Mercedes C220 CDI estate (2007) review

Ooh, a compact exec estate. What combination of sport/tourer/Avant/wagon is it called?

None: the Mercedes C-Class estate is, well, just that. Plain old estate. And the largest premium-class estate at that. How very sensible. Mercedes may have been unusually bold in its approach to the latest C – hacking off the stick-up grille badge for Sport editions, making the chassis more dynamic than ever – but it hasn’t forgot the reason why people buy estates. To carry stuff. So, compared to the old car, the rear roofline has been extended and the tailgate set more vertically, creating more of a box and less of a glorified pseudo-coupe. It’s still a smart-looking thing, blending neatly with the C’s tidy lines. You’re just less likely to smash the tailgate window as you close a loaded-to-the-gunnels boot.

Hit me with that extra practicality…

To get you going 1,500 litres with the seats down is the largest in the compact exec class, and only 100 litres shy of a Volvo V70. Seats up, it has 485 litres (and that load area is now colour-matched to the rest of the cabin) which, claims Mercedes, is ‘more useful’ than the stats suggest, due to the uncluttered load area. Space between the wheelarches in particular is up: fold the seats again (easily, in one step) and you can slide in an 827-litre box. Washing machines won’t be a problem (and, thanks to a class-leading 605kg payload, the car will be man enough, even if your back isn’t).