The new buzzword in compact cars - B Class

So what exactly is this B Class? Mercedes Benz likes to call it a Compact Sports Tourer and not an MPV/Van. The key differentiators being design, dynamics and dimension. Talking of design, the first sighting of the B Class says - a car that fits in between the A and the C Class, a look-alike bigger than the A, shares its sandwich design theme where clever engine and transmission placement, inclined partially into the passenger section, allows for a considerably larger amount of interior space.

With the B Class the German automaker has upped its ante for a young market segment that many a manufacturers have been eyeing for sometime now.

What else could B stand for? Barcelona, a two thousand year old mediterranean city, that has transformed itself from smug backwater into one of the most dynamic and stylish cities in the world. Driving B through the maze of urban roads of Barcelona convinces of its drive and handling capacity in tight space.

While on the other hand the lazy, snaking roads of the mountainous Spanish countryside pitch the B against a number of challenges. Be it the quick response to the push on the accelerator pedal to quickly overtake the car in front, or the directness of the steering, even the ever so crucial braking effort.

The B does a remarkable job on these accounts. One place where I felt the Mercedes touch was missing though was in the quality of some of the material used inside the passenger cabin.

The B Class comes with a range of engines with Turbo charged options as well. What precisely we get in the Middle East remains to be seen. From the stand point of technical features, the B Class comes with a full bowl of the alphabetical soup - ABS, EBD, AUTOTRONIC, COMMAND… it can go on for a while, but to cut it short - all that you can expect in a car of this segment has been made available by Mercedes in this car.

Although it is an aggressive move by Mercedes for the European market, here in the Middle East, traditionally the scale has tipped in favor of bigger sedans and monstrous SUV's. Even the European expatriate population in this part of the world prefers to be seen on bigger wheels, and with the fuel prices here, why not?

The B is expected to hit our roads in the later part of 2005. In recent times, Peugeot has been drawing a lot of attention mainly due to the enticing design of its new cars and has increased sales in the region while competing European and Japanese automakers in the small car segment have been unable to create a noticeable presence. Whether the B gets some reasonable numbers for Mercedes is yet to be seen.