Mercedes C-Class Coupe: Geneva 2011 catch-up

The new Mercedes C-Class Coupe looks impressive on the floor at Geneva, but we do wonder how Mercedes are going to differentiate it from the E-Class Coupe.

The 2011 Mercedes C-Class Coupe does look very impressive on the floor at Geneva. But we do worry about how Mercedes are going to market it. It just doesn’t seem to fit.

If we look back at the last ‘C’ Coupe from Mercedes, we would have to conclude it was the CLK. Yet the CLK was launched to replace the old E-Class Coupe (W124), so perhaps we have to look at the smaller CLC for a direct comparison. With me so far?

To make matters more complicated, both this new C-Class Coupe and the E-Class Coupe are built on the same platform, the current generation C-Class (W204) which has been with us since 2007. Not that there’s anything wrong with that; it’s a very able platform and can handle almost anything you want to throw at it.

So how are Mercedes going to put fresh air between the C-Class Coupe and the E-Class Coupe? It surely can’t be on price, because a too cheap C-Class Coupe would see buyers fleeing the E-Class Coupe.

Perhaps the best way would be by perception? Maybe the E-Class Coupe will be marketed as the cool big brother and the C-Class as the potential hooligan. Elegant vs Arrogant?

But however Mercedes do market it, the C-Class Coupe is going to be appealing. It has a confident and classic Coupe design with an equally convincing interior, stolen from the newly updated C-Class saloon.

Goof effort.