IF YOU'VE EVER driven a sport-utility vehicle, you'll know all about their high seating position - you can see over traffic, and they're much easier to get in and out of than a car. So, what do you buy if you want the high seating of an SUV and the practicality of a medium hatch? Mercedes-Benz seems to think it has the answer in its new B-Class, several examples of which are beginning to appear at the Airport Express in Central.
The B-Class is based on the A-Class platform, but is longer (about the same as a Volkswagen Golf). It looks much bigger in the metal, too, although the jury is out on the merits of its styling, first seen as the Vision B Sports Tourer Concept. Its lines grow on you after a few days, however.
The B-Class shares the sandwich construction design of the A-Class, which puts the engine and transmission partly under the passenger compartment. This fitting saves space and permits a bigger cabin design - Mercedes-Benz claims that rear leg room is almost as good as in the S-Class - and with the raised platform, there's better outward vision and an easier step-in height.
The design also improves crash safety - in a front-end crash, the engine and transmission are pushed under, rather than into the passenger compartment. Stability control is standard, as in the A-Class.
The standard equipment on the B200 Turbo we're testing in Sydney is extensive, with anti-lock braking, stability control, traction control, front and side airbags, air-conditioning, height-adjustable steering column trip computer, multi-function steering column, remote locking, alloy wheels and, on the options list, Thermotronic automatic climate control, Comand information centre with DVD navigation electrically adjustable front seats, Harmon/Kardon surround sound system and a fixed panoramic glass sun roof. However, the B-class options list is as long as it is expensive.
The B-Class' interior is plush, however. Even though the B200T's interior competition has become far more polished in recent years (as in the Volkswagen Golf and Audi A3 interiors), the B200T offers sufficient attention to detail to ensure you feel you've got your money's worth in a small luxury Benz. From the alloy Mercedes-Benz plates attached to the door sills to the brushed aluminium on the centre console and chrome accents on the instrument dials, it's all class.
