TOP MERCS? Philip Nolan

Not quite, but this surefooted hatchback gets a solid B

IT’S a long time since I’ve driven a test car such a long distance in a week, but after picking up the new Mercedes-Benz B-Class, I drove it home to Co. Wexford for a couple of nights. Then I drove from there to Westport, took it for a spin south to Louisburgh and through the Doolough Valley to Leenane (or Leenaun if you prefer), then back to Westport and on to Dublin, for a total of just under 850km.

It was very surefooted, which was just as well. On Monday, the weather was atrocious, and at Doolough, that foreboding site of a Famine tragedy that saw seven die as they marched to Delphi Lodge for aid, the rain was sheeting sideways as the wind whipped up whitecaps on the lake.

The B-Class took it all in its stride, though with a caveat. For some reason, Mercedes has attached the automatic gear control stick (it’s just for reverse, drive and park) to the right of the steering wheel, where the windscreen wiper stalk usually is located, and I cursed myself multiple times for flicking it from drive to reverse (even though it doesn’t actually engage at speed – that would have been catastrophic!).

In fact, it’s a very nice transmission that is well mated to the 1.5-litre diesel engine that puts out 114hp. It’s not wildly lively, delivering a 0-100kph sprint in 10.7 seconds, but it’s a solid powerplant, and there’s enough in it to overtake, even on narrow country roads with a bend looming in the near distance. Much needed too, as it happens, because the quality of Irish driving, in city and country alike, is pathetic, and courtesy to other road users only a very occasional afterthought.

The fundamental flaw with the B-Class, though, is that it is an MPV-style hatchback that is available only with five seats (well, four adults in comfort), and that’s a body style the world has turned its back on.

It’s hard to see how it can compete with the all-conquering SUVs that doubtless are catching the eye of potential buyers, because there’s very little that’s eyecatching about the B-Class. It always was utilitarian, the sort of car a man who wears cardigans with leather elbow patches might buy, and while the new design sees it extended in length and draped with a few Mercedes cues stolen from other cars, it still looks boxy and unappealing.

This is completely maddening because it conceals a lot of beauty on the inside. The car now comes with the option of the new MBUX entertainment system, with a single panoramic screen running across the fascia and featuring two displays – practical information on speed and so on in front of the wheel, and satnav and infotainment offset to the left. It is a work of unrivalled clarity and simple to use. All you have to do is say ‘Hi, Mercedes’ and a digital assistant comparable to Siri asks what you want to do.

Say ‘motorway services’, and she will guide you to the nearest one, though she did get a little confused with some Mayo place names. To be honest, that can happen to the best of us.

The driver and passenger seats are expansive, comfortable and heated, and there’s a good central storage console, and door pockets deep enough to accommodate those chubby one-litre water bottles.

My car came with 18-inch alloys, and they travelled well over bumps and dips. A little less road friendly was the front AMG apron, so low it would send your heart crossways when you are taking speed bumps, which I mostly approached at about 10kph.

At almost 500 litres, the cargo space is very generous, making this the ideal car for the road trip I undertook.

Best of all, though, is the fuel frugality. I got the B-Class with a full tank of diesel and even with all that driving, I stuck just a tenner’s worth into the car as I neared Dublin, and even then only to be sure I didn’t run out, because the remaining distance and the range calculator were within a couple of kilometres of each other. At just four litres per 100km, you won’t be opening your wallet very often to top this up, and annual motor tax of just €190 is an added bonus.

The B-Class 180d costs from €35,300, but the AMG Line addons and a couple of other options brought that up to €45,346, and you would get an awful lot of SUV for that money. I enjoyed driving it, but I wouldn’t buy one, so, yes, it’s a B on all fronts from me.