A few things....
1-Mistake in the original article, the B200 Turbo comes standard with a 6-speed manual,
not a 5-speed.
2-Dropping the CVT drops the price by $1500. No enthousiast would pick that over the close-ratio 6-spped, right?
3-Cross shopping. I'm actually looking at a Volvo V50, the A3 or the A4, and the B200 turbo.
2 kids, 9 and 12. 12 year old already wears size 9 shoes....
Think he'd be happy to spend time in the rear seat of the 2 Audis? Don't think so... the V50 is a bit better, but the B200 beats them both by a wide margin. More trunk space too!
And, Mercedes has just re-packaged the options list....
A B200 Turbo, with premium package (Panorama sunroof and heated seats) and 17" allloys with summer performance tires lists for $38,265
That nicely splits the pricing of the other cars...