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The latest Mercedes-Benz passenger car to enter showrooms this month, the B-Class, does not fit easily into a category.
It's not a sedan, yet it has sedan attributes; it's big for a hatchback, small for a people mover; it's not a sports utility vehicle (SUV) although it has a flexible interior and a high seating position. So what is it?
The B-Class is like a grown-up A-Class, with vastly more interior and cargo space.
It has four doors and a hatchback tailgate, with seats that fold asymmetrically and can be removed to see the cargo area grow from a typical grocery run (544 litres) to a mountain-bike load (2245 litres).
The dash and instrument binnacle is mounted high with a window sill that dips away towards the side mirrors, and leaves the impression you're driving a van. You can't see the bonnet from the front seat. You sit a little taller, too, than you do in a sedan approaching the ride height of compact soft-roaders.
That's due to the innovative sandwich floor construction, first seen on the A-Class, in which the engine is mounted low and tilted, so that, in a big smash, the engine slides under the passenger compartment, rather than jams against the firewall.
Turn the key and there's plenty of verve from the engine. The B 200 is available as either a 2.0-litre four cylinder that produces 100 kW and 185 Nm or a turbocharged version, the B 200 Turbo, which produces 142 kW and 280 Nm. Mercedes-Benz locally is deliberating over a diesel-powered version to import mid next year. The 80 kW/250 Nm "B 180 CDI" is tipped to be chosen over a more expensive B 200 CDI (103 kW/300 Nm) diesel option.
Full review here