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The German brand has introduced a new facet of security and intelligence to the Mercedes C-class. Audi A4 and BMW 3, which leave their competitors far behind, clearly succumb to the new Mercedes C-class. Do these cars have enough advantages to compete confidently with the new product from our article, which presents a comparative review of Mercedes C 180, BMW 320i and Audi A4 cars?
Comparison of Mercedes C 180 with BMW 3 and Audi A4
Читать далее о сравнении автомобилей Мерседес С 180, BMW 3 и Ауди А4-->
Classics of the genre and its competitors
Today, the S-class has once again shifted the technological edge of possibilities, and with the passage of time it is beginning to change more and more often. These words were not spoken by anyone, but by the main barefoot of the automaker Mercedes Dieter Zetsche, who decided to characterize the flagship of his automobile industry. Of course, objectively, although the class is not a best-selling Mercedes, for each car brand, the preservation of one’s face is extremely important, especially in the current competitive environment.
Mercedes car C 180
But class C is a completely different level. Every year, cars C-class acquire hundreds of thousands of customers. C-class today is the main profitable segment of production, thereby guaranteeing the company not only a stable financial condition, but also its economic growth. In this regard, high hopes are placed on the C-class model. What is the real degree of competition today in practice in this class?
In recent years, the Mercedes car concern has increased the production of compact cars that have already gained international customer confidence. Devoted Mercedes fans are not always satisfied with some deviations from the characteristic style, which is changing more and more often with the aim of expanding its share of the global automotive market. In particular, the cost of the car brand Mercedes is known to the whole world, however, the stiff suspension and non-native Reno engine is clearly out of place. This production strategy does not quite look convincing, and many Mercedes fans simply do not like it.
The owners of Mercedes in one voice say that they are extremely concerned about the new vector of the company's development. In this regard, the company has deprived of retaining the basic design vector of the C-class, which has long been to everyone's liking. Mercedes C-class is an excellent comfort and impeccable degree of security. Will these advantages be enough to overcome the BMW 3 and Audi A4?
Saloon car Mercedes C 180
Изнутри салон нового Мерседеса С-класса имеет уровень комфортности не ниже, чем у лимузина. В роскошности салона все автомобили С-класса являются абсолютными лидерами, так как им никто не способен предоставить в этом сегменте конкуренцию. Причём внутри салон хоть и роскошный, но выполнен в классически строгом дизайнерском стиле. Звукоизоляция автомобиля Мерседеса на отменном уровне, впрочем, как и качество сборки, которая не может вызывать каких-либо нареканий. Плюс ко всему кресла переднего ряда имеют полноценную регулировку и являются чрезвычайно комфортабельными, а сам front ряд имеет наибольшее количество свободного места среди всех своих конкурентов. Задняя часть салона, к сожалению, не отличается повышенной степенью вместимости. Сравнительно со своим предшественником С-класса, в целом длина автомобиля была увеличена на 10 см и составила 4,69 метра. Между прочим, кузов имеет на 7 см большую длину, чем у прямого конкурента BMW 3. Стоит также отметить, что задняя часть салона BMW 3-й серии имеет немного больший объём сравнительно с новым Мерседесом С-класса.
Saloon car BMW 3
BMW car interior 
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adom.ru «тройки» действительно очень сильно настораживает. Пластиковая отделка салона выглядит не совсем привлекательно, а её стоимость крайне невысокая. К самой же сборке претензии отсутствуют. BMW «тройка» обладает намного лучшей эргономикой, которая на первый взгляд кажется практически идеальной. Несмотря на многочисленную функциональность в управлении эргономикой, с ней сможет разобраться даже тот владелец, который ещё не до конца овладел управлением гаджета. Главный элемент управления представлен шайбой-пультом, само же меню программного обеспечения строго структурировано и хорошо упорядочено, что позволяет сразу разобраться, что к чему.
In the field of multimedia, the Mercedes C-class confidently takes the leading position that the truth is slightly losing in the area of the program menu, as small hitch events sometimes occur. The Comand system takes a little time to get used to in order to adapt to the management process. Over time, menu management will occur automatically and without looping. This is very convenient, since the owner will be able to subconsciously control the ergonomics and not ponder the subtleties of the controlled process.
Saloon car Audi A4
The ergonomics of the Audi A4 are very far behind and are far behind their competitors. The interior of the car interior does not look modern, and the control keys are often far from optimally located. The Audi A4 navigation system, unfortunately, also does not support handwriting. The graphic component of the menu looks extremely outdated, the structure itself is rather well done and in many respects resembles the menu of the Mercedes C-class.
