Compare the2024 Mercedes C-Class SedanVS 2024 Infiniti Q50

Safety
Warranty
Reliability
Fuel Economy and Range
Environmental Friendliness
Transmission
Brakes and Stopping
Tires and Wheels
Suspension and Handling
Chassis
Passenger Space
Cargo Capacity
Ergonomics
Model Availability
Recommendations

Safety

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For enhanced safety, the front and rear seat shoulder belts of the Mercedes C-Class Sedan have pretensioners to tighten the seatbelts and eliminate dangerous slack in the event of a collision and force limiters to limit the pressure the belts will exert on the passengers. The Infiniti Q50 doesn’t offer pretensioners for its rear seat belts.

The Mercedes C-Class Sedan has a standard driver’s side knee airbag mounted low on the dashboard. The knee airbag helps prevent the driver from sliding under the seatbelts or the main frontal airbag; this keeps the driver better positioned during a collision for maximum protection. A knee airbag also helps keep the legs from striking the dashboard, preventing knee and leg injuries in the case of a serious frontal collision. The Q50 doesn’t offer knee airbags.

The C-Class Sedan has a standard Post Collision Brake, which automatically applies the brakes in the event of a crash to help prevent secondary collisions and prevent further injuries. The Q50 doesn’t offer a post collision braking system: in the event of a collision that triggers the airbags, more collisions are possible without the protection of airbags that may have already deployed.

Earlier warning of stopped traffic, traffic signals, dangerous road conditions, weather, or accidents, can keep driver's safer and prevent crashes. The C-Class Sedan offers optional Car-to-X Communication, a system that seemlesly communicates important warnings to the driver about impending danger, if they're available. The Q50 doesn’t offer a system that can receive automated systems from infrastructure or other vehicles.

The C-Class Sedan’s driver alert monitor detects an inattentive driver then sounds a warning and suggests a break. According to the NHTSA, drivers who fall asleep cause about 100,000 crashes and 1500 deaths a year. The Q50 doesn’t offer a driver alert monitor.

Both the C-Class Sedan and the Q50 have standard driver and passenger frontal airbags, front side-impact airbags, side-impact head airbags, height adjustable front shoulder belts, four-wheel antilock brakes, traction control, electronic stability systems to prevent skidding, crash mitigating brakes, daytime running lights, blind spot warning systems, rearview cameras, available all wheel drive, around view monitors and rear cross-path warning.

For its top level performance in IIHS driver and passenger-side small overlap frontal, moderate overlap frontal, side impact, roof strength and head restraint tests, with its optional vehicle-to-vehicle front crash prevention system, with its optional vehicle-to-pedestrian front crash prevention system, and its standard headlight’s “Good” rating, the Insurance Institute for Highway Safety grants the C-Class Sedan its highest rating: “Top Safety Pick Plus” for 2022, a rating granted to only 131 vehicles tested by the IIHS. The Q50 is not even a standard “Top Safety Pick.”

Warranty

There are over 89 percent more Mercedes dealers than there are Infiniti dealers, which makes it much easier should you ever need service under the C-Class Sedan’s warranty.

Reliability

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2023 Initial Quality Study of new car owners surveyed provide the statistics that show that Mercedes vehicles are better in initial quality than Infiniti vehicles. With 11 fewer problems per 100 vehicles, JD Power ranks Mercedes higher than Infiniti.

J.D. Power and Associates’ 2022 survey of the owners of three-year-old vehicles provides the long-term dependability statistics that show that Mercedes vehicles are more reliable than Infiniti With 33 fewer problems per 100 vehicles in the first three years of ownership, J.D. Power ranks Mercedes higher than Infiniti.

Fuel Economy and Range

On the EPA test cycle the C-Class Sedan gets better mileage than the Q50:

			MPG
C-Class Sedan
	RWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	26 city/36 hwy
	AWD	2.0 turbo 4-cyl.	23 city/33 hwy
Q50
	RWD	3.0 turbo V6	20 city/29 hwy
		Red Sport 400 3.0 turbo V6	20 city/26 hwy
	AWD	3.0 turbo V6	19 city/27 hwy
		Red Sport 400 3.0 turbo V6	19 city/26 hwy

Regenerative brakes improve the C-Class Sedan’s fuel efficiency by converting inertia back into energy instead of wasting it. The Q50 doesn’t offer a regenerative braking system.

In heavy traffic or at stoplights the C-Class Sedan’s engine automatically turns off when the vehicle is stopped, saving fuel and reducing pollution. The engine is automatically restarted when the driver gets ready to move again. If the conditions warrant or the driver wishes, the system can be manually disabled at any time for the duration of a trip. The Q50 doesn’t offer an automatic engine start/stop system.

Environmental Friendliness

In its Green Vehicle Guide, the U.S. Environmental Protection Agency (EPA) rates the Mercedes C-Class Sedan higher (8 out of 10) than the Infiniti Q50 (3). This means the C-Class Sedan produces up to 30 pounds less smog-producing pollutants than the Q50 every 15,000 miles.

