Mercedes-Benz C-Class (W202)

Mercedes-Benz C-Class (W202)
Mercedes-Benz C 200 (Australia, facelift)
Overview
Production	May 1993 – July 2000
Model years	1994–2000
Assembly	Bremen, Germany Sindelfingen, Germany East London, South Africa Santiago Tianguistenco, Mexico Toluca, Mexico Ho Chi Minh City, Vietnam 6 October, Egypt (EGA) Samut Prakan, Thailand (TAAP)
Designer	Bruno Sacco , Peter Pfeiffer
Body and chassis
Class	Compact luxury car
Body style	4-door sedan 5-door station wagon
Layout	Front engine, rear-wheel drive
Related	Mercedes-Benz C208 Mercedes-Benz R170
Powertrain
Engine	1.8–2.3 L M111 I4 2.8 L M104 I6 2.4–2.8 L M112 V6 3.6 L M104 I6 AMG 4.3 L M113 V8 AMG 2.0–2.2 L OM604 diesel I4 2.2 L OM611 diesel I4 2.5 L OM605 diesel I5
Transmission	5/6-speed manual 4/5-speed automatic
Dimensions
Wheelbase	2,670 mm (105.1 in)
Length	4,505 mm (177.4 in)
Width	1,720 mm (67.7 in)
Height	1,425 mm (56.1 in)
Chronology
Predecessor	Mercedes-Benz 190 (W201)
Successor	Mercedes-Benz C-Class (W203)

Mercedes-Benz W202 is a compact executive car which was produced by the German automaker Mercedes-Benz in 1993–2000, under the C-Class model names. In May 1993, the first generation Mercedes-Benz C-Class was introduced as a replacement for the 190. The C-Class sedan was the company's entry-level model up until 1997, when Mercedes-Benz launched the smaller A-Class. Styling themes were carried over from the previous W201 series, but the new series had a smoother and rounder design than the previous generation of the compact Mercedes-Benz.

Design work began in 1987, with the final design by Murat Gunak being selected in 1989 and the production design by Olivier Boulay frozen in January 1990, being later patented on 19 December 1990. Rough prototypes went into testing in 1989, with first production design prototypes commencing testing in 1990.

1,847,382 W202 models were produced.

Originally Mercedes-Benz models were badged with numbers followed by letters, such as 190 E. With the W202, Mercedes-Benz chose to make all models use letters before the number, for example, C 180 or C 220. The W202 C-Class was the first Mercedes-Benz model to use the new, modern naming scheme. This naming scheme was applied to all models in 1994, excluding Vito, Viano and Sprinter (released in 1995).

On its debut, the C-Class was the only Mercedes model with a complete lineup of multi-valve engines. The new family of four-cylinder petrol units, called M111, debuted in the C 180 (1.8 L, 122 PS (90 kW; 120 hp)), C 200 (2.0 L, 136 PS (100 kW; 134 hp) and C 220 (2.2 L, 150 PS (110 kW; 148 hp), the only four-cylinder of the range sold in the U.S.). In 1997 the C 220 was replaced by the C 230, enlarged to 2.3 L displacement but with the same output, although with torque increased to 220 N·m (162 lb·ft). The C 280 was the high-end model of the class, with a four-valve-per-cylinder straight-six engine, capable of reaching 193 PS (142 kW; 190 hp).

Four-cylinder diesel models were equipped with the same OM601 engine of the 190, in the 2.0 L and 2.2 L versions. Many of these diesel variants were sold as taxis, due to their low fuel consumption and strong reliability. There were also more powerful OM605 five-cylinder engines which were available in naturally aspired (C 250 D) and turbocharged (C 250 TD) forms. The turbodiesel was introduced in 1995 and is one of the novelties in the engine range available from this year. The most important was a supercharged version of the M111 straight four, the C 230 Kompressor, using a Roots-type supercharger to generate 193 PS (142 kW; 190 hp) at 5300 rpm: Mercedes-Benz reused supercharger technology after 50 years. Due to the tax law in Italy and Portugal, models in those countries featured a supercharged version of the smaller 2.0 L (C 200 Kompressor), which had a similar output of the C 230 Kompressor.