Mercedes C-Class Estate review

You can get more practical estate cars than the Mercedes C-Class Estate but there's a lot of cool tech in this posh load-lugger to justify its premium billing.

We’re not kidding. The latest C-Class Estate is fitted with hybrid or plug-in hybrid (PHEV) technology, plus a large touchscreen from the Mercedes S-Class.

Job done, then? Well, not quite. The estate version of the Mercedes C-Class still has to prove itself against some strong rival cars – many of which are available as PHEVs too.

Read on to find out how the Mercedes C-Class Estate stacks up against the best estate cars out there – including the Audi A4 Avant, the BMW 3 Series Touring, the Skoda Superb Estate and the VW Passat Estate.

All the engines in the Mercedes C-Class Estate range feature electrical assistance for extra shove at low speeds, but you have to work the entry-level 201bhp C200 petrol quite hard to get it from 0-62mph in 7.5 seconds.

For a bit more low-end urgency, you’re better off with the diesel C220d. Its 194bhp is slightly down on the C200, but because of its extra pull at low revs it manages to get from 0-62mph in a similar time (7.4 seconds). The 261bhp C300d C-Class Estate is a quicker diesel still, as is the 320d BMW 3 Series Touring.

While most of the engines have mild-hybrid tech, the C300e is a plug-in hybrid (PHEV), and can officially drive for up to 66 miles on electric power alone, which is further than the rival BMW 330e Touring.

The C300e's electric motor is more than capable of keeping up with traffic to motorway speeds, and when you need to use its full 309bhp potential, the switch between electric and conventional power is seamless and acceleration is swift (0-62mph takes a mere 6.2 seconds).

Most C-Class Estates come with adaptive sports suspension, and the ride varies from impressively absorbent to really quite sporty. The C300e gets air suspension for the rear wheels to counter the weight of the PHEV battery.

First up, the adaptive suspension. In Comfort mode, it deals with the worst effects of bumps and potholes better than a 3 Series Touring, although there's a slightly floaty sensation over undulating roads. To avoid that, you want Sport mode, which significantly tightens up the body control without the C-Class Estate losing its ability to round off harsher humps and holes.

As with many PHEVs, there was every chance that the C300e’s heavy battery could have upset the ride. Thankfully, though, instead of stiffening everything up, the rear air suspension means that you don’t feel the extra weight and the C300e remains remarkably comfortable. If anything, it rides better, removing some of the float that you can experience in other versions.

The C-Class Estate's handling treads a fine line between the Audi A4 Avant and the BMW 3 Series Touring. The steering is accurate and easier to gauge than the A4's overly light system, but doesn’t give you as much confidence as a 3 Series does.

In Sport mode, you won’t find a great deal of body lean, but while the agility matches the A4, it's still not what you’d call dynamic, and a 3 Series is sharper and more fun.

Once again, the C300e impresses more than you might expect, with its rear air suspension controlling the extra weight with ease and quelling the pendulum effect some PHEVs display during cornering.

The C-Class Estate keeps engine noise to a minimum when cruising on a motorway, and there's just a touch of wind noise from around the panoramic glass sunroof (when fitted). However, you do hear a fair bit of road noise, most noticeably on coarse road surfaces.

There's some buzz from the petrol engine of the C200 model at higher revs. The C220d diesel is similarly smooth to the BMW 320d Touring, but the Audi A4 Avant 40 TDI is quieter still. The quietest C-Class is the C300e, especially when it's running on electric power. Its engine gets a bit raucous under hard acceleration, but it produces a rather sporty sound, so it’s not particularly unpleasant.

Every C-Class Estate has a nine-speed automatic gearbox and it gets on with the job of shuffling through gears without much fuss. The brakes of most models are easy to operate but the C300e PHEV's brakes are not as confidence-inspiring, with some mushiness in the middle of the long pedal travel as they switches from regenerative braking to mechanical braking.

“While I was impressed by the driving experience in the Mercedes C-Class Estate, I did find myself longing for the pin-sharp front-end of the BMW 3 Series Touring.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

You should find it easy enough to find a comfortable driving position in the Mercedes C-Class Estate because all models have plenty of adjustment in the seat and steering wheel. Lumbar adjustment is standard, making long-distance driving less taxing on your back, as is full electric adjustment with memory settings.

You won’t find many buttons on the dashboard, but at least the touch-sensitive controls for the air-con are permanently displayed on the lower section of the display. They’re still not as easy to use as the physical controls in the Audi A4 Avant, which you can almost use with muscle memory.

Instead of analogue dials, the C-Class Estate has a 12.3in digital driver's display that can show trip and media information, as well as a small sat-nav map. The top-tier AMG Line Premium Plus trim adds a head-up display showing road speed, traffic sign information and navigation instructions.

We prefer Audi’s Virtual Cockpit system because it's easier to navigate your way around the various menus, and it comes with physical controls on the steering wheel, where the C-Class Estate has fiddlier touch-sensitive ones.

Visibility is fine looking forwards, but the chunky side pillars, the placement of the rear head rests and the small rear window mean that the over-the-shoulder view is no better than in the C-Class Estate's rivals. 

A reversing camera and front and rear parking sensors are fitted as standard to assist when parking, though, and you get a 360-degree camera if you plump for mid-range AMG Line Premium. LED headlights are provided as standard, with fancier adaptive units coming on AMG Line Premium trim and above.

The C-Class Estate's interior is dominated by digital displays. Along with the crisp 12.3in driver’s display, there’s a large portrait-oriented 11.9in infotainment touchscreen that can be operated by touch, voice, or by using some touch-sensitive controls on one of the steering-wheel spokes.

