Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor
What it costs to keep fuelled
$2,043a year, fuel only
The 2005 Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor is EPA-rated at 23.5 MPG combined (20.5 city / 29 highway). Over 15,000 miles a year that is about 638 gallons, $2043 a year in fuel, or $0.136 per mile at $3.20/gal.
Across its full 1999–2005 run it averages 22.3 MPG, improving by 1.5 MPG over 6 model years.
The band is how far one gallon carries it: 23.5 of the 60 MPG this scale runs to. The square tick is the compact cars average, 26.6.
- Fuel, per year
- $2,043 at 15,000 mi
- Per mile
- $0.136
- Per kilometre
- $0.085
- Gallons burned/yr
- 638
1 mile = 1.609344 km · fuel at $3.20/gal, fixed JUL 2026
Test figure — not a road resultSOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
How this is worked out
- Start from the EPA combined figure for the model year — a laboratory test cycle run to a fixed procedure, not a road result. Where a year sold several engines or drivetrains, the trims are averaged and the trim count is printed beside the row so you can see how much averaging is behind it.
- Fix a pump price. This site keeps one reference price, $3.20 a US gallon, fixed JUL 2026 and printed next to every dollar figure it produces. It is an assumption with a date on it, not a quote — put your own price in.
- Fix an annual distance. Every annual figure on this site uses 15,000 miles a year, roughly the US average. A cost per year with no stated distance is not a number, it is a mood.
- Divide distance by economy for gallons, multiply by price for the year's fuel, divide price by economy for one mile. The per-kilometre line is that last figure divided by 1.609344 — the same money, in the unit most of the world drives in.
- Stop there. No depreciation, no tyres, no insurance, no servicing. This is the fuel line of the ledger and it is labelled as one; depreciation usually dwarfs everything on it.
gallons/yr = miles/yr ÷ MPG fuel $/yr = gallons/yr × $/gal cost $/mi = $/gal ÷ MPG cost $/km = cost $/mi ÷ 1.609344
The full method, the licence note, and what a test figure cannot tell you →
Re-run the ledger at another pump price
Every line above rests on one pump price. Here is the same entry re-costed at six others, because the price is the part that changes while the test sheet stays put.
| Fuel price | Per mile | 10,000 mi/yr | 15,000 mi/yr | 20,000 mi/yr |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| $2.50/gal | $0.106 | $1064 | $1596 | $2128 |
| $3.00/gal | $0.128 | $1277 | $1915 | $2553 |
| $3.20/gal | $0.136 | $1362 | $2043 | $2723 |
| $3.50/gal | $0.149 | $1489 | $2234 | $2979 |
| $4.00/gal | $0.170 | $1702 | $2553 | $3404 |
| $4.50/gal | $0.191 | $1915 | $2872 | $3830 |
| $5.00/gal | $0.213 | $2128 | $3191 | $4255 |
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
The whole service history, sheet by sheet
6 model years on file. Read down the combined column: a nameplate that got heavier shows it here long before any brochure admits it.
| Year | Combined | City | Highway | EPA fuel cost/yr | CO₂ g/mi | Trims |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 2005 | 23.5 MPG | 20.5 | 29 | $3275 | 378 | 2 |
| 2004 | 23 MPG | 20 | 27.5 | $3350 | 386 | 2 |
| 2003 | 22.8 MPG | 19.5 | 28.3 | $3388 | 391 | 4 |
| 2002 | 20.5 MPG | 18 | 26 | $3750 | 434 | 2 |
| 2000 | 22 MPG | 19 | 26 | $3500 | 404 | 1 |
| 1999 | 22 MPG | 19 | 26 | $3500 | 404 | 1 |
Where a model year offered several engines or drivetrains, the figure is the average across all EPA-tested trims that year — the trim count is shown so you can see how much averaging is involved.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Marked against the rest of the compact cars bay
Among the 227 compact cars models tracked here, the Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor ranks 122 on current figures, against a class average of 26.6 MPG — the square tick on the gauge above.
Closest more-efficient alternatives in the same class: Acura TSX (23.7), Chevrolet Beretta (23.7), Toyota Camry Solara (23.7), Acura TLX AWD (24), Acura TLX AWD A-SPEC (24).
Tailpipe CO₂ is rated at 378 grams per mile, which works out to roughly 5.7 tonnes a year at 15,000 miles.
Questions asked across the counter
What MPG does the Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor get?
The 2005 Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor is rated at 23.5 MPG combined by the EPA — 20.5 city and 29 highway. Across all 6 model years in the database it averages 22.3 MPG, ranging from 20 to 24 depending on year and trim.
How much does a Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor cost in fuel per year?
At 23.5 MPG and 15,000 miles a year, it burns about 638 gallons — roughly $2043 a year with fuel at $3.20 a gallon, or $0.136 per mile. The EPA's own published annual figure for the 2005 model is $3275.
Has the Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor become more efficient over time?
Yes. It has gone from 22 MPG in 1999 to 23.5 in 2005 — an improvement of 1.5 MPG, or 7% across 6 model years.
Is the Mercedes-Benz C230 Kompressor efficient for its class?
It ranks 122 of 227 in the Compact Cars class on current figures, against a class average of 26.6 MPG. That is 3.1 worse than typical for the class.
Pull another logbook off the same shelf
Same class, nearest economy first — the ones a buyer is genuinely choosing between.
SOURCE·US EPA fuel-economy test data·FUEL ASSUMED AT $3.20/GAL FROM JUL 2026·REVIEWED JUL 2026
Cost per mile, per kilometre and per year are computed at a reference price of $3.20 a gallon over 15,000 miles, fixed JUL 2026 — set your own pump price. Estimates based on official test figures and average fuel prices. Real-world consumption varies with driving style, load, terrain and maintenance.
