Mercedes expands range with Kompressor in Indonesia<\/p>\n
By John Aglionby<\/p>\n
THE woman was undoubtedly beautiful. Her fine cheekbones
\noffset her small, perfectly straight nose and sensual mouth.<\/p>\n
Her hair was tied back revealing a graceful neck and cute
\nlittle ears.<\/p>\n
But my gaze was drawn elsewhere. For nestling between two
\nslim, elegantly long fingers with brightly painted nails was the
\nfattest cigar you are ever likely to see outside Cuba.<\/p>\n
The impression I made was instantaneous and unambiguous. This
\nwas a woman with attitude, someone who knew what she wanted, knew
\nhow to get it and would probably not let anything block her path
\nto the top.<\/p>\n
Welcome to the advertisement for Mercedes Benz's latest
\naddition to the C-Class range, the C230 Kompressor. While the
\nGerman car manufacturer is not aiming the vehicle at cigar-
\nsmoking supermodels, it is targeting young (at heart?),
\nsuccessful, female executives.<\/p>\n
Mercedes Benz Indonesian press officer, Lisa Malonda, said:
\n\"Many men think the C-Class is too small for them and so, go for
\nthe E-Class.<\/p>\n
\"This car is aimed, therefore, more at women who, even though
\nthey want to be feminine, like to show they have a macho touch as
\nwell.\"<\/p>\n
The secret behind the Kompressor's \"macho touch\" is its
\ncompressor, which is designed to give the four-cylinder engine
\nalmost as much pizzazz as the C280's six cylinders.<\/p>\n
At 2200rpm, the compressor, a type of supercharger,
\nautomatically kicks in producing 30 percent more power than the
\nequivalent models.<\/p>\n
The compressor is driven by an extension of the belt from the
\ncrankshaft pulley and compresses the air before it enters the
\ncylinder in order to boost both the power and the torque.<\/p>\n
This means the maximum torque of 280Nm is reached at much
\nlower engine speeds without any discernible lag and should be
\nmaintained right through until 4800rpm. The Kompressor's
\nacceleration, zero-to-100kmh in 7.9 seconds, and maximum speed,
\n230kmh, are comparable with the C280.<\/p>\n
The standard C230 struggles to top 200kmh and for the C180,
\nthat magic speed is just a pipe dream, although with an average
\ndaytime traffic speed in Jakarta of only nine kmh there are
\nunlikely to be many opportunities to see if the Kompressor really
\ncan outpace its siblings.<\/p>\n
For drivers more worried about fuel consumption (6.2 liters at
\n90kmh) and CO2 emissions, the Kompressor is not as efficient as
\nthe C230 but much more so than the C280, which is what Mercedes
\nBenz want it to be compared with.<\/p>\n
However, their statistics must be taken with a pinch of salt
\n-- they were calculated in Europe with lead-free gasoline.<\/p>\n
Premix-guzzling Indonesian cars will be unlikely to emit only
\n30 percent of the particles allowed under European Union
\nlegislation, as Mercedes Benz say the Kompressor does.<\/p>\n
The other difference between the Kompressor and the standard
\nC230 is the gearbox. While the C230 comes in either manual or
\nautomatic transmission, the Kompressor will be available with
\nonly automatic transmission, but features a five-speed gearbox
\nwhich should provide smooth shifting in the majority of
\nconditions.<\/p>\n
As for the rest of the car, it is, to all intents and
\npurposes, the same as the C230. Antilock brakes are standard
\nand the crumple zone is capable of absorbing an offset frontal
\nimpact at speeds of up to 55kmh.<\/p>\n
The only downside is the price, a cool Rp 181 million
\n(US$75,000) off the road. This is 30 percent more expensive than
\nthe nearest BMW equivalent but this does not concern Mercedes
\nBenz.<\/p>\n
\"We are focusing on quality not quantity and in the
\nKompressor, we believe we have a car of unrivaled quality in
\nIndonesia in its class,\" Lisa said.<\/p>\n
The naturally aspirated manual C230 Classic is priced at Rp
\n153 million with the automatic C230 Elegance costing Rp 169
\nmillion.<\/p>\n
With more and more Indonesians wanting to advertise their
\nbusiness success through the car they drive, only time will tell
\nwhether 1997 sales (for all C-class cars) will be much below the
\n1,600 target.<\/p>",
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