It was in September this year when Mercedes-Benz India launched the mid-life update of the C-Class. Up until now, the premium sedan was available only with a diesel engine. Now though, the German carmaker has quietly added a petrol-powered variant in the C-Class’ line-up. Tagged simply as the C 200, it is available in the Progressive trim only. The company has slapped-on an ex-showroom (India) price tag of Rs 43.47 lakh.

What’s under the hood? A brand-new petrol engine. It is a 1.5-litre, 4-cylinder turbocharged mill that puts out 184PS of power and 280Nm of torque. Coupled to it is a 48V mild-hybrid system with Mercedes’ EQ Boost technology. When accelerating, the EQ Boost can assist the petrol engine with an additional 14PS/160Nm of oomph until the turbocharger kicks in. The power-plant is mated to a 9-speed automatic transmission and the setup is enough for the car to hit 100kmph from nought in 7.7 seconds and reach a top speed of 239kmph.

The small capacity engine helps in boosting the mileage figure. However, the EQ Boost technology takes the fuel savings a notch higher with features like gliding mode with the engine switched off and the recuperative brake with engine stop when the vehicle is coasting. In essence, when the speed falls under a certain minimum limit, the engine automatically switches off to save fuel.

Since the C 200 is available only in the Progressive trim, it will have the same sort of kit as the C 220 d progressive. The list of features includes 17-inch alloy wheels, panoramic sunroof, auto headlamps and wipers, 64-colour ambient lighting, two-zone climate control and a 10.25-inch touchscreen infotainment system with Android Auto and Apple CarPlay. On the safety front, the Mercedes-Benz C 200 comes with Active Parking Assist, rear-view camera, cruise control with Speedtronic, adaptive brake lights (flashing) and Mercedes’ PRESAFE system.

Compared to the C 220 d Progressive, the C 200 Progressive is about Rs 78,000 less expensive. In India, the Mercedes-Benz C-Class competes with the likes of the BMW 3 Series, Audi A4, Jaguar XE and the Volvo S60.