The other day a friend of mind emailed asking for help in choosing a vehicle. He already decided on the brand- Mercedes. I replied asking him the following:
1. Where do you plan to use it? City? Off road? Cross country?
2. Do you plan to haul cargo or bulky stuff in it?
3. Will your decision be function over form or the other way around?
4. What’s your budget like?
5. Are you particular about mileage and the cost of maintenance?
6. How long do you intend to keep it?
7. Will this be for the family or just for you most of the time?
As he mentioned, he isn’t much of a techie so I listed the above KISS simple guidelines to help him decide. If for example the answers to items 1 and 7 were city and primarily just for him, I’d suggest a sedan, coupe, a convertible or a roadster.
Mercedes has a good line of sedans starting with their “entry” level C Class (MSRP starts at $32,900) all the way up to their S Class (MSRP Starts at $89,350). Engines and naturally power varies from model to model. The C300 series (Sport sedan, Luxury sedan and 4Matic sedan) come equipped with the 3.0 liter V6 24 valve engine, producing 228 hp. Only the C350 and C63 AMG come with bigger engines-The C350 has a 3.5 liter V6 24 valve engine and the C63 has a whopping 6.3 liter, 32 valve V8 that pumps out 451hp, 0-60 in 4.3 seconds! Not bad for a sedan. Later on, I’ll discuss the other body styles.

I’m in Hong Kong and was driven around in a fire opal Mercedes SLK 55 AMG driven most probably by Schumi’s long lost sister.
65mph isn’t too fast but on a two-lane, two way winding road? (on the wrong side of the road even)!

My back was pinned to the Flamenco Red, Nappa leather, upholstery all the way to Stanley Market a famous tourist attraction.

Times like these are when you really appreciate Mercedes Benz’s attention to detail. T

he SLK 55 comes with Active Body Control System.

What happens is hydraulics eliminate excess body motion thereby improving the SLK 55s’ cornering performance.

Thanks to the great suspension, I barely noticed the bumps (or were we simply flying over them?).

On the way back, we brought the top out. It’s stored in a section of the boot or trunk which if I may add is quite spacious for a convertible.

With the top up, it was extremely quiet with barely little road and/or wind noise.

According to my friend, Mercedes Benz is doing a lot of business here.

In an area of only 415 square miles there are 8 Mercedes Benz dealers.