BMW is well able to save and better on the track
Today, the scale of the downsizing has been radically changed. Mercedes C180 and BMW 320 are equipped with a 1.6-liter turbocharged engine. Despite the fact that the volume of Audi turbo by 200 cubic centimeters exceeds the BMW, the maximum power of their engines is absolutely the same.
| Car model: | AUDI | BMW | MERCEDES |
| Engine Type / Location: | 4 cylinders in a row, turbo / front longitudinal: | 4 cylinders in a row, turbo / front longitudinal: | 4 cylinders in a row, turbo / front longitudinal: |
| Number of valves / camshafts: | 4 per cylinder / 2 | 4 per cylinder / 2 | 4 per cylinder / 2 |
| Timing Drive: | chain | chain | chain |
| Working volume, cm3: | 1798 | 1598 | 1595 |
| kW (HP) at rpm: | 125 (170) 3800 | 125 (170) 4800 | 115 (156)/5300 |
| Nm at rpm: | 320/1400 | 250/1500 | 250/1200 |
| Max. Speed, km / h: | 230 | 230 | 223 |
| CAT: | 6МКПП | 8AKPP | 7AKPP |
| Drive unit: | front | rear | rear |
| brakes: | disk / disk | disk / disk | disk / disk |
| wheel size: | 225 / 50R 17 Y | 205/50 R 16 W | 225/45 — 245/40 R 18 Y |
| consumption l / 100 km: | 7,4/4,8/5,7 | 7,3/4,4/5,4 | 6,8/4,6/5,4 |
| tank volume, l: | 63 | 60 | 66 |
| Fuel: | AI-95 | AI-95 | AI-95 |
| Trunk volume, l: | 480 | 480 | 480 |
| Length / width / height, mm: | 4701/1826-2040/1427 | 4624/1811-2031/1428 | 4686/1810-2020/1442 |
| Weight, kg: | 1510 | 1485 | 1507 |
On paper, in principle, all sedans have a relatively small degree of power, however, in practice it is more than enough. BMW car is equipped with the most efficient engine. Its acceleration rate is not much higher than that of an Audi or Mercedes car. Although Audi has 70 Nm more torque, however, this does not take away the superiority of the BMW. Visually, sitting inside the BMW car, it seems that the acceleration rate is really higher. The very engine of this car stably operates in all load modes. However, during the movement the 1.6 liter engine makes a lot of noise and rather vibrates quite noticeably, which is often not a characteristic feature for an engine of such power.
Test drive car Mercedes C180:
With motors in general, the paradox is obtained in terms of noise. The Mercedes engine starts to make a lot of noise while pressing the gas pedal, and acceleration occurs with a slight and inconspicuous delay. The high revolutions of the Mercedes engine are perceptibly heard in the salon, despite the extremely high degree of isolation. However, during a smooth, calm and harmonious movement of the engine operates virtually silently.
The Audi engine is represented by 4 cylinders and operates almost silently on the highway, in this segment confidently ahead of its direct competitors. The engine's rumbling is audible a little and the sound itself is quite pleasantly perceived by the ear. The engine compartment has an excellent degree of noise insulation.
Test drive the car Audi A4:
In terms of functionality, the engine and transmission of Audi loses to its direct competitors. And this is largely due to the mechanical transmission. Even if there was a Multironic CVT, which is installed on Audi sedans and is famous for its slow action, this would not only save the situation, but also aggravate it.
Objectively, the Audi manual gearbox functions perfectly, however, the competitors are equipped with a hydrodynamic "automatic", which functions much more efficiently. The most ideal box for a BMW, which has eight steps and functions perfectly: it reacts to the incoming command instantly, and it is almost impossible to force it to stall in practice. Next comes the seven-speed “automatic” of a Mercedes, which functions ideally only at moderate engine speeds. As soon as the harmony of movement is disturbed, the Mercedes “automaton” begins to think for a long time and publish subtle jolts.
Test drive a BMW 3 car:
Objectively, the BMW has the best aggregate pair, which is the engine and transmission. An interesting feature of the BMW "troika" is the level of fuel consumption, which is the smallest and is half a liter ahead of its direct competitors in this indicator.
The new high-tech Mercedes air suspension is expensive, but it has excellent quality.
That car concern Mercedes is the pioneer of the suspension for the middle class cars. There are good reasons to believe that the C-class is waiting for a new success, as in the sphere of comfort, Mercedes has secured a confident leadership. Since this feature is the most characteristic of the German automaker Mercedes, the suspension functions so well that even significant road irregularities have little effect on the position of the body in space, and this makes it possible not to feel road vibrations during the trip. This statement applies to C-class cars that have 18-inch tires.
True, the air suspension of a Mercedes cannot be called ideal, and part of the irregularities of the roadway can be heard through a small vibration into the vehicle interior. Since the tires have a low profile, driving into a deep hole is immediately felt. Air suspension and the simplest version of the exterior will cost 3269 euros, which is a very expensive pleasure for this class of cars.