Transmission

A nine-speed automatic is standard on the Mercedes C-Class Sedan, for better acceleration and lower engine speed on the highway. Only a seven-speed automatic is available for the Q50.

Brakes and Stopping

For better stopping power the C-Class Sedan’s standard front brake rotors are larger than those on the Q50:

	C-Class Sedan	Q50
Front Rotors	13 inches	12.6 inches

Tires and Wheels

For better traction and acceleration, the C-Class Sedan has larger standard rear tires than the Q50 (245/40R18 vs. 225/50R18).

The C-Class Sedan’s standard 225/45R18 front and 245/40R18 rear tires provide better handling because they have a lower 45 series front and 40 series rear profile (height to width ratio) that provides a stiffer sidewall than the Q50 Luxe’s standard 50 series tires.

Suspension and Handling

The C-Class Sedan has standard front and rear gas-charged shocks for better control over choppy roads. The Q50’s suspension doesn’t offer gas-charged shocks.

For better handling and stability, the track (width between the wheels) on the C-Class Sedan is 1.8 inches wider in the front and 1.3 inches wider in the rear than the average track on the Q50.

Chassis

The design of the Mercedes C-Class Sedan amounts to more than styling. The C-Class Sedan has an aerodynamic coefficient of drag of .24 Cd. That is lower than the Q50 (.26 to .29) and many sports cars. A more efficient exterior helps keep the interior quieter and helps the C-Class Sedan get better fuel mileage.

Passenger Space

The C-Class Sedan has .5 inches more front headroom, 4.9 inches more front hip room, .7 inches more rear headroom, .9 inches more rear legroom and 5.6 inches more rear hip room than the Q50.

Cargo Capacity

Pressing a switch automatically lowers the C-Class Sedan’s rear seats, to make changing between passengers and cargo easier. The Q50 doesn’t offer automatic folding seats.

To make loading and unloading groceries and cargo easier when your hands are full, the C-Class Sedan’s power trunk can be opened or closed just by kicking your foot under the back bumper, leaving your hands completely free. The Q50 doesn’t offer a power or hands-free opening trunk.

Ergonomics

Unlike the driver-only memory system in the Q50, the C-Class Sedan has standard driver and passenger memory, so that when drivers switch, the memory setting adjusts the driver’s seat, steering wheel position and outside mirror angle and the front passenger seat also adjusts to the new passenger’s preset preferences.

The C-Class Sedan offers an optional heads-up display that projects speed and navigation instruction readouts in front of the driver’s line of sight, allowing drivers to view information without diverting their eyes from the road. The Q50 doesn’t offer a heads-up display.

The C-Class Sedan’s power parking brake sets with one touch and releases with one touch or automatically. The Q50’s parking brake has to be released manually.

The power windows standard on both the C-Class Sedan and the Q50 have locks to prevent small children from operating them. When the lock on the C-Class Sedan is engaged the driver can still operate all of the windows, for instance to close one opened by a child. The Q50 prevents the driver from operating the other windows just as it does the other passengers.

Consumer Reports rated the C-Class Sedan’s headlight performance “Excellent,” a higher rating than the Q50’s headlights, which were rated “Good.”

The Insurance Institute for Highway Safety (IIHS) conducts detailed tests on headlights for their range both straight ahead and in curves and to be certain they don’t exceed acceptable amounts of glare to oncoming drivers. The C-Class Sedan’s headlights were rated “Good” to “Acceptable” by the IIHS, while the Q50’s headlights are rated “Marginal.”

A power rear sunshade and manual rear side window sunshades are standard in the C-Class Sedan to help block heat and glare for the rear passengers. The Q50 doesn’t offer a rear or rear side window sunshades.

Optional air-conditioned seats in the C-Class Sedan keep the driver and front passenger comfortable and take the sting out of hot seats in Summer. The Q50 doesn’t offer air-conditioned seats.

To quickly and conveniently keep personal devices charged without cables tangling and wearing out, the Mercedes C-Class has a standard wireless phone charging system (Qi) in the center console. The Q50 doesn’t offer wireless personal charging.

The C-Class Sedan has a 115-volt a/c outlet on the center console, allowing you to recharge a laptop or run small household appliances without special adapters that can break or get misplaced. The Q50 doesn’t offer a house-current electrical outlet.

The C-Class Sedan’s optional Active Parking Assist can parallel park or back into a parking spot by itself, stopping and changing direction automatically. The Q50 doesn’t offer an automated parking system.

Model Availability

The Mercedes C-Class comes in coupe, convertible and sedan bodystyles; the Infiniti Q50 isn’t available as a coupe or convertible.

Recommendations

The Mercedes C-Class outsold the Infiniti Q50 by over five to one during 2023.