Mercedes Benz India had first showcased the B Class in India in July. The German car maker has now launched the car for a starting price of INR 21.4 lakhs. The new car has initiated the Sports Touring Car segment in Indian four wheelers market.
The petrol engined B class for India has been launched in two variants:
–B 180 (INR 21.49 lakhs)
-B 180 Sport (INR 24.87 lakhs)
(All prices Ex Showroom, New Delhi)
Both these variants are powered by a 4 pot 1.6 litre petrol motor with forced induction and power rating of 122 hp-200 Nm. The engine has been mated to a 7 speed automatic transmission.
Commenting on the launch, Mr. Debashis Mitra, Director, Sales & Marketing, Mercedes-Benz India said: “We are extremely excited with the initial response of the B-Class in India. Our Strategy of introducing the segment & then launching the car has been well received by our customers. The huge response only demonstrates that the Three Pointed Star is easily the most aspired brand in India and kicks off a beginning of our product offensive in next couple of year in India.”
He further added “The sell out of the new B-Class in the pre launch phase convinces us that there is a latent demand for ‘Sports Tourers’ in India and they are looking forward for cars loaded with features”
Key features of B 180 are:
-Halogen headlamps
-ECO start/ stop
-Hill start assist
-Electric Parking Brake
-7 speed DCT with shift paddles on steering wheel and cruise control
-ABS, ESP, ASR, BAS, tyre pressure loss warning
-7 airbags-driver, front passenger, L and R curtain, L and R side airbags, driver knee
airbag
-Audio 20 with USB/ aux-in, bluetooth, 1 CD/MP3/WMA, 6 speakers
-Attention assist
-rear wiper/defogger
-ARTICO upholstery-only black
-matrix look interior trim
-16″ alloys, 10 spoke
-only white colour
In addition to above, the B 180 Sports also gets:
-Panoramic sunroof
-Sports package and body styling
-Electric adjust driver seat with memory and lumbar support
-Leather steering wheel and gear knob
-Mirror package
-Bi-xenon headlamps with LED DRLs and washers
-ARTICO upholstery in black or beige
-Black ash wood trim
-17″ twin 7 spoke alloys
-Color options of red, white and silver
With the B-class, Mercedes plans to reduce the entry barrier into its brand in India and the latest from the popular German car maker might eat into the sales of very popular BMW X1 and Audi Q3.
The new B-class adopts Mercedes-Benz’s new design philosophy, exhibited earlier by the new CLS and the C63 AMG. The distinctive new headlamps are fast becoming a hallmark of the Mercedes family and the B-class too adorns a pair of them. An oval-ish looking shape for the headlights, tapering towards the grille with boomerang shaped illuminated blinkers give the new B-class its characteristic eyes. A twin slat chrome grille with a big three pointed star in the middle complete the face. Bumper comprises of a huge central air dam with slim, horizontally mounted daytime running white LEDs flanking it.
In profile the extended length gives you a positive feel about the space within the cabin. Two strong character lines work towards adding some tension and athleticism in profile. The ORVMs seem to have been taken from the E-class sedan. The matters have been kept rather simple at the rear, which cannot ever be a bad thing. We wish the chrome tipped exhaust pipe was present on both the sides for a better visual balance. The cabin greets you with a high quality and fresh design. The three large round vents in the middle add immensely to the sporty appeal of the interior.
We are unsure about the response that the B Class will get from our SUV-hungry market. However, Mercedes has already bagged 250 bookings for the car and says that it isn’t concerned about the volumes.The car maker has no plans to introduce a budget end variant of the car in near future. The B Class does feels to be up to the mark for being positioned as an image building product.
ENGINE SPECIFICATIONS
Displacement: 1595cc
Engine Type: Petrol
Maximum Power: 122 Bhp @ 5000 rpm
Maximum Torque: 200 Nm @ 4000 rpm
DIMENSIONS
Length: 4359 mm
Width: 1786 mm
Height: 1557 mm
OTHER SPECIFICATIONS
Seating Capacity: 5
Tyre Size: 225/45 R17
Suspension: NA
Turning Circle: 5.50 mtrs.
Boot Space: 486.00 ltrs.
Steering: Tilt
Brakes: Front Disk, Rear Disk
Gears: 7 Automatic
Kerb Weight: 1425.00 kgs.
Fuel Tank: 50.00 litres
Click here for our first impression of the B Class on Indian Formula 1 Circuit
This is a recipe for a disaster. No Diesel! Merc what are you thinking!
This is a recipe for a disaster. No Diesel! Merc what are you thinking!