Suspension BMW "troika" should not be prematurely written off. Components of the "three" Efficient Dynamics Edition has narrow tires that are adapted to road irregularities. Narrow tires slightly reduce the degree of control and reduce the sporty character of the car. The smoothness of the BMW 3 Series suspension is almost as good as its direct competitor Mercedes C-Class, besides it costs only 1,400 euros. With three passengers BMW suspension copes with a bang, but with four already begins to be noticed a certain degree of roughness in the behavior. The rear axle of the car is particularly noticeable.
Audi in the suspension competition has long lagged behind its direct competitors. Objectively, Audi's suspension is good, however, it doesn’t even hold down a priori to the “excellent” mark. In general, Audi has a sporty character and is made in the most rigid style, compared with a BMW or Mercedes. In steep high-speed bends, the Audi A4 skims to the side and a certain degree of slip is observed, so the degree of controllability does not even reach the lower limit of its competitors.
Objective outcome
| car model: | MAX POINT | BMW | MERCEDES | AUDI |
| BODY | ||||
| Front seat: | 20 | 16 | 17 | 16 |
| backseat: | 20 | 15 | 13 | 11 |
| sense of space: | 10 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| trunk capacity: | 20 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| transformability: | 10 | 0 | 0 | 0 |
| load capacity: | 10 | 6 | 6 | 6 |
| towing weight: | 5 | 1 | 4 | 3 |
| visibility: | 15 | 12 | 12 | 12 |
| build quality: | 20 | 17 | 19 | 18 |
| functionality: | 10 | 9 | 9 | 9 |
| security systems: | 10 | 5 | 6 | 4 |
| RESULT | 150 | 99 | 104 | 97 |
| ENGINE AND TRANSMISSION | ||||
| Acceleration: | 15 | 12 | 10 | 11 |
| Elasticity: | 20 | 15 | 13 | 13 |
| Max Speed: | 5 | 3 | 3 | 3 |
| Motor smoothness: | 15 | 11 | 11 | 12 |
| responsiveness: | 10 | 6 | 5 | 6 |
| transmission: | 20 | 19 | 16 | 14 |
| test flow: | 30 | 25 | 24 | 23 |
| stock rate: | 10 | 6 | 6 | 5 |
| RESULT | 125 | 97 | 88 | 87 |
| COMFORT | ||||
| Landing in the salon: | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Seat position: | 15 | 14 | 14 | 13 |
| front seats: | 20 | 17 | 17 | 18 |
| rear seats: | 10 | 6 | 6 | 7 |
| ergonomics: | 10 | 9 | 8 | 8 |
| suspension: | 25 | 21 | 23 | 18 |
| insulation: | 10 | 7 | 9 | 9 |
| overall noise level: | 15 | 11 | 13 | 12 |
| comfort equipment: | 15 | 6 | 9 | 5 |
| native multimedia: | 10 | 9 | 10 | 7 |
| auxiliary systems: | 5 | 4 | 5 | 3 |
| conditioning: | 10 | 5 | 5 | 5 |
| RESULT | 150 | 113 | 123 | 109 |
| DYNAMICS | ||||
| Road performance | 20 | 17 | 18 | 17 |
| safety systems efficiency: | 15 | 14 | 14 | 14 |
| straight travel: | 10 | 9 | 10 | 10 |
| maneuverability: | 20 | 17 | 16 | 16 |
| management: | 20 | 18 | 18 | 16 |
| cornering stability: | 10 | 8 | 8 | 6 |
| turning diameter: | 10 | 5 | 5 | 4 |
| braking distances: | 20 | 13 | 18 | 16 |
| RESULT | 125 | 101 | 107 | 99 |
| TEST ESTIMATES | 600 | 446 | 454 | 424 |
| EXPENSES | ||||
| Price: | 40 | 18 | 13 | 24 |
| Resale: | 20 | 16 | 12 | 10 |
| Insurance: | 5 | 4 | 4 | 4 |
| Maintenance: | 15 | 8 | 8 | 10 |
| Warranty | 10 | 5 | 2 | 4 |
| Options: | 10 | 7 | 6 | 7 |
| RESULT | 100 | 58 | 45 | 59 |
| FINAL RESULT | 700 | 504 | 499 | 483 |
| POSITIONS | 1 | 2 | 3 |
Сегодня Мерседес С-класса занимает лидирующую позицию в среднем классе премиум-сегмента. Это обусловлено тем, что автомобильный концерн Meredes решил сделать акцент на своих извечных классических качествах. С-класс является образцом не только комфортабельности и стильности, но также и интерьерной роскоши. Если взять во внимание стоимость и некоторые другие параметры, то BMW «тройка» занимает первое место. Если же не брать этот показатель во внимание, то лидерство за Мерседесом, несмотря на оценки. BMW в целом имеет более привлекательный внешний вид, что в некоторой степени объясняется характерными агрессивными чертами спортивного стиля. Преимущество Audi A4 заключается также в её стоимости, но уровень технологичности очень сильно отстал, и цена не может спасти ситуацию.
