2027 Mercedes-Benz C350 Leaves the ’27 C300 Behind

There’s a funny thing going on with the 2027 Mercedes-Benz C-class: There are two distinctly different flavors being bandied about. The 2027 C300 model is effectively the same as the 2026 example. Then there’s the 2027 C350, which has a raft of upgrades and enhancements. Confused? Hopefully you won’t be by the end of this.

First off, the 2027 C350 sports a new look with an enlarged and more formal stand-up grille festooned with myriad three-pointed stars. It’s flanked by substantial cheek pouches, and the new headlights are each comprised of a single large DRL that is unmistakably another Mercedes star. The same is true at the rear, where each taillight now contains a pair of prominent three-pointed stars you can’t miss at night or every time the brakes are applied.

But it goes much deeper than that, because the C350 uses a new M254 EVO version of the C300’s engine, which is called the M254. What’s the difference? Well, both are 2.0-liter four-cylinders that are rated at 255 horsepower and 295 pound-feet of torque, but the EVO displaces 1999 cubic centimeters while the M254 is slightly smaller at 1991 cc. The bigger difference is the EVO’s new electric supercharger, which helps keep the turbocharger spun up and at the ready when you crack open the throttle at lower engine speeds. It also has something the old engine does not: a 27-hp overboost feature that brings the total up to 282 horsepower for 20 seconds at a time. Mercedes’s 60-mph estimate of 5.8 seconds for the C350 lags what we recorded when testing a 2022 C300 4Matic, which was 5.3 seconds. The extra power alone should make the C350 quicker, so we’re betting on 5.1 seconds for the new car.

More on the C-class

That sounds terrific, but it doesn’t amount to much when cruising along in Comfort mode while plying the back roads of Germany. Benz’s nine-speed gearbox still has to shuffle down the various cogs until it finds the right one, which kind of obscures the result. In Sport mode, it’s another matter, and the engine definitely feels more present and willing to play along. We didn’t get into overboost, but the engine still has the beans and the means to make things interesting, especially down low in the rev range.

Mercedes says the dampers have been retuned for greater agility, while maintaining “a high level of long-distance comfort.” That’s the trick, right? The suspension hasn’t undergone any major design changes, though: It’s still a multilink setup in front and rear. The 19-inch tire sizes (225/40R-19 front, 255/35R-19 rear) haven’t changed either. The car we drove wore Pirelli P Zero PZ4 summer tires, so that’s a nod toward a modicum of performance. The difference between Comfort and Sport is clear, with the former allowing a touch of float in the chassis and the latter reining that in. The thing is, Germany’s smooth roads don’t have anything like America’s potholes, frost heaves, or freeway chop. We’ll have to wait until we get one on home soil to tell you more, but the baseline is solid enough.

Our car was equipped with rear-wheel steering, which is a new feature for the C-class in the European market but won’t be coming to America. It’s therefore hard to tell what to make of the steering. The car responded smartly and accurately to inputs from the helm, but it was a question of feel and feedback. In Comfort mode, it felt somewhat distant and didn’t much correspond to what the tires were experiencing, especially just off-center. Sport mode tightened things up some, but the steering still didn’t feel like it was transmitting the full story to the driver. Is it going to be better in a U.S.-spec car without rear-wheel steering? We’ll see.

At first glance, the interior of the C350 looks largely the same as before, but there are some significant differences. Gone are the much-hated capacitive-touch zones on the steering wheel, replaced by real roller and rocker switches for the volume and cruise control, respectively. By far the bigger deal is the AI-based virtual assistant, made possible by a switch to the latest Mercedes-Benz Operating System, or MB.OS. This also allows for OTA updates, conversational recommendations for audio tracks and navigation destinations, and an optional augmented-reality head-up display straight from the S-class. There’s an enhanced ambient lighting scheme made up of 64 separate colors divided into 10 “color worlds.” You can opt for an upgraded Burmester audio system that now features 15 speakers and supports Dolby Atmos.

And those star-themed headlights also now can be upgraded with adaptive high-beams that don’t need to transition to low beams for oncoming traffic, as the MB.OS-powered system can dim the small portion of the light that affects a specific oncoming driver.

The 2027 C350 that has all these upgrades will be sold alongside the 2027 C300 that doesn’t, but only for a short time, as Mercedes will phase out production of the C300 in early 2027. The C350 will surely cost more than the C300’s $51,500 base price, so we’ll estimate $53,000 as the opening bid for the C350. A $2000 premium now exists for the 4Matic all-wheel-drive system, and that’s likely to persist. Based on our initial drive time, we think the 2027 Mercedes-Benz C350 sedan has much to offer over the C300, and that makes it worth the wait.

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Specifications

Specifications

2027 Mercedes-Benz C350
Vehicle Type: front-engine, rear- or all-wheel-drive, 5-passenger, 4-door sedan

PRICE (C/D EST)
Base: C350, $53,000; C350 4Matic, $55,000

ENGINE
turbocharged, supercharged, and intercooled DOHC 16-valve inline-4, aluminum block and head, direct fuel injection
Displacement: 122 in3, 1999 cm3
Power: 282 hp @ 5800 rpm
Torque: 295 lb-ft @ 2000 rpm

TRANSMISSION
9-speed automatic

DIMENSIONS
Wheelbase: 112.8 in
Length: 187.6 in
Width: 71.7 in
Height: 56.7 in
Passenger Volume, F/R: 54/43 ft3
Trunk Volume: 12 ft3
Curb Weight (C/D est): 3900–4000 lb

PERFORMANCE (C/D EST)
60 mph: 5.1 sec
1/4-Mile: 13.8 sec
Top Speed: 130 mph

EPA FUEL ECONOMY (C/D EST)
Combined/City/Highway: 27–29/24–25/33–35 mpg

Dan Edmunds was born into the world of automobiles, but not how you might think. His father was a retired racing driver who opened Autoresearch, a race-car-building shop, where Dan cut his teeth as a metal fabricator. Engineering school followed, then SCCA Showroom Stock racing, and that combination landed him suspension development jobs at two different automakers. His writing career began when he was picked up by Edmunds.com (no relation) to build a testing department.

Source: www.caranddriver.com — article syndicated from the publisher’s feed; all rights remain with the original publisher.