chrisyano

Is the Dodge Sprinter a MB rebadge? Just curious.

Hypnotik

Now that is just ugly. Well to me at least...

mmarshall

Considering its lousy 2-year total warranty, uncomfortable road manners, and the significant safety risk of driving this vehicle on many major American highways, mixing in with much larger vehicles and and heavy trucks (something I think that you and I can both agree on), the Smart has done much better than expected. While sales have indeed taken a slump, I can remember, when I reviewed a new Smart, when there was a 14-month waiting list for them.

I still think an A or B-Class Mecedes would have the potential to do even better here than the Smart. The A-Class, being high and narrow, once had a tipsy center-of-gravity problem, but that was dealt with several years ago and corrected in Europe.

bad co

Its been sold as a dodge since 02 and my local dealer is selling them as MB since January

TJW98LS

iTrader: (1)

It looks old.

DustinV

My in-laws have a diesel Mercedes B class. I've never driven the vehicle but I've ridden in it and admittedly it is spacious and comfortable. The few times I've ridden in it, it felt even more spacious (at the back) than my ex-C200 CDI C class (W204). It's also very quiet in terms of engine noise and wind noises at high speeds.

The design might not suit everyone, but it's a practical and spacious car and also safe (and feels solid/well-built, too).

I think the next B class will actually be RWD and more dynamically styled as well as being more in line with the BMW 1 series and Audi A3 in terms of sportiness. I've not been following up on the latest automotive news, though, but I did read something about this in one of the last Autobild magazines.

Besides, the title clearly states that Mercedes will launch a B class-based CUV - meaning a newer, fresher design - not this.

Nextourer

You guys don't know what you're missing. The B-Class is very spacious for its size as Dustin's pointed out. You also sit very high up because of the "sandwich floor" design which keeps everything below the cabin floor, giving you a higher driving position than a normal hatchback. Ok, yes it's FWD so it's not as fun to drive as the other MB models but it is comfortable and quiet.

There's a turbo model w/ 194hp and you can get a 6-spd manual in both NA and turbo models.

ivanz

It seems to sell quite well around here. I know 2 people who own them and see a bunch on the road daily. Believe it or not the target market isn't car people, but the other 99% of the population. One person I know is so car clueless, that he brought it to a Mercedes dealer (he is out of warranty) to replace a battery...of course it had to be towed (which he paid a premium for because the dealer did it). When I asked why he didn't go to a store close to him and buy a new battery, he insisted only a dealer can safely replace the battery

I hated it initially, but actually like the styling quite a bit now. Very good for people who live Downtown and have limited parking options/live on smaller streets. In the case of that person, he lives in a condo Downtown and drives once every week or so 100% city...I think he spends more on oil changes than on fuel.

Interesting how this and the Smart car were first tested in Canada and finally introduced in the US. Unfortunately they killed the Smart car by dropping the diesel engine after a couple years of sale.

chrisyano

I can definitely see a run on these types of vehicles when gas prices inevitably start climbing again.
Hmmm. Maybe I was too quick to judge this one. If it has some nice cargo room, something like this might actually work for me. And a MB would be more comfortable to drive around town than a kei car I would guess.
You're probably right that we don't know what we're missing. I know I quickly judged and dismissed this design based on looks alone and the assumption that a weak engine would power the car.

IS-SV

Agreed, a big spike in gas prices changes the US market significantly.