The central touchscreen responds quickly to inputs and has super-sharp graphics, although we prefer the shortcut keys and rotary controller of BMW’s iDrive system because it’s less distracting to use on the move. We also find the iDrive menus easier to fathom, requiring less head-scratching to navigate.

Android Auto and Apple CarPlay are included as standard, and there’s wireless phone-charging and two C-USB sockets in the centre console to top up your devices. Music lovers will need to shell out for the priciest AMG line Premium Plus trim if they want the 13-speaker Burmester surround-sound system, which provides really rich sound quality.

The interior of the C-Class Estate looks classier than it is to touch. You get some appealing materials on the dashboard and in most of the places you’ll touch often, but there are still more cheap-feeling hard plastics than you’d expect to see in a premium estate car like this.

The main culprits are below the middle ambient lighting line of the dashboard and around the air vents. The quality of the materials in the Audi A4 Avant are far better, while the BMW 3 Series Touring also provides a plusher environment.

The C-Class Estate feels sturdy inside and build quality is a step up compared with some Mercedes car models. Even when you tug at the floating infotainment screen it doesn’t flex all that much.

“Mercedes has been known to build cars with rock-solid build quality but some newer models haven’t felt so bulletproof. Although the C-Class Estate isn’t the worst offender, I was disappointed that some pieces of trim had a little play in their fixture.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

Most people will be able to get comfortable in the front of a Mercedes C-Class Estate because there’s plenty of room for a 6ft driver up front. The optional panoramic sunroof steals a little head room so if that's fitted anyone over 6ft might have to drop the seat to its lowest position.

There are lots of storage areas to hide your belongings, including within the splitting armrest in the centre console and the sizeable door bins.

It’s unlikely that three people will be able to travel in comfort in the back because of the large central tunnel they’ll need to straddle. For more space, you’ll need to go for the larger Mercedes E-Class Estate or a VW Passat – or perhaps choose a large SUV.

Rear head room should be fine for those under six feet tall, but for anyone taller, things might not be so rosy, especially with the panoramic sunroof fitted.

There are decent-sized rear door bins to put bottles in plus map pockets on the backs of both front seats.

You won’t be able to recline the rear seats of your C-Class Estate, let alone slide them fore and aft as you can in many similarly priced large or family SUVs. There is a useful 40/20/40 split and fold configuration that betters the likes of the Volvo V60 though.

The front passenger seat doesn't fold flat for really long items, but they will automatically move out of the way as the second row folds down, and return to their original position when you’ve put the rear seats back up again.

Regardless of which version you go for, your front-seat passenger should find it easy to get comfortable, with electric adjustment and seat heating coming with every trim.

Non-PHEV versions of the C-Class Estate have a boot capacity of 490 litres including underfloor storage, matching the A4 Avant but falling just short of the 3 Series Touring, and a long way short of the Skoda Superb Estate and VW Passat.

The C300e PHEV loses the underfloor storage, reducing the boot space to 360 litres. Earlier versions of the C300e had a step in the boot floor, but that's been eliminated in the latest model, making loading longer items much easier.

The C-Class Estate comes with an electric tailgate and a motorised luggage cover. Loose items can be held in place using either the four rings provided in each corner, the straps and netting provided on the sides, or by using one of two bag hooks.

“There are more spacious estate cars out there but I didn’t feel as if the Mercedes C-Class Estate was particularly lacking for the average family’s needs.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

Pricing for the Mercedes C-Class Estate is pretty punchy and a fair bit higher than for the Audi A4 Avant and BMW 3 Series Touring.

If you're looking for a company car, the smart choice is the C330e plug-in hybrid. Its electric range gives it a lower BIK tax rate than the BMW 330e Touring, meaning you’ll have to sacrifice less of your salary to drive one. Indeed, despite the fact that you can only have the C300e in the most expensive AMG Line Premium Plus trim, it’ll still cost you less in tax than the 330e Touring in entry-level Sport trim.

Fuel economy – particularly for the C220d, at just over 60mpg – is ahead of two main rivals. Similarly, 42mpg for the C200 petrol compares well with other estate cars. You'll need to offset that against insurance and servicing costs, both of which tend to be quite pricey with a Mercedes. Resale values are on a par with the A4 and 3 Series.

No matter which trim you go for, you can expect to get plenty of standard kit. The cheapest trim for non-PHEV versions, AMG Line, includes 18in alloy wheels, keyless start, dual-zone climate control and touchscreen infotainment.

Stepping up to mid-spec AMG Line Premium adds an electrically adjustable steering wheel, keyless entry, augmented-reality navigation, upgraded LED headlights and a 360-degree camera.

Range-topping AMG Line Premium Plus gets all the kit you could ever need, including three-zone automatic climate control, a panoramic sunroof, an excellent Burmester sound system, a head-up display and 19in alloy wheels.

The C300e range starts with a trim called Urban Edition. It gets heated front seats, a power-operated tailgate and a panoramic sunroof. We’d recommend sticking that, rather than upgrading to AMG Line Premium (the next trim up for the C300e).

The latest C-Class Estate did not feature in our 2024 What Car? Reliability Survey. Mercedes as a brand didn’t do very well though, coming in 22nd place out of 31 manufacturers, below BMW in eighth but above Audi in 24th.

You get a three-year, unlimited-mileage warranty and three years of breakdown cover, which is similar to BMW's offering. Audi's three-year warranty covers you up to 60,000 miles.

When it was tested by Euro NCAP for safety in 2022, the C-Class Estate was awarded five stars out five, and scored well for occupant protection.

The 3 Series Touring was tested using different procedures and the A4 Avant rating has expired, so drawing useful comparisons is impossible.

“If you're considering a Mercedes C-Class Estate as a company car, the C300e PHEV is by far the best choice because of its lower tax rating.” – Oliver Young, Reviewer

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