[5/30/2020] New 2022 Mercedes C-Class in Camo Spied Hitting The Streets

Not a single week goes by without seeing some sort of spy material with a new Mercedes-Benz product. It was just yesterday when we saw the updated E-Class Coupe and today we have another spy video to share with you. It’s showing the new C-Class testing on public roads somewhere in Germany.

The current Mercedes-Benz C-Class only underwent its mid-cycle update for 2019 but prototypes for the next-generation model have been out testing for a while. The new C-Class with internal designation W206 is still wearing a lot of camouflage and has been filmed at low speeds in traffic. Not much can be said besides the fact that its shape and size look relatively unchanged compared to the outgoing model at this early stage of development but there will be major design tweaks here and there.

The sharp LED headlights follow Mercedes’ latest lighting design language applied to the 2021 E-Class Sedan facelift and the CLS, while the taillights have switched from a vertical orientation to a horizontal setup.

The interior design will be new for Mercedes, with a large infotainment screen positioned in the center stack and another screen serving as the instrument cluster. You'll notice that the updated 2019 C-Class missed out on Mercedes' latest infotainment system known as MBUX, but the latest version of the system will appear on the new C-Class. It operates much like a smartphone's operating system and also uses natural speech to control many vehicle functions.

While the test vehicle doesn’t look necessarily longer than the current C-Class, we’re expecting the W206 to offer a roomier interior thanks to a further tweaked MRA, a platform which had made its debut in the current C-Class. The updated version will bring significant weight savings primarily through increased use of aluminum over steel. This has been made possible due to advanced joining technologies including aluminum to steel welding. 

The new architecture will bring other healthy upgrades too, including a double-wishbone front suspension combined with a multi-link rear setup. Adaptive dampers should be optional on the more expensive versions of the range.

A disheartening rumor of the infamous Twin-Turbo V8 C63 is indicating that the C63 will move to a hybridized version of the four-cylinder M139 motor that’s used in the new A45 where it generates 416 horsepower (310 kilowatts) and 369 pound-feet (500 Newton-meters). It’s hard to believe the performance model will lose its 4.0-liter V8 in favor of a four-cylinder engine but we will have to wait to find out. Mercedes hasn’t said when it will unveil the next-gen C-Class, but we’re expecting to see it either by the year’s end or early 2021.

Elsewhere in the lineup, a C-Class All-Terrain is said to be in the works as a belated answer to the A4 Allroad.

•Viknesh V.  (2020, May 28). 2021 Mercedes C-Class Spy Shots. Retrieved May 29, 2020, from https://www.motorauthority.com/news/1119812_2022-mercedes-benz-c-class-spy-shots-and-video

• Padeanu, A. (2020, May 25). 2021 Mercedes C-Class Test Driver Salutes Our Spy Photographer. Retrieved May 28, 2020, from https://www.motor1.com/news/425071/2021-mercedes-c-class-new-spy-photos/