Rest content with your choice, says John
Weinthal, our Down-Under motoring consultant, if you buy a
Benz C200K. Mind you, in Australia he would pay only a tad
over 2 million baht (straight exchange rate conversion), while
the same car in Thailand costs the same tad, but over three
million baht!
Forgetting
about the price, here are the Words from Weinthal:
“The supercharged Mercedes-Benz C Class
is about as competent a compact sedan as you will find. It is
so good in so many ways that the AUD 62,900 price tag even
looks reasonable.
“There are larger, faster, more lavishly
equipped cars for as little as half the price. In purely
objective terms they may be only around 5 percent less
impressive than the Merc in some of the most important areas.
“But
that’s the rub. That extra 5 percent and the undeniable
appeal of the Mercedes three pointed star emblem will be more
than enough for those who can afford something which is
indubitably upper drawer. In five years others will be used
cars. The C200K will still be a Mercedes!
“Most of these cars will be fitted with
Mercedes’ excellent five-speed automatic with its simple to
use manual up and down feature. If you must have true manual,
a six-speed is available to special order for a saving of
around AUD 3000. (In Thailand, only the 5 speed auto is
listed.)
“My
enthusiasm for this car almost surprised me. I am not really a
great Merc fan in the normal course of things. In the past
most Mercedes have, for me at least, lacked the sheer driving
appeal of almost all BMWs and the sublimely calm ambience of
any Jaguar.
“What probably most won me over with the
test car was the suspension. It was totally unflappable over
all roads. It loved dirt - smooth, harshly corrugated or
pot-holed. (Sounds like the MB C200K will love Beach Road
Pattaya or Huay Kaew in Chiang Mai.) It wafted over those
obscene speed humps which send aching shudders through so many
cars. The ride is hushed with little road, wind or engine
noise intrusion.
“Many
would easily believe there were six cylinders up front.
Certainly 120 kW appears less than lavish in these days when
Camrys boast 150 plus and Commodores (Chevrolet Lumina’s)
offer more than 170 kW. But there is an impressive 230 Nm of
torque on hand over a broad range, and the gearing is
perfectly matched to the engine for effortless acceleration
from the lights and for safe overtaking.
“Effortless and unobtrusive are two more
adjectives applicable to this rear-drive Mercedes. It is both
undemanding and rewarding at the same time. The interior
whispers class, without boastful brashness.
“Not so appealing for some will be the
rear seat legroom, but you can check that out in the showroom.
Only taller adults will complain. Most controls have a
Germanic logic to them after a little familiarization for
those of us more used to Australian-made offerings or Japanese
and Korean breeds. (In other words, the wipers and the
indicators are on the other side!)
“The 200 C Kompressor - that’s German
for supercharger - is more than adequately equipped in base
form but there are a couple of distinctive packages available
over the standard Classic we tested. The Elegance pack adds
AUD 6,000 and Avantgarde is an extra AUD 5,500. (In Thailand,
only the Elegance and Avantgarde models are available.)
“Beyond that the options list is
virtually limitless, but so too should be your bank balance if
you tick too many boxes in the options sheet.
“I have not mentioned safety. That is a
given with all Mercedes. This C200K lacks nothing to help
avoid an accident in the way of electronic aids, excellent
suspension and brakes plus sharp rack-and-pinion steering.
Then there are multiple airbags and more to protect you if fun
fang turns to bang.
“Supremely competent is the best way to
sum up this appealing, if largely unassuming, car. Others will
certainly admire it. You will rest content with your choice
for a long time to come.”
(Thank you John. The C Class Benzes are
definitely popular in Thailand, for all the reasons mentioned
above, plus the undoubted three pointed star factor. When you
open your garage door, nobody says, “Wow! You’ve got a
Toyota Crown (which costs 3.8 million)! But they do say,
“Wow! You’ve got a Benz!”)
|
A1 Grand Prix
series is ‘Go” in Asia
The newest, and perhaps the most exciting
new category in motor racing is coming to Asia, called A1
Grand Prix World Cup. This is being promoted similar to the
football world cup, where there can be national champions, but
the world cup is for nations, not individuals.
A1
GP car
The concept has been bank-rolled by His
Highness Sheikh Maktoum Hasher Maktoum Al Maktoum, part of the
Dubai Royal Family and will be have up to 30 franchises
available, limited to one per country. Each national team will
be represented by a driver native to that country, engendering
strong local support and presence for the team. So instead of
Ferrari against BAR, we will have China versus Pakistan. It
works for the Olympics, why shouldn’t it work for motorsport?
