are a couple of options if I needed my car immediately. I could either pick a Designo Hyacinth Red Metallic or an Obsidian Black. Few phone calls with family later, I was able to decide – I was going to pick the obsidian black. But the real bummer was when I was told that the tan interior was not an option in either of the cars on the production line and I could only get a black interior. My heart was pushing me to make a decision that I was very clearly against right from the get-go. I couldn’t resist the temptation and told them I was ok with a black interior.*
A few weeks later, my baby arrived! An obsidian black Mercedes Benz c300d!! On the day the car arrived in Hyderabad from the plant, I went straight to do an in-person PDI. The folks at the workshop were amazed looking at a child in a 34-year-old man. They were all smiles and helped me to a full Team-BHP powered PDI along with their own checklist. Pushed for the car to be delivered right on that day and got the delivery very late in the night (around 9:30 pm) on Dec/27.
‘Rooh’ came home!
Meaning: Soul/Atma; Origin of the word: Arabic/Urdu
I right now feel that I have written way too much about my decision-making process. I will let pictures do the talking.
The first look of my car (Pre-PDI):
Taking Delivery:
Having driven the car for about 8k kms in the last 5 months, here is a perspective on what I like and what I dislike:
Likes:
• Great power. ~5.9 seconds to 0 to 100 kmph
• An absolute stunner in looks. The AMG body kit with more aggressive bumpers, side skirts, star shaped 18" wheels and the diamond grille!
• Very responsive 9G-Tronic gearbox. It always has a right gear for you.
• 5 different driving modes which change the behavior of the car considerably - eco, comfort, sport, sport+ and individual
• Quality of material used both inside and out. Very strong body + lovely interior creature comforts.
• Noise insulation levels. I really have to remind people sometimes that my car is diesel and not a petrol car!
Dislikes:
• The ride is on the stiffer side as it is running on RFTs.
• No virtual cockpit on offer in India though its available outside.
• No Burmester Audio even as an option on the higher spec 300d variant
• Though the car has all the necessary hardware(read radars), adaptive cruise control is disabled in India in order to make sure they don’t disturb the model hierarchy (E class gets this feature most likely in the next facelift)
• Rear seat space - definitely lesser than my previous car and comfortable for 2 folks. 3 is a stretch.
There is not a lot of material available online which differentiates the features between the C220d (progressive) and C300d. I have tried to capture them below keeping in mind that others might find this information useful.
• 245 BHP, 500nm engine instead of 192 BHP, 400nm
• AMG body kit which includes the likes of wind curtains in the front bumpers
• Diamond grille compared to the normal 2 slat that 220d gets
• Different interior color options - tan and black vs beige and black?
• Multibeam LED lights with cornering, automatic high beam (more on this later)
• Flat bottom steering wheel with brushed steel instead of piano black inserts + electrically adjustable
• AMG floor mats lol:
• 18" star shaped wheels instead of the regular 17"; staggered wheel sizes 225s in the front and 245s in the rear.
• 16 way electrically adjustable driver and co-passenger seats with memory along with lumbar support
• AMG Accelerator and Brake Pedals
Build Quality:
New gen C class has been known for having great build quality both inside and out. Everything that you touch inside is soft. Even though they use something called 'Artico' man-made leather, which is not as soft as the likes of nappa, nothing on the inside will make you feel any less comfortable. The open-pore wood used on the center console is so much better than the shiny wood from the W204. The paint quality of the car is amazing. Panel gaps are consistent throughout.
Exterior:
Long bonnet with large air intakes
Closeup of the multibeam LEDs with 84 individually controlled LED lights. Using a camera mounted on the windshield, the car is able to detect oncoming traffic, switch off light beams that will directly hit that vehicle in order to make sure that there is no glare to the oncoming vehicle's driver. It's magical and you need to see it to believe it!
Front side 3/4th view
Silhouette of the car is absolutely amazing from the side! And the lovely 5 spoke star shaped grey alloys. Ordered and replaced the original wheel air caps with AMG ones. Found them at a very reasonable price on Amazon US site.
The C Shape tail lights are amazing to look at in the night. And the fake exhaust tips..arh! :Frustrati
In my opinion, the car looks great in the rear 3/4th view
Interior
Good quality plastics and leather. Wood inserts in open-pore grey housing the seat memory functions and the comand audio speaker. Extensible (electrically) thigh support seen on the driver side seat along with enough side bolstering.
View of the panoramic sunroof + moonroof and the electrically controlled rear sunblind
Manually adjustable sunblinds on the rear along with Isofix child seat mounts. Rear legroom is no great shakes. The seat offers pretty good under-thigh support. Comfortable seat for 2 passengers.
Center console and Infotainment
Grey open-pore wood on the center console is of great quality. If I have to nitpick, the console sometimes does creak but if you push it down in the area between the AC vent controls and the quick access buttons, the noise goes away.
Large 10.25" Comand Display using the NTG5.5 OS from Mercedes which is eons ahead of what was on the W204. the clunky-ness is all gone. Provides support for Apple Car Play and Android Auto which I rarely use considering how good the native system is. It's not a touch screen though - can control the system using the swirl wheel/touchpad combination.
For anyone who has sat in a modern day Mercedes, this setup should be fairly familiar. Touchpad, swirl wheel to control the infotainment screen. Around this contraption are key car function related buttons. Car mode selector (Rocker Wheel labeled Dynamic), button to disable/mute parking sensors, button to engage auto park (its pure magic and its scary at the same time), Auto Start/stop, Volume control Rocker, Screen on/off button (invisible due to glare in the photo), Rear Sunblind button.
