First, the bad news – the all-new Mercedes-Benz C-Class will cost Rs 40.9 lakh, ex-showroom Delhi, which means you will part with the best part of Rs 50 lakh, on-road. Stumping up half a crore of rupees for an entry-level luxury sedan might seem a bit rich, but when you consider that the soon-to-be-launched CLA Class will slot in as the ‘affordable’ Mercedes sedan, the C-Class doesn’t seem like such a bad deal. Besides, it’s good – bloody good.

The car has a lot of design cues from the S-Class, especially at the rear – this may not be such a bad thing, since the S-Class is a most striking vehicle. The real stuff to shout about is on the inside, though. The new C’s cabin is so well appointed, featured and finished that you would have to be a curmudgeonly old fart to have anything to complain about.

For now, the car is only available with a petrol engine (4-cylinder, 2-litre, 181 bhp, 30.5 kgm of torque), with a diesel option to follow early next year. Mercedes India actually brought the launch of this car forward, because they ran out of stock of the old C-Class. Having driven the car in France earlier this year, we can tell you that it’s the new class benchmark – start speaking to your banker.