A report from worldcarfans.com revealed some details of the upcoming Mercedes-Benz C350 Plug-In Hybrid. The detailed were provided by the Head of Development of the C-Class Estate, Ralf Rossmanith.

Rossmanith, who confirmed the existence of the vehicle, said the sedan was currently being tested. It will feature a four-cylinder gas-electric hybrid engine. Tests have shown that its carbon dioxide emissions are less the 50 grams for every kilometer, which equivalent to an average fuel consumption of around 2 liters for every 100 kilometers.

The upcoming sedan will also have an all-electric range of around 30 kilometers, which can be modified to allow it to travel 50 kilometers for units sold in China. The cruising range of the vehicle using the 2.0-liter turbo engine will be around 600 kilometers. The engine will kick in once the Mercedes-Benz C350 Plug-In Hybrid uses up all the electricity.

In the Australian market, the company is aiming to produce an efficient vehicle priced lower than $100,000 Concerns in electric cars and plug-in hybrids were also raised in Australia.

According to David McCarthy, Senior Manager of Public Relations, Product and Corporate Communications of Mercedes-Benz, among their concerns is how electricity will be generated. He said the presence of plug-in hybrids and electric cars will increase emissions instead of reducing it since Australia relies on coal-generated electricity. This accounts for a considerable volume of the CO2 emissions of the country.

Despite these concerns, McCarthy said the company is not dealing with a moral dilemma when it comes to the use of plug-in hybrid technology. He explained that these concerns emerge since there is no point in replacing pollution in one place with pollution in another place.

Although the Mercedes-Benz C350 Plug-In Hybrid is expected to use lesser fuel compared to the Toyota Prius, it is expected to be more expensive than its rival in the market.