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Car reviews - Mercedes-Benz - B-Class - B200 Blue Efficiency

Overview

Mercedes-Benz second gen B-Class has a tough task keeping up with its competitors

6 Sep 2012

When we say the second-generation Mercedes-Benz B-Class is all-new, we really mean it. Almost nothing is carried over from the old model, including the front-drive platform, engine, transmission and cabin.

Though better than its surprisingly successful but patchy predecessor, the boxy Benz still lacks dynamic finesse compared to rivals like the BMW 1 Series, and will have its work cut out against forthcoming rivals like the new-generation Audi A3, Volkswagen Golf and Volvo V40.

Here we take a long hard look at the mid-level B200 Blue Efficiency petrol.
Model release date: 1 April 2012 to 1 February 2015

Previous model

W245 B200

Released: November 2005
Ended: April 2012
Family Tree: B-Class

A mainstay of the first-generation B-class, the mid-range B200 garnered a steady stream of new-to-Mercedes buyers, but also proved popular with older marque devotees who looked at downsizing to suit changing needs.

Using the unique ‘sandwich’ platform pioneered by the original A-class of 1997 and designed to redirect impact forces beneath the body, the B200 employed a specially designed 100kW/185Nm 2.0-litre naturally aspirated four-cylinder petrol engine driving the front wheels via a CVT continuously variable transmission or five-speed manual gearbox.

As befitting a Daimler product, safety equipment levels were high, and latter models progressively became better equipped, particularly after the 2008 facelift.

Flanking the B200 were the entry-level B180 and forced-induction B200 diesel and turbo petrol models.

B-class sales proved resilient enough for Mercedes to discontinue the second-gen A-class series that shared much of its underpinnings in mid-2010, though a radically-redesigned successor to that car is set to arrive in early 2013.

Get the full story: Just how comfortably does the Benz B200 fit between A-class hatch and C-class sedan?

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