Mercedes-Benz Vaneo 1.9 Family: Seven I, five We and one He.

Conceptually, Vaneo stands out from the general range of traditional “Mercedes”, but fits perfectly into the “immense” policy of the company, which is interesting – from the point of view of journalism. But will potential buyers accept this alignment, especially in conservative Russia?

An attempt, and successful, to grasp the immensity – this is my vision of the policy of the DaimlerChrysler concern. More precisely, its European branch of Mercedes-Benz. Just think about how many of the most diverse equipment are produced under this trademark! Prestigious sedans with limousines, on which the heads of state move – time.

There are two different-caliber buses and long-distance trucks. Army SUVs and utility vehicles – three. Tiny city smart cards – four.

Sports and racing cars – five. Six, seven, eight … This list is far from complete.

But what can I say, just listing all the company’s products is, in fact, a story … No, a novel about the history, development and current state of the global automotive industry! Have you ever come across a Mercedes bicycles?

By the way, there are such in nature – I myself saw one of the dealers in the showroom.

So it is not surprising that rather unusual cars are also entering the market from the depths of the company. Unusual, however, only for adherents of classic “Mercedes”. If you think carefully, all the unusualness disappears at once – since this or that thing is called Mercedes-Benz, then it should be so.

After all, embracing the immensity is a difficult, but quite achievable goal. Hence, all means are good.

Materialized in metal just over a year ago, Mercedes Vaneo fell into the hands of the Russian consumer quite recently. It would even be more correct to say “almost pleased” – the car that you can see in the illustrations was the only one in Russia at the time of filming. Conceptually, Vaneo stands out from the general range of traditional “Mercedes”, but fits perfectly into the “immense” policy of the company, which is interesting – from the point of view of journalism. But will potential buyers accept this alignment, especially in conservative Russia?

Two days in the company of this car helped to understand a lot.

Vaneo is built on the chassis of the smallest of the “A” -class Mercedes, as you can guess when looking at the car from the front. A deep immersion in the study of the materiel of the car will only confirm the guesses: the body has a two-tier floor, under the “upper floor” of which, saving the lives of the inhabitants of the cabin, the engine will go away in the event (God forbid) an impromptu crash test on public roads. The range of power units also repeats one-to-one “A” -class: two turbodiesels and three gasoline engines, the most powerful of which develops 125 hp.

When ordering a car, the buyer is free to choose from three levels of equipment – Trend, Family and Ambient – from simple to more complex. But even more interesting are the special equipment packages with which you can customize your Vaneo as much as possible. There are five of them: Snow, Surf, Bike, Dog and Carry.

Each of them is a kind of “organizer” of the luggage compartment.

For example, the trunk of a car with the Dog package is equipped as a dog cage with a special floor covering; and in the Surf, Bike and Snow versions, the layout of the machine is optimized for the transport of appropriate sports equipment for outdoor activities.

The compact “A” -class, having taken deep roots, has grown in Vaneo to the size of a solid car: tall, but not very slender. His appearance is deceiving. Yes, the minivan seems to be only slightly larger than the donor in terms of overall dimensions.

In fact, everything is exactly the opposite.

Short overhangs in combination with a long wheelbase have led to the fact that even large wheels on graceful alloy wheels against the background of an impressive body seem disproportionately small, and the cute face of the “minimers” does not correspond to the size of this bus. However, upon closer inspection, you come to the conclusion that the body does not just seem large. It’s really big!

The originality of Vaneo is not lacking. The short hood, without changing the angle of inclination, grows into a windshield – here you can even see a certain resemblance to the big Mercedes Sprinter. But the stern of the car is its own, the main element of which should be recognized as the giant, two-thirds of the height of the body, lights with grilles for the ventilation system of the passenger compartment.

Inside, the deception continues. The central panel of Vaneo does not amaze the imagination with its scope and boundlessness, especially if you make allowances for the car’s mono-volume. However, it is enough to simply turn around to realize the true scale of the saloon stretching far back. The car is filled with air – such an impression is created by a high roof and a large glass area. Daylight floods the car through huge side windows and an electrically operated transparent sunroof somewhere high above the driver, just below the Vaneo dome.

There really is a bus! Not an international liner, of course, but a family one.

The car, which we took from the DaimlerChrysler dealership, was in the middle Family configuration, but supplemented almost to “full stuffing” with various options. One of the features of the Vaneo family version is the ability to install additional seats in the trunk, which effectively turns the car into a seven-seater van. In our car, these seats were absent, but we were able to fully experience the advantages that the telescopic floor of the trunk provides, like a stretcher on an ambulance. It is very convenient for loading large-sized non-canted items weighing up to 80 kg: pulled out a pallet, piled, for example, a TV on it, and pushed it back into the bowels of the car. And what the bowels are!

If you dismantle all the seats, except the driver’s one, then the internal volume of the car will be almost three and a half cubic meters. Load oranges in barrels!

Each member of the Vaneo family is given due attention. The second row seats can be transformed in one Why Is Business So Famous? – Best stuff step into children’s seats that meet the Isofix standard. The same seat (or rather, only the right side of it) can be turned into a table with recesses for glasses.

The seat next to the driver is also transformed into exactly the same table.

But most of all, the car pays attention to the driver. The low waistline of the front doors allows you to take a relaxed position: you can put your left hand on the “windowsill”, hold the steering wheel with one finger, and use your right hand with a convenient short-stroke lever of a mechanical box or control the audio system. Or, following the lead of the rear passengers, “ventilate” the interior by pressing the button for controlling the electric drive of the rear vents.