KEY POINTS:
The new Mercedes-Benz CLC is not quite what it seems. Glance at the new hatchback model and you might imagine it's a three-door version of the highly acclaimed new C-class sedan.
It has the same frontal styling, comes in the same snazzy colours and looks awfully shiny and desirable.
In fact, the CLC is simply a revamp of the previous Sports Coupe - or put another way, a generation-old car in a new set of clothes.
That's a most un-Mercedes approach to a new model, but there are sound economic reasons.
Forget about front-drive stuff such as the A-class, the old rear-drive Sport Coupe proved a crucial model internationally in getting new people into the Mercedes-Benz brand - more than 70 per cent of buyers were conquests from other makes, and more than 40 per cent of those went on to buy a bigger, more expensive Benz.
So getting the right car at the right price in this segment is important.
Enter the CLC, which sells here at the same $59,990 entry point as the previous Sport Coupe, but looks cool and is absolutely loaded with equipment - power seats and steering wheel adjustment, airbags everywhere, sports suspension, cruise control, a factory-fit chrome trim package, parking radar and six-disc CD changer.
Our test car also came with an optional full-length glass roof, with powered sunblind and sliding/tilt function for the centre section.
It's costly, but the CLC still looks like a pretty value proposition at an all-up price of $64,100.
Mind you, the baubles can't cover up the fact that the cabin architecture of the CLC comes straight from the old C-class, albeit with a few new bits of switchgear and alloy-look inserts.
Nicely finished but not too flash - especially if you've been in a new C-class sedan.
However, the car does boast more than its share of surprise-and-delight design - everything from the double-hinged front-passenger seatbase (to improve rear access) to the standard steering wheel shift paddles and powered column adjustment.
On the road, it's as you'd expect. The old C-class was a pretty impressive car and since the CLC also picks up the variable-ratio steering from the latest SLK roadster, it's competent through the corners. But it's still not a patch on the new C-class for steering feel and overall driver appeal.
If you're a city driver/commuter you may not care; if you're an enthusiast for whom Mercedes-Benz means cutting-edge engineering, you most certainly will.
The sole engine choice for the CLC in New Zealand is a supercharged 1.8-litre unit.
It's very smooth, torquey and quite relaxed, but it struggles at higher revs if you're driving in a spirited manner.
Perhaps you could wait for the four-cylinder diesel engine (as per the C220 CDI sedan) due early next year.
It would make sense to finish up by saying although there's nothing really wrong with the CLC, when it comes to writing the cheque you should try to avoid this generation-old revamp and go instead for an entry-level version of the brilliant new C-class.
But here's the problem - the CLC, sharp-looking and loaded with kit, is a full $10,000 cheaper than the basic C200k Classic sedan.
So it's not a ground-breaking car by any means, but if you don't want to drive it hard and the three-pointed star appeals, it's not a bad choice at all.
