The 2022 Mercedes-Benz C-Class is shaping up to be exciting news this year. The watchword is efficiency, and after 2021 the entire range of entry-level luxury cars will travel further on a full tank.

Among the distinctions of the upcoming model year revision is the dropping of six- and eight-cylinder engines in favor of mild hybrid drivetrains—including the AMG iteration, which will boast a horsepower rating of 500—and the standardization of the nine-speed automatic transmission.

The car’s design language has become a little more florid, but it still keeps to the current Mercedes ethos of echoing the purity and beauty of natural forms. It’s 2.5 inches longer than it was, and that helps account for the body’s increased extravagance of line; also contributing is the longer nose, which yields a more graceful profile. The practical considerations include increased room in the back seat above, beside, and in front, welcome news for buyers with teenage kids.

Tech updates recall the 2021 S-Class and include a massive new center touchscreen—it’s 11.9 inches across, and driver-oriented—and a 12.3-inch digital instrument readout. The new version of the head-up display projects a virtual readout fifteen feet from the driver’s seat, and of course the new MBUX system is standard, with over-air updates for 2022.

A new audio system from Burmester is also in the cards for the upcoming model year revision, as well as fingerprint recognition and new driver-assisting tech.