3 AC vents in the center that cool the car down pretty fast in the extreme heat we get to experience every year in Hyderabad. Right below that you have controls for the AC which is dual-zone, quick access buttons for different sections of the infotainment system along with a very beautiful analog Mercedes Branded clock!
Storage areas -
Cupholders that double up as a mobile phone holder for me along with an ashtray (used as a coin holder). There is a slot to place the key in one of the cupholders. I am unsure if it charges the key if you place it there.
Arm rest houses a pretty large storage space with 2 USBs (only one of them allows you to engage carplay/android auto) & and SD card slot that I am currently using for Mercedes Maps.
Steering and Instrument Cluster
Nice and chunky flat-bottom steering wheel with brushed aluminum paddle shifters. The left side of the steering wheel houses buttons related to the infotainment system along with a lovely touchpad which makes controlling the infotainment system a breeze. On the right side, there are controls for cruise control, speed limiter and touchpad for controlling the MFD screen in the instrument cluster.
The instrument cluster is very well laid out. I would have liked it if Mercedes offered the virtual cockpit as at least an option. The left side of the cluster is the speedometer and the right side houses the tachometer. In the center, the MFD allows you to change between trip info, navigation, media, service & assistance menus.
Engine, Gearbox and Driving modes
The OM654 BS VI compliant engine that this new facelift gets is a screamer. With 500nm of torque, the car propels from 0-100 in 5.9 seconds. There is no turbo lag at all and the car just pulls from the get-go. If you are in sport/sport+ modes, the kickdown acceleration is great. In comfort and Eco modes, the car is definitely slower to respond to the pedal inputs but that’s expected. In Eco mode, if you let go of the accelerator when the car speed >50-60KMPH and you are in gear higher than 5, the car goes into a sort of a 'Coast' mode where the RPM drops to below 750 and it continues to hold the car speed higher in order to gain more fuel efficiency. Eco mode is suitable for sedate driving styles when you just want to cruise along. Comfort is a better driving mode for usual daily driving and that’s what my car is usually in. Sport and Sport+ offer superior performance - the car holds the gear for as long as it can and it downshifts very quickly in order for you to get a better kickdown acceleration. Individual mode allows you to configure various things such as automatic gear shifts or manual, ESP and Suspension in comfort/sport/sport+ and Steering in comfort/sport/sport+
The 9G Tronic gearbox offers very good performance. Coming from a fantastic DSG (wet gearbox DQ250) on my Octavia, I never felt the need to use the pedals to shift down on the gears in comfort, sport and sport+ modes. Based on how you are driving, it knows what gear you should be in.
I'm hoping to keep this thread alive with more updates as I continue to crunch more miles in my Rooh! Let me know if you guys want me to talk about any particular feature and I would be happy to do that!
Congratulations. This does look very different from the regular.
But I have something else to share :)
My Friends son picked this last month in Canada.
Congratulations! The car looks great and is quite different from the regular C. I loved the rear lights. Fake exhaust tips are the only downside with regards to the exterior.
I have also observed that premium car dealerships in Hyderabad are not very forthcoming when it comes to discounts and act like they are doing you a big favour by giving some paltry discount, which is nowhere close to what one gets in Delhi, Mumbai and Bangalore. They make you feel that as you are a premium car buyer spending 50+ lakhs, you should not do things such as asking for discounts.
Could you let us know how the steering feel, directness and quickness is impacted by the various settings? Also, how does the steering compare to the 530d and your earlier Octavia?
Congrats of the purchase!.
The car looks amazing.
Looking at the pics of your dashboard, I see you have the fresh-air mode ON. In India, it is always recommended to drive the car in the re-circulation mode. I may be wrong, but it looked like the fresh-air mode is ON to me.
Congrats akunchala on your C300d.
The car looks stunning in black with the AMG kit and the grille. IMHO, one of the best looking cars in the segment. The blue would have looked even better, but no matter, black is equally stunning. I also like the black interior.
The 0-100 kph time of 5.9 seconds is something you will never get bored of. I test drove the pre-facelift C220d a couple of years back and I am waiting to get the C300d for a drive.
Wishing you many happy miles with the C-Class. Will keep an eye on this thread for updates.
Congratulations on the purchase! The C300d is a fantastic car, and it looks amazing in that Obsidian Black! Like you I've watched the Autocar review multiple times as I've been pining over one in Mojave Silver for a while now and after your review I'm more than convinced!
The AMG line kit really changes the look drastically over the regular C-Class variants, I was surprised at the extent to which it does when I saw the C300d in person.
It's interesting that every option you considered was from a segment higher but ultimately your heart won and chose the C300d! Enjoy your ride in great health buddy.
Congratulations on the new ride, it's an amazing and a very unique choice. I myself had eyes on the C300d since it's launch, I even test drove it a couple days back. Have to say its a well rounded car. It'll be in the contention list when the time comes for me to buy a new car. :D
Congrats on getting your 'Rooh'.
Its seriously looking stunning. I guess you would have been more happy if you would have got the interiors of your color choice.
The only drawbacks which I could see are the fake exhausts and non-touch screen infotainment(ridiculous not to have in a car worth 80L :Frustrati).