So far, nine countries have taken up franchises, including
Malaysia, China, Australia, Pakistan, Lebanon, the UK, South
Africa, Canada and Portugal, with many more countries in
negotiation stages.
Again similar to the successful BMW and
Porsche categories, China cannot get a “better” car than
Pakistan as the cars are identical single-seater A1 racing
cars, built by Lola, and powered by 550 bhp Zytek A1 Grand
Prix V8 engines. The idea is to provide that level playing
field with no driver aids allowed. This is something the
viewing public has been calling for. Enthusiasts want to see
the drivers do the business, not an electronic controller from
the pits.
To maintain the level playing field, there
will be one tyre supplier, which is (Cooper) Avon (who have
been supplying Formula 3000 for the past years), so they know
what they are about too.
The races are scheduled to take place
during the European winter in countries enjoying summer
weather conditions including Dubai, China, Japan, Malaysia,
Australia, South Africa, Bahrain and Qatar. TV coverage is
also in place with Sky Sports taking up broadcasting rights.
The first event will be in September 2005.
The price of buying a franchise will be
based on the population and wealth of the country, with China,
the United States, Britain and Germany costing more than a
team in Indonesia or Thailand. (As a comparison, Ferrari has
an annual budget of about USD 400 million but the average team
in A1 Grand Prix would operate on a budget of about USD 40
million.)
Former F1 world champion Alan Jones has put
his hand up, along with compatriot Alan Docking (F3 team boss)
to snare the Australian franchise for the A1 Grand prix World
Cup series due to kick off in 2005. Some newspapers are
claiming that Alan Jones will drive it, but I think it much
more likely that his son Christian Jones would be behind the
wheel.
Another famous name is John Surtees, the
only man to win the world championships on two wheels and four
and he is involved with the British team.
And the name being mentioned with the
Malaysian franchise is none other than tail-end Charlie, Alex
Yoong himself. Let’s hope that in this formula with its
level playing field that we can see the true level of
competence in the Malaysian driver.
Portugal’s franchise holders will involve
Real Madrid footballer Luis Figo and former Real coach Carlos
Queiroz, now assistant to manager Alex Ferguson at Manchester
United, for all the footy fans out there.
|
Supercar Thailand
meeting at Bira Circuit
The Supercar series is on at Bira this
Sunday, starting at 11 a.m. The programme (should) cover
the radial challenge (sedans), the Thailand Touring cars,
the Mini series and the racing pick-up trucks. I believe
young James Grunwell will be running in the Mini series
with backing from Shenanigans Irish Pub in Pattaya.
The circuit is on Highway 36, on the
right hand side coming from the International Regent’s
School at Km marker 14. The other way of getting there is
to go on Sukhumvit Road, past Jomtien and take the left
turn to Wat Huay Yai (about two kays before Ambassador
City). Follow this road towards the Asian University of
Science and Technology, but take the left turn at the T
junction on to Highway 331. As you approach the Highway 36
fly-over veer left and drive along Highway 36 until you
see Bira circuit on your left, about two kays from 331.
|
Autotrivia Quiz
Last week, I mentioned the Invictas which
were interesting sporting machines, with the fastest having
four and a half inches of ground clearance. Rather too low for
today, and definitely too low in the 1930’s when they were
in their heyday. The push behind the marque was Lord Macklin
(who I think was the father of British racing driver Lance
Macklin). In the late 1920’s an energetic young lady by the
name of Violet Corderey drove an Invicta around the world and
set the world 25,000 km record at 89 kph, a real piece of
autotrivia! However, the S type Invictas were well built
vehicles with all sorts of innovative features, such as a dual
fuel feed system, using air pressure or electric pump, and
telescopic shock absorbers all round. They had one other very
innovative feature that related to the positioning of the
starter switch. So after all that verbiage above, last
week’s question was simply that - where was the switch?
Would you believe the switch was actuated by lifting up the
horn button!
So to this week. We featured the
supercharged Mercedes Benz C200K this week. The first
catalogued supercharged cars were also Mercedes. Two models
were exhibited at what motor show in which year?
For the Automania FREE beer this week, be
the first correct answer to email [email protected]
Good luck!
|
|
|
