The 2023 Mercedes-Benz C-Class maintains its position as a rock-solid luxury sedan offering a nice blend of value, luxury, and performance. The C 300 sedan, and its all-wheel-drive (AWD) twin, the C 300 4Matic, feature a 255-horsepower 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder engine and 48-volt mild-hybrid motor that delivers a quick burst of additional power. Those looking for more performance can look to the all-new Mercedes-AMG C 43, which touts 402 hp plus an extra 13 horsepower when the hybrid system kicks in.
The C-Class offers a choice of three well-appointed trims, making it easy for buyers to find the exact level of sophistication and luxury best suited to their budget. The C-Class isn’t the only luxury sedan vying for the compact luxury dollar. It faces stiff competition from longtime rivals like the Audi A4, Acura TLX, Lexus IS, and BMW 3 Series, as well as newcomers like the excellent Genesis G70.
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Premium: $44,850, C 300 4Matic: $46,850
The entry-level Premium trim comes well equipped, although if you want advanced driver aids such as adaptive cruise control, you’ll need to move up a trim.
The Premium features a standard roster of safety systems, including forward collision warning, automatic emergency braking with pedestrian detection, a blind-spot monitor, automatic high-beam headlights, and a rearview monitor. Exit Assist warns occupants about exiting the vehicle when vehicles are approaching from the rear (think cars, bicycles, or joggers).
The Pre-Safe system can detect maneuvers that suggest a collision is imminent and prepare the cabin by closing windows and the sunroof and tightening the seatbelts. Pre-Safe Sound emits a pink noise that triggers the human ear to block damagingly loud noises, such as those you’d hear when colliding with another vehicle.
Attention Assist monitors driving behavior and alerts the driver if it detects drowsiness or inattentive driving.
The Premium comes with 18-inch alloy wheels, rain-sensing wipers, LED headlights, a power tilt and slide sunroof, a motion-activated power trunk with a power closing feature, and heated power-folding side mirrors.
The Premium’s key fob is a multipurpose wonder. It acts as a proximity device, allowing you to unlock and start the car without ever having to remove it from your purse or pocket. The fob can also open or close the windows and sunroof and pop the trunk remotely.
Turning to the cabin, we find MB-Tex faux-leather upholstery, 8-way power adjustable front seats with 4-way power lumbar support and 3-position memory, a leather-wrapped power tilt/telescoping steering wheel with capacitive touch controls, and a 40/20/40-split folding rear seats.
Other conveniences include dual-zone automatic climate control, 64-color ambient lighting, illuminated entry with projected MB logos, and a stalk-mounted gear shift lever.
Visually, the C 300’s instruments take automotive interior design to new heights, with a 12.3-inch digital instrument cluster and an 11.9-inch center touchscreen display that resembles a tablet glued to the waterfall-shaped center dash. The screen uses touch and swipe gestures and serves as the command center for climate controls, multimedia, and Dynamic Select selectable drive modes. It even incorporates a fingerprint sensor that lets the car know who’s driving to bring up personal settings stored in their Mercedes me profile.
Mercedes me is an app that stores profile information. It can start the car remotely, set the interior temperature, schedule a maintenance appointment, and even get an alert if someone hits your car while it’s parked.
The MBUX (Mercedes-Benz User Experience) system includes a personal assistant summoned by speaking the words, “Hey, Mercedes.” Once activated, you can ask the system to change the cabin temperature, find your favorite station, make a call, or change the color of the ambient lighting.
The C 300’s infotainment system is world-class, featuring wireless Apple CarPlay and Android Auto integration, HD Radio, a Wi-Fi hotspot, and Bluetooth streaming. SiriusXM satellite radio is optional.
The Premium trim offers a few optional upgrades and packages. Among the more notable features are a heated steering wheel, heated and ventilated front seats, premium leather upholstery, a panoramic glass sunroof, navigation, and enhanced ambient interior lighting.
Also available are rear seat side-impact airbags, LED Digital Light headlights, acoustic glass, and additional USB ports.
Premium buyers can also upgrade the appearance of their car with several AMG styling upgrades, including the AMG Line with Night Package that adds gloss black exterior accents, AMG body styling, 18-inch AMG 5-spoke alloy wheels, AMG sport seats, a performance steering wheel, plus a sport-tuned suspension, brakes, and steering.
With the $1,150 destination charge, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Premium costs $46,000. On a 60-month loan at 5% financing and $0 down, the monthly payment comes to approximately $827. See 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Premium models for sale near you
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Premium includes:
- Multitalented front seats – Not only are the C 300’s front seats power-adjustable but both the driver and passenger enjoy 4-way power lumbar support and memory. The driver’s seat also has memory for the steering wheel and outside mirror position.
- Wireless connectivity – With this feature, you’ll never have to look at ugly cables hanging in front of your lovely digital touchscreen. Just sync your phone to the C 300’s infotainment system, and you can wirelessly stream Android Auto or Apple CarPlay.
- Motion-activated power trunk – How often have you found yourself struggling to reach your key fob with two arms full of groceries or luggage? Not a problem with the C300. Just kick your foot under the rear bumper, and the trunk automatically opens.
