There’s a choice of five engines – three petrol and two diesel – all labelled as BlueEFFICIENCY and all fitted with stop/start technology. The petrol engines are two 1.8-litre versions with either 156bhp (C180) or 204bhp (C250) and a range-topping 3.5-litre V6 dubbed the C350 that produces 306bhp and will cover the 0-62mph sprint in 6.0s. The two petrol engine cars come equipped with the manufacturer’s seven-speed automatic gearbox as standard, while it is optional on the diesel models.

On the diesel front, both are 2.2-litre engines with 170bhp (C220 CDi) or 204bhp (C250CDi). The C220 will get from zero to 62mph in 8.1 seconds and it has a top speed of 143mph. Whereas the more powerful C250CDi will complete the benchmark sprint to 62mph in 7.1 seconds and it has a top speed of 149mph. For any overtaking in the lower-powered petrol models, you may find yourself having to drop down a gear or two.

The seven-speed automatic gearbox on the petrol cars feels as if it has been set-up for economy and emissions rather than performance, this just means that you need to plan overtaking when driving on single-lane carriageways. For 2013 the C-Class was updated, with a new C180 BlueEFFICIENCY introduced. This 1.6-litre petrol engine returns 44.1mpg on the combined cycle, emitting 149g/km of CO2.

Power is rated at 154bhp with 250Nm of pulling power.

There’s a marked difference when comparing the Coupe to the saloon. The drive is more engaging and the lower ride height is noticeable when cornering. The Coupe has plenty of front-end grip and turns in well, but it doesn’t offer the level of driver feedback you get from a BMW 3-Series Coupe. It’s still entertaining, however, and offers an engaging drive – it just hasn’t reached the top of the class as of yet.

Even with the speed sensitive steering (this comes as standard) the Mercedes still lacks that all important communication from the front wheels to the driver. There’s minimum body roll in the corners, which makes the ride even more pleasurable and should please any car-sick prone passengers you have in the back.