Mercedes makes a simpler hot rod

Entry-level is a phrase fraught with potential difficulty. Take property as an example. The nomenclature of estate agents is famously slippery, so an ‘entry-level’ dwelling could mean anything from a plain, but pleasant, estate house to a crumbling den of dampness in someone’s basement.

Equally, when applied to cars, entry-level becomes as relative as the Einstein concept of velocity. When said without context, the phrase generates images of the most basic car you ...