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Exclusive: $47,100, C 300 4Matic: $49,100
The Exclusive trim brings a few more high-tech systems to the C 300. More important, though, is that Mercedes-Benz’s Distronic adaptive cruise control becomes available as an option.
Building off the Premium, the Exclusive adds Active Parking Assist self-parallel and perpendicular parking, a 360-degree surround view monitor, enhanced ambient lighting, illuminated door sills, a wireless charging pad, and a 13-speaker Burmester audio system.
Aside from the aforementioned adaptive cruise control, the Exclusive offers a Driver Assistance Package that adds Active Distance Assist Distronic adaptive cruise control, lane-departure warning and assist, blind-spot assist, lane-keeping assist, and Active Speed Limit Assist that can adjust vehicle speed to the posted limit.
Other features in the package can bring the car to a controlled stop if it detects the driver is incapacitated or apply the brakes if it detects dangerous cross-traffic (from either direction) at intersections. Also notable: When using adaptive cruise control, the system can resume after a prolonged stop of up to 30 seconds.
With the $1,150 destination charge, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Exclusive costs $48,250. On a 60-month loan at 5% financing and $0 down, the monthly payment comes to about $867. See 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Exclusive models for sale near you
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Exclusive includes:
- Active Parking Assist – This system takes the worry out of parallel parking, letting you know if the space is large enough and then doing all the steering, shifting, and braking.
- Burmester audio – Explicitly designed for the C 300 interior, the 13-speaker Burmester audio system delivers an immersive audio experience.
- Wireless charging pad – Placing a compatible device on the C 300’s charging pad automatically recharges its battery.
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Pinnacle: $48,800, C 300 4Matic: $50,800
As its name suggests, the Pinnacle is the top C 300 trim. It builds off the trim by adding navigation with augmented video and a head-up display.
Beyond the optional equipment mentioned on the previous two trims, the Pinnacle offers a dash cam that records events in front of the vehicle. The recording includes vehicle speed and the time of day and can be viewed on the car’s display or stored on a flash drive.
With the $1,150 destination charge, the 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Pinnacle costs $49,950. On a 60-month loan at 5% financing and $0 down, the monthly payment comes to approximately $898. See 2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Pinnacle models for sale near you
2023 Mercedes-Benz C 300 Pinnacle includes:
- Navigation – GPS navigation doesn’t rely on cell phone towers, so it’s more reliable in out-of-the-way places.
- Augmented video – This helpful system superimposes features such as street names, house addresses, and turn arrows over a real-time video view of the environment directly ahead.
- Head-up display – A color head-up display projects vital vehicle and navigation information onto the windshield.
2023 Mercedes-AMG C 43 Premium: $59,900
The AMG C 43 is all-new this year, bringing a level of performance to the C-Class on par with BMW’s M cars and Audi’s RS.
Under the hood, the C 43 gains a handcrafted 2.0-liter turbocharged 4-cylinder good for 402 hp, plus another 13 horsepower when the hybrid electric motor kicks in. This combo propels the C 43 to 60 mph in just 4.6 seconds.
As with all Mercedes-AMG models, the C 43 sees extensive upgrades to its major mechanical parts, including an AMG Speedshift 9-speed automatic transmission and AMG 4Matic AWD with a bias toward the rear wheels.
AMG Ride Control helps the suspension become more reactive with adaptive dampers that adjust in milliseconds. Rear axle steering quickens turning and helps with stability, while AMG Dynamic Select varies transmission shift points and throttle control based on Comfort, Sport, or Sport+ modes.
The Premium trim includes MB-Tex and microfiber upholstery, power heated front sport seats with power lumbar and memory, an AMG Performance steering wheel in Nappa leather, a power tilt/telescoping steering column, and a 5-speaker premium audio system.
Additional comfort and convenience features include a heated windshield wiper fluid reservoir, Active Parking Assist with a 360-degree surround view monitor, and power-folding side mirrors.
Optional equipment includes the Driver Assistance Package, AMG Multi-Contour Performance Seats, Digital LED headlights, AMG Track Pack, 4-zone climate control, ventilated front seats, and several AMG exterior styling packages. On a 60-month loan at 5% financing and $0 down, the monthly payment comes to approximately $1,152. See 2023 Mercedes-AMG C 43 Premium models for sale near you
2023 Mercedes-AMG C 43 Premium includes:
- AMG performance parts – Every inch of the C 43 was designed with performance in mind, from its larger brakes to the track-tuned suspension.
- Available AMG Track Pace – Intended for use on closed circuits, this smartphone app connects to the car’s Wi-Fi to keep track of the car’s telemetry data. It also has over 60 stored racetracks, so you can learn every turn before hitting the asphalt.
- Available performance seats – These optional seats provide the ultimate lateral support with single-piece headrests and power-adjustable bolsters.
2023 Mercedes-AMG C 43 Pinnacle: $62,700
The Pinnacle includes all the Premium features plus navigation with augmented video, the 13-speaker Burmester audio system, a head-up display, enhanced ambient lighting, and a wireless charging pad. On a 60-month loan at 5% financing and $0 down, the monthly payment comes to approximately $1,205. See 2023 Mercedes-AMG C 43 Pinnacle models for